STAND BY ME

Osama is dead. Obama could not have been happier. Suddenly, his approval ratings have jumped up and he is being viewed as a better leader, for the man stood by his promise. People love a leader who stands by his words, his promises, his commitments.

COMMITMENT OR PASSION?

Passion is short term. Plain passion will not take you far. More than passion, it’s ‘commitment’ that makes things work. Be it a marriage, a team, a company, a country, a society, or a civilisation, it’s an individual’s commitment that makes things work. As Robert Sternberg once said: “Passion is the quickest to develop, and the quickest to fade. Intimacy develops more slowly, and commitment more gradually still.” Passion backed with commitment is the foundation of a great relationship, a great team, a great company.

Back in the 1940s, as American soldiers returned home after the World War II, there was a huge surge in demand for houses. One man’s commitment solved a near-impossible problem. Abraham Levitt perfected the art of “mass-producing houses”, something unheard of until then. Using the assembly line production technique, Levitt built all parts of the house in the factory. These could then be assembled on-site by his team of specialists ( much like the modular furniture of today). As many as 30 houses a day were being massproduced and America was able to solve its housing problem. A lot of people around the world are today wondering if this could be repeated again, for it would help a lot of countries get rid of their slums. However, what everyone is looking for is a committed businessman, someone like Levitt, who will take up the challenge and work with full commitment towards the cause of the poor.

One committed leader, a businessman who believes there is ‘fortune at the bottom of the pyramid’ and is ready to work for the poor, is all that is required and all slums of our country could be removed and our population could get a chance to live with dignity and never again would a “Slumdog Millionaire” be filmed in our country.

Like countries, great companies too have committed leaders at the top. In the book ‘The Toyota Way’, the author states that it was the top leadership’s commitment towards the customers that made the company so great. The one thing people were told to follow was – don’t generate money for yourself, but generate value for customers. Every “great” company follows this philosophy. John Scully, who was once the boss of Steve Jobs at Apple, said in an interview: “Microsoft gets it right the third time. Its philosophy is to get it out there and fix it later.” Let the product be launched, it could be improved later, is the philosophy at Microsoft. While Steve Jobs would never release a product till he was 100% sure and lived up to his commitment to the consumer of being flawless. If it’s not great, it will be thrown away, whether it’s financially viable or not, or if Wall Street likes it or not. By chance if a bad product is launched, Steve Jobs personally sets things right. When his MobileMe service got panned, within half-an-hour, Jobs berated the
group and on the spot named a new executive to run the group. He sent the message out loud & clear – nothing half-baked comes out of Apple, and people who do not get it, no matter how talented they are, have no place here. That’s commitment. That’s why it’s Apple that leads and comes out with these magical products.

Back in 1906, when an enormous earthquake hit San Francisco, the worst affected were the banks and A. P. Giannini’s Bank of Italy was in a bad shape too. While others hid behind closed doors fearing riots, A. P. knew if he did not do something, the fires following the earthquake would finish off the savings of thousands of people. He thought of a plan. He ordered his men to get him two fruit trucks – stacked with fruits and vegetables. His men were confused. How could oranges and bananas save the bank? When the fruit trucks arrived, Giannini quickly dragged out bags of gold & silver from the vaults and stuffed them at the bottom of the truck. Piled high with oranges and bananas no one even glanced at the trucks, as A. P. rode them home down the streets that were teaming with thugs and thieves that time. He hid the money under the fireplace of his house and slept in front of it. He had rescued the lifetime savings of a lot of people. While the other banks were burning, and some too scared to act, A. P. Giannini, opened his bank the next day – that too on a Sunday! Atop two large barrels, he hoisted a wooden plank that read ‘Bank of Italy’. Soon, lines formed as people came for loans. It’s said that his loans gave a kick-start to the recovery process of the state. No marble lobbies, no  fancy building. Pure commitment was all it took to start his bank. So what if the money smelt like orange juice for weeks! By the time other banks reopened, Bank of Italy had doubled its assets, but more than that, it had more than doubled its reputation and goodwill... words we cannot assign to almost any bank of today. Businesses that have a commitment to stay true to their customers, always outshine, for they always look at the long term, which makes it easy for them to make short term sacrifices. It’s truly said that commitment can solve the toughest of problems.

STAND BY YOUR PRINCIPLES

When Jack Welch was heading GE, he realised the value of people, rather, of the “right” type of people. There was an interesting group of workers he came across at GE. These were those who delivered all their commitments, all the time, but did not share the company values. Most CEOs, under pressure to meet targets, would not even bother about values at this stage. Anyone who fulfilled commitments was great. Not so for Welch. Values were of supreme importance. These type of employees had no place in GE. Along with commitment, comes the strength of character. Among the 9Cs that Lee Iacocca listed in his book ‘Where have all the leaders gone?’, the one quality he stressed on was “character”.

