INSURANCE IMPRESARIOS

Remember the evangelist insurance ads that hollered at you to either buy the insurance products or die, be maimed, suffer unimaginable ill-health, misfortune and the worst doomsday scenarios possible? Well, there are two, perhaps three, firms which are beating the status quo, churning out ads that talk about everything positive, but disaster! Great start, but are customers buying the spin?

From “Your partner for life” to “Karo Zyaada Ka Iraada”, the transition in the tagline is representative of the metamorphosis in the mindsets of the ad makers engaged in scripting advertisements for an intangible product viz. insurance. Well, the change in the language of the tagline from English to Hindi indicates that the insurer wants to speak the consumer’s language and probably is more comfortable in their own skin. The ad campaigns of insurance firms usually communicated doom and fear and all thanks to the communication strategy, people invariably bought policies out of fear or guilt.

The year 2008 changed it forever and turned out to be the point of inflexion which saw the creation of a whole new benchmark for insurance ad campaigns. The jingle, “Nazar ko kya chahiye, khwaab thode zyaada... khwaab ko kya chahiye, rang thode zyaada... karlo phir zyaada ka iraada,” from the stable of Max New York Life Insurance Company Ltd (MNYL) or for that matter the jingle, “Ye kis pyari hifaazat mein ho, befikri ki halat hai...” from the stable of Bajaj Allianz Insurance challenged the status quo and helped push the boundaries in search and creation of a bigger and brighter tomorrow.

Why these ads covered miles was because of two reasons. One, they didn’t talk about death, accidents, despair, misfortune or any such doomsday scenario. Two, at the first glimpse, no one would have ever thought that the advertisements pertained to insurance. For a change, an insurance ad spoke of a dream and intended to awaken today’s India to re-look at itself, its realities and the untapped possibilities. The new brand campaign was not only instrumental in seeing to it that the brands (MNYL as well as Bajaj Allianz) broke through the clutter in life insurance advertising but also ensured an unprecedented surge in brand metrics.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
IIPM: Management Education India
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website

BIG LEAGUE OR NO LEAGUE

Moving up the value chain has been an aspiration for Indian IT brands for quite sometime now. Now it may well be deemed an unavoidable necessity!

To reach these big order deals and to gain the confidence of clients, Indian companies do need to urgently brand themselves now as value players. Chakraborti of Gartner laments the fact that not a single Indian IT company ranks among the top 100 brands of the world. In B2B branding of this nature, the most important differentiator is the branded product. Indian companies have to be up there leading some next wave of IT adoption now, rather than just playing catch up. That is how clients will identify their capability for big ticket deals. Leading firms are realising this. For instance, Infosys has created a research group called the Software Engineering and Technology Labs (SETLabs), which has developed numerous process frameworks, methodologies, service platforms and reusable knowledge objects. However, as Apte of Forrester points out, the innovations made by Indian companies are generally below the water line; as in they are more in the cost control arena. Clients, meanwhile, define innovation differently. Big ticket acquisitions can also stamp your authority on the world map, just as it happened for Tata with Corus and JLR.

Besides strengthening their base, it is also imperative for these companies to pay a lot more attention to client facing roles. Currently, as per analysts, there is a total neglect of the importance of marketing. Marketing people in these companies are mostly restricted in their role to documentation and proposal building. There has to be clarity in message and positioning by each player with respect to what they stand for. Chakraborti says, “Apart from a very few companies, it is restricted to participating in seminars, events, doing white papers; case studies et al. But marketing thinking is lacking. Creating credibility at multiple levels is necessary – India, Indian IT companies as a destination for outsourcing as well as the services they offer.” In that sense, controlling marketing costs, which Indian companies did in the tough recessionary phase, isn’t exactly what the doctor ordered. Admittedly, Indian IT majors have been ramping up on onsite and near-shore hiring over the past few years. They have to leverage that well.

However, it may be noted that we are mostly discussing the Big 6 here (TCS, Wipro, Infosys, HCL, Tech Mahindra and Cognizant). It is still quite hard to discount their ability to scale up and play on volumes. But the Indian IT sector has a very long tail following that. The challenges for this tail are even greater, as they have to quickly scale up to take strong positions in niche areas. Otherwise they may actually be on the wrong end of the acquisition bandwagon. But experts warn that the global M&A ball game is far from over. IBM has made 74 acquisitions in the business analytics space in a span of one year. Also, the recent acquisition of EDS by HP, Sun by Oracle and Satyam by TechMahindra have had significant impact on partnership models and IT SP strategy over the long-term. In addition, over the near-term, the industry could expect global players making a bid for Tier-2 Indian players and acquiring stake in a Tier-1 Indian IT SPs as well. Big IT is on the prowl; and if Indian players fail to enter the big league with huge promotional exercises, it could well prove a short life for their so called ‘low-cost’ brands. They have had their share of cheap; now it’s time to take their share of best!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
IIPM: Management Education India
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website

BIG LEAGUE OR NO LEAGUE

Moving up the value chain has been an aspiration for Indian IT brands for quite sometime now. Now it may well be deemed an unavoidable necessity!

