Types of Communication

Defining Communication:

Communication means exchanging the information, ideas, signals, feelings, emotions or thoughts with the help of a particular medium i.e in writing or by speaking.
In the process of communication a sender encodes a message and sends across a particular medium. The receiver decodes the message which has been sent across the medium and sends an appropriate feedback with the help of the channel.

Depending on the type of the message that is to be sent the channel is selected. However the  choice of the channel creates an impact on the communication.

There are certain types of communications. Below mentioned are some.

Verbal Communication: 
In this particular form of communication the message is sent out verbally either by writing the message down or by word of mouth. The message while communicating should be kept simple and short. Because the person who is sending the message across knows what he wants to communicate but the receiver might have some different perception or attitude regarding the message conveyed. This can be a barrier in the communication. Verbal communication is further divided in to two categories.

• Oral Communication:   Oral communication means the message which is sent across through TV, radio, word of mouth, face to face conversation, telephonic conversation etc. The key advantage is that you can see the facial expression of the person and can judge whether the person is convinced by the message sent. Also oral communication can elicit a quick response.
• Written Communication: Written communication is across letters, reports, memos, email. Written signs and symbols are used particularly in the written communication. The precise the communication, the more polished the language better is the impact that shall be created due to written communication. The key advantage is you can edit the text before publishing it. However written communication can not elicit a quick response.

Non Verbal Communication:

Non verbal communication aims at sending the messages with the help of expressions, gestures, body language, tone of voice. Non verbal communication helps to interpret the message more accurately. Non Verbal communication is dependent on the appearance of the speaker, the gesture, the body language, the tone of voice, volume and the speech rate.

Communication based on cause:
Depending on the purpose the communication can be further divided into formal or non formal communication.

• Formal communication: When it comes to formal communication there are certain rules and protocols which are to be followed. The communication is formal and official in style. This usually occurs into official or corporate meetings.Usually slang or routine language is not used, precise and formal language is used for communication.

• Informal Communication:Informal communication usually happens in the casual talks in the routine social situations with friends or family. There are no barriers for the usage of the language. Slangs can be used in informal communication. Informal communication helps to express and also to form bonds with colleagues, friends.

Advertising Standard Council of India - ASCI

Advertising Standards Council of India is a self regulatory voluntary organization of the advertising industry. The role of ASCI and CCC (Consumer Complaint Council) is dealing with complaints received from the consumers and the industry, against the advertisements which are false or misleading and leads to unsafe practices or unfair to competition. This is where ASCI comes into picture.

ASCI has adopted the Code of Self regulation in advertising. It particularly means commitment of the advertisers to honest advertising and fair competition in the market place. It stands for the protection of the legitimate interests of the consumers and all concerned with advertising, which means the advertisers and the agencies who are responsible for the creation of advertisements.

Since the code is been adopted, the 3 things come into picture:

Fewer false and misleading claims, lesser unfair advertisements and increasing respectability.

The mission of ASCI is to maintain and enhance the publics confidence in advertising. ASCI seeks to ensure that advertisements confirm its Code for Self regulation. The advertisements need to be:

• Truthful and fair to competition and consumers
• The advertisement should fit in the norms of public decency
• The products which are likely to impact the minors or the ones which have hazardous impact should not be advertised. 

 ASCI encourages the public to complain about the advertisements which they find deceptive or do not fit in the decency standards or for any other reason. ASCI also ensures prompt and ample amount of consideration. After this the CCC takes at a look at the advertisement and then an appropriate decision is conveyed to the complainant and the advertiser.

If an ad is to be reviewed for its impact on the viewers/audience/readers then the advertiser is also informed duly about the complaint and the points raised in the complaint. Then depending on complaint the advertiser is also permitted to elicit a response on the substantial issues raised by the complainant.

Only then the CCC of the ASCI will be in a position to deliberate meaningfully on the issues involved and to arrive at a fair and objective conclusion, which would stand the scrutiny of all concerned with the right of freedom of expression and the freedom of consumers to choose the products and services made available to them in the market place.

A clearly copy of the copy or the ad under complaint with the full particulars of the name and date of publication or a print out of an ad is sent to the advertiser. The identity of the complainant is not revealed.

