<strong>Devika Bulchandani global CEO and Liz Taylor, global CCO at Ogilvy</strong> catch up with Storyboard18's editor <strong>Delshad Irani</strong> to talk about the relationship the two CXOs share, how they met, how Bulchandani pitched the job to Taylor to bring her on board and what it takes to run a legacy ad agency in today's times. They also spoke about the personal goals they set for themselves when they arrived at Ogilvy and how much of it have they managed to accomplish.

Watch here. 

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Ogilvy's Devika Bulchandani & Liz Taylor on their relationship with each other, personal goals and more

Devika Bulchandani global CEO and Liz Taylor, global CCO at Ogilvy talk about their relationship with each other, client relationships, the burden of running a legacy ad agency and more.

Shweta Jain joins The Leela Group as the chief marketing and sales officer

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TRAI to mull views on regulations for apps like WhatsApp, Facebook, X, Instagram

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Is Ajmera Group the brand behind the tragic ad hoarding collapse in Mumbai?

Legacy of Naturals Ice Cream founder Raghunandan Kamath aka ‘Ice Cream Man of India’

Representational image via Unsplash

Zee-Sony merger saga ends: Timeline of the failed merger

Why are Indian brands advertising in NYC's Times Square?

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Piyush Pandey

Adtech regulation a priority for Modi govt in third term: MoS Rajeev Chandrasekhar

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The Podcast Pulse, a comprehensive report on podcast consumption in India developed by UNPAC Research (OPC) Pvt. Ltd. with the support of Ideabrew Studios, offers unprecedented insights into the evolving landscape of podcasting in India.

Despite the gradual adoption of podcasts into daily media consumption routines, a lack of comprehensive data on consumption patterns has hindered its recognition as a powerful platform for connecting with consumers.

India has surged to become the third-largest market for podcast listeners globally, yet only 12 percent of Indians are currently engaged, leaving a vast untapped audience waiting to be explored. The Podcast Pulse addresses this gap by offering actionable insights into consumer preferences, content choices, favored hosts, and preferred platforms.

The methodology behind The Podcast Pulse involved a meticulous blend of quantitative and qualitative research techniques. Engaging 2,170 individuals across 10 cities in India, including Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Indore, Patna, and Jaipur, the report gauged awareness and listenership statistics. Additionally, detailed interviews with 1,800 active listeners provided invaluable insights into their behavior and preferences.

Key findings from the report include:

•       82 percent of respondents were initially unaware of podcasts, highlighting a significant opportunity for awareness-building efforts.

•       78 percent of consumers discovered podcasts less than a year ago, indicating a recent surge in interest.

•       Authenticity and vulnerability in podcast conversations are highly valued by listeners, fostering a deeper connection with hosts and content.

The report also explores consumption patterns, including weekday vs. weekend trends, preferred episode lengths, and the rise of regional language content. Regional podcasts are identified as a driving force in shaping the industry's future, offering audiences a more relatable and culturally resonant listening experience.

Furthermore, The Podcast Pulse profiles the Aware listener – detailing gender, occupation, age, and level of education – and conducts a deep dive into genre dynamics and explores the nuances between audio and video podcasts.  It charts the four stages of podcast enthusiasts’ journey, from their curious Exploration and Discovery phase to Advocacy as they actively promote and champion their favorite podcasts.

Sheetal Choksi, Director, UNPAC Research says, "We believe The Podcast Pulse is a game-changer, providing insights into India’s podcast consumption and offering a roadmap for creators and platforms to navigate the evolving preferences of Indian audiences, empowering industry professionals and stakeholders to unlock its full potential. As a podcaster myself, I experienced firsthand the challenges in accessing comprehensive data about our audience. Beyond some basic data, no one was able to answer questions like who was listening to podcasts, when, why certain genres did well, etc. This realization was the genesis of The Podcast Pulse – an earnest attempt to fill the void and provide actionable insights for the entire industry."

Aditya Kuber, CEO, Ideabrew Studios says, “At Ideabrew Studios, we are passionate about fostering innovation in audio storytelling. The Podcast Pulse not only showcases the immense potential of podcasts in India but also underscores the importance of diverse and authentic narratives in shaping the future of audio entertainment. This report will be a definitive look into podcast consumption data for advertising agencies, brands and everyone looking to meaningfully engage with a large audience.”



India third-largest market for podcast listeners globally; yet only 12 percent Indians currently engaged

GOZOOP HAWK, and online reputation management and customer support agency under the GOZOOP Group, has bagged the listening and digital response management duties for Amazon miniTV, a leading free entertainment service in India.


As part of the mandate, GOZOOP HAWK’s key responsibilities will include handling digital customer support, monitoring online brand chatter, amplifying positive stories, measuring sentiments, providing timely resolutions and deriving actionable business insights for the brand by understanding and tracking valuable web conversations to delight customers. 


Amazon miniTV offers a large library of popular web series, movies, reality shows, dubbed international content, in multiple genres like comedy, romance, slice of life, thriller and more.


Commenting on the partnership Aruna Daryanani, director and business head, Amazon miniTV said, “ORM is an important component of brand building and reputation management. With the right strategy, ideation and creative thinking we can further strengthen our brand presence. We are excited to partner with GOZOOP HAWK and look forward to their expertise to continue to raise the bar on customer experience.”