While sharing his views on the concept of justice in the Indian context, Nobel prize winning economist, Amartya Sen, shared an interesting anecdote with us to hilarious effect. This was when his car stopped at a traffic signal, and one of the vendors at the signal came up to his car, attempting to sell Sen’s own book to him. The boy exclaimed, “Please buy it Sir. It is cheap and best!” Sen also went on to remark, rather self-deprecatingly, that this is what he always wanted to be – cheap and best!

Coming to the context of India Inc. in the global milieu, Sen’s words will strike a chord for sure. After all, wherever Indian companies have seen a larger role for themselves beyond their home market, the most critical competitive advantage they have sought to exploit is the cost advantage. ‘Cheap’ and ‘Indian’ seem to be almost synonymous (best, meanwhile, is a relative term) as a result; and Indian firms have just about mastered the frugal engineering mantra, in sectors as diverse as steel, telecom, pharma, auto and textiles. Of course, this is most relevant in the context of Indian IT, which is India Inc.’s most phenomenal success story till date. For years, Indian IT companies have taken up opportunities for cost arbitrage and have developed newer capabilities in the IT domain, wherein they could capitalise on the arbitrage as best as possible. How companies like Infosys, Wipro and TCS became the new age industrial giants in the process is well known.

Even though the ‘cheap’ label does make us cringe at times, criticism of this approach is both logical and illogical, depending on the period that you consider for your assessment. Till the 1990s and the early years of this century, this was the best foot they could put forward, at a time when the lower end of the IT ball game was a blue ocean of sorts, and they had the right fishing gear! They did it brilliantly then; no question about that. But while it is important to know when it is the right time to latch on to a particular business strategy, it is equally important to know when to let go. And with the Indian IT sector, the time to let go is coming sooner than anticipated. Moving up the value chain has been a desirable and aspirational business approach for quite some time, but it may not be too far-fetched now to deem it a necessity. The lingering questions that now come to mind are why, when and yes...how?

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

IIPM ranked No 1 B-School in India
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
IIPM: Management Education India

Organized Workshop - IIPM -Workshop on corporate power dressing - IIPM Lucknow

"We stand on the razor's edge of being remembered...or forgotten”! Impressions are critical in creating the right impact. They make the deciding difference between success and failure.

The impact of our appearance, postures, and manners is as strong if not more than that of our skills, expertise and competency. People inadvertently form their first impressions in less than five minutes of the meeting on the basis of general body language and our ability to project ourselves. In social as well as professional work situations, inevitably, packaging and etiquette is the only visible and available means of evaluating others.

With liberalization and globalization bringing in a train of new business opportunities involving overseas partnerships, joint ventures and tie-ups, there is an urgent need for Indian Managers to familiarize themselves with diverse cultures and their social decorum.

Bearing this need the Rhetorix Club at IIPM Lucknow organized a workshop on Corporate Power Dressing. The workshop was conducted by the known fashion designer Asma Hussain, who emphasized on the importance of dressing in the colorful corporate world to ensure casual and stylish flair. Asma Hussain also highlighted the key aspects of formal dressing by an elaborate presentation. It was a good educational experience for the students who were left clamoring and mesmerized

Breaking News - IIPM - BRAND WAR

Executive communication at IIPM is one of the most coveted and sought after subject. Through EXCOM students explore a new foray of communication. In the process the students are sprinted through a series of activities which test their body language, team building and leadership skills. These exercises spark up their interests and eventually enhance their overall persona.

On 3rd August 2010 , the IIPMites of Lucknow were exposed to an enthralling presentation on “ Brand War”- Pizza hut vs Dominos conducted by the students of UG/FW/09-11, under the guidance of their EXCOM faculty Mr. Ali Mustafa Rizvi . Preparation for this event had begun a week in advance and the campus was bustling with posters and other promotional campaigns of the respective brands.

An excellent promotional approach followed by a thorough professional yet entertaining presentation marked the end of this week long affair. The audience which included the students, faculties and employees from both the brands, gave an overwhelming response.