The code of the Advertising Practices:

To ensure the truthfulness and honesty of representations and claims made:

1. Advertisements must be truthful.
2. Where advertising claims are expressly stated to be based on or supported by independent research or assessment, the source and date of this should be indicated in the advertisement.
3. Ads should not contain any reference to any person without due permission
4. Ads shall not distort facts or mislead the consumer by the means of implications or omissions.
5. To ensure that ads are not offensive to generally accepted standard of public decency
6. To safeguard against the indiscriminate use of advertising products hazardous to society.
7. Ads addressed to children shall not contain anything whether in illustration or otherwise which might result into their physical or mental harm
8. Ads should not show children climbing or reaching to dangerous location to reach any product or for any other purpose.

Direct Marketing Media

Whenever a particular advertisement generates a qualified lead or generates an direct order only then that particular advertisement is called as an direct advertisement.
In this blog I will elaborating the direct marketing tools which are effective to generate potential leads or to stimulate orders.

1. Telemarketing:
Telemarketing is the largest direct marketing tool used by consumer and business products. Telemarketers make use of the latest technologies including hardware and software, database, call centers. Telemarketing activity is thoroughly planned and well executed. It is strategised in such a way that the person who is called by the telemarketing company is a potential customer of the firms target group. There is a personal interaction, though not face to face and also an attempt to satisfy the needs of the consumer. Telemarketing is used as a part of the integrated marketing communications programme. It is rarely used as a stand alone medium by the direct marketers. 

2. Direct Mail Marketing:
Direct mail marketing particularly includes personally addressed mails of brochures or leaflets. Direct mailers are sent extensively by apparel stores or jewellery store. 
Example: Garden Vareli sends out mailers during their sales which consists a message stating, carry this mailer to the sale venue and get a certain amount of discount.

2.1 Individual Mailers: These mailers particularly talk only about a certain product in detail. It carries all the specifications which a buyer might want to refer. Particularly used by mutual fund companies or by computer software package.

2.2 Catalogs: Catalogs are the widely used category by both, consumer goods and B2B marketers . Catalogs usually consists the line of the merchandise.

3. Direct Response TV:
A direct response TV commercial is more or less like the TV commercials. However DRTV commercial asks for an immediate action from the individuals. While the TV commercials aim to target the mass market, DRTV is targeted only to a specialized target audience. It also consists of a telephone number which encourages the prospects to place orders or seek detail about that particular product.

4. Direct Response Print Media:
In this particular medium a print ad is placed in a magazine or in a newspaper. It usually includes at least one reply mechanism in it.

5. Direct Response Radio:
Since majority of people spend most of their time travelling, where TV viewing is not practical. At this times Direct response radio proves to be an effective medium. Earlier radio was not considered as a strong direct marketing medium. However due to the ability to reach the segmented audience with utmost precision majority of the direct marketers make use of direct response radio.

6. Database marketing:
Database marketing particularly includes individually addressable marketing media channels to deliver highly targeted offers to customers and prospects.Firms can stay close to their target market by compiling and keeping a permanent record of all customer and prospect communications. It helps to improve future contacts and makes realistic planning of marketing activities possible.

Introduction to Direct Marketing

Let's start by defining Direct Marketing.

Direct marketing is an interactive system of marketing which uses one or more advertising media to effect a measurable response and/or transaction at any location.

There are 3 key aspects in this definition. 


The first one is that direct marketing is "interactive" in which both the marketer as well as the prospective consumer engage in two way communication. Usually the general form of advertising is one way communication where the information is sent out, but the prospect cannot react over the telephone or by through other medium.

The second aspect is that the direct marketing activities are "measurable" in nature. Direct marketing allows the marketer to identify/measure the outcome/response of any particular communication.

The third aspect is that direct marketing communications "can take place at any location". The prospective consumer can be contacted over a telephone/mail/fax.

The Advantages of direct marketing:
Direct marketing, like the other forms of communication aims at persuading the target audience. However there are some things which direct marketing does better than the traditional forms of marketing.

Expense and Profits through direct marketing:
Direct marketers make use of the paid messages just like the general advertisers, however the expenses for direct marketing campaigns are more since the aim is to generate a response. Direct marketing is basically selling your product/service without a sales person or without an intermediary. Since the intermediaries are eliminated the profit earned is more. However the expenditure on media is more as compared to general marketing. The expenditure generally accounts to 10 to 30 percent of the sales, depending on the media involved.

