PulsOpinion

I dedicate this post to the PR agency that was and still is my most favorite. If you haven’t heard of this one.. means that you know nothing of PR in Asia and India. Log on to www.genesispr.com

The best in India?…. Naaa…. APAC?…Naa…….

Genesis B-M, there is none like you…… and with every passing day you make us more proud…..

The recent Holmes report card- the first one for APAC, names Genesis Burson-Marsteller the India consultancy of the year.  A very well deserved recognition for a firm that has created some of the finest professionals in the industry. After having almost lived in Genesis-BM for 5 yrs (which sadly went by in a jiffy), I know this to be an extremely well deserved recognition.

A place where every individual in the team is groomed to be an efficient business manager and every client is treated with tremendous respect. It’s a place where every initiative is reviewed and every quarterly performance is analysed and road maps are created for the way forward. It’s a place where the firm and all its members ensure that the varied geographies do not impact the flow of a campaign. No matter which part of the country you are in, the same standard of service is maintained. In the Genesis- BM language it is called ‘One team, one experience’. Such efficacy is ensuring service excellence is not easily heard of. What I talk of is just the tip of the iceberg. No wonder Genesis-BM is offering service excellence to some of the finest multinationals in the country.

Prema, Ashwani, – you are amongst the very few professionals who have the courage and determination to ‘walk the talk’. Your service excellence standards are not easy to reach and that makes you unmatched not only in India but in multiple geographies as well. Bhuvnesh-you interviewed me, you were my mentor…an excellent professional and a fantastic human being; Regional Market Leaders, members of the Finance, HR, Knowledge, Training teams, Partners, Associate Partners, Senior Consulting Associates, Consulting Associates, Senior Associates, Associates, Admin staff, Office help staff…Vinay Ji, Dattar ji, Media tracking partners….Congratulations to each one of you for making Genesis-BM see newer heights of success.

I repeat- You are the finest examples of Public Relations not only in India but in many more geographies. You guys truly rock!!

Recession is a natural part of the economic cycle. The markets, the consumers and the products will still be around once the economy has corrected itself. Do not cut the tools that could help keep your head above water; instead make them more accountable.

How digital can help..

Understanding buyer behavior: moving from monologues to conversations and making use of a unique opportunity to speak to consumers and garner thoughts and feedback ‘real time’.

Rising above the clutter: Reaching out to customers beyond the cluttered traditional media. This further helps enhance innovation and look for interesting options to engage customers in the new media space.Here’s what Clinic Plus did on youtube. The adv is called ‘Chulbuli’. Its in Hindi- a perfect language to reach out to the millions of Indians…  The children love it….and what a fantastic way of saying that Clinic Plus is good for hair and should be used everyday.

Chulbuli
Small spend; low cost; high ROI: Digital approach is not only more accountable but also has a substantially low cost per reach. Furthermore, their ability to rise above the buzz and reach out effectively can have a higher impact on the ROI.

Tracking results: New media initiatives can be effectively mapped and tracked thus allowing companies keep track of what ‘clicks’ and what does not.

Blogs have social momentum and their usage is enabled with technological comfort. While third party blogs can be good ‘listening posts’ for conversations about your brand, a well- written company blog can provide a huge interaction point for a large number of existing and potential stakeholders.

Of late I have been meeting a few MARCOM managers…primarily to gauge the impact of recession on budgets and communication strategies ….for my article. During these ‘Starbucks’ sessions (that’s where we end up, eventually), following were the noteworthy comments: ‘Social media marketing is like an open sea…our communication teams are full of ideas but these appear as ‘one size fits all’ type of stuff. Everybody wants to do everything in a hurry not to be left out and more often than not are all over the place!… we came up with a blog but now we are stuck- it takes so much resources to maintain and promote…how can we make the best use of what we have without investing a penny more…’ . Well then, maybe this post is for you -creating winners with blogs…. in 5 simple steps. Of course, there are not just 5 steps, but these are the building blocks- I’ll be adding more in future posts, but will be looking for your additions in comments

How could companies gain leverage and traction through blogs:

Brand monitoring: Just like you practice what publications write about your company and competition everyday, monitor closely what people are talking about you. (Yes- there is someone out there that ought to talk about your brand) Determine brand sentiment and its triggers.

Employees are enthusiastic spokespeople. Leverage: Social networking unlike traditional media is more complex and its huge. You need all the help you can to effectively track what’s happening. While all employees are not spokespeople, encourage them to communicate what they see and hear about the company. Determine what needs action and decide the next steps.

Engage your audience and communicate – have a dialogue: Be open and use this as a platform to discuss the latest in the company. Structured and consistent messages are the key.

Leverage influential bloggers: There are millions of blogs out there. And probably a sizeable proportion exercise good influence. Learn about like-minded bloggers and make them your brand ambassadors. Engage with them regularly.

Measure and optimise: For accurate audience metrics, relevance of content, effectiveness metrics.