TAKE A CHANCE

ost of the times, when I see a #job posting, I notice that experience of that industry is mentioned as a prerequisite. Recruiters shortlist or reject applications basis the filter of whether a person has worked in the industry or not. I believe that this approach often makes you lose out on lot of good talent.

One can learn about the #industry on the job too, as long as the person comes with the right values, attitude and aptitude that blends well with the #culture of the organisation.

In my career, I have changed industries thrice. I moved from #retail to #FMCG and then to #B2B in Nutrition. Every time, I was able to do it because someone was willing to take a chance on me, and go beyond the requirement of the industry experience filter. I am thankful to each one of them.

In fact, if you look at some of the successful corporate leaders, they have changed paths, moved to different industries and yet done so well in their careers.

Whenever I recruit, I never let the lack of industry experience stop me from shortlisting an application if the rest of the CV is interesting and exciting.

So my message to all the recruiters and the managers out there is this: Take A Chance and you will be surprised to find some rare gems.

INNOVATION THROUGH DIVERSITY LEADERSHIP

#Innovation is not only about great insights, strong products and exemplary execution, it is also about people management as it is people who bring ideas, grow ideas, share ideas and then turn those ideas into innovation success stories.

Here are 9 ways to foster innovation through diversity #leadership that will help you manage your teams, your launches and your innovation pipeline.

CLEAN AIR NOW!

We can only change 2030 if we all demand a change in 2020 - such a powerful line!

What makes it even more powerful are these images from Greenpeace where the top portion of the image is a visual of our beautiful planet, which has then been juxtaposed to another image at the bottom that shows how industries and factories are polluting the environment through their careless methods and ways.

This is a a great example of responsible and impactful #advertising that makes you sit up and notice. It doesn't stop at just the visuals and the message only. There is also a call to action, where they are asking people to pledge support.

Great job by Ogilvy

CRISIS COMMUNICATION : DO'S AND DON'TS

They say that a crisis is the perfect ground for new leaders to emerge and existing leaders to show how strong or weak their leadership is.

The basic expectation that everyone has from a leader is the right kind of #Communication - internal as well as external.

Over the past few weeks, we have seen some of the companies and their #leadership teams managing the situation quite well whereas there have been companies that have bungled this up completely.

Although, more and more countries are starting to reduce the lockdown measures, the problem is not completely over, and hence the expectations from leaders to communicate during this crisis, will continue to remain high.

Here is a set of Do's and Don'ts that can be very helpful in building the right kind of executive narrative.

DATA VOCABULARY

As we continue to take accelerated steps towards a more digitalized world, there is going to be more and more data that will be created and stored on the Internet and the cloud.

So, 1 MB and 1 GB are soon going to be a thing of the past. We have already reached a stage where 1 EB (Exabyte) of data is being created each day!

Projections are that we are soon heading towards Brontobyte and beyond.

Here's a mind-boggling fact: A 1BB hard drive would cover the earth 23,000 times!

Time to upgrade our data vocabulary then.

WORLDWIDE REPUTABLE COMPANIES 2020

As per the Global RepTrak 2020 survey, the most reputable companies of 2020 are:

1. 🇩🇰 : Lego
2. 🇺🇸 : The Walt Disney Company
3. 🇨🇭 : Rolex
4. 🇮🇹 : Ferrari
5. 🇺🇸 : Microsoft
6. 🇺🇸 : Levi Strauss & Co
7. 🇺🇸 : Netflix
8. 🇩🇪 : Adidas
9. 🇩🇪 : Bosch
10. 🇺🇸 : Intel

How was this determined?
The 2020 Global RepTrak was conducted between December 2019 and January 2020 and considered 80,540 individual responses from across the world’s 15 largest economies: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, Spain, the U.K., and the U.S.

There were a total of 153 companies measured, who all have a global footprint and annual revenue of at least $2 billion.

It should be the goal, the dream and the aspiration of every company to feature in this list.

10 MOST VALUABLE BRANDS

Here is a look at the 10 most valuable #brands in the world. It should be no surprise that e-commerce and technology companies are ruling the roost. 6 of the top 10 brands come from a single nation - USA. hashtag#Amazon has not only retained its rank for a third consecutive year, but has broken the mindboggling brand value of $200 billion! What would really be interesting is how their brand valuation changes in the coming months, depending on the #covid19 situation. Some of these companies would benefit from the external environment while a few others would face the brunt of this pandemic.

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FOLLOW YOUR PRESCRIPTION

A lovely piece of work done by the agency 180 Kingsday, Netherlands for WHO. 

The visuals are simple to understand with a powerful message behind them - Stay at Home. The way the different props have been used to combine medicinal equipment with household items is quite #creative. Don't miss the chair in the bottle 🙂

SWIGGY GENIE

I just love the new initiative by Swiggy in #India, where they have rolled out Swiggy Genie to continue business during COVID19.  1. It is a great way to use Swiggy's existing ecosystem and network to provide customer service while opening new revenue stream. 2. This gives customers more options to choose from, especially in getting their essentials delivered. 
3. The large number of delivery guys that Swiggy has on its rolls will not only be kept busy but will also continue to hold on to their jobs.