Tiger Woods was the perfect brand ambassador, only till the time he could boast of an untarnished reputation. He was a man committed to his game, but that was not enough for the people. A strong sense of commitment comes from a strong character. Be it companies or countries, the leaders of both need both the qualities more than even talent to succeed.

“Faith” is what makes the world go round. In the business world, as in the real world, “trust” is the key factor. Stay true to yourself and your value systems, and stand by them. Donald Trump says in his book ‘How to get rich’: “Be stubborn, be determined.” Don’t get influenced or fluctuate with others ideas. Temptations are aplenty, the one who can steer clear of them rules.

On April 26, 2011 Sony of Japan revealed that names, passwords, and possibly credit card details of 77 million accounts were stolen by hackers who gained access to its Play Station online- gaming system in 60 countries. A lot of users were shocked. Not so much by the hacking, but the way Sony handled it. It took Sony a week to accept that accounts were hacked; and then it released a statement that services would be up in a week, but did not live up to it either. The name Sony symbolises ‘trust’ for millions. After all, when those 77 million entered their details on the Sony website, they did so because, well – it’s a Sony and they could trust it blindly! A lot of them are now questioning Sony’s commitment and if it can be trusted.

In today’s world, the rarest commodity is “trust”. Brands become great because of the great trust of the people. The one who enjoys trust of his people rules. A great company is one that is headed by a trustworthy and committed leader. A great country is one that has a leader committed to his people. A great brand is one that is committed to its consumers, for if you are committed, your followers, your consumers will reciprocate. Decades ago, John Lennon sang these words, and they hold true even for the business world:

“If the sky that we look upon,
Should tumble & fall,
And the mountains should crumble to the sea,
I won’t cry, I won’t cry, No I won’t shed a tear,
Just as long as you stand, stand by me”.
Stand up for a cause, stand up for your beliefs, stand up for
your country, and the world will stand by you!

THE “LIKE” BUTTON

Many of us turned into “revolutionaries” this April. It required no protest marches, no dharnas, no violence, not even fasting. A mere click of the ‘Like’ button on the “India Against Corruption” Facebook page, a change of our profile picture into that of Anna Hazare’s, an updation of our “Status” message into “I support Anna” made each feel a part of the great movement. For many, just giving a missed call on 022-61550789 was enough to express their solidarity towards the movement. Anna Hazare fought, not just by fasting but also by ‘Facebooking’. It was the Internet & other communication tools that increased the voice of his anti-corruption movement. So powerful was this tool that within two days the members of the ‘India against corruption’ page increased from 5 lakhs to 12 lakhs. Some 7 lakh people showed their support by giving a missed call on a number texted to them. The revolution was “virtually there” for everyone to join in. It did not require physical presence; as long as you thought alike you could be a part of this ever increasing group, whenever you felt like, and could voice your opinions too on this “virtual” meeting place!

TWITTER - THE NEXT “NOBEL PEACE PRIZE” WINNER?

The last few days have witnessed a lot of revolutions around the world, many of which started “virtually” on the Internet. Today, the role of the social media has become more than just a place to catch up with old friends. Rather, it’s now a place where your voice can be heard – and if what you speak is sense, then there is no limit to the number of followers you can gather. Social media is now bringing about social change too.

Thousands of protesters gathered on the streets of Moldova in 2009 to protest against the communist government. Tunisia too overthrew its ruler in 29 days and many called it the “Twitter Revolution”. It was Twitter that gave protestors the courage to rock the Iranian government, and stand up for freedom and democracy. So overwhelmed was Mark Pfeifle, a former national security adviser, that he called for Twitter to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize! Twitter was helping in bringing like-minded people together – and in the case of India, also in staging a non-violent protest... just the way Gandhi did decades ago.

The invention of the printing press gave momentum to the French Revolution . For the first time, pamphlets could be printed in bulk and thoughts and ideas could be spread faster. The invention of Twitter and Facebook has given momentum to all recent revolutions. They have provided a voice that is impossible to censor and that can spread faster than lightening! The new age revolutions have become so big largely because of this digital revolution.

While it’s true that Twitter and Facebook are very important tools to spread information, the fact is, real change requires something more. It requires a true leader, who inspires a feeling of camaraderie, of brotherhood. It’s not just a voice, but a voice filled with passion. A true revolution is not about just the number of virtual “friends” who support you, but about those real people who are ready to die for you; it’s not about the number of “media tools” one has, but about the real ‘cause’ you stand for. As Malcolm Gladwell said, “Social media alone cannot provide what social change has always required.” Yes, it gives a voice to the powerless, but a voice needs a face, the face of a leader, who has the power to attract ‘real’ followers. The ‘Like’ button is a strong indicator of your potential, but for a revolution to reach its full potential, the ‘virtual’ voice needs to be backed by a ‘real’ one too. A great leader of tomorrow will be one who will have the maximum ‘Likes’ and “followers”, both in the virtual and the real world. Both grounds will be equally important .That will be the way to change tomorrow’s world.