IIPM 4Ps Business & Marketing - Nutrivita PRESENTS 100 MARKETING BRAINS THAT MOVE AND SHAKE INDIA

Anil Dua

Senior VP – Marketing, Hero Honda Motors

In making Hero Honda the world’s largest two-wheeler manufacturer (by volume) for nine consecutive years, Anil Dua has played a key role. The ex-Gillette man plays a pivotal role in deciding the strategies when it comes to launch of new products in India. In fact, Dua was the one who gave the suggestion to focus on the top-line rather than the bottom-line in 2006, when Bajaj was just inches away from dethroning Hero Honda as the market leader. However, that didn’t happen and Bajaj is still second. Hero Honda’s deep penetration in the rural markets has made its entry-level segment the strongest pillar in the company.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

IIPM 4Ps Business & Marketing - Nutrivita PRESENTS 100 MARKETING BRAINS THAT MOVE AND SHAKE INDIA

Puneet Datta

Assistant Director – Marketing, Canon BIS

One campaign that particularly comes to mind is the ‘Customer testimonial ATL campaign’. This was one of the few campaigns, which due to a composite marketing strategy, strategically helped in creating a pull and increased Canon’s brand awareness through spreading the message about Canon being the leading technology provider in the imaging industry. The campaign was specifically built around Canon’s existing strong customer base wherein, the select customers were projected as the brand ambassadors of the products. The customers spoke about how the product was beneficial to the organisation and how the product had provided them great RoI. Thus the campaign was successful in showcasing strong relationships with existing customers and in establishing Canon’s technology prowess.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Nutrivita PRESENTS 100 MARKETING BRAINS THAT MOVE AND SHAKE INDIA

Anuj Singh

National Marketing Head & West Head, Red FM

It’s special when all doubts are put to rest with recognition from the highest order - your consumer! In our case, it was the moment when brand Red FM rose from being a contender to the leader within a span of just a few months. Of the things that contributed to this success, one thing which worked very well for us was the connect we could achieve with our brand attitude ‘Bajaate Raho!’ as well as the media strategy we adopted to communicate the same. We adopted the ‘touch point’ strategy of reaching out to people at various apertures in their daily lives, wherein they are most receptive and thus communicate the brand attitude through the use of socially relevant messages.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Nutrivita PRESENTS 100 MARKETING BRAINS THAT MOVE AND SHAKE INDIA

Sameer Suneja

Country Head, Perfetti Van Melle India

Repositioning of Happydent has been a really special experience. The brand was possibly launched ahead of its time and was initially positioned almost as a cosmetic product performing a quasi-functional role. The consumer was not willing to accept that a chewing gum could play a role in teeth whitening, and the brand was rejected. The whole exercise of repositioning and relaunching the brand was extremely gratifying, and commercials such as the Photographer Flash film and subsequently the Palace film and associated initiatives did wonders. It is today one of India’s leading gum brands. It reinforces the belief that some really strong consumer insight work translated into a brand strategy when executed well, has a dramatic impact on consumer acceptance, irrespective of the brand’s PLC.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

DON’T MISS THE ONLINE HOLIDAY SEEKERS...

Internet has already become a key game changer and the mobile is the next in line. It is important for the sector to understand the dynamics of these emerging mediums

The Indian travel and tourism market can achieve massive gains during 2010 if the industry takes advantage of the opportunities presented to it. There has been greater interest in India as a travel destination for global travellers due to the reduction in air fares, increasing availability of travel options online, increased spending into destination marketing and rapid adoption of consumer mobile technology. Combined, this offers a clear and visible revival for the economy; particularly for hoteliers who can maximise sales through internet travel portals. More hoteliers are now selling online, although recent figures still indicate that less than 10% of bookings are being processed through the Internet. Analysts predict that the $2 billion revenue generated online in 2009 could reach $6 billion by the end of this year. Compared to the European market, this is a faster and more productive growth of travel & tourism e-commerce, where, after 10 years, the participation of online is still below 50% of all travel bookings.

We already see that hoteliers in India are becoming more web-savvy by adopting channel management technologies to distribute inventory across multiple booking websites while also using these tools to benchmark their competitors rates. Online bookings have helped Indian hoteliers reach a wider global audience which helps hotels realise the impact of online sales for increasing occupancy and revenue opportunities.

The Indian travel market is amongst the first to show signs of recovery. It must be noted that the Indian hospitality segment was not as badly affected as its European or American counterparts. Until early last year, demand for rooms exceeded supply, leading hoteliers to increase rates. As demand fell, a sense of balance occurred; leading to adequate adjustment in selling rates, due to which occupancy levels in India didn’t drop as significantly as other markets. Also, India has done quite well in increasing international awareness as a leisure travel destination. Global marketing campaigns have drawn attention to a historically fascinating country.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