Customer Service:
Customer service plays an important role when it comes to direct marketing.Majority of the firms make money from repeat business rather than just from one sale. Hence a due importance has to be given to the customer service as well. Its an important mechanism to have regular interactions between the marketer and the consumer.

Precision in targeting:
The direct marketing campaigns are based on the use of the database that are segmented with respect to certain criteria like college goers, frequent flyers etc. The direct marketing communications are aimed at the precisely targeted prospects to reduce the waste which is present in other forms of communications.

Personalization:
Direct marketing communications are personalised and hence it creates a direct appeal to the prospective consumer. The ability to personalise extends just beyond the names where you can also communicate based on the past purchases, customer characteristics and likewise.

Call for immediate action:
Direct marketing communication always contains a call for action in their copy. The prospect is either encouraged to gain more information or place the order by calling the number in the direct response print ad.

Measurement:
The effect of the direct marketing activity can always be measured. You can track the performance, the campaigns can be monitored on a real time basis. You can precisely check what has worked and the areas which can be explored or the ones which have to be improvised.
Tracking the performance also helps in analyzing the behavior of the target group and also establish long term relationship with the target audience.

Emotional Appeals in Advertising

Emotional appeals are the exact opposite of the rational appeal. While rational appeal involves a deliberate reasoning process, emotional appeal aims to stir up emotions which are below the level of consciousness.
Emotional appeals are used by advertisers to excite the target group with the use of the emotions in the communication, thus directing them to make a purchase of the product or offering. 

Some of the emotional appeals are listed below. Let's take a quick look at the emotional appeals used in advertising.

FEAR APPEAL:
Fear Appeal is the most commonly used appeal when it comes to advertising a product. The greater the level of fear generated in a communication, the greater is the effectiveness of the message.
Fear appeal is particularly used when you want your target audience to start using your product or offering.
Fear Appeal is used is certain ways. At times advertisers show that since an individual is not using a particular product and hence he is losing friends, social status, job, position.
For example, Himalaya Sparkling white came up with a campaign where in they showcased that a girl with yellow teeth is often mocked by her friends. (Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEZpR9IsZtg)

If you wish to stop certain behavior/habit of the target group fear appeal works the best. Usually used in Public service announcements. A Don't Drink and Drive initiative by BMW came up with this brilliant ad with a hard hitting copy.



Fear Appeal is also used in selling across the mutual funds and life insurance commercials. 
However research states that at times extremely great fear appeals are lesser effective as compared to moderate fear appeal.

SEX APPEAL:

Sex appeal is used to a great extent in India when it comes to contraceptives, deodorants, lingerie and likewise . A study showcased that when sex appeal is used in advertisements men could recall the illustration however could not associate the brand with it. When it comes to using sex appeal the interpretation of the same differs from region to region and culture to culture.
Several brands like Wildstone, Engage Deodrants, Slice are using sex appeal to promote their products.

HUMOR APPEAL:

Humour appeal is used to sell FMCG products or durable goods. However it is suggested that using humour appeal to sell products like mutual funds, insurances or other serious products should be avoided.
However some financial institutions have made use of humour appeal in a brilliant way. ICICI came up with a commercial which had a imaginary character named Chintamani. A remarkable campaign executed with a strong punch line "No Chinta only money"
(Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUrQpr5zcPg)

There are certain advantages of using humour appeal. It leads to considerable brand recall. It creates a positive mood  and lead to the mental registration of the humour used in the ad leading to favorable association with the brand.

Humor appeal is used in chocolate brands, namkeen, soft drinks and likewise. 
The legendary Suresh Ramesh Campaign executed by 5 Star makes use of humor appeal. (Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3352Gric7M)
Kurkure also makes use of humor appeal in its commercials with the use of their strong punch line "Tedha hai par mera hai" (Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bO52OsNOCE0)

My next blog will be regarding the basics of Direct Marketing. So stay tuned!

Rational Appeal in Advertising

Let's talk appeals! To be precise Rational Appeal which is used in advertising to a great extent.

Rational appeals are particularly directed at the thinking process of the target audience. Rational appeals are used by the advertisers intentionally or consciously. The main aim to communicate through rational appeal is that the individual is likely to get the functional benefit if he/she is going to consume or utilize the product.

The ads with rational appeal is always effective and fruitful. Following are some buying motives which are usually considered as rational motives.