VIRTUALLY POWERFUL

The ‘virtual world’ has a lot of potential and one person who exploited it best is Julian Assange. It’s not just the nuclear radiation leaks that have the power to destroy the world – rather more potent has been Wikileaks for that has caused more destruction; and that too in the right places. Assange found ways of channeling information from the ‘virtual’ spaces into the hands of the common man and woke him up from his slumber. When Assange started publishing the secret cables in Al-Akhbar, the Lebanese newspaper, did the common man realize how his leaders were cheating him. The revolution started from the average man and that’s how people could finally overthrow the government.

The ‘Virtual World’ has a lot of potential and a great leader can use it intelligently to change the world. An intelligent marketer can use it to get the cash registers jingling and change the very rules of business!

FACEBOOK SHOPS

Last year, two students of Wharton launched a site named ‘Kembrel’, which was a private shopping community for just college students. The site partnered with a few well-known lifestyle brands to offer deep discounts on goods for a limited window of time. The catch was, this was a private store which students could access entirely through Facebook – a place they anyway spent a lot of time on!

Facebook commerce is the new buzzword. Retailers are exploring Facebook as a revenue channel like never before. Bulgari, the high end fashion label, has developed jewellery lines, leather goods, and perfumes which are priced right for its Facebook audience, who may hesitate to enter its store in Fifth Avenue, New York; these very consumers can access the brand in the comfort of their Facebook world. This year, FCUK [French Connection] and Dove also opened shops on Facebook, enabling their followers to buy their products directly from the page. P&G had already tasted success when it launched its Max-Factor brand on Facebook last year. Again, last year, Tesco Clothing generated £2 mn in sales as a result of their UK Facebook page. Using vouchers, it tracked its activity on Facebook and found out that its campaign “Friday Frenzy” resulted in more sales in two hours, than it would usually get in a week.

Facebook is inarguably becoming a lucrative place for marketers. Oscar de la Renta launched his first fragrance in 10 years on Facebook. All the people who ‘Liked’ the brand’s page got a free sample. Indian designer Arjun Khanna saw his Facebook page grow so much in popularity that he opened his store in Goa. 3M came up with an innovative product to rejuvenate its Scotch Tape brand. It launched a Scotch Shoe, a tape dispenser that looked like a lady’s shoe. The launch happened only through Facebook, for that was the place where its consumers were.

According to Booz & Company, the value of goods sold through social media may rise six-fold by 2015 to reach $30 billion. In the future, many product sales/launches would happen on Facebook. It’s time for companies to seriously start working on getting more ‘Likes’ and simultaneously thinking of ways of converting the ‘Likes’ on their Facebook fan page into ‘Buys’.

The future seems to be all about ‘Likes’. The power will lie in the hands of the people who will use the ‘Like’ button to give their vote. The one with maximum ‘Likes’, be it an individual or a brand, is the one who will wield the maximum power; for that’s going to be the way to judge the potential of an idea or a brand.

As future leaders, let’s start thinking of ways of making the most of the ‘Like’ button.

BLEED BLUE!

It was an unforgettable moment of pride for all. That night of April 2, 2011 every Indian forgot his caste, creed, worries, tensions, apprehensions and rejoiced with his fellow countrymen as India won the ICC Cricket World Cup. It was a long wait of 28 years and victory never earlier had tasted so sweet. A big achievement for India and most importantly for its most amazing captain M. S. Dhoni. Fearless, confident, cool and unflappable. He drove in unlimited self-confidence into each player, and together the team conquered the world.

The man showed the world he doesn’t play by the rules – and India loved him for that. A captain like Dhoni and a tournament like the World Cup is a combination that doesn’t come too often and it made every marketer sit up and take action. With the whole nation glued to their TV sets, there was nothing more exciting an advertiser could have asked for. Along with the nation, every brand too was eating, sleeping, breathing and singing cricket. Every brand had jumped on to the cricket bandwagon.
With cricket and only cricket on everybody’s mind, most brands changed their advertising strategy to match the mood of the audience. Those who could afford to, roped in the cricketers to endorse their brands, while the numerous others changed their advertising themes, punchlines, promotional offers to match the cricket euphoria. As this was the best way to engage with the audience, Krishidhan, India’s 5th largest seeds company changed its tagline to “Beejon Ka Tendulkar”. DSP BlackRock Mutual Fund asked people to “Prepare your investment kit”. Style Spa introduced its “Hattrick offer”. Dr. Batra’s introduced its “Super Six Offer”. LIC doled out a slew of catchy slogans, each one reflecting the spirit of the game. From “Live life on the front foot” to “Great partnerships are built on trust”, each one showed how life & cricket were not very different from each other. Relating your brand to cricket was the best way to get noticed this time. Those who did have the means – like Revital, Oakley, etc – got a cricketer to endorse their brands. However, for some, in spite of spending so much and changing their advertising themes to cricket, the magic eluded them. Very few could reflect the passion for the game in a way that would get the viewers excited and involved. Research has shown that out of the hundreds who infused “cricket” into their marketing plans, only two brands stood out head over heels above others – Nike and Pepsi.