Commenting on the win, Premkumar Iyer, president, GOZOOP HAWK said, “HAWK has always demonstrated capability of delivering some of the most unconventional listening and online customer support solutions. This habit to push boundaries coupled with Amazon miniTV's disruptive approach towards the dynamic OTT space makes the relationship click. We have already done some stellar work e.g. during Amazon miniTV’s recent launch of dubbed K-dramas, we turned the whole response management strategy to Korean language generating shift in outreach. We look forward to doing more such unconventional work for them in times to come.”


GOZOOP HAWK bags listening and digital customer support mandate for Amazon miniTV

The marketing team within media giant Cox Media Group (CMG) claims it has the capability to listen to ambient conversations of consumers through embedded microphones in smartphones, smart TVs, and other devices to gather data and use it to target ads, according to a review of CMG marketing materials by 404 Media and details from a pitch given to an outside marketing professional. Called “Active Listening,” CMG claims the capability can identify potential customers “based on casual conversations in real time.”

The news signals that what a huge swath of the public has believed for years—that smartphones are listening to people in order to deliver ads—may finally be a reality in certain situations. Until now, there was no evidence that such a capability actually existed, but its myth permeated due to how sophisticated other ad tracking methods have become.

It is not immediately clear if the capability CMG is advertising and claims works is being used on devices in the market today, but the company notes it is “a marketing technique fit for the future. Available today.” 404 Media also found a representative of the company on LinkedIn explicitly asking interested parties to contact them about the product. One marketing professional pitched by CMG on the tech said a CMG representative explained the prices of the service to them.

“What would it mean for your business if you could target potential clients who are actively discussing their need for your services in their day-to-day conversations? No, it's not a Black Mirror episode—it's Voice Data, and CMG has the capabilities to use it to your business advantage,” CMG’s website reads.

The part of CMG advertising the capability is CMG Local Solutions. CMG itself is owned by Apollo Global Management and Cox Enterprises, which includes the ISP Cox Communications. CMG operates a wide array of local news television and radio stations.

With Active Listening, CMG claims to be able to “target your advertising to the EXACT people you are looking for.” The goal is to target potential clients or customers based on what they say in “their day to day conversations,” the website adds. Specifically, those could include:

Clients can “claim” a territory where they want to use CMG’s services, which are available in a 10 or 20 mile radius, the website says. After setup, “Active Listening begins and is analyzed via AI to detect pertinent conversations via smartphones, smart tvs and other devices,” the website adds. CMG also claims it installs a tracking pixel on its client’s website to monitor the return on investment (ROI).

With an audience created, CMG then delivers adverts to these people through streaming TV, streaming audio, display ads, YouTube, and Google and Bing search, the website says.

“The result? Unprecedented understanding of consumer behavior, so we can deliver personalized ads that make your target audience think: wow, they must be a mind reader,” another section of CMG’s website reads.

Claims about this capability raises obvious and immediate legal concerns; intercepting communications without proper consent can violate wiretapping laws. CMG’s website addresses this with a section that starts “We know what you are thinking…”

“Is this legal? YES- it is totally legal for phones and devices to listen to you. That's because consumers usually give consent when accepting terms and conditions of software updates or app downloads,” the website says.

Beyond CMG’s website, very little information is available about the capability, including how exactly the data is gathered, be that via a software development kit (SDK) bundled into apps, or via collection at another point. For its part, Apple does alert iPhone users when an app is accessing the device’s microphone with a small icon in the UI.

The marketing professional pitched by CMG told 404 Media that after a call with the company, they disabled microphone access on much of their own technology: “I immediately removed all my Amazon Echo devices and locked down microphone permissions on things like my phone as receiving confirmation they are doing things like this have confirmed my worst fears and I, for one, will not take part in it,” they said.

CMG says “the ROI is already impressive” and is actively soliciting potential customers, though. On LinkedIn, Chris Marxmiller, a senior sales consultant at CMG, invites people in his bio to “Ask me about our NEW product - ACTIVE LISTENING.” Marxmiller did not respond to a request for comment which asked for more information on the Active Listening product.

CMG lists a number of other companies as its partners and publishers. These include Amazon, Microsoft, and Google. Microsoft declined to comment. Google told 404 Media in a statement that “For years, Android has prevented apps from collecting audio  when they're not being actively used, and whenever an app activates a device’s microphone, there is a prominent icon displayed in the status bar.” Google did not answer 404 Media’s question in its statement.

Amazon said in a statement that “the advertising product being described would not be possible with Echo devices. We do not share voice recordings with third parties.”

CMG said in a statement that “CMG Local Solutions markets a wide range of advertising tools. Like other advertising companies, some of those tools include third-party vendor products powered by data sets sourced from users by various social media and other applications then packaged and resold to data servicers. Advertising data based on voice and other data is collected by these platforms and devices under the terms and conditions provided by those apps and accepted by their users, and can then be sold to third-party companies and converted into anonymized information for advertisers. This anonymized data then is resold by numerous advertising companies.”

“CMG businesses do not listen to any conversations or have access to anything beyond a third-party aggregated, anonymized and fully encrypted data set that can be used for ad placement. We regret any confusion and we are committed to ensuring our marketing is clear and transparent,” the statement added.

Cox Media Group claims to have capability to listen to ambient conversations of consumers for targeted ads

On June 1, 1945, Fritz Sennheiser, a German inventor and entrepreneur, founded the audio equipment manufacturing company that bears his name and went on to become a global brand. Today, Sennheiser has three business units: Pro Audio, Business Communication and Neumann.Berlin. 