High Quality:
When ever it comes to consumer durable products or electronic gadgets, quality plays the key role. Communicate the target audience that the product or the offering you have is of apex quality and you have done your job. Many a times a consumer will buy a product because of the good quality and not merely because of the style or the fashion statement.

Example: Tata I-Shakti Dal talks about unpolished dal which is better in quality as compared to the lustrous polished dal. In this particular commercial Sanjeev Kapoor highlights the superior quality of the product/offering (Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntEYYw_sI-M)

Low Price:
At times low price can be a major factor. At times people think that the products which are available at a lower cost will be similar to the reputed products. They also have this rationale that their reason of purchasing the lower price product will be accepted as good one by his social group.

Example: Big Bazaar has been running Wednesday Bazaar, a day in the week where in there are heavy discounts on many products. So during Wednesday Bazaar, people may buy a local ice cream brand rather than buying a Baskin Robbins since the local ice creams may be available at a lower price (Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pmWGaxwmyY)

Long Life: 
Durability is a factor which is sought by everybody. Hence one more factor which is likely to appeal to the rationale of your target audience can be the durability of a product/offering.

Example: The Classic Ambuja cement Ad featuring Boman Irani which talks about the everlasting durability of  Ambuja Cement. The wall which stood tall even after multiple failed efforts to bring it down. (Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mVSjBBBHFA)

Easy to use:

Another key aspect which appeals the human rationale. In today's world every body is too busy and seek products which are easy to use. So particularly a washing machine which is automatic or a kitchen mixer which switches off after a pre determined period of time use the easy to use rational mtoive.

Example: Godrej came up with an advertisement for GoodKnight Fast Card. In this particular commercial they showcased the 3 easy steps with which every body can get rid off mosquitoes. A brilliant commercial highlighting the utility of the product in easy steps. (Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_awQeO0o0K4)

Economy:

This motive works the best. Define the economy aspect of a particular product and appeal the target group.

Example: Maruti came up with a campaign "Kitna Deti Hai" which was highly appreciated across the country by the critics. The key message that Maruti aimed to communicate was, for a country obsessed with mileage, Maruti Suzuki makes India's most fuel efficient cars. (Ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzW7Sxzkr1Y)

Attributes of a good and distinctive copy

The topic of this blog is probably what your copy writing professor might deliver his lecture on, in his very first copy writing session.
This blog is about the key attributes and features your copy should incorporate to make it hard hitting.
Using a proper headline:
Its always said that a book is judged by its cover. In a similar way your headline is that eye catching point. The headline is where you can draw the attention of your target audience. There are few advertisements which I have found gripping because of their headlines.

For example,  the famous Hindu and TOI war where in Hindu came up with some brilliant ads. Some of them were as follows: Sense not sensational, Read more about political parties and not Page 3 parties. Crisp, concise and to the point that is how you should try keeping it.
 
Focus on your reader:
Though the main aim of the copy is to convey the product details or service offering but an equal importance has to be given to your reader. Using words like "you", "your" and establishes a connect with the reader which is beneficial rather than emphasizing on the product or how to use it steps.
 
Indulge your audience by asking them questions:
Open your ad with a question just to draw in the reader's attention. Once the attention seeking part is done and that the curiosity is created, the reader will then try searching the answer of the question in the headline and will find it the body copy.
 
Take a leap from the introduction to the pitch immediately.
Don't keep the audience lingering at the headline. Every body in the world is busy. Do not spend too much time warming up. If you lose the reader attention you bear the loss
 
Make use of fear appeal:
Fear appeal is the one which is most commonly used by the advertisers. Usually banks, mutual funds, insurance providers are the ones who make use of fear appeal. If it is a safety product then use fear appeal to your advantage. If its an offering of an opportunity use fear appeal such that the buyer will miss the chance of availing a fantastic offer

Make use of flattery words:
Flattery but of course to an extent. Every reader knows that a marketer will end up being flamboyant when it comes to his product.
 
Make use of facts and figures
When you mention key facts and figures in your headline or in your copy it adds credibility to your product or service. 

For Example, You might have seen the print ads or TV ads of Colgate. In Colgate Sensitive Pro Relief advertisement, they make it a point that they always include the fact that 9 out of 10 dentists prefer Colgate and also refer it to their acquaintances

My next blog will be regarding the appeals used in the advertising and are an important aspect of consumer behavior. So Stay Tuned!