Much like its “Just do it” slogan, which caught the imagination of youngsters across the world, Nike’s “Bleed Blue” was on the lips of every Indian as he confessed his love for the game. Nike put into words what every Indian felt when its cricket team went to play against the world. Winning the cup and defeating the world made every one weep and bleed for the men in blue.

Pepsi and its campaigns have always been young and appealed to the youth. However, its campaign around the World Cup created by the agency Taproot India, brought a smile to everyone’s lips. Humorous, irreverent, and interesting, the campaign brought out the spirit of the viewers. When it comes to cricket, every Indian thinks he’s the expert and that one could easily teach the cricketers a thing or two to improve their game. For every lost match, we have an explanation & a solution, which, if the team had followed, would have ensured they won the match. The Pepsi ad portrayed this so beautifully with everybody teaching the cricketers how to master unique batting and bowling tricks. It brought a fresh twist to the game and soon the “helicopter shot”, “the doosra”, and the “upar cut” become the new cricket lingo. They were funny and totally different from the cricket rule book. Pepsi did change the game.

NO IDEA – GET AN IDEA!

That’s the problem with most. We have no idea; or rather no new ideas. Be it in life, in schools, in politics, or even marketing, what’s lacking is original thinking. The problem starts at the grassroots. In schools, IQ scores are rising steadily because children are busy learning and increasing their IQ, but they have no time for idea generation. Whereas it’s the CQ – creativity quotient – that matters in life. A recent IBM poll of 1,500 CEOs showed that the No.1 leadership trait was “creativity”. There seems to be a creativity crisis everywhere. Creativity is not confined to art; it’s the ability to think beyond the obvious. Creativity could help leaders in solving world problems, from identifying ways to educating masses, providing health care to finding a peaceful solution for Libya, Afghanistan etc. A creative leader can change the world by thinking & doing things differently. Creative marketers can find ways of taking their messages straight to the hearts & minds of the consumers. They can design campaigns that don’t just look creative, but have a creative, powerful & meaningful message too. The sad part is that not many are doing it. Look at the advertisements of cellular service providers. Everybody is saying they are the best and we should switch to their network. Apart from Vodafone’s Zoozoos, not many names shine out distinctly. While every insurance provider was talking emotions, the adorable Bharti AXA Life Insurance ad shone out as the podgy man at the doctor’s clinic refused to accept that he had a critical lung disease – but a kidney failure was fine for his policy covered it! Somebody thought creatively and drove the point home. Tongue-in-cheek, it poked at the other insurance providers without being critical or preachy. While every advertisement of suitings looks the same with a dapper male model and an attractive girl hanging on to his arm, it was Raymond that shone out with its series of “The Complete Man”. Somebody thought there was more to a personality than just good looks; and as expected, the message was loved & remembered and Raymond stood out above the clutter.

When the stakes are so high and the rewards so lucrative, what every marketer should have stressed on was creativity. Right from the dream semi-final between India & Pakistan to the finals, this World Cup provided umpteen opportunities for creative leaders to shine out. With such unheard of advertising rates (Rs.17-18 lakhs for a ten second spot during the Indo-Pak match) it was absolutely essential for all to think different. M. S. Dhoni kept his words, thought differently and planned the match most creatively – which got us the cup finally, but not many advertisers lived up to the promise, save some like Pepsi. In fact, the Pepsi ads have worked so well that when Dhoni hit the last six, even the commentator remarked that “that was the helicopter shot”, a term that till now had never been a part of the cricket vocabulary. That’s creativity. Exotic locations, attractive models, top quality special effects can never make an advertisement successful. It works only when everything comes together with a great idea. So get new ideas.

ANOTHER “BLUE” EVENT!

Events like the World Cup, the Super Bowl, et al, are huge platforms that can provide an instant reach. They are dream events for advertisers. The men in blue always provide a huge opportunity for advertisers, at least in India. However, this month-end, another “blue” event caught the imagination of the world. It’s the Royal Wedding of the blue blooded Prince William with Kate. A wedding like this comes once in a lifetime almost, and according to some economists, it might even save the British economy. It’s expected to generate £620 million just from tourism, add to that the sale of memorabilia and other merchandise.

It’s a big event and marketers are already working overtime! While Walmart is selling tea mugs with the Royals on them, Hyatt Regency has introduced a “William & Kate. The Love Story” package; a brewery is even producing a special “Kiss Me Kate” beer... and the list goes on.

It’s time again to put on our creative hats and make the most of this “blue blooded” event, for the one who thinks differently is the one who will profit the most. And David Cameroon, you can save your economy too! In whatever you do, be creative, be original, and just like our super captain Dhoni, think from your heart and bleed blue with passion.

