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DO THE NUMBERS MAKE ANY SENSE?

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DO THE NUMBERS MAKE ANY SENSE?

Media Research has always been a matter under debate. What initially started as TV tracking with Adtrack in the late 80s has evolved into a plethora of information in the vastly expanded universe of media expansion. This article by Ali Raza Merchant reviews insights on whether the current evolution of media offers any real value or is it just another fad that is building up on the media horizon in Pakistan.

When I look at the number of media vehicles available today, it kind of stuns me. The quest of the human race has been a major source of inspiration for the geometrical expansion of media sources through which a consumer may be reached, through touch points today. When I was a child there was only one TV channel (PTV), One Radio Channel (Radio Pakistan), very few News Papers (Dawn, Jang and maybe a few more) and Cinema (a dying medium at the time). Life was simple and one never thought that there was ever any real need for conducting research about how many people were watching, listening or reading. In summary, media was more common sense and no one ever thought that there is a need for knowing more about viewership.

In the 80s & 90s there was a gradual expansion in TV, Radio & Print, where new players started to make an entry into consumer’s lives. The expansion of Cable was perhaps one of the major turning points, as it increased the overall time spent by an average viewer on entertainment programming that had never been available in such abundance. FM radio also brought about a new era in the presentation of content and Outdoor Media mushroomed from small to mega sites across Urban and Rural Pakistan. All of a sudden there were structured and unstructured new platforms available to communications and media experts for reaching out to consumers.

Though these were exciting times for Marketing and Advertising Professionals, there were many new questions that were building up fast, requiring clear and precise answers. Out of these, the most relevant question for everyone was, were the adverts being released by ad or media agencies actually being broadcast in the right numbers and at the right time as per schedule? In essence, what planners were really interested in was media tracking. This actually made sense, as tracking was the starting point of precise media reporting.

In the last 15 years or so, there has been a major shift in media consumption patterns mainly due to the Digital Media expanding exponentially. The fact that the choice and control of media viewership is now in the hands of the consumers, it is much more complex than it was ever before. But before we enter into the debate of how we should address the digital media landscape, let’s once again scale back to where the Pakistani Media Research is offering solutions for media planners.

The biggest challenge in Pakistan has been to find authentic and reliable media tracking sources in highly unstructured media industries which include cable and outdoor. Furthermore, radio advertising was always an enigma, as there was zero existence of tracking as the cost versus benefit ratio was never a viable factor for implementation. It is heartening to see that today, there are new media evaluation solutions being offered by new players. I am sure media planners can now feel much more at ease when they justify the allocated spend to their clients, which is backed by solid facts and figures.

Having said that, I believe that it is also important to address one real question that still hovers in the mind of all marketing practitioners; “Do these numbers really make any sense?” The answer to the question is whether the information is of any benefit to the users. Is it information for the sake of information that is defined as GIGO (Garbage in – Garbage out) or is it of some benefit? I personally believe that some information is better than none, as it leads to the process of refinement and corrections as we go through it. Just imagine that media reporting can now offer some real answers on Cable, Outdoor and Radio Media spends. To me this is a new frontier for all media spenders and evaluators, as the billions of Rupees spent on these platforms are now not only justifiable but also measurable in terms of impact and customer segmentation. Now marketers can tap which 50% of their budget is being wasted and how they can divert those funds towards effective media vehicles.

I would however throw caution to the wind with access of all the new media measurement tools available today. We must start our premise to the discussion on what are the important aspects that have to be in place when we are at the receiving end of media research. As we delve into this discussion, let us review the following factors and see if the available information sources measure up against desired KPI’s.

Reliability of Data

As a marketer the first and foremost question is, “How reliable is the data?” My personal experience with media research is that many times the core concept of the research is excellent yet the methodology, the procedure, quality control in data collection and data entry are not up to mark. The best ideas are as good as how effectively they are delivered. It is, therefore, important that to ensure reliability there are independent and neutral sources of quality checks that allow end users to be confident of the information. In other words, if research is to be authentic it must be subject to independent audit.

Relevance of Data

Sometimes an ocean of data is the worst place to begin, as it makes it difficult to access relevant, purposeful and actionable information, desired by decision makers. My own experience in this regard is to begin with end deliverables so that it enables media researchers to structure the content in accordance. I still remember that during my tenure in the tobacco industry, I was at times at cross roads to make sense and use of the data that was presented in multitudes of variables which actually made no sense to me. If tables, pie charts and bar graphs are there to look good in a presentation, please muster up the courage to remove them and focus on the actionable aspect of the information.

Cost versus Benefit of Data

This is one of the factors that have always been the biggest hindrance in getting media research companies to invest into specialized media research tools. It is important to understand that for any research set up to be effective it must be offered the initial set up cost to fund the infrastructure so that the right measurement tools are in place. Media users cannot cut corners by showing willingness to pay only for variable portion of the research content and deny their contribution to the former. It is unfortunate that at times there is a penny wise, pound foolish approach shown by the marketing fraternity. Just imagine that if marketers are not willing to spend up to 5% of their media spend towards research, they are putting the remaining 95% at risk as it might be spent on media vehicles that are a total waste.

Willingness to Accept Data

We cannot deny the fact that each and every one of us has pre-conceived notions about how things work. These biases are simply based on our personal inferences and deductions of our own lifestyles, value and belief systems. However, we must understand that when dealing with customer segments and profiles, our own lenses of perception are the most irrelevant and should not be allowed to taint the real outcome and results. This was very aptly put by one of my colleagues who termed this is the “Drawing Room Approach”. The means that we form opinions about consumers by sitting in our own place of work, in our own settings without considering the factors that the specific target segment is exposed to.