What is also brilliant is the new layouts that have been rolled out for Swiggy Genie. It is a fantastic wordplay on popular #Bollywood movies, making the title more relevant to the context.

WITH LOVE FROM AUS

Tourism Australia has come up with a charming and beautiful film that shows the various aspects of Australia - its architecture, its wild life and so much more.

This new ad, made by M&C Saatchi wants to tell the world that Australia will be waiting with open arms, ready to welcome visitors as soon as normalcy returns. 

Enjoy the wonderfully well shot film and put Australia in your travel plans of the future!

WORLD MANUFACTURING OUTPUT

There is a lot of talk around how the world will change, economies would behave differently and how manufacturing output would shift across nations due to various political and economic reasons. 

Now what will happen in the coming months/years is difficult to predict, but what we can surely see is how the world's manufacturing output set-up is today. 

1. 52% of the world's output is concentrated in Asia, coming from 8 countries led by #China at 4t (28% of the world total) followed by #Japan at 1t (7% of the world total).

2. Although, North America accounts for only 18% of the world's output, #USA occupies 16.65% of the world total, coming second after China. 

3. Europe accounts for 22% with #Germany being equal to the next three nations in terms of output.

4. #India occupies the sixth rank and if it wants to grow into a super power, it will have to continue increasing its share further.

FIRST VIDEO CALL

It was just 10 years back when Steve Jobs was on stage and he announced to the world about the possibility of doing a video call on an iphone 4 through FaceTime. 

He then went and demonstrated it by doing a live call. 

Today, 10 years later, a video call just seems like a part of our normal lives and we take it for granted. It has just been here for a decade. That is the power and speed of technology. 

A decade down the line, we might reflect on something else that would become a part of our normal lives. But for now, enjoy this video from the archives that will show you how the vision of a man brought revolution in the lives of all.

Video Credit: CNET

USE IT - STOP THE SPREAD

This is an advertisement created by Zuck & Berg, Armenia for World Health Organization asking people to stop the spread of the virus. 

How? 

Use your brains - Do not panic and do not fall for rumours, fake news or misinformation.

Use soap - Wash your hands frequently.

Such a powerful visual! Well thought through and quite creative. 

THE TRUST EQUATION

Have you ever heard about the #trust equation? The Trust Equation was first introduced in 2000 by David Maister in his book, 'The Trusted Advisor'.

I came across it quite recently and was intrigued by the factors at play in this equation:
Credibility, Reliability, Intimacy and Self-Orientation. 

The more I understood it, the more it became clearer to me that this is an equation that can be used in so many situations:

1. Companies managing a crisis. 

2. Countries tackling a pandemic. 

3. Leaders leading a change management process. 

4. Individuals working on their personal relationships. 

5. Customer service dealing with disgruntled customers.

I am sure there are many other situations where the trust equation can help us move forward in the right way. 

For me, there is one factor missing in this equation and I would add that too. That factor is EMPATHY. I strongly believe that empathy is an important element in building trust. 

I wanted to share this with all of you as well, in case you have not seen or heard about the Trust Equation before.

HISTORY OF PANDEMICS

'The world is a global village' - this quote hasn't had a far more significant impact than now, in this uncertain time when an event that started in one part of the world has raised its tentacles and reached all the other parts of the world as well.

In the last 100 years, the outbreak of #Coronavirus is the eighth time that the WHO has declared a pandemic.

However, if you look back into history over the centuries, as the human species has evolved and developed, pandemics have always been around - some big, some small.

Here are two infographics that will take you through the history of pandemics and the death toll of each one of them.

As is evident, with more and more advancement in medical science, we have been able to control these pandemics in a better way.

However, the first step always is

#Intent and #Action. That is what makes the difference.

We can overcome this one too if our intent is right and our actions then back that intent.

You and I have to work on it together. It is no more about them, it is about us!

LEGO + SUPER MARIO = DOUBLE EXCITEMENT!

The sole objective of a teaser video is to get people excited about the final product. This new video from two iconic companies - the LEGO Group and Nintendo does exactly that.

Yesterday, the two companies announced their partnership in launching a new product - Lego Super Mario that will be hitting the stores later this year.

As per their press release, 'Neither a video game nor a traditional LEGO brick-based set, LEGO® Super Mario™ is a new product line that features an interactive LEGO Mario figure who collects coins in real-life game levels created with LEGO bricks. The new line will let kids experience the playful world of Super Mario like never before.'

However, I feel that this new launch will also get all those adults excited who spent hours in their childhood, either being Super Mario and rescuing the princess or using Lego to give wings to their imagination.

I must say that those sound effects brought back so many memories and a gush of nostalgia! Looking forward to what this partnership entails.

SAMSUNG MICROCODES

In the current world of noise and clutter, it's always a challenge for #brands to get the attention of their target audience.

Every marketer keeps thinking of new ways of reaching their consumer through their advertising and #communication. Now what if you start incentivising people to watch your ads across the different platforms? That is exactly the idea behind #Samsung Microcodes.

This is an initiative in Australia where, Samsung Australia has hidden codes in their ads around the country to celebrate the launch of the Galaxy S20. These codes are extremely tiny and could be hidden in their TV ads, posters, online ads, mobile ads or any other #advertisement that they roll out. The first one to find a winning code gets a free Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G!

Such a creative way to engage people, get them to pay attention to every ad on every platform and also build excitement for the new launch!

HAVE A BREAK, HAVE A KITKAT YOGHURT SAKE!

#Japan is known for introducing exotic flavours of KitKat every year and a lot of those flavours may not even be accepted beyond the island, but these innovations drive the brand in Japan in a big way.

Their recent launch is KitKat Yoghurt Sake, which is an extension to the Sake KitKat that was launched in 2016. This new variant is in collaboration with former Japanese soccer star and now accomplished sake connoisseur Hidetoshi Nakata, who is bringing this special sake combination - rice wine made with super rich Jersey yoghurt into the chocolate world.

As a #chocolate lover and a KitKat fan, you may or may not be comfortable with the idea of seeing #KitKat in such a unique flavour, however the Japanese consumer will be paying a premium price for these chocolates coming in an eye-catching sky-blue packaging.

If you are a tourist traveling to Japan anytime soon, these alcoholic Kitkats might be something you want to add to your souvenir list.

If you want to know how KitKat become such a big craze in Japan, then this NY Times article would be the perfect place to start. Be prepared to be surprised and shocked.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/10/24/magazine/candy-kit-kat-japan.html

TOAST IT THE WAY YOU LIKE IT!

Although bread is eaten universally, not everyone likes to have their bread toasted at the same level. Some like it lightly toasted while others like it to be dark.

However, most toasters only have two settings - burnt and not burnt. You can do your own trial and error to get the perfect toast but it is never consistent.

The R180 toaster from Revolution in USA doesn’t have that problem. They turned an insight into an opportunity and it lets you toast your toast exactly how you want it.

To let people know about this toaster, they launched a print ad where they showed all the possible shades of toast that you can achieve and they smartly used a colour swatch card to drive the point by converting it into a toast swatch card.

Innovation in product, creativity in communication - a perfect combination.

DOUBLE OREO BY CHIARA FERRAGNI - AN INFLUENCER MARKETING CASE STUDY

Cookie brand #Oreo has gone ahead and launched a limited edition Double Oreo capsule collection by Chiara Ferragni. This is an example of taking influencer marketing to the next level.

Most #brands leverage digital influencers by asking them to advertise their brands or products through a post or a picture. That is where they limit themselves. 

Oreo went ahead and collaborated with Chiara to launch a special edition product with #packaging that is associated with Chiara's style. Chiara is also going to be seen in their new ad film for this launch.

That is not it. Oreo is also launching a capsule collection inspired by Chiara Ferragni that #consumers can win as gifts and merchandise by participating in contests.

This product will be priced at the same price as a regular Oreo pack.

So, who is Chiara Ferragni?

• Chiara is an Italian fashion blogger, influencer, designer and entrepreneur who has collaborated with fashion and beauty brands through her blog The Blonde Salad. She started her fashion blog in 2009 and has risen over the years. 

• By 2013, Ferragni's blog had reached more than one million unique visitors and 12 million views per month.

• Her business ventures grossed about $8 million (mostly from her Chiara Ferragni Collection footwear) in 2014.

• In January 2015, Ferragni's blog and shoe line, Chiara Ferragni Collection, became a case study at Harvard Business School.

• In March 2015, Chiara was selected for the cover of the April 2015 Vogue España, making her the first fashion blogger to appear on any Vogue cover. Since then she has appeared on over 50 fashion magazines covers.

• In January 2016, Pantene announced Ferragni as its new global ambassador.

• In 2019, Amazon Prime made a documentary on Chiara Ferragni and her rise to this level.

Personally, I have been following Chiara Ferragni on Instagram for a few years now and she now has 18.5 Million followers globally! That is a huge reach for an influencer. In fact, she is more of a celebrity now than an influencer.

So how does Oreo benefit by collaborating with Chiara?

1. This new launch will lead to incremental sales for Oreo, just like any other innovation.

2. Oreo will potentially get new consumers who are big fans and followers of Chiara and would want to try a product that carries her name.

3. By partnering with a young fashion blogger, Oreo is building its cool imagery with the Millennials and Gen Z.

4. While Oreo would spend its advertising money, but posts and Instagram stories by Chiara Ferragni will get them immense global reach, which will amplify their campaign even further.

What are the advantages for Chiara by collaborating with Oreo?

1. An association with a global brand like Oreo builds her credential and equity even further and gives her a global reach beyond her current base.

2. It increases her market value a notch higher and gives other brands ideas and thoughts of partnering or collaborating with her in the future.

3. Oreo packs have phenomenal distribution and these packs would be available on the shelves of all supermarkets. People who do not know Chiara Ferragni would want to know about her, read about her and this will increase her follower numbers much more.

This is a win-win for both sides and a clear lesson from Mondelez on how to do Influencer Marketing beyond what most companies and brands do. 

I am excited to see this phase of Influencer Marketing grow in the times ahead and how marketing strategies will build this in their annual plans and promotion cycles.