Marketing services is quite a challenging task compared to marketing products, given the intangibility of the former. With the latter, a prospect can see it before hand, touch, feel or even use the product for some time before the actual decision to buy or not to buy is made. Service is something where the production as well consumption happens together, or in quick succession. For eg. - claiming medical bills from Insurance companies or withdrawing cash from a bank or an ATM. Hence, the role of Marketing gets even more rigorous and challenging when it comes to a service. All a service provider hence can do is to come out with attractive captions, logos, Brand Ambassadors, claims & other Brand Elements and display professionalism in their interaction with the prospects as well as their clients.
However, I came across a couple of instances where