ACS - Product packaging for international markets

Every BMMite is well versed with the 4P's of marketing. PRODUCT. PLACE. PRICE. PROMOTION.

These 4P's play a major part for the marketing of a particular product in the market. But another important aspect or rather the important P of marketing is PACKAGING.

Packaging and labeling, two important aspects which every manufacturer/service provider should consider while his product is going to hit the market.

Take a walk across the super market. Every super market holds about 45,000 products. And the ultimate goal of every manufacturer is that my product has to land in my potential consumers shopping basket.

To achieve this goal, what is required is a cutting edge packaging, with brilliant use of colors. Colors which will appeal to the potential customer and will turn him into the products consumer.

Since this is the era of globalization, the protocols of packaging are also to be followed at the global level. In this case what the marketer has to undertake is "glocalisation", which means going global keeping the local essence intact. There are several differences in the marketing environment across the countries.

Modification may be required in all the 3 levels of the packaging. The 3 levels of packaging are as follows:

Primary Pack: For example, a labeled tooth paste tube

Secondary Pack: For example, the labeled carton which is going to hold the tooth paste tube

Tertiary Pack: The box which contains a specific number of cartons

Labeling:

Labeling not only specifies the contents of a particular product, but is is also legally essential to mention the same in all the countries. The labeling protocols change from one country to another. The labels are to be modified into the local languages or it has to be multilingual if a particular product is a world brand.

Product names have to be specific. You cannot call a ketch up "Hot chilli" in Saudi Arabia. It needs to be named as Spiced Hot Chilli. Diet Coke a product of Coca Cola did not work in Brazil because the work Diet refers that the product has some medicinal qualities. Coke had to get special approvals and they had to alter the name to Coca Cola Light in countries like Germany, France due to legal restrictions. 

In some countries words like giant pack or jumbo pack are prohibited.

Package Size and Price:

Package size and price have a great importance where the income level is meager. In poor countries make the products in smaller size in small packages.
For example, Sunsilk launched in the concept of satches in India to reach the potential target group with lower income group.

Trade Mark:

I read this somewhere, a country had red circle as their trade mark which was not used in Asia because it drew references with the Japanese flag. A company had yellow flowers as their trade mark which was not used in Mexico where yellow flowers symbolize death. Hence care should be taken while choosing trademarks where in the trade marks don't have any other meaning across the globe.

Color:

Color is one more important factor which has to be considered while packaging a particular product. While in some country white symbolizes purity while in some it is associated with mourning.

Also one more factor has to be taken into consideration while packaging a particular product.The product has to be well protected in the packaging in all sorts of climatic conditions. Quality of the packaging also has to be considered. Japanese attitude about quality includes the packaging of the product. A poor packaged product conveys an impression of poor quality.

Container material preferences also alters across the globe, like the Americans consumer beer in cans where as Europeans prefer in glass bottles.


Hence it can be said that the success or the failure of a particular product depends on the understanding the cultural differences in terms of the factors which are essential for the packaging of the product.

Types of Advertising Agencies

Well, in my previous blog I had mentioned I will be writing about the types of the ad agencies. It took me some while to get my hands on this blog.
This blog is about the types of the ad agencies and the functions they undertake.

When it comes to agencies there are some who know from alpha to omega, while some are the ones who specialize in a peculiar area and serve only the service they specialize in.

Let's take a look at the type of the ad agencies:

• Full Service Ad Agencies:

Well when I mean full service ad agencies they are giants of the advertising world. The ones who cater from alpha to omega. Full service ad agencies are the ones who not only create but also promote the creatives. So basically right from development of the concept with thorough brain storming, to fine execution to proper media placement is what full service media agencies do.
These agencies have multiples departments like the client servicing, account planners, creative, media planners and buyers, production. Well these agencies don't come cheap. They have teams assigned for specific accounts who manage start to end execution of these accounts.

• Specialty Ad Agencies:

While there are giants like Full service ad agencies, there is also a presence of the cognoscenti's!
The ones who are frequently referred as the creative boutiques or most commonly referred as the " A LA CARTE"

• Creative agencies who work for print and television ads- right from the concept. Their forte' is only developing the creatives and not in the media buying or in media placement.
• Media Buying agencies are the ones who specialize the media planning and media buying activities. They are the ones who conduct an extensive research to figure out which media channel should be used to the reach to the target audience in an effective way.
• Digital and social media agencies are the ones who specialize in Internet marketing. They special on running campaigns on social media platforms, create websites, run search and display ad campaigns.