Willingness to Take Corrective Action

To me this is the most crucial factor in the decision making process. When we commit ourselves to any course of action, it is not necessary that we need to live and die by it. The course of action, in its true meaning, is only the route that we are taking in the process of reaching to the end destination. Our commitment, therefore, should not be on what and where we spent the money and stay loyal to it, but to keep focus on achieving the results that we set as benchmarks. It takes a lot of courage for a professional media planner to accept that previous actions did not have desirable results and it is time to make changes in the new plan.

Media research is as good or bad as our intentions towards it. If we are sincere towards the cause the cause becomes sacred and leads us to new dimensions that we have never considered or thought of before. However, to be able to be true to the cause one should be willing to learn the nuts and bolts of the process and have an open mind. We must have trust in the process or else it is all in vain – A waste of time, resources and effort.

OLPER’S DATE SHAKE: PRODUCT LAUNCH

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OLPER’S DATE SHAKE: PRODUCT LAUNCH

After its launch in 2006, Engro Foods quickly became one of the leading producers and marketers for dairy, beverage and frozen dessert brands in the country having Olper’s, Omung, Tarang and Omore under its umbrella. The company has always been at the forefront of innovation in the UHT processed products industry through introducing targeted variants and flavors under its various brands like Olper’s Lassi, innovative communication platforms, trendsetting packaging and co-branded offerings such as Olper’s Rooh Afza.

The most recent such tactical offering was the launch of the limited edition Olper’s Date Shake launched during this year’s Ramadan. In the maturity stage of its product lifecycle, Olper’s Milk capitalized on the holy occasion (month) of Ramadan to keep the UHT milk category fresh and consumers interested in the brand.

To gauge the acceptability of the idea, Olper’s utilized its existing market intelligence. A significant innovation especially in the UHT industry, the Date Shake was addressing an unspoken want of the market. Says Ali Rashid, Senior Brand Manager Olpers, “Even though date shakes are available in select juice stores round the year, the consumption of dates is very closely tied with the month of Ramadan. Therefore, it seemed a natural fit to launch during the holy month.”

Geared towards relatively affluent urban households, the product was meant for people who require energizing products in Suhoor to keep them active through the day or an indulgent product to complement their Iftar. Olper’s Date Shake was kept limited to a select audience based on two major reasons. Firstly, the product is formulated from actual date puree which is an expensive ingredient compared to mere flavoring. Hence, it hikes up the production cost, which leads to a very premium price point.  Secondly, the Date Shake was a limited edition Ramadan product available only in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad which naturally limited the scope. Placed and distributed in selected high traffic stores and supermarkets, most of the stock was sold or consumed by mid-Ramadan. The advertising strategy for the product was very focused, concentrating on a five second TV spot that complements the Olper’s commercial. Other than this, Point of Sales (POS) material was also developed for the retail level.

When asked about making the product a regular offering, Ali explained that there are no firm plans for that because of the expensive product formulation. However, due to the heartening response and the demand of the product in the market, it might be launched again next year the way the company launched the co-branded product Olper’s Rooh Afza, but that is undecided yet. Hence, the target audience for the mother brand, Olper’s continues to be the same as it was prior to the Date Shake’s launch, rather it complements Olper’s Milk’s brand equity and serves to bolster further growth for the mother brand.

 

The Advertising Connection

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The Advertising Connection

Amin Rammal, Director – The Brand Crew, Firebolt63 and APR, talks about Pakistan’s advertising landscape and how it needs to make itself more noticeable as an industry.

Synergyzer: How has the ongoing fiscal year of Pakistan been for the advertising industry?

Amin Rammal: It’s been a very positive year for the industry. From consumer perspective, lower fuel prices and controlled inflation gives them the ability to increase their purchase power. From a business perspective; the lower interest rates help with their own spending while on the other hand lower fuel prices mean less cost of production which means better profit margins. This indirectly trickles down to the marketing side. New players have also come into the advertising environment. And as always, during the Cricket World Cup, spending on advertising increases.

Synergyzer: Do you believe that the political situation last year impact our industry?

Amin: The impact of the Dharna’s last year was that it affected media placements and there were a lot of dropages. Also affected were event management companies as they have their venue bookings, vendors lined up, payments to make etc. Depending upon the extent and length of the situation, law and order and political instability may be recovered from swiftly at a macro level. For example, activities can always be postponed and rescheduled, unless they are not time sensitive. On the other hand, recovery from structural changes maybe much slower; like changes in oil prices, interest rates, or fuel shortages, affect advertising in the long term as uncertainties put a halt on such expenditure and activities.

Synergyzer: What growth have you seen in Pakistan’s industries this year, particular advertising and media?

Amin: Overall growth seems to be consistent across industries. The financial sector is doing well as well as automotive, appliances and electronics sectors. The macro environment is stable and companies have shown good profit margins. We also see new segments coming in the market along with many SME’s. When the economy grows, you see a rise in advertising.

However, globally, spending on advertisement is usually a percentage of GDP. If you look at Pakistan’s advertising expenditure you’ll see that the advertising market is growing but it’s still underpenetrated in terms of advertising to GDP ratio. Currently, it is almost a quarter of the world average and half of the ratio in the lesser developed world.

Synergyzer: What needs to change to make the advertising industry a bigger part of the GDP?

Amin: Pakistan is a very price driven market. There has been a growth in the number of advertising agencies. More players mean competitive pricing. The extra weightage on the price factor results in controlled spending and the market doesn’t grow. Even though the quantum of work has increased but because of price competition, volume increase does not mean spending on the industry has increased. The advertising agencies and associations, as a part of one fraternity, needs to be a lot stronger.

Synergyzer: How has the advertising industry’s landscape changed?

Amin: The landscape has changed a lot. Today’s consumer is no longer limited to watching news on TV, read the newspaper, or listen to radio only. Digital media and brand activation are now important avenues of consumer interaction along with rural marketing which is growing through various business models. Hence, a diversified approach to advertising is a must. Although, TV still dominates adex, 30 second ads are no longer as impactful compared to the kind of interest advertisers and consumers show in good quality branded content.