‘EAST’ IS THE NEW ‘WEST’

“The King’s Speech” won the 83rd Annual Academy Award this year for the ‘Best Picture’. However, instead of the Oscars, those were youngsters of China, India, Brazil, et al that the big movie studios were looking at this time. Today, the success of a film depends on how it does in foreign markets and not on how many Oscars it gets. From Harry Potter to Sherlock Holmes to even Inception; all were declared hits because they did big business outside America. Avatar, the highest grosser of all times, made 3/4th of its money outside US & Canada. The markets with the biggest growth potential are Russia, China India, et al. There seems to be a ‘cinema boom’ in these countries and they are lapping up Hollywood films like nobody’s business. So, for Hollywood movie production houses, the most important task today is to distribute their films in these markets and make the maximum money. The focus is not just on a good script, but also on choosing the right actors and locations that will appeal to the audience of these markets, Success lies in accurately predicting foreign tastes. No more is it important to predict what the jury of the Oscars will like. Money flows into Hollywood when the youngsters of India, Brazil, China & Russia flock to the theaters.

COOL CONSUMERS ARE HOT PROPERTY

Not just Hollywood, a whole lot of brands are looking eastwards to help increase their market share today. In fact, you need to look at the youngsters of the world to survive – the largest percentage of which resides outside Europe & America. Consider this; the combined population of India and China is about 2.6 billion people, that’s approximately 37% of humanity. China Mobile had 301 million cell phone subscribers in 2007. The estimated population of United States then was 298 million!!

In 2001, Jim O’ Neill, the economist at Goldman Sachs, had coined the term BRIC and predicted that by 2050, these countries would gather so much might that they would overshadow the biggies like USA, Europe and Japan.

He said there was one way these countries would change the world – ‘by shopping!!’ It’s true, as the ‘shoppers’, i.e. the consumers of these nations, have been contributing more to global GDP than other nations. Those are the ‘super consumers’ of these ‘super nations’, who are today deciding the future of many brands – not just Hollywood! The brand, which manages to catch the imagination of these consumers, will survive and thrive.

Last year, an Italian brand tried to do it and managed to get a lot of attention. Diesel launched its “Be Stupid” campaign, which spoke the language that the youth wanted to hear. It said, “Be smart is what your parents & teachers always told you to be, but we are with the stupid, for ‘Stupid’ is the relentless pursuit of a regret free life!”

It came out with a series of advertisements that shocked and inspired and got talked about for their visuals and slogans. The slogans were just what the youth of today loved. “Smart critiques, Stupid creates”, showed the power of a free mind. Another one went thus, “Smart many have the brains, but stupid has the balls.” Their logic was simple – you can’t outsmart stupid. So don’t even try !!

“Be Stupid” was a campaign to build an image of Diesel, as the brand that was ‘brave’ and not scared of taking risks. For the cool consumers – the youngsters – Diesel became the ‘hit’ and the most talked about brand.

This new brand of ‘cool’ consumers is deciding restless endeciding the ways of the world. He is rest less and needs constant gratification. For him, shopping is entertainment, and every brand is doing all it can to keep him engaged & entertained.

TIME magazine even reduced the size of its cover story from 4,500 words (a pattern it had followed for the last 20 years) to 2,800 words to make it more relevant for today’s consumer.

The maximum growth is happening in the BRIC countries & the youth here is actually deciding the future. There are more Chinese youth who own computer phones, digital video cameras and at-home broadband internet than their American counterparts. Nielsen Media Research says that Russia will be the fourth largest consumer market in the world by 2025. India has the largest number of engineers, science graduates & post graduates. India & China will become the highest spenders on entertainment & media.

Yes, it’s true that it’s the BRIC consumer who will rule and if you want to survive, you need to understand them & market to them – for they are a different generation.

THE EMERGING GIANTS

It’s not just the consumers of the east who are changing the rules of the game, but it’s also the eastern companies who are taking on the world. Those are the multinationals from China, India, Brazil who are hungry for consumers, hungry for success, hungry to rule and are doing just that.

After Hurricane Katrina hit America, the residents were looking for a tractor that be strong enough & fast enough to the debris. Some of them chose Mahindra 5500. It was priced right & had The sale of Mahindra vehicles in American markets, where big names like Deere & Co. have dominated for years, showed that the ‘old world’ order was changing – and changing fast.

These companies were not scared of risks and doing ‘stupid’ things and today, the world is looking up at them. Till a few years back, Huawei was known as a company that was caught copying designs of Cisco systems. The company spent more than $500 million in R&D & is today cutting sharply into Cisco’s market share across Asia & Latin America. Lenovo of China bought the IBM PC business. Infosys, Tata Consultancy services and Wipro have captured the global technology services market. Brazil’s Embraer has surged past Canada’s Bombardier to become the world’s No.3 aircraft maker and is taking away orders for aircraft that earlier were given to companies like Airbus & Boeing.