• Category expertise:

There are some agencies who specialize in advertising special category.
Some specialize in advertising products, where the aim is to introduce the product in the market or to create a demand for a particular product in the market. Some specialize in Institutional Advertising. Here the aim is creating a positive image of the institution. Also another type of advertising is Advocacy advertising. This advertising agencies particularly work for a specific cause like polio vaccination which is supported by government or by non profit organization.

• Industry Expertise Agencies:

Some agencies specialise to work for certain specific industries like hospitality, travel, banking, education and likewise. If a business is large, falls in niche then Industry expertise agency will be an appropriate agency to advertise the offerings of the business.
 

 

Advertising Agency Departments

When you see all those awesome ads on television, neatly designed creatives in the newspaper or on the billboards then it's not just one person managing the show. There’s a  brigade of creative people at the back end who manage to put up a great show.

Let’s go through the key departments who play a crucial role in the functioning of the agency:

Depending on the size of the agency there is a management team. If it's a small agency then there is a Managing Director and a Financial Director. But if it's a large agency, then there is a whole management team sitting in to manage the functioning of the agency, a Managing Director, Financial Director and respective directors for every department.

Account Servicing/Client Servicing:

Client servicing are the face of an agency. Once a client is on board the daily co-ordination, the follow-ups for the billings are all managed by the Account Servicing Team. Also Account Servicing is responsible taking a brief from the client, coordinating with the team to execute the task as per the brief and then delivering the end result to the client.

Depending on the size of the agency, the hierarchy differs. However, the standard hierarchy as follows: Account Director, Account Manager, Account Executives & Assistant Account Executive.

What are the qualities that you will need to have if you plan to join Account Servicing? Well, you need to be very patient, very convincing. You need to be a good listener and at the same time you need to understand what your client intends to say.

Account Planners:

Account planners do a lot of strategising stuff. Account planners conduct research and dig in some insights which they use to make a creative brief for the creative team who are going to work on the advertising campaign. When the agencies are small in size the role of account planner is usually done by the account executive. But if the agency is large in size, then there is an entire team who sits for Account Planning

Creative Team:

Creative particularly includes the team of the designers and copywriters. It can be said that the copywriters and designers are the driving wheels of an agency. It's the Art Director who heads the team and at time works in sync with the copywriters for the execution of the campaigns. Also there are visualizers who visualize how the campaigns will be like.

Media Team:

Media team is divided into two broad areas, media planners and media buyers. Media planners are the ones who plan strategically where should be the creative placed to gain maximum visibility. Media buyers are the ones who actually buy the inventory for media placement. Media buyers and planners both have to be exceptionally good at numbers and calculations. Media buyers should also be good at negotiation, since they have to finalize the media slots for which the client pays.

Production Team:

Usually the larger agencies are the ones who have the production team. They are basically responsible for the management of the campaigns, managing the budget, setting in the schedules also they work in coordination with the creative and media team. The creative team also communicates with the vendors like the printers, photographers, etc. If the agency is small in size usually the account servicing or the creative team takes care of these duties

In my next blog I will write in detail about the types of the agencies. So stay tuned know more in detail!

E-Mail Marketing

Like it is always said these days, this is the era of digitalization. You come across advertisements or some or the other form of marketing on media channels. But what I prefer the most and what I recommend to my clients and my personal favorite - E-Mail Marketing.

E-mail marketing still remains a key element when it comes to media mixes in my media plans.

Here are a few pointers why I prefer e-mail marketing:

If I plan to advertise any product on any of the broadcast media or say OOH for that matter, the commercials will be extensive. But if I am low on budget, and at the same I am looking for a media channel which will take me to my target audience, then E-mailers work absolutely great. To create e-mailers I don't need to invest on printing or on postage. All you need to do is shoot bulk e-mailers, off course with right planning.

Other major advantage of E-mailers is that it gives you the option of targeting the audience you aim to reach. I might want to reach frequent flyers or people who love shopping home decor online. I can specifically reach out to them with choosing in the perfect database. Reaching out to the accurate target audience or potential target is the main objective of any marketing campaign. If that is achieved, your job is half done.