Digital and social media has certainly flourished due to Pakistan being a predominantly young country. Facebook has driven the Pakistani market predominantly. We witnessed consumers using Facebook and certain other forms of social media which is why advertisers started looking at it as another medium. In the beginning, there was confusion about who is responsible for handling the social media or digital presence; brand managers, media managers, ad agencies or someone specialized? We now see everyone involved and digital is seen as an important medium.

Synergyzer: How do clients in Pakistan divide their media budgets between various mediums? Do you think digital is taking a significant share?

Amin: I don’t think digital has progressed enough to take a significant share. However, some multinationals are allocating as much as 25% of their budget on digital media. This mandate is the global practice so you can see a positive shift. Media budget allocation varies from client to client but majority is TV, then outdoor. Print also gets a prominent share while expenditure allotted to radio and digital is similar.

Synergyzer: In what areas do you think does Pakistan’s advertising and media industry needs to improve majorly?

Amin: There is a constant battle between efficiency and effectiveness due to which our industry lacks inventiveness. Our focus has always been on efficiency. If your focus is on ‘how can we do it cheaper’ then you’ll miss the point. For example, when creating artwork for billboards, the question is what will catch your target customers’ eyes more? The quality of our billboard creative has very low standards when compared globally. What we do here is we take a still from the ad campaign and just put it there treating both the mediums as if they were the same.

Then there arises the question of effectiveness in which research is integral. Where does your ad appear, when does it appear, does it have any relevance with the content etc. are all important factors to consider.

Another trend in our market is to have a high frequency of spots on TV. That is not the best route either as a recent research proves that after a set number of times, the consumer gets turned off by seeing the same ad repeatedly. It is important that we must, as an industry, become more innovative.

Synergyzer: How has The Brand Crew grown and kept its edge in the market?

Amin: Brand Crew has been in the market since 2008. I feel that our knowledge and offerings have grown over time. We’ve given progress to the industry and have grown as an agency. The industry grew when consumers started consuming digital a lot more. For example, with the introduction of Google, consumer was facilitated with the online browsing world. With the advent of LinkedIn, Skype, Facebook etc. things changed even more.

Brand Crew functions on the philosophy that the digital medium is a balance of technology and branding which includes content as well. Our focus has always been on customer experience and content which has earned us a distinctive edge in the market.

Synergyzer: What are the pros and cons of a retainer-based versus project-to-project business model?

Amin: When it comes to a retainer-based business model, stability is there and you can assign teams a lot more easily. Furthermore you also have the ability to define scope of work accurately. You can be a little more proactive in terms of planning; defining further scope of work for yourself on the brands you are dealing with etc.

In a project based business model, scope of work is usually predefined, more accurate and is more focused as you are looking at a particular angle. However, unstable cash flow is a major problem in a project based business model. So an agency needs to have a healthy mix.

Synergyzer: What role does international affiliation play for local agencies? Does it help enhance creative input in anyway? What are the risks?

Amin: I would say international collaboration, affiliation and networks are important. The passing down of best practices, knowledge, trainings etc. is valuable. Trainings and their success depends on the relationship between the local agency and the international affiliate. For example, if you invite a trainer from abroad, the cost of that trainer and the training itself is very high and someone has to bear that cost. So the question becomes; the local agencies or international affiliates?

Another factor in our environment is the ‘brain drain’. There’s a risk in sending your employee abroad for training because they may choose to stay on with the international affiliate. A similar threat could be that once that employee returns, they may seek another job with a competitor and the cost that the original company bore becomes useless.

Synergyzer: What are your plans for the next five years?

Amin: We would want to enhance the skill sets of our people. Also, increasing our learning in new technologies is our main focus. We realize content integration is very important so we will focus on that. Our market currently is very execution driven rather than planning and insight driven, with research being very underpenetrated in Pakistan. Hence we shall be focusing on fostering a more data and insights driven culture. So data, content and technology are part of our plans.

Also I believe that as an organization, you have to be very flexible and adaptable. We’ve seen traditional agencies struggling to be updated with new trends while somehow trying to maintain their legacy.

 

 

Winning Solutions: TALKING SUCCESS WITH WINNING SOLUTIONS

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Winning Solutions: TALKING SUCCESS WITH WINNING SOLUTIONS

Syed Ali Moazzam, Owner and Business Director – Winning Solutions, talks about the use of technology in monitoring the out-of-home industry and how this approach goes on to save advertiser rupee.

 

Synergyzer: What is the essence of Winning Solutions, and how did the company come to be?

Ali Moazzam: The essence of Winning Solutions is that we are not a simple research agency; rather, we help the industry gain better control of its investments. Our core objective is to provide the industry with technology-enabled research options that are far superior and more effective than the old manual techniques of data collection which were fraught with human error and wastage of time.

Winning Solutions was established in 2010 by Syed Ali Moazzam as a technology-oriented market research organization, and further strengthened by Muhammad Arif Jan who joined as Managing Partner and COO in 2011. Over the past half decade we’ve grown not only in Pakistan, but other international markets including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and some Middle Eastern countries. Our strength lies in our highly trained operational teams present in over 60 cities, reaching across both urban and rural areas. We provide real-time GPS tracking of activation/outdoor teams, and are pioneers of real-time outdoor media tracking through our mobile app and web portal. We are always striving to develop effective measurement tools, and we were the first to launch an Outdoor Census and Outdoor Media Ad-ex to provide a proper base to media planners and buyers.

Synergyzer: In the past years, Winning Solutions has expanded into out-of-home monitoring. What are the mechanics for that?

Ali: Outdoor media tracking is a hybrid of technology and well trained human resources that can handle technology and the latest data capture techniques. We use state-of-the-art software developed on Android platform for real-time data collection, and picture, video, barcode scan and sound clip capture geo-tagged with the location from where the information is being gathered. Winning Solutions developed the software, and we’ve been continually adding new features to enhance and improve it. We invest heavily in training our teams in data capture and collection techniques, especially in difficult areas. That’s why our success rate in data collection is almost 99.9%. Along with our specialized analytical team, our permanent team is already working in 10 cities with another 100 members trained in outdoor media tracking across smaller cities throughout Pakistan.