When Ranbaxy started marketing in Europe, its sales staff used to be kept waiting for hours before the skeptical Europeans heard their sales pitch. Today Ranbaxy is a top supplier in much of Europe. Its $1-aday AIDS treatment to Africa has got it immense respect, making it a leader in nations like Nigeria & Brazil. The most remarkable is, of course, the Tata group. From cars to steel to hotels, they are leaders everywhere. It’s truly a global force to reckon with.

These companies have taken on the West and launched exciting new products, which are turning into great brands. This companies has fought stiff competition and has mastered the art of producing goods at lowest costs. Look at India itself – from providing cheapest cellular rates to cheapest cars, we have it all here and no Western firm can beat us easily in this game.

The new world order is emerging. South Africa’s SAB Miller is ready to take on Budweiser of USA. The world’s biggest cellular provider would soon be Mexico’s América Móvil. According to Boston Consulting Group, there are 100 emerging multinationals – none of whom is American or European – who in 2005 had a combined $715 billion in revenue, $145 billion in operating profits and a half-trillion dollars in assets. For years, the east looked up to the west, but now it’s time for the west to learn a few things from the east. It’s time to take the new brands of the east more seriously as well as get to know better the new generation of consumers of this part of the world, for they are the future.

Let the old brands beware. Here comes a new brigade of companies, who understand the consumers best; as they are one of them, have understood the rules of the game & are ready to defeat the old players. They are ‘stupid’ and ‘hungry’ just like their consumers and ready to rule.

Steve Jobs in his very famous speech at Stanford had said, “Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition... stay hungry... stay foolish,” and you will succeed. It seems like some companies took his advice very seriously. They dared to dream, dared to do & rewrote history. They dared to turn ‘East’ into the new ‘West’.

SEEDHI BAAT, NO BAKWAS

“How to get your roommate to clean the room?”

“How to survive the boring talks of your girlfriend?”

“How to stare at other women, in front of your girlfriend?”

Find all your answers at the “University of Freshology”. These new advertisements of Sprite which ask you to “first drink, then think” are bringing a smile on many faces! The new advertisements take a fresh look at Sprite while keeping the ‘Brand Image’ the same. From the beginning, Sprite has believed in one thought – unlike other innumerable products / brands that promised you impossible benefits, Sprite offered you only freshness. From the time it was launched in India in 1999, with the tagline “Sprite bujhay only pyaas, baki all bakwaas”, it has stuck to its image of being the no-nonsense- just-thirst-quencher brand. This time too, its advertisements are interesting and, well, obviously refreshing.

POWER OF WORDS

They are really more powerful than a bomb if handled well. The right words can spark a revolution, can make people even give up their lives for you. Many a time, they even change the world. When Mother Teresa said, “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one” she changed the perspectives of a lot of people who thought how helping just one person could change the world? She showed them how – with her words. Martin Luther King spoke about apartheid & its indignities and people cried after they heard his famous speech “I have a dream”. He even told people to speak up when they saw injustice; and for that he said: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” In his own humorous way, Woody Allen echoed our anxiety about death when he said, “It’s not that I’m afraid to die. I just don’t want to be there when it happens.”

It’s more often than not that great words make an advertisement more memorable. Sometimes witty, sometimes crisp, sometimes direct, sometimes funny, never boring, but always simple and easy to remember. Consider these, “Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia”, or “Because, you’re worth it – L’Oréal”, or “Let your fingers do the walking – Yellow Pages”. These short and very simple sentences defined the whole business, the benefits of buying or using the brand, and stuck to our memory like glue! In fact, some great advertising punch-lines consisted of only two words. Here are some, “Connecting People – Nokia”, “Life’s Good – LG”, “Hello Moto – Motorola”, “Live Unboring – Ikea”, “Intel Inside – Intel”. In fact, it took just two words to unite our country against the British: “Quit India!” Sometimes, even one word did the trick. Budweiser’s “Wassup” tagline made the brand look young and super cool!

Some ad jingles and slogans became so famous and were etched so firmly in people’s memory that they were used to make a point by famous people to prove their point. When Burger King came out with its tagline “Where’s the beef?” indicating that its burgers were beefier and hence better than the competitor’s where you hardly spotted the beef, the three words became a rage. Even some presidential candidates quoted them to show their superiority over their competitors.

“Just Do It” is again one of those very famous taglines that has been used by all of us during our conversations. It not just became a part of our lingo, but catapulted Nike to great heights, making it a Power Brand! A survey showed that 45% of Britons regularly use the line from Guinness commercials, “Good things come to those who wait.” It’s amazing, the impact advertisements have on our lives, our thoughts, and our speech. Some 80% people have claimed to use advertising slogans in their day to day conversations. Time to think which ones do you use most frequently! That’s the power of advertising and “I’m lovin’ it”. After all, its advertising that’s “The Real Thing”.