When you shoot e-mailers, it helps you create brand awareness and exposes your target audience to the brand. E-mail marketing when done with strategic planning and proper execution will work wonders to create awareness for your brand.

Gone are the days when you could check your emails only on your desktops. Now you have a mobile phone handy. I can always browse through mails while I am travelling, when I am at work or when I am dining at a restaurant. So basically what is intended here is that the ease of accessibility, what is the key essential for your target audience.

E-mailers are very easy to share as well. If I come across an E-mailer from E-commerce site which really is interesting, all I need is to just click a button which will forward the mail to my acquaintance.

Another key advantage of E-mail marketing is that the results are measurable. Analytics is always there are your rescue to present the precise report. While the numbers from the other marketing channels are ambiguous, you can easily deduce the delivery rate, click through rate, the conversion rate for the campaign conducted.

 Just few tips what you need to keep in mind when you are planning for E-mail Marketing.

According to my experience, E-mails targetting B2B marketing should be deployed on week days. However when it comes to fashion brands, online shopping sites even weekends work great.

If you happen to schedule a deployment on monday, schedule it for the second half of the day. People are generally equipped on mondays after enjoying their weekend.

You need to select the type of the E-mail campaign depending on the goal you intend to achieve.

If you aim to create Brand Awareness then Cost Per Mail Campaign
If you aim to fetch clicks on your E-mailers then Cost Per Click Campaign
And if you intend to generate leads then Cost Per Lead Campaign

So in short what I intend to say is, E-mail marketing is the must.
In today's digitalized world E-mail marketing is the tool which will drive your business to success. Planned and strategic approach, a hard hitting message and proper direction is all you need to have a successful and efficient E-mail marketing campaign.

Facebook Advertising

Just take a walk down the memory lane and try recollecting what was Facebook like 8 or 9 years ago. And look what Facebook is now. Too many features. Too many innovation, which is why I believe, Facebook is the #1 Social Networking Site in the whole wide world.

Lets take a look at  some statistics of Facebook:

1.49 Billion Monthly active users worldwide which is pretty huge!

13% increase in the monthly active users 

48% of Facebook users belonging to the age group of 18-34 years check Facebook as soon as they wake up. Some of you reading this blog might be a few of this sub-set

54% of Facebook Users access Facebook via there cell phones

When it comes to posting updates for your brand on Facebook there are some time slots which work the best. Also when you are planning for a brand make sure you incorporate several content baskets such as quotes, facts, questions and likewise.

Following are some stats which define which content baskets get maximum engagement:

Quotes fetch you 26% more likes and 19% more shares

Question posts get you 100% comments

Using emoticons or smileys brings 33% more comments.

Pictures/Photos bring in 42% more interaction

And just like I stated there are few time slots which work the best.

Posts which are published in the time span of 10-11 pm brings in 84% more engagement

If you follow multiple post policy for your brand property, then make sure you have a time span of 4-5 hours between 2 updates

When it comes to posting recipes, kitchen hacks or tips post them on weekends

When it comes to fashion brands 8pm to 1am work the best

Gone are the days when brands just used to rely on organic updates. Facebook advertising plays an integral part in the Social Media Marketing of brands.

Following are some types of Facebook Advertising:

Post Engagement: Ads to draw in engagement

Page likes: Ads run to fetch likes on the page

Click to Website: Ads run to send people to the website

Website Conversion Ads

Video View ads to bring in maximum views on the video

App Installs to your cell phone or on your desktop

App Engagement: Get people to use your app

When it comes to Advertising on Facebook following are the aspects which are to be considered

Extensive yet precise targeting is what Facebook has to offer you. Not just geographically but you can also target based on the interests of the Audience you need to tap.

For Example, If I wish to target housewives I can particularly select interests like the best TV shows, Chefs, Movies. So depending on the audience I need to target I select the interests.

Before promoting, examine the organic performance of a post. The post which works the best, the one which gauges maximum engagement should be promoted.

If you have a budget of INR 100, invest INR 15 just to get in some reach to the ad creative. Invest the rest INR 85 to bring in engagement. However target 2 to 3 categories of interests. One ad specifically targeting Daily Soaps, other ad targeting chefs, when it comes to targeting women.

Select which one performs better then top-up some budget on the same.