Synergyzer: What is the benefit of such tracking to the market (advertisers, OOH asset companies, media buyers, and any other stakeholders)?

Ali: Outdoor media tracking helps advertisers assess the quality of their execution. With us on board, they get real-time feedback as soon as their plan is executed, in the form of daily-basis status of their visuals. The client gets the benefit of millions in day loss savings, and gets to keep a very vigilant eye on their quality of execution. Tracking also plays a critical role for buying agencies, enabling them to monitor the assets they’ve purchased and letting them react quickly to any problems or issues that may arise. Daily monitoring and reconciliations help minimize losses for the client and helps boost agency image. As for outdoor vendors, they can address issues raised in the tracking reports in a timely manner and save themselves from loss claims later on.

Synergyzer: What is Outdoor Media Ad-ex? How does it benefit the industry?

Ali: Usually when clients conduct competitive analyses of the market place, they have spending and placement information in terms of share of voice only for television and radio. Outdoor media – the second most influential and utilized platform – was totally grey. We understood the gap and the need to fill it with relevant information about tracking, spending, and ROI, and thus was born the Outdoor Media Ad-ex report.

Our Outdoor Media Ad-ex report lets clients keep an eye on the overall industry spend, know who is investing how much, and gives a very close check on their competition’s strategy and investments. They stay up-to-date on where the industry is spending the most, what portfolios target which key markets. Outdoor Media Ad-ex guides buying agencies in planning their campaigns, buying assets for their clients, and conducting media analyses of the various categories in which their clients operate.

 Synergyzer: Does the kind of research Winning Solutions conducts provides any insight into cost per impressions or the effectiveness of each OOH asset? What is a scientific way of calculating these?

Ali: Outdoor Media ROI Calculation is an effective tool we’ve developed to estimate the cost per impression for any outdoor investment. We try to make things very simple and understandable for our clients; we give them the cost per impression by estimating total traffic that passed through, out of that we filter the total number who viewed their brand, then we further split it by the client’s target market to calculate how many repeat impressions were made during the total duration of the campaign.

The methodology includes integration of technology as well as human resource, and – most important of all – a solid understanding of market research tools and their correct implementation. We have conducted such calculations successfully for a roster of clients like Unilever, Pepsi Co., Mobilink, and P&G.

Synergyzer: How have all the different stakeholders responded to this kind of eye-opening information?

Ali: The response has been overwhelming, despite the fact that any new product or service takes some time to build awareness. The market takes a while to understand how to extract benefits from a novel approach, but organizations with competent teams, that place value on scientific planning and calculating the impact of every single penny spent, they understand the utility very well.

 Synergyzer: Do you believe tracking advertiser expenditure on outdoor will evolve the unregulated Pakistani market?

Ali: As it is, technology intervention and initiatives like Outdoor Media Tracking and Ad-ex are already adding a lot of value and bringing efficiencies in optimizing clients’ outdoor media spend. Blue chip organizations such as Unilever, Pepsi Co, P&G and many others understand the great significance of the date we provide. Additionally, through Outdoor Media Tracking we’ve been able to create a sort of regulatory mechanism in a market which hitherto was completely unregulated. We strongly believe that as more and more clients gain an understanding of this service, of tools like Ad-ex, and the soon to be launched PAS initiative of outdoor media indexing through MOVE, it will help regulate and formalize the market even further.

Synergyzer: In the past 1.5 years, since Winning Solutions has been monitoring, how have government decisions impacted the OOH volume and spend in different situations?

Ali: Unfortunately, the outdoor media industry is not properly regulated, especially in a mega city like Karachi. Since we conduct Ad-ex on a monthly basis we’ve observed the frequent construction and removal of boards. Authorities normally don’t bother with the placements of boards. They’re not bothered if one board blocks another’s visibility, or with its size, or even that cutting down trees to make room for pylons and pole signs has a negative impact on the environment. It’s interesting to note that while the total number of boards in Karachi increased by 10% in 2013, strict regulations in Lahore saw a decrease. As a result, outdoor media in Lahore has become more expensive, but at the same time has greater impact simply because there are fewer boards spread across the landscape. As the volume shrank, the average value of assets increased multifold.

Synergyzer: What impact do political campaigns have on the industry? How are the corporate dealings managed for these?

Ali: Outdoor media is an integral part of any marketing plan and roll-out. Most of the time our clients launch their outdoor executions in sync with their electronic, radio, and print campaigns, so when a board is plastered with a political banner, it strikes a blow to the client’s overall marketing strategy. We’ve observed this phenomenon to be quite common especially in Karachi where political parties take over major sites in the city without prior notice. This is a loss in visibility to the client and loss in revenue to the vendor. In most such cases, vendors and agencies provide extension in days of visibility on these sites.

InterACT: A Breakthrough tool for BTL Evaluation

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InterACT: A Breakthrough tool for BTL Evaluation

By Ahmer Rasheed

BTL or below-the-line marketing is evolving in Pakistan at an encouraging pace. Rapid increase in cable penetration and mushroom growth of TV and radio channels has increased ad clutter for consumers. Hence, marketers are bound to significantly increase spending in order for brands to effectively cut through the clutter, which is why we have witnessed significant increase in brand activation budgets during the last decade. This trend is increasing even faster as smaller companies are also realizing its importance and following the footprints of industry leaders like P&G and Unilever.

What is InterACT all about?

In lieu with this growing trend, Markematics decided to introduce an effective tool that will help marketers in evaluating their BTL activities to gauge effectiveness and consumer impact along with the return on investment (ROI). Hence, we pioneered BTL evaluation in Pakistan in 2011 with the launch of InterACT – a powerful tool that effectively calculates ROI on various BTL activities and brand activations. Prior to this, there was no research tool to measure the reach and ROI of these activities. Marketers had no other choice but to trust activation agencies’ claimed numbers of consumer reach. To top it all, this reach number didn’t provide any clue on the effective reach or precisely whether activation objectives were being met or not. You would be surprised to know that on an average 40% of BTL investments go to waste.

This might make you wonder if it indicates that marketers should probably expect a 40% leakage every time they plan a BTL activity. Actually no; it all depends on various factors like the type of activation, product category, target audience, activation SOP and activation agency’s performance. We have seen worse case scenarios where we have identified up to 85% leakage in consumer activation, 97% non-compliance of POS (Point of Sale) deployment and 84% non-compliance of Planogram execution (the product shelf space plan). On the other hand, there are several activities that only have 2% leakage in the execution. Hence, we are required to define the success criteria for each activity considering all the parameters and specific objectives for the activity being undertaken. The key to activation success lies in clearly defined goals, SOPs and strategic planning. The whole idea behind introducing InterACT is to help marketers plan better and minimize the level of wastage.

So far, our InterACT experience includes 6 clients representing local companies and MNCs representing a cross-section of food and non-food sector.  To date, we have evaluated activations conducted by 8 different BTL execution agencies including monitoring of clients’ sales and distribution teams. The scope of BTL evaluation includes Door to Door, Neighborhood Activations, School/College Education Program, Road Shows, and In-store Marketing. While, InterACT Trade Marketing Module covers activities like Retail Visibility, (Point of Sales Material) POSM Deployment, Merchandising, Planogram Compliance and others.

During the past four years, InterACT has evaluated over 50 BTL initiatives that yielded a database of over 2 million consumer interactions. In addition, through InterACT Trade module, Markematics has evaluated over a dozen trade marketing initiatives covering 250,000 outlets. That’s why we are confident that our numbers are good enough to generalize the overall effectiveness of BTL in Pakistan.

 Challenges InterACT Faced

When we started market research and evaluation for BTL activities, there was no tool preceding us in Pakistan; neither in terms of benchmarks available with clients nor global best practices. Information load was too huge due to high number of attributes evaluated in each activity – hence it was difficult to analyze and sift through the information. Moreover, performance of teams working on various activities couldn’t be benchmarked with each other due to the difference in evaluation parameters. Most importantly, averages could be deceptive in evaluating overall performance as Financial Parameters should have more weightage in determining the overall performance in comparison to execution quality parameters.

To answer all these challenges, we developed an Activation Performance Index (API) that takes into account all variables at play in accordance with their relative importance. With the help of API Modelling, we made it possible to get a single number performance indictor. Now marketers have a single number to evaluate effective reach of their BTL activations making it easier for them to assess and interpret the overall activity impact.

How InterACT works

Based on our extensive database of over 2 million consumer connects, we have established benchmarks for almost all types of BTL activation for particular aspects of the activation process. For example, Door to Door is the most challenging activity where, with all controls, the average API Score remains within the range of 60 to 70 points whereas for In-store activation the average remains 95 points or above. This benchmarking is the greatest achievement of InterACT that enables marketers to plan their activations accordingly and set the success criteria for their activation agencies.

ROI is not part of the API score but InterACT has the capability of separately measuring ROI on the basis of activation objectives. For example, if an activity is targeted towards generating brand trial, InterACT will be able to measure the % of trials generated through activation vs. a control group. Additionally, it can provide Message cut-through based on consumers’ recall or CPT (Cost per thousand) as a separate measure to see ROI of the activity.

I must say that this is by far one of the most important aspects of InterACT. It is developed in such a way that it enables a continuous quality assurance process throughout the activation period. With its near real-time reporting mechanism, marketers can keep track of quality of execution and areas of improvement throughout the Activation Program Life Cycle.

InterACT’s deep diving capability also helps marketers to identify opportunity areas; for example, API scores are available by city, by teams and other such parameters. But as they say that the devil is in the details, we all know that at times cumulative results fail to identify real issues. For instance, even if we identify that the API score for Karachi is way less than Lahore, should we replace the entire team of Karachi? In most cases, it is impractical or not even justified. To resolve this issue, we have developed an individual level report card i.e. for each activation agent, a report card is provided that helps identify weak-links in a particular activation team. This aspect is really helping the industry players derive practical results out of the tool. For instance, there are certain activation agencies that have developed a reward-penalty program for their teams on the basis of the InterACT report card.

In terms of areas of improvement, I think the use of technology will certainly take BTL evaluation via InterACT to the next level. We have already initiated GPS based tracking that helps us in verifying the actual physical location of the activity. Additionally, time stamped pictures and videos are also proving to be a big support in the verification process. But obviously, this is one area that remains to be explored to make InterACT a more effective as well as intuitive tool in future.

InterACT also has a great level of scalability. The application of this tool is certainly vast as the basic rules of the game remain consistent regardless of the business sector. Primarily, it is a quality assurance tool which can be applied to any business process that needs standardized execution. I would definitely encourage other business areas such as telecom, education and health to explore this tool to benefit from greater efficiencies and enable accelerated growth.

 What marketers should keep in mind before engaging in BTL activities and activation

Based on my experience, if there’s a word of caution I have to give to marketers, it would be this:

Due to the prevailing economic situation, Free Sampling, Discounted Selling and Product Demo are becoming the major areas of financial leakages and exploitation. Therefore, any activity involving sampling, sales or demo requires special attention at the planning stage as well as continuous monitoring to ensure that the target audience is actually benefitting from such activities.

Moreover, weak message delivery or sales pitch is the single largest factor that adversely affects the quality of execution and has a very high impact on the activation ROI.

Effective targeting is another area of focus which is greatly neglected in most activations. Recently, we monitored a door to door activity which aimed at generating brand trial. Unfortunately and obviously without much background research, the client only specified SEC A and B households as the target audience. Despite the fact that the activation agency covered both the segments completely, the ROI of the activity was less than 3%. This came as no surprise to us because 45% of the activity households were already the brand users at the time of the activation. Hence, the client was not able to achieve the desired increase in sales and it was just a wasted effort. Had they used marketing insights at the time of planning, the results would have been very different.

In a nutshell, BTL success not only depends on the activation excellence but rather marketers’ insight – there’s a need of paradigm shift at the BTL planning stage – marketers need to focus on the strategy aspect for the tactical plan to fall together smoothly.

Last but not the least, I would encourage more marketers to consider InerACT as a BTL planning and evaluation tool to help generate better results, impact and monitor key metrics for continuous improvement and effective accountability through ROI.

Ahmer is the Founder and CEO of Markematics, and the first elected President of Marketing Research Society of Pakistan (MRSP). He is a leading marketing, research and strategy consultant in Pakistan and abroad with over 18 years of experience. He was instrumental in establishing Nielsen and MEMRB in Pakistan and has rich experience with GlaxoSmithKline and Eli Lilly.

 

 

 

Soya Supreme’s Life Ki Theme

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Soya Supreme’s Life Ki Theme

Agro Processors & Atmospheric Gases (Pvt.) Ltd (APAG), the owner family corporation of Soya Supreme – one of the top three players in the premium segment brand of the edible oil category -recently launched the ‘Soya Supreme Life Ki Theme’ campaign. APAG which has been in the business since 1954 has three brands in the category including ‘Smart Canola Oil’ and a mid-segment banaspati and cooking oil brand ‘Malta’ while ‘Soya Supreme’ remains the company’s flagship brand. Currently in the growth stage of its product life cycle, the campaign’s primary purpose is to upgrade the brand’s image while establishing it as the mother brand. Previously, the core focus of Soya Supreme has majorly been on its cooking oils while a few campaigns focusing on banaspati were developed. This made it important to develop Soya Supreme as the mother brand and establish separate identities for its cooking oils and banaspati.

The secondary purpose of the campaign was to establish the corporate identity of the company, APAG. Before this campaign, the company has only focused on promoting Soya Supreme as its flagship brand, but never established its corporate image. The APAG logo was developed alongside this campaign to achieve this objective and is presented animatedly with a voiceover at the end of the ‘Life Ki Theme’ TV commercial. It can also be seen on Soya Supreme’s print advertising.

Also, the commercial communicates a change in positioning. Previously, all advertising highlighted functional aspects of the brand. Yet, this is the first time when Soya Supreme has taken an emotional route to make consumers connect emotionally with the brand.

The commercial focuses on incorporating the idea of healthy living and healthy eating. The opening sequence shows a mother working out to stay fit along with teaching her daughter to do the same, driving home the importance of staying fit. The advert then progresses towards incorporating fun in food, especially for children, so that they eat healthy; and shows how food adds to the creativity of young girls and their passion for cooking. It highlights the connect between relationships by showing a husband and wife cooking together. Lastly, the ad emphasize on festivity and celebration as an important aspect of our society and how food and Soya Supreme play an important role at these special moments. Throughout the commercial, Soya Supreme has been branded in an effective manner successfully connecting it with the theme of the ad.

In order to make the ‘Life Ki Theme’ campaign successful, a central marketing and advertising strategy was devised.  The strategy focused on reaching out to a younger age group of females between the ages of 25-35 years who believe in a modern lifestyle and want to adapt with the changing times. Furthermore, the fact that food has always been an integral part of our culture also helped in formulating the strategy. Due to this, Soya Supreme is shown as an integral part of any family’s food ethos hence giving birth to the concept, consumers’ ‘Life Ki Theme’ by the concept team at the creative agency, The Brand Partnership (TBP) that played an instrumental role in shaping the central idea for the campaign. The campaign also took help from Indian films to have a more refined execution.

The campaign utilizes a 360 degree communication strategy that sells to the premium consumer segment. The media vehicles range from Above the Line (ATL) mediums in which mass media is used, TV, radio, outdoor, PR and digital to Below the Line (BTL)  activities such as one to one advertising which usually includes pamphlets, brochures, and other point of sale material. Currently, the brand is working with the Brand Partnership for BTL activities. Digital medium was used to make the new TVC go viral on major social media websites including Facebook.

Other than advertising, brand integration was also carried out based on the target audience for Soya Supreme. Hum Network’s food channel, Masala TV, as well as entertainment channels including ARY Digital and Express Entertainment, and the hybrid channel, Samaa TV, were utilized.

The idea for the Life Ki Theme campaign was devised after a market study was conducted on consumer and market behaviors towards the brand and the vegetable oil category. The survey-style research revealed that Soya Supreme lacked emotional appeal in its previous campaigns, and only focused on its functional aspects. Therefore, the brand had to create an emotional hook with consumers in order to connect with them effectively. The survey also revealed that food is the nucleus of any Pakistani household’s activities while cooking oil or vanaspati act as one of its main ingredients.

Also it has been observed that the month of Ramadan witnesses the highest sales for edible oil category and many consumers register an increase in their buying behavior therefore the campaign was launched right before the holy month in order to get maximum sales results.

No campaign or effort is considered complete if it is not fruitful. However, the Life Ki Theme campaign is an ongoing one hence its effectiveness still needs to be gauged. As for now, the campaign has been very well received and appreciated by all the stakeholders and we are confident that it will help Soya Supreme in increasing its market share and growth.

COCA-COLA PAKISTAN Creating Shared Value Responsibly

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COCA-COLA PAKISTAN Creating Shared Value Responsibly

As quoted by the American writer, naturalist and development critic, Henry David Thoreau, “Goodness is the only investment that never fails”.  The citation is quite apt for business these days as more companies are taking their sustainability strategies seriously.

Globally, the business sector has evolved noticeably in terms of embedding corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies into their business strategies and earning profits by investing in the growth of society and protection of the environment. True CSR is indeed a perfect process which stands upon the framework of triple bottom-line with three pillars: People, Planet and Profits. It not only involves the corporate sector’s contribution in societal development but also brings back profits to the businesses.

So, does CSR really matter? Now that more and more companies are launching their CSR initiatives with innovative techniques, we can expect more positive outcomes in the years to come. But as they say, when the wind blows, there are those who build walls and then there are some who build windmills. Coca-Cola Pakistan has had its sustainability initiatives in progress since several years, which were at some stage supported by unique promotional activities as well. This metaphoric process of building windmills has established the company’s identity as a responsible corporate citizen by creating shared value.

 

COCA-COLA PAKISTAN’S NATURE TRIP TO NATHIAGALI

This year, on World Environment Day, Coca-Cola Pakistan organized a nature trip to Ayubia National Park, Nathiagali. The activity was connected to the celebrations going on throughout this year celebrating the 100 years of Coca-Cola’s iconic Contour Bottle. One hundred people were invited to the Nature Trip; including social media activists, media representatives, environmentalists and nature lovers, students, young professionals and a large number of people from civil society.

Why Nathiagali?

The group was taken to Nathiagali for a first-hand experience of the Sub-watershed Management Project that Coca-Cola has been carrying out in Ayubia National Park area for the past 6 years, in association with WWF-Pakistan. This flagship intervention is a comprehensive project which has achieved substantial measurable results already. These include recharge of more than 388 million litres of water in the last 5 years, plantation of more than 60,000 trees of indigenous species, development of several hundred fruit orchards, providing livelihoods to local communities, installation of rainwater harvesting structures in more than 100 schools, collection for reuse of more than a million litres of rainwater through rooftop harvesting and protection and rejuvenation of the 26 natural springs in the project area.

The activity was promoted through social networking sites to attain entry submissions for the trip from Lahore and Islamabad and to create maximum word-of-mouth. The official hashtag of the activity was #CokeTripToNathiagali.

The Results

  1. 600+ entry submissions.
  2. Coverage in 43 editions of 27 newspapers and 23 blogs.
  3. Hashtag trended in Pakistan on June 4th and June 5th with more than 4 million impressions generated through online posts.

THE COCA-COLA BOOK BANK

During Karachi Literature Festival 2015, the attending public had the chance to buy new books as well as donate their old books to a Book Bank. The innovative book bank collection spots were set up around the festival venue in Coca-Cola’s old glass-fronted coolers, refurbished to serve as bookshelves to collect the donated books.  Visitors were given complimentary drinks as a token of appreciation for the donation.

Why The Citizens Foundation?

In 2010, Coca-Cola Pakistan took an initiative to build a school in a flood ravaged area of Muzaffargarh, in collaboration with The Citizen Foundation (TCF). The school building was completed in a record time of 18 months. The school provides quality education to more than 190 children from low income families. Coca-Cola Pakistan is also bearing all operational expenses of the school for a period of three years. Its ongoing support to education also extends to the CARE Foundation and to government schools, under the Adopt-a-School program.

Why Karachi Literature Festival?

Coca-Cola Pakistan believes that the corporate sector has an integral role to play in the promotion of education considering the fact that Pakistan is still an underdeveloped country and 40% of our total population is under 18 years of age.

Therefore, keeping in view the current low rate of literacy prevalent in the country, Coca-Cola Pakistan has led from the front to promote education in the country. This goes across the board from adopting government schools and carrying out refurbishment of the infrastructure and facilities in these schools, to creating an endowment fund at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) for meeting the entire education costs of talented students from less-privileged backgrounds,.

With KLF 2015, Coca-Cola’s support to the festival entered its third consecutive year. The company remained the sponsor of the KLF – Coca-Cola Prize for the best book in English language by a Pakistani author. The yearly sponsorship also included an honorarium for the judges and complimentary availability of the company’s drinks for tens of thousands of visitors to the KLF throughout its duration.

The Results:

  1. The idea of the Book Bank was well received and more than 2000 books were collected in two days.
  2. The books collected during the festival were reviewed by The Citizens Foundation (TCF) and those suitable for children’s use were collected to be sent to their schools. Other books were sold off in and the proceeds, PKR 50,000, were also donated to The Citizens Foundation.
  3. Wide coverage on print and electronic media.
  4. Activity hashtags #CokeBankABook and #CokeKLF2015 generated 8 million plus impressions on social media.

SPREADING HAPPINESS AT LABARD

To celebrate the essence of Ramadan, Coca-Cola Pakistan organized an exclusive Iftar at LABARD (Lahore Businessmen Association for Rehabilitation of Disabled) to share the blessings of this holy month with the disadvantaged of our society. The event was attended by MNA, Mr. Pervez Malik, Coca-Cola employees, students of LABARD’s vocational center and staff as a part of the Ramadan campaign, which tied in well with the Company’s philosophy of spreading happiness.

Why LABARD?

To ensure positive integration of disabled persons in our society, Coca-Cola Pakistan partnered with Lahore Businessmen Association for Rehabilitation of Disabled (LABARD) to construct a state-of-the-art rehabilitation centre for the disabled. The grant provided by Coca-Cola Pakistan for this centre was USD 200,000.

The grant helped LABARD build their vocational education training centre with facilities for vocational and skills development training, residential facility for disabled, personal development and training, treatment and therapy, and community awareness and participation.

The Results:

  1. Coverage in 25 editions of 12 newspapers.
  2. Coverage by 8 TV and Radio channels.

 

CONFESSION OF A BRAND CUSTODIAN

Murtaza Shakir
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CONFESSION OF A BRAND CUSTODIAN

…and so begins a tale of injustice, for I have lost an opportunity and my years.

After facing a great deal of damage and chaos, I stand confused, dejected and shattered, being witness to the death of my brand. It is a horrible feeling that I could not foresee the disastrous consequences that were to follow. All those days and nights of burning energy, heated discussions, undue arguments and burying of hatchets, into the bin.

It did not affect me much, as I outgrew the highest and the brightest in the corporate pyramid. I got the position I always wanted to enjoy, the limelight I always wanted to carry and the charisma I always wanted to exuberate, all because my agency couldn’t utilize my full potential!

Yes, I was the chosen one, the brand custodian, a person whose ambition became to sell products, kill ideas and spank emotions. I became obsessed with the glitz and glam of being the master of the kingdom ignoring the beauty of my world – my brand. I destroyed it all and I am the one responsible.

What could have been something unimaginable for humanity, I just made it look quite usual as I followed the customs of my workplace. I had no courage to stand for my gut instinct and no vision to foresee the phenomenal. I lived up to my expectations and expected the best of the worst from my creative partners. There I was walking a false path and by the time I realized it, it was already too late.

Today I look back and see lost years, erroneous wisdom, foolish decisions and aggressive self-assessments. I know I can’t undo what has been rooted into my brand’s overall upbringing, but I can give it a few years of spirited prudence so it can live the life that I desired for it.

Yes, now I have to think more than numbers, more than graphs, more than functionality and more than value; to spark feelings that in turn become habits. These are the gut realizations, which one should weave in before being the brand custodian. Don’t live yourself in the brand instead make the consumer live your brand. You will for sure see that these confessions would transform into acknowledgements.

Even with this entire emotional ramble, I love the brand people. I know products wouldn’t have become brands if it were not for them. They actually give birth to these powerful machines that get the human race to desire for its needs and the society enters into a more meaningful phase, creating perspective for products, for what they want them to stand for. The only thing missing seems to be parental semantics for a sophisticated and cultured upbringing of those brands. These can easily set the pace if one is wise enough to experiment.

Most of the brand populace wouldn’t agree with this article, as in our part of the society the child is either born to be neglected, disabled to be adopted or illegitimate to be raised. I say this because in Pakistan everyone wants to play safe. No experiments, no use of gut instinct, no knowledge; only scientific procedures to gauge success and failure. All this takes you to the top of nowhere.

We, as brand and creative custodians, need to come together as one unit to make our brands live happily ever after. I know we will, because we as a team never give up!

Thank you for reading. Keep it light!

The Cricket Fever

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The Cricket Fever

By Heba Moeen

Cricket is a sport which is celebrated in our country with a robust demeanour and nothing can beat the love for this cherished game despite us not being able to make it to the last couple of World Cup Finals. This year too, the cricket fever was sky high, somewhat due to the nation still being hopeful, thus comparing everything to 1992 and looking for reasons for the triggered nostalgia.

Quite a number of brands played an important part in further instilling the admiration of cricket and making themselves synonymous with the cricket craze. Not only did they instill the cricket feel in their campaigns by leveraging terms that trigger top of mind recall, they also got to the consumer level and enjoyed the thrills and excitement of being with them when a wicket fell down or a boundary was hit.

Peek Freans Sooper, the number one biscuit selling brand of Pakistan started a promotion for cricket lovers across the country, leading to a great deal of engagement by delighting customers. Distributed into phases, Sooper initiated an SMS campaign through which consumers could text message various codes on Sooper packs to 8398 for an interactive question and answer session related to the sport. The 10 most active participants entered a lucky draw for a chance to win the grand prize: Cash equivalent for airfares to Australia. Similarly, the 500 runner-ups were entitled to prizes including branded gear and smartphones.

Brands that have a digital presence have an upper hand in directly communicating with consumers and thus Sooper turned out to be a pro at it. It gathered a large chunk of the audience thereby enjoying virality as a result of its hashtag, #SooperHaiCricket. Just over the weekend of its launch, it was able to acquire almost 5.5 million impressions, reaching nearly 1.5 million accounts on Twitter. In a world of consumer marketing where it’s all about relationship building with the end consumers, the brand has played a significant role in interacting with the target audience and assimilating with them as their very own.

Jubilee Life, Pakistan’s life insurance provider, on the other hand, got the legendary cricketer, Wasim Akram on board and to represent the ICC Cricket World Cup digital campaign. As such, he communicated with fans through pictures, messages and short videos on Facebook and Twitter. He enlightened the audience with his expert opinions and was a great support in boosting the morale of the team as well as the nation. As a result, the number of likes for Jubilee Life’s Facebook page increased by 100% thus giving the company great leverage to capitalize on their future potential customer base.

Coca-Cola Pakistan had been very prominent with the ICC World Cup 1992 title song remake, thus incorporating top musicians and vocalists and commemorating the memory of the win of yesteryears with the presence of Javed Miandad. Celebrities and singers like Aamina Sheikh, Atif Aslam, Jimmy Khan, Adnan Malik and Strings added their touch to the enthusiasm. The hashtag, #PhirSeyGameUthaDain went viral on Twitter thus sparking rants and healthy conversations alike. Within a few days, the brand got the newly discovered Justin Girls, now renowned as Justin Bibis on board for a classical cum rap jingle. This notably had been the USP of the campaign and increased talkability of the brand on social media. The song video was used as a message of hope from Lahore.

Olper’s Lassi with its bright and colourful packaging availed the chance to appear as it is in its communication and campaign designed to associate itself with the game of cricket this season. The campaign and the hashtag devised, #KhulKeKhelo gave all cricket fanatics a chance to record their messages with the brand as the brand team comprising of the camera crew travelled across identified destinations of  Lahore and Karachi.

Similarly, Telenor using its Djuice platform showcased Ali Gul Pir to reveal his much anticipated comical song, ‘Shor Macha’, targeting the younger audience who easily relate to this emerging celebrity comedian. Using the same hashtag, the song was released in pursuit of the India vs Pakistan match.

As new campaigns develop to celebrate the sport, the aspect of relationship building becomes more profound in the world of Marketing and brands get a chance to become more prominent.

 

The writer manages strategic communications at a PR firm.

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