IBM was the big daddy of computing. Back in 1914, its tagline “Think” became a big hit. Then, a few decades later, came Apple with its tagline “Think Different”, to show the world that the rules of the game were different now and the world of computing had a new Godfather!

WORDS – LIVE FOREVER

A great slogan or tagline comes with no expiry date. It lives on almost forever. “Utterly... butterly...” You know which brand I am referring to. “Thanda matlab...” Again, I don’t need to complete the slogan. A great tagline is sometimes all you need to increase your sales and beat your competitors. After all, with so much choice, the consumer most of the time buys on impulse and those are his emotions many a time that help him decide when he is confused with too many choices. The right combination of words helps create those positive feelings. Onida’s slogan “Neighbour’s envy, owner’s pride” made you feel proud about owning it (wish they would bring back the slogan again in their ad campaigns). LIC’s slogan “Jeevan ke saath bhi, jeevan ke baad bhi” gently and in a non-threatening manner told you about the benefits of a life insurance policy.

Words live on, even after the people who spoke them are gone. In fact, sometimes your last words become the image that people remember you with. The last words Karl Marx spoke were “Go on, get out. Last words are for fools who haven’t said enough.” William Wallace, the Scottish Patriot, screamed “Freedom” even as he was tortured to death, according to the film based on his life Braveheart. In fact, some words have made films immortal. From Scarlett O’Hara’s very famous last words in the film Gone with the Wind (“After all, tomorrow is another day”) to Amjad Khan in Sholay (“Kitne aadmi the”), words live on in our memories & remain a part of our daily language forever almost!

WORDS – DON’T MESS WITH THEM

Just as words have the power to make fortunes, they can destroy them too. Verbal slips, gaffes can prove to be disastrous. One person who was very famous for this was George Bush. In fact, his gaffes are so famous & so many that they can be published as a book of “Bushisms”. One of his famous gaffes is, “We are concerned about AIDS inside our White House – make no mistake about it.” Take another one – it’s even better than the previous one, “Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.”

The one who has a command over his words truly leads. Every word that Gandhi spoke was a treasure house of wisdom. He knew and understood freedom and the power of the mind, and expressed it like no other. He said, “You can chain me, you can torture me, you can even destroy this body, but you will never imprison my mind.” His words broke the spirit of the British. Rabindranath’s words strengthened the spirits of the freedom fighters as they repeated his lines, “Where the mind is without fear and the head held high, ... into that heaven of freedom, my father, let my country awake.”

Our greatest heroes gave us the greatest quotes & words of wisdom. Our greatest brands have the best worded slogans and tag lines. If you want to inspire, lead, conquer the world or the markets, the first thing you need to do is develop a masteryover the words you speak. From children, to workers, to consumers, everybody loves “Seedhi baat, no bakwaas!”

LOVE PEOPLE!

It’s once again that time of the year when love is in the air and all around you, or as Jay Leno once described it, “Today is Valentine’s Day – or as men like to call it, Extortion Day!”

GREAT MARKETERS ARE GREAT LOVERS

A great marketer loves people. He observes them well, and is quick to find out what they want, many times even before the consumer himself! They call him the “accidental billionaire.” But one thing the man knew as well as software programming was what people his age liked and wanted. Mark Zuckerberg knew that kids on campus want to always be in touch with each other, apart from of course knowing who was dating whom. He probably was right; no wonder Facebook has over 500 million users, and the “status” tab is the most talked about feature! For a great marketer, the consumer is king.

The rule is simple, give them what they love and you will have them eating out of your hand.

There is nothing more attractive than this four-letter word. No, it’s not ‘LOVE’ but ‘FREE’! If you understand consumers, you will know the magical power of this word. Add to this another four-letter word ‘EASY’ and you have a blockbuster brand in your hands. If you are not convinced, look at Google. It’s so successful because it’s free and it’s so easy to use. It even corrects your spellings. Look at Facebook. It’s free and so easy and simple a concept. In 2007, suddenly everybody was talking about Ryanair, making it Britain’s most loved airline. Why? They gave away 1 million free air tickets. In 4 hours, 4 million people hit its website, making it the most talked about & popular airline service.

Price is the key driving factor and getting it right is one of the key qualities of a great marketer. Bata was always famous for its prices. Though there may not be much difference between Rs.100 and Rs.99.95, somehow Rs.99.95 is always perceived as much lesser than Rs.100. A keen observer of human nature discovered this & Bata sold more shoes.