Also design you ads with smartphone in mind

When it comes to Facebook Advertising, they have a rule where in you cannot include more than 20% Text. Well this text counts in the text in your logo, text on your pack shot. So all these are to be kept in mind while you design a creative which is to be promoted.

Follow this link to check whether your creative fits in the 20% policy for the ad creative

https://www.facebook.com/ads/tools/text_overlay

Just a quick tip, make sure you always include Call To Actions in the status. Make bit.ly such that you can track the number of people who clicked on the link and got directed to the website.

Branding & Marketing Strategy for Amul

Be it their utterly delicious butter, their pasturised milk, cheesy weesy cheese, Amul definately has created an everlasting and a strong position in the minds of its target audience by its hard hitting marketing and branding strategy.

What Does Amul Stand For:

Anand Milk Union Limited

Lets take a quick look through Amuls product offering:

Amul Milk

Amul Butter

Amul Cheese

Amul Shrikhand

Amul Icecream

Amul chocolates

Nutramul

Amulya

• Branding Strategy:

Amul as a brand has occupied the space in the minds of its target audience by positioning itself on the grounds of purity and taste

If I want to describe the brand personality of Amul it will come under the Sincerity personality trait of the Big 5 Model.

Amul as a brand portrays genuineness, down to earth, wholesome and a cheerful brand

• The Key Brand elements of Amul are as follows:

Brand Name:Amul

Tagline:The Taste of India

Jingles:Amul the taste of India, Utterly Butterly Delicious Amul, come on come on oh yeah Amul Ice cream, Amul Kool, which is their flavoured milk sub brand, which had a jingle Amul kool chill your dil and they have some advertisements which have some catchy tunes.

Mascot: Everybody knows the cute little girl with a pony, wearing a white little frock with red polka dots in it, licking the lip smacking butter off the bread.

They do have their own corporate website which gives you an elaborate list of the product offerings. www.amul.com

Lets take a look at their Marketing Strategy. When it comes to Amul Target audience they have hit a bulls eye.

Age Group: Usually when it comes for the rest of the brands from the FMCG category, I specify different TG for the sub brands. But Amul and the product range spans for the entire mass. Right from a kid to elder people every body loves some or the other product offering of the brand.

Here are a few possibilities:

When it comes to Amul ice cream, they particularly target little kids

When it comes to Amul Kool they particularly target the youngsters or I would say young-adults

When it comes to Amul Milk they target it to the whole lot. For a kid, a mother who buys the groceries, or a old couple.

Hence:

• Demographics Targeting for Amul

Age:10-60 years

Income:35K and Above

Marital Status:Single as well as married

If I am supposed to state some target persona they will be as follows:

For Amul Butter/ Amul Cottage Cheese/Amul Cheese:

Mrs. Sahay, a home maker and mother of 2 kids. She stays in Mumbai. She loves cooking a loves to explore and try her hand at new recipes. She wants to give healthy and nutritious food to her kids. Also at times her kids are reluctant to eat veggies. This is when Amul products come to her rescue. She gives a brilliant twist to the daily veggie recipes.

For Amul Ice Cream:

The Shah’s love food. They love family time and they dine together. Every body has a sweet tooth and crave for ice creams most of the times. This hence becomes Amul Ice Creams target audience for their Sundae’s or their family packs.

• Geographically Amul targets on a Pan India Scale.

Psychographically they target people those who value pure milk and milk products, the people who value nourishment as well as taste.

• Who are Amuls major competitors?

1.Nestle

2.Britannia

3.Mother Dairy

These are giants how ever local dairy players also play a potential threat to Amul and can affect the sale of the products

• SWOT Analysis of the Brand:

Strengths:

When it comes to the strengths of the brand the brand name and faith that Amul has gained is excellent. Their quality products. They are the largest manufacturer of milk. They have a strong distributor network. Everybody is well aware of their brand mascot which is like an additional advantage.

Weakness:

Amul's weakness is that the market share in the chocolate industry is less. Many international players from the ice cream segment dominate the market thus leaving a tough competition and a lower market share in this segment

Opportunities:

Amul can introduce new products in the chocolate segment. Not only this Amul can also tap on to the rural markets which are not covered

Threats:

Competitors pose a heavy threat to Amul. Also there are major international players entering into this segment this leading to a potential threat to the brand