In a conversation with Storyboard18, Andreas Sennheiser, the company’s chief executive officer, said, “The first thing is you have to hit a ‘need’. To not get complacent and to not be happy with what we've achieved, we have to keep listening to the customer and at the same time have a creative dissatisfaction with the status quo. So, the achievements of the past should always be seen as just the new standard. From there, we can iterate again.”


Edited excerpts:


<strong>Tell us more about Sennheiser’s India story.</strong>


We started bringing good audio to India in 2007. At the time, it was really hard to understand where the general public was with audio consumption. We found out that listening to music via headphones wasn’t a known principle. 


So, over the last 16 years, I think we've done quite well in developing the taste of enjoying music on the consumer side. For two years, we focused on the pro business only, along with business communication, and then our Neumann products also.


Particularly, in the last one-and-a-half years after the pandemic, we've seen very strong growth. On the live part, everyone wants to enjoy music, festivals, weddings and all kinds of corporate events. But on the business communication side, government, corporate and also higher education facilities are gearing up significantly for hybrid meetings, for remote lectures and also for a digital government.


<strong>Where do you see India in Sennheiser's growth map?</strong>


In the last two years, India has had one of the highest growth levels, with more than 50 percent annual growth.


As far as the general business globally is concerned, we could supply all our customers with products even during the pandemic. So, we were never really out of products.


<strong>From a product lens, what’s the focus?</strong> 


We have several focuses. There’s a general common focus that more and more of the technology that we’re using—it is highly advanced—is hidden behind very simple user interfaces. 


So, we want to make it as simple as possible, come up with seamless integration, plug and play with our installed business like ceiling microphones… This is so that an integrator, a consultant or the end user really doesn’t need to deal a lot with technology but actually can focus on the experience.



<strong>Many global CEOs are surprised by the way Indian consumers have evolved over the last few years. From a price-conscious market, we now are a value-conscious market. So, what are your observations and what is unique about Indian consumers?</strong>


Well, you just gave the right keywords. 


It has evolved from a price sensitive market of buying at the lowest possible level to now buying the highest possible value. So, with that, we are in an excellent position because we love competition. We love the direct comparison of our products with competitive products because usually this is when we win.


That's why value-based buying decisions are very much in our favour, because we provide superior audio quality. 


<strong>Globally, what are the trends in the audio space and do you see the adoption of those trends in India anytime soon?</strong> 


One of the big trends is that high–quality audio is being more and more appreciated. This is particularly when it comes to immersive audio and spatial audio. In the studios, we have more and more Atmos installations with our Neumann speakers. Also, on the playback side, we see a lot of venues now having full arrays of speakers for an immersive experience.


So, the whole appreciation for good audio has significantly increased over the last few years. At the same time, there’s also a strong trend of simplification of workflows. So, we try to focus on making the lives of our end users as simple as possible, particularly because there's also cost pressure on production, music production, news gathering etc. We want to give them the gear that they can operate with the least possible amount of people. 


<strong>What is the brand perception of Sennheiser?</strong> 


Sennheiser has a brand reputation of being extremely reliable, creating remarkable audio experience and being a highly innovative brand. 


The topmost factor is always reliability. In a meeting room, you don’t want to spend 20 minutes getting the system to work. An artist in front of 50,000 people, the only thing he or she can hold is a microphone, and that should not fail.


<strong>In terms of marketing, what are the big plans for India and what are the investments like?</strong> 

Our main investment is in people and education. So, it's people on our end and education on the customer side.

We see that the more there are highly talented technicians, audio engineers and people who know the difference between an okay system and a great system.

During the pandemic, we produced 200 tutorial videos: how to use our microphones, how to set up gear in general, and how to build a studio. A lot of things to just help the audio community do a better job.


<strong>In India, startups have been weaving a very different story in the last few years. As a family-owned company and one of the oldest startups in the audio space, do tell us what it takes to make a successful business and your advice for startups here. </strong>

The first thing is you have to hit a ‘need’. This is not only true in a startup, but also when a company like ours gets older. Now, we’re closer to the 80th year of our existence. To not get complacent and to not be happy with what we've achieved, we have to keep listening to the customer and at the same time have a creative dissatisfaction with the status quo.

So, the achievements of the past should always be seen as just the new standard. From there, we can iterate again. 

<strong>There are a bunch of profitable startups in the audio space here in India. What impresses you about them and are there any lessons that you can pick from them? </strong>

When startups have a platform economy in mind and then scale that up, they can very quickly cover a very broad demand, be it with fintech platforms or be it any other integration.


That is an approach that I find highly attractive because it's not product and gear oriented, but really platform oriented. And this is also a strategy that we're adopting more and more. We are not just selling gear to our customers, but we actually provide the control platform with it to make it as easy as possible. 


That has been a strategy for a couple of years—to have a lot of allies in the industry in order to allow a seamless integration for the end user. So, the platform is really the main focus. And, what we're selling in terms of gear is just an endpoint to the whole platform.

<strong>Has the target audience of Sennheiser evolved over time?</strong> 

Yes and no. Our target audience grows with us.

While there was an entry target audience a decade back that has now matured in age and in income, they are now being lifted to the next level.

I had a chance to meet with music composer duo Salim-Sulaiman. We had a chat about technology particularly, and they stressed upon how they started with simple gear and then moved to higher-grade gear.