What’s marketing without advertising! And a great advertisement is one which makes people go out and buy the product! The one advertisement that has burnt up cyberspace, TV, and newspapers in the US recently is the ad for Chrysler’s new sedan. It was shown on Sunday (Feb 6, 2011) and in two days, the ad had gone viral and racked up more than 3.5 million views on the YouTube. Everybody was talking about it. The ad has the one thing everybody loves – honesty. It tells the story of a city that has been to hell and back. It tells the story of an underdog. The world loves this kind of a story. People cried after seeing the ad. And it worked like nobody’s business, for according to Autometrics, within 10 minutes of the ad going on air, 131 people inquired about the sedan’s price. The ad featured Eminem, a rapper, who himself comes back from tough times – much like Detroit. The combination was deadly and worked superbly for Chrysler and Eminem. After all, a good ad reflects the state of the consumer’s psyche and this one echoed what Americans wanted to hear… that the good times would be back again soon.

Tata Nano seems to be doing just that here. Its cute advertisement, where the little girl cuddles her first cute car, pulls at your heart strings; and as you smile, you almost feel a part of this family and share their happiness.

Boroplus too understood a woman like none other. It knew what a woman loves – appreciation. The advertisements of Boroplus moisturising lotion did just that by showing men going crazy over the complexion of women! Women loved it and Boroplus knew it did not need Amitabh Bachchan to sell its product, for it had hit the right chord with its audience.

The appeal of an advertisement also lies in its slogan, its punchline. “Virginia is for lovers” – the slogan worked so well that every resident of the city had this provocative slogan emblazoned on their car bumper stickers. Catch the imagination of the people and you will be able to bowl them over.

Understand what people want and innovate accordingly. The reason why Super Bowl was watched by 111 million people in America last Sunday was because it knew that to increase viewership, it had to promote the game among women and Hispanics. It did just that and made it the most popular show of the year. The reason why Suhaana of the Hindi soap ‘Sasural Genda Phool’ has been voted the most popular character by Indians is because she was just the person they loved to watch & talkabout (according to survey done by ‘Characters India Loves’).

A great ad guy understands human insecurities, wants and desires, and touches those very chords. Just the way Ali Ali and Maged Nassar, two ad guys of Cairo did. They knew what the people of Egypt were thinking and they used their creativity to transfer the feelings of people into one image. They took a decade-old photo of Hosni Mubarak, added the Hitler moustache & floppy hair, found a printer who agreed to print the image secretly, and behold, the revolution got an “image” to bash, and unify against.

Give people what they want. China loves a price war. It always increases sales of the brands that do it. After all, one of the best selling books of that region is The Art of War and they love a war to see the strongest one survive. Not so in America. They don’t like price wars (guess the real ones are more than enough for them to handle!).

GREAT MARKETING IS ABOUT GREAT RELATIONSHIPS

Business is about building relationships with clients and ensuring that they are genuinely happy. Business is not aboutjust “closing a deal,” it’s about genuinely caring for the people and finding out what they want.

Getting good customer insights is most important for not just survival but also to be really loved by your customers. 3M thought it had made a world-class innovation with “Post-it” notes. Then sales started falling. A keen observer of people, 3M immediately realised that this was the era of iPads & smartphones and no one wrote notes on paper but typed them into their gadgets. However, it also saw that these gadgets had made digital photography extremely popular. It took a team of one marketer and two lab-scientists to hit upon the idea of “Post-It-Picture-Paper,” an adhesive coated photo paper on which people could stick their photos & easily display them on their walls. The company found a way to survive!

Sitting in Finland, Nokia did not realise that just making low-cost phones would not help it capture the Indian market. A little thorough research showed that a lot of people could not read & hence were unable to use the phone in places like China, India and Nepal. A simple innovation helped it survive. It made a contact list, where images could be stored. Everyone found it easy. It worked!

All great relationships are based on the ability to really listen to your partner. Infosys does just that. It listens to its youngest recruits. N. R. Narayana Murthy introduced the “voice of youth” programme where each year, 9 very young & very bright recruitswere allowed to attend the very senior management council meeting to discuss their ideas with the top guys. In fact, every great company from P&G to RIM (makers of Blackberry) have at the top a CEO who sets a culture of listening. This way you understand people better, create marketing campaigns that work and build strong ever-lasting relationships, with both your customers and employees. That’s the most important aspect of marketing!

THE GREATEST EMOTION IS LOVE

It’s the right time of the year to acknowledge the power of this great emotion. Think about it, our best songs are love songs (love for spouse, parents, nation, children,family, whatever), our best movies are those where love finally wins, our best success stories are of people we love to love – the underdogs. The failures, whom no one gave a chance, but who fought all adversities & made it. Our best leaders are those who taught us love – be they our parents or Mahatma Gandhi, who in this issue of the TIME magazine tops the list of “Top 25 Political Icons” of all time. No one tilldate could beat Gandhiji’s philosophy of “ahimsa”. He showed the world how to win a war with love.

Our best campaigns are the ones that are most honest and the ones that speak the language people want to hear. If you can understand human nature, then you will always get a “YES” as an answer whenever you ask, “Will you be mine?” Love people. They’ll love you back!