Andreas Sennheiser: We have to keep listening to the customer and have a creative dissatisfaction with the status quo

Gen Z consumers are 50 percent more likely to take their friends' recommendation over an influencer or a celebrity when making a purchase decision, revealed a study from Yuvaa – the Indian Gen Z-driven youth media, impact, and research organization.

An Economic Times report states that the findings are based on a report titled 'Not All Gen Z'. The findings are based on responses from over 900 Gen Z participants, spanning over 20 cities across tier I, II, and III cities and towns of the country. Gen Z represents people born between 1997 and 2012 who show distinctive behavior in their lifestyle and shopping habits. At over two billion, Gen Z forms roughly 25 percent of the global population. It makes up for over 35 percent of India's population, according to Yuvaa.

Their estimated spending power is in excess of €235 billion, according to BCG. 

<strong>Influencers provide brand visibility</strong>

Karthik Srinivasan, a communications strategy consultant, believes that we trust the references and recommendations of the people we trust the most within our family or friends circle. However, influencers have a different role to play.

"They have come to usurp the role of mainstream media and advertising to a large extent and have become predictable sources of visibility more than influence. In other words, influencers (along with mainstream media and advertising) are sources of introducing products or services, use-cases, and giving them visibility, but they may not necessarily persuade people to make the purchase. That's where friends and family (known peers, colleagues too) would come into play," he explains.

Srinivasan tells Storyboard18 that influencers are merely shilling a product for a fee and have long stopped pretending to be actual users of a product to offer use-based/experience-based content/information.

"Even if they claim to offer personal experience-based recommendations, if viewers/followers see the disclaimer about paid content, they'd automatically discount that factor and take that recommendation with a pinch of salt," he adds.

Yuvaa's report findings also highlight a few key aspects of a Gen Z consumer who is not only willing to support brands that support social causes but also cares about sustainability. Around 63 percent of Gen Z shoppers surveyed said they prefer brands that support social causes. 

71 percent of Gen Z prioritize brands that are environment-friendly, and 77 percent consider price when buying something, even if it's not sustainable. Gen Zs are split equally between feminist and non-feminist brands, but 60 percent of women prefer them.

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/quantum-brief/amazon-vs-myntra-who-will-win-over-more-gen-z-shoppers-in-india-8247.htm">Read more: Amazon vs Myntra: Who will win over more Gen Z shoppers in India?</a>

<strong>E-com platforms chasing Gen Z</strong>

These trends are being closely followed and implemented in product and marketing strategies by e-commerce platforms in India. Storyboard18 reported that there has been intense competition between online retailers to woo the next generation of shoppers, with e-commerce platforms Amazon and Myntra actively investing in the Gen Z cohort.

Flipkart-backed fashion portal Myntra, for instance, announced the launch of FWD, an in-platform experience offering additional brands and styles curated for Gen-Z shoppers.

The move comes days after rival Amazon Fashion introduced the ‘Next Gen Store,’ catering to the unique needs of Gen Z shoppers, who seek to experiment with fashion and have varying preferences in terms of styles, sizes, brands, and fitting.

While Nykaa Fashion has not yet launched a dedicated platform for Gen Z shoppers, it has been onboarding brands that target this cohort. Recently, it added MIXT, which offers streetwear-inspired modern apparel options such as bodysuits, corsets, jumpsuits, jackets, cardigans, and footwear. It brought in Cider, a US-based label, expanding its global offerings to Indian consumers.

Gen Z segment has a distinct aesthetic that impacts their brand choices, which have been driving fashion trends – crop tops, ribbed dresses, chunky sneakers, and baggy jeans.

Unlike previous generations, which were heavily influenced by Bollywood and sports celebrities, Gen Z shoppers are more picky about who they follow. Social media influencers have emerged as a significant force in shaping their purchase decisions.

However, there is a catch. This group only follows influencers or celebrities who ‘walk the talk’ and are more trustworthy.

<strong>Value for sustainability, inclusivity</strong>

Bindiya Bhatt, senior director of category management at Myntra told Storyboard18 that for Gen Z, inclusivity, authenticity, and unconventionalism take centre stage as well.

"By embracing these values and catering to their specific needs, businesses can create more meaningful and impactful experiences that resonate with this important and influential demographic," she said.

Technopak Advisors' Ankur Bisen had a deeper insight, saying Gen Z shoppers are community-driven and seek better products rather than stay loyal to brands.

"...they are definitely seeking better products than brands and they are also looking at the consumption of fashion through communities. For example, there are communities towards gaming, nature, and even limited edition products. The spin-off from this trend could be the 'sneaker culture' in India and the craze to buy limited edition sneakers that are being sold online. These are some micro trends that one needs to notice," he said.

Influencers’ influence waning? GenZ listen to friends over social media influencers

Why PepsiCo India’s Lay's launched gourmet chips

Storyboard18 x Momo Media: Let's Talk - Masculinity in Advertising

“We will have another incremental billion dollars in the next three years for the home-grown billion dollar brand Thums Ups,” says Arnab Roy, vice president and head of marketing, Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia to Storyboard18’s Shibani Gharat. He also talks about the brand’s new advertising campaign #HarHaathToofan.

<iframe title="Coca Cola's Arnab Roy On Thums Up New Campaign 'Har Haath Toofan' | Storyboard 18 | CNBC-TV18" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fXe4to9HL4Q" width="853" height="480" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

Coca-Cola's Arnab Roy on Thums Up’s new ad campaign #HarHaathToofan

GE's Linda Boff on what it takes to reinvent a 130-yr old brand

Chat with IPG's Arun Kumar and Plum's Shankar Prasad and actor Ananya Pandey

Sustainability in the context of brand partnership is a field where collaboration should take place instead of competition, said Conny Braams, chief digital and commercial officer of Unilever.

“Sustainability drives more growth, and brands that are considered by consumers to make a positive impact on climate grow much faster,” said Braams, who started her Unilever journey 33 years ago and was recognised as Global Marketer of the Year 2021 by the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA).

Braams, whose career has taken her to Spain, Singapore, Africa and the Middle East, spoke to Raja Rajamannar, chief marketing and communications officer and president of healthcare business at Mastercard, on short-term growth, long-term resilience and sustainability at Cannes Lions this year.

“Sustainability is a field we should not compete on. We need to make this field available for anyone in this industry. Marketers here have a huge role to play,” Braams said.

Unilever, which reported a turnover of €60.1 billion in 2022, says its purpose is to make sustainable living commonplace. Addressing the business focus on sustainability and conscious consumerism, Braams said Unilever’s turnover is about 60 percent because of an innovation-driven approach through initiatives like plant-based alternatives.

She said Unilever, with brands such as Dove, Vaseline and Knorr, wants to drive short-term growth but long-term resilience. According to her, no FMCG company is risk free. Climate change is a massive issue – 40 percent of Unilever’s factories are in water-stressed environments.

“We need to make sure these factories are less reliant on water. Then focus is on sustainable growth and creating a less risk-prone business for Unilever and attracting best talents. People want businesses to be part of the solution, and businesses want the same,” Braams said.

On brand partnerships, Braams said 97% of the people say they want to live a more sustainable life. However, people find it very confusing to understand which brand is truly sustainable.

“Sources of information are changing – 68 percent actually tell us that they believe that influencers are telling the truth. As an industry, we need to come together to train those influencers, give them the right information and educate them. Secondly, for a marketer, consumer behaviour is the hardest part as it can be difficult to make people change,” Braams said.

Braams said that if consumers stand on the sidelines, nothing is really going to change. People need to come together with different capabilities and use the intersection of sustainability, technology and digitisation and consumer behaviour science to make a big leap forward.

<strong>(Compiled by Indrani Bose)</strong>


Sustainability requires collaboration, not competition: Conny Braams of Unilever

Devika Bulchandani, global chief executive officer, Ogilvy, says her first agenda after coming to the advertising agency was to make the organisation and people feel stable as there have been a lot of uncertainties at the company.
 
It was important, she said, to calm down the internal noise and for the people to remember that Bulchandani and Liz Taylor, global chief creative officer, came because of the love they have for the brand. “If you don’t have the people feeling good, nothing happens,” Bulchandani says.
 
She was talking to Storyboard18 at Cannes Lions 2023. 

<strong>Read More:</strong> <a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/watch-listen/ogilvys-devika-bulchandani-liz-taylor-on-their-relationship-with-each-other-personal-goals-and-more-9786.htm" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Ogilvy's Devika Bulchandani & Liz Taylor on their relationship with each other, personal goals and more</a>

Bulchandani, who is one more Indian-origin CEO running a global company, says that if she wanted to lead like a woman earlier, now she wants to lead like an Indian. 
 
Taylor who was also present there addressed the the dynamic between her and Bulchandani. Taylor revealed that the duo share a chemistry and have both intellectually stimulating and woman to woman conversation.Taylor also mentioned that her goal is to make the work culture at Ogilvy simple and make people understand what Ogilvy’s core values are.

 
<strong>‘Winning fixes everything’</strong>

Bulchandani focuses on stabilising the creative leadership and talks about making sure that the creative reputation of Ogilvy is intact. Bulchandani ensures that she spends time with clients and listening to them and understanding whether Ogilvy is delivering. “Winning fixes everything, be it winning a client, or winning at Cannes,” she feels.

“When an agency feels like a winner, they do better work for clients and show up with bravery. We got to get our fundamentals right. Once your fundamentals are right, you can innovate stuff,” she says.

Bulchandani also talked about the love for complication that the industry has. “They believe that if we complicate our industry, that’s our value. Data is a means to an end. In the end, it is creativity, whether it is PR, a health business or digital experience, it is creative thinking that is solving a business problem,” she said.

<strong>(Complied by Indrani Bose)</strong>

If I wanted to lead like a woman earlier, now I want to do it like an Indian: Ogilvy’s Devika Bulchandani

Artificial Intelligence is the talk of the town. Everyone wants to know more about it, use it and be surprised by it. AI is the next big thing. It will transform work culture and streamline a lot of processes. In the creative industry, AI will have a significant impact in the years to come. Everyone from head honchos to junior staff is just as excited as anyone to witness the potential AI packs. Some might even be scared to lose their jobs. Rob Reilly, global chief creative officer, WPP caught up with Storyboard18’s editor Delshad Irani at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity to talk about his first experience of winning a Lion, being jury president, humour in advertising, AI, young creatives and more. 


According to Reilly, for him the feeling of presenting the Lion to a winner might just be greater than receiving one. “Being able to see the happiness on a young creative’s face is worth it.” He adds. Furthermore, when asked about the kind of work that agencies are churning out recently, he said, “People talk about purpose-led work and how there’s too much of it. In my opinion, there actually isn’t enough of it. Brands have filled in where the government can't help people, whether it is because of money or other reasons. Why should that stop?” However, he added that what needs to be figured out is how to effectively bring humour back into advertising. This was a hot topic at Cannes this year. A lot of campaigns that won awards this year were purpose-driven. 

[caption id="attachment_10105" align="alignnone" width="750"]<img src="https://images.storyboard18.com/storyboard18/2023/07/WhatsApp-Image-2023-07-11-at-18.07.03-1024x768.jpeg" alt="Rob Reilly speaking to Delshad Irani in Cannes." width="750" height="563" class="size-large wp-image-10105" /> Rob Reilly speaking to Delshad Irani in Cannes.[/caption]

“I don’t want to blame purpose for the lack of humour.” Reilly adds. He believes that agencies have simply shied away from humour. They’re afraid of how far they can push things. India has done tremendous work with humour. Australia and Thailand too. “We need more of it. We need to figure out how to bring more humour into advertising, not at the expense of purpose.” said Reilly. 


WPP has made some leaps in using AI. Reilly said that WPP is deep into AI, they’ve been using it quite a bit. Moreover, WPP is partnering up with NVIDIA to increase their AI footprint. “For creative people what has been lost is the ability to experiment and to try things and fail. There’s not enough time and money. AI will help creative people experiment.” He too believes that AI will work as a tool that will help people work better and faster but won’t replace creative people. “AI will definitely make stuff but it won’t make the best stuff. Having humans involved is the only solution to creating magical work.”


A few campaigns that stood out for Reilly over the past year were AB InBev’s work for Corona, where they helped farmers grow limes for their beer. China doesn’t grow a lot of limes. AB InBev taught them to grow it. Now it has changed the face of Corona in China. “Secondly, The Burberry film where we saw people flying through the air. There’s also Serena vs Serena who won the Grand Prix.” He also mentioned the Cadbury campaign featuring Shah Rukh Khan as another stand-out campaign. 


Lastly, he spoke very highly of India and how it has made progress in leaps and bounds in creativity and technology and marrying the two effortlessly. “We’re looking for India not just to win but to show us the way.” 

Watch the full interview here.

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<strong>(Curated by Aashrey Baliga) </strong>




WPP's Rob Reilly on creativity, humour in advertising, future of AI and more

Firstly, I sensed like there were two parts to the entire Olympics of creativity - One that spoke of the message and the other that was all about the means. The bigness and the buzz aside, I wish for Cannes to get even more revitalized as the apex festival of creativity rather than an expo of digital plumbing and ad tech.

Kraft Heinz would be a perfect Ad for Cannes itself, swinging back like a pendulum from 3G Capital’s mandated zero-based budgeting to being a big winner for creativity. Its partnership with with Gut, the agency made headlines this year. That’s acute business sense feeding into a renewed culture of creativity. Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) as Creative Marketer of the Year for a second year in a row arrived with all the effervescence and the froth it deserved.

I sensed that creativity is being seen through the lens of effectiveness and results. Brands have over purposed themselves to excuse creative license. Business needs payback. 

I was head of Jury for the APAC Effies this year, and every time I had to remind myself and the jury that results and effectiveness was above all other criteria. That great results were garnered using creatively enriching ways was a clincher or a bonus. The Cannes weightage is the other way around. The end list is equally credible. 

Tech, diversity and inclusion was pretty much at the heart of the agenda and not something auxiliary, novel or exotic. The biggest headline from Cannes was ‘The arrival of AI’. The mainstage takeaways were broadly positive qualifying it as a developing but vast area which will be a means and an end at the same time. 

There were no awards for AI-generated campaigns, yet but I saw AI and machine inspired creative expressions being generated and shared. 

It was good to see the absence of doom and gloom but no votes were cast for whether generative AI is a force for good or evil. I imagine in its day, a Xerox machine, a graphics software package and the internet itself could have been qualified as bigger and more imminent disruptions or tools. And I am serious. The marketing fraternity’s self-convened leadership has an adoration of the icing more than the cake. The younger talent may have a more balanced response, I suppose. 

I heard Sir Martin Sorrell say he feels there is no case for 10,000 media planners in the world and that an algorithm will always do a better job than a 25 year old media planner. I agree and I sense he knows this is already a ‘pending past due date’ reality.

Clay Shirky said something along the lines that society changes when it adopts new tools, not when it invents them. I think we must keep our focus on the technology adoption cycle. Hype hurts developments more than it hurts corporations. Look at Meta and look at Metaverse. Nobody talks about trains that arrive on time, so therefore they’re all late! If our ancestors had assumed the pose of Rodin’s The Thinker every time they had to decide whether to flee a predator or an enemy, humanity would have become extinct a long time ago. Urgency of assimilation is more important than urgency of innovation. 

So, can any man who buys a salon kit be a stylist? There is no entry barrier to harnessing generative AI to build creative assets, iterate and ideate, refine audiences, measure outcomes and engineer relevance into every prospect and customer interaction. 

That YouTube, Google, Amazon and TikTok were the biggest destination pavilions acknowledged that we are living in a digital advertising world but programmatic spending was under discussion. Wasted ad spends, programmatic transparency, inclusion lists and bright-listing of publications were spotlighted. 

Given where the world spends its digital money, I think a hard look at made-for-advertising sites based on the quality of the user experience and the ad to edit ratio is much required. The media agencies can seem like the pied piper leading both clients and platforms to a lower payoff. I am not being alarmist, just mindful.

There is an acute need for advertisers to tap into unduplicated reach through whichever publishers in digital, video and audio deliver it. Trusted news sources are top of the list.

More and more brands are dedicating budgets toward minority owned media outlets and taking a more thoughtful approach to media spend. This is an excellent step forward in creating a fairer environment and will only go farther as the industry adopts new standards for identifying these outlets and scaling campaigns. The separation between editorial and advertising must be reclaimed for journalistic purity’s sake. But, we must think of the world where as advertorials fade, so would many of the storied publications.

I felt the entire discussion on digital in a world of enforced privacy was a bit muted. It isn’t about the regulatory environment, privacy expectations or auditability. It’s about rebuilding the tech stack with a privacy-and-compliance-first mindset across all consumer touch points. Marketing in the post-cookie world will take cross-industry collaboration. The principle of advertising as an unavoidable interruption of the content experience rose from the ashes stronger than ever with the growth of digital media.

Publishers will scramble to leverage first-party data. Brand advertisers will need an understanding of the right audiences. There will be a new marketplace of first- and second-party data vendors set to change the future of buying. Apple is cracking down on tracking on Safari and iOS. Google's final deadline for cookie deprecation is quickly approaching. All of us must prepare for cookie-less solutions.

There are some fools who find it impossible to sleep when they are passengers; apparently they can sleep only when they’re the driver!

Finally, if you haven’t already, do get influencers aboard. The creator economy is mainstream. Influencer work is the main campaign in many cases especially lifestyle, alcobev, luxury and fashion. The creator economy is a big business, and after gaming, it best delivers messaging in an environment of attention. 

It was a privilege to be there at Cannes. It was a personal trip for me cutting days out of a family vacation. My daily trek from the, not so nearby, Mandelieu was not the easiest. I was high on ideas more often than on expensive wine. The arrangements at all festival venues were first rate. McDonald’s fed me many a McSwirl and convinced me of in moment marketing.

In conclusion, as I took the train to Paris, I thought of the debates on the rules of engagement, part industry talk, part frenemy warning. I was reminded that the world is in a withdrawal from globalisation and growth is the key deliverable. All of us are impacted by fragmentation.  

Then, as the afternoon sun bounced off the shimmering waters on the Côte d'Azur, I remembered that attention is the mother of memory. In my world, it’s the brand first and always and my business is producing wow ideas that scale.

Then I ordered a beer. Yes , We Cannes !

<strong>Shubhranshu Singh is vice president, marketing - domestic & IB, CVBU, Tata Motors. He writes Simply Speaking, a weekly column on Storyboard18. Views expressed are personal.</strong>



Simply Speaking: All about the Olympics of creativity

<strong>Devika Bulchandani global CEO and Liz Taylor, global CCO at Ogilvy</strong> catch up with Storyboard18's editor <strong>Delshad Irani</strong> to talk about the relationship the two CXOs share, how they met, how Bulchandani pitched the job to Taylor to bring her on board and what it takes to run a legacy ad agency in today's times. They also spoke about the personal goals they set for themselves when they arrived at Ogilvy and how much of it have they managed to accomplish.

Watch here. 

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The world is becoming more fragmented and globalization is not over. Martin Sorrell, founder and executive chairperson at S4 Capital believes that in today’s data-enabled world,  AI engenders fear, as well as wonder. He says the initial reaction is usually “wow,” but then there is skepticism due to fear of losing jobs.  


According to Sorrell, AI’s impact can be witnessed in visualization and copywriting. Also, because of AI, media planning and buying has turned upside down, and there is also hyper personalization at scale.

AI has made information democratic. The world has become data driven, faster and cheaper. “As long as we ingest the right data, we can give people access to it,” says Sorrell.

 

Sorrell says that AI will have impact on major companies and the platforms like Alphabet and Meta will only get bigger and bigger. “Amazon’s 45 billion will probably increase to 100 billion dollars because of ad revenues. Google’s ad revenue will increase to 225 dollars. There will be no demise of Facebook, it is only getting stronger. The same will happen with Alibaba, Tiktok and Tencent in the East,” Sorrell concludes. 

<strong>Storyboard18’s Delshad Irani spoke to Martin Sorrell on the sidelines of Cannes Lions. Watch out for the full conversation on Media Dialogues on CNBC-TV18.</strong>

AI engenders fear as well as wonder, says Martin Sorrell of S4 Capital

<strong>Cooling period </strong>

The richest cricket board in the world was in the fix hunting for sponsors as its current sponsor, a  trouble-ridden edtech firm is on its way out. Flushed with funds, a fantasy sports platform came to its rescue as the only serious contender in the race, with only two other companies showing interest by picking up the tender document. It was a close save. Industry insiders believe that it is basically an indication of a hot market cooling. With investor money drying up, lesser and lesser number of ‘couldn’t-care-less’ tech, gaming and fintech startups are now staying away from high value properties.

<strong>No Cannes do  </strong>

Indian adwallahs try everything to get a ticket to Cannes to attend the festival, not the film one but it’s other cousin, the Lions. They go through budget hoops and find loops and ways to get themselves, their key team members and a smattering of worthy juniors, to the French Riviera every year. But there was one agency executive who wasn’t too keen to swirl Rose with the global ad crowd at all. So, while this adman’s boss, a constant and regular at Cannes, attended the festival, the said adman preferred to be hundreds of miles away in an Asian paradise. We wonder why. 

<strong>Cannes Do Better </strong>

An award-winning creative director who has broken records at international advertising festivals over the years wasn’t at all impressed with the work from India this year. He called the campaigns ‘uninspiring’.  The adman also felt that causevertising is formulaic. We wonder if this is genuine critique or a case of sour grapes. But hey, when life gives you grapes, you know what to make.

Storyboard18 Insider: Startups' cooling period; uninspiring ideas from Cannes Lions; and more

Yannick Bolloré believes artificial intelligence (AI) isn’t a hype but a real revolution and a fantastic opportunity for the advertising industry. 

Havas, a French multinational advertising and public relations company, has been implementing AI in creative agencies to make the team more efficient and effective.


Bolloré, who took over Havas 10 years ago, and has witnessed the company’s transformative process that includes innovation and putting digital at the core, says: “We, as a company, have changed. We have been the pioneer of integration, with 22,000 people operating in more than 100 countries. We believe we have the responsibility to make a difference in the world."

 
On AI taking jobs, he says: “In the 1830s, with the invention of photography, painters were not killed; it killed average painters. Similarly, AI might kill average creators but Havas can stand out with the best creative team.” 
“At the end of the day, i-domains, including IT, legal, finance and HR, will be revolutionised through AI,” he says.

 
On AI regulation, Bollore says: “Generally speaking, we are fans of regulation. Intellectual property and copyrights need to be respected. At the same time, it’s important for a European company to embrace innovation and technology to grasp and seize the opportunity.”


About the performance of Havas, Bolloré said: “Despite the Russia-Ukraine war, inflation, and supply-chain troubles, Havas’ revenue has grown more than 6-7 percent. There has been a change during COVID and brands and businesses have realised that investment in advertising will build more equity and business in the near future."

<strong>Watch out for the full conversation on CNBC-TV18.</strong>

(Complied by Indrani Bose)<strong>
 


AI isn’t a hype but a real revolution: Yannick Bolloré of Havas

Cristina Diezhandino, global chief marketing officer, Diageo says that the premiumisation trend is gaining momentum in the spirits category with people craving for socialisation more after the Covid pandemic. 
“The world of premium spirits is an exciting category. It is embedded in the world of socialisation. Post Covid, people have been craving for socialisation and celebration all the more. This category plays a phenomenal role in this context,” Diezhandino told Storyboard18’s editor Delshad Irani at Cannes Lions 2023. 

In a candid chat, Diezhandino spoke on key trends and insights in the alcohol category and how Diageo is leveraging AI.She revealed that premium trends have been gaining momentum for a while and people are choosing the higher end of this particular category more. People are observing and valuing the quality of these liquids, she said.

Diezhandino also delved into the trend of sober curious where on many occasions people want to socialise without alcohol. For a long time, the alternatives to alcohol weren’t attractive to people as they did not quite give people the experience that alcohol gives. Considering this, Diageo created non-alcoholic spirits ensuring that liquids having no alcohol deliver the same experience as their alcoholic counterparts.


<strong>Local challenges</strong>


Diezhandino said Diageo manoeuvres and navigates local, cultural and hyperlocal challenges to ensure it still delivers its proposition despite having limitations in media for advertisements. In every market, Diageo has real expertise to deal with the circumstances while ensuring that people enjoy the brand in a way that is attuned to the legislation.

 Diageo understands the value of instrumentality and that technology keeps evolving, and therefore it keeps on layering the technology it has incorporated, she said. “AI is helping us gather insights on connecting points between consumers and brands. AI will not take over human creativity, certainly not now but it does help brands operating at a global level in local circumstances. AI helps us create content that can be applied in the right way for different geographies,” Diezhandino said.

 Diageo also believes in connecting the dots between purpose and profits. “Purpose is so intertwined with the nature of Diageo’s business. We have created this programme ‘Raising The Bar’ where we gave away 100 million dollars globally to help people adapt to their circumstances,” Diezhandino said. 

Diageo also has a Society 2030: Spirit of Progress 10-year ESG plan where the focus is on sustainability, positive drinking and diversity & inclusion. For example, on sustainability, Diageo realised that a part of the footprint has to do with agriculture and therefore decided to engage with farmers in Ireland through its brand Guinness.

<strong>Watch out for the full conversation on CNBC-TV18.</strong>

(Complied by Indrani Bose)<strong>



Craving for socialisation post Covid has spurred premium trend in spirits, says Diageo’s Cristina Diezhandino

<strong>Yannick Ballore, chairman - Vivendi and chairman and CEO - Havas Group</strong> talks to Storyboard18's <strong>Delshad Irani</strong> about the potential AI has to cause a revolution in the advertising and marketing industry. He says that AI has definitely made jobs a whole lot easier and streamlined. However, it will never replace a job or role entirely. 

He added saying that int the same way photography didn't take away the jobs of artists, just average artists, artificial intelligence will not take away the job of creative directors. It will only put jobs of average creative directors in jeopardy. 

Watch here. 

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Ogilvy's Devika Bulchandani & Liz Taylor on their relationship with each other, personal goals and more

Devika Bulchandani global CEO and Liz Taylor, global CCO at Ogilvy talk about their relationship with each other, client relationships, the burden of running a legacy ad agency and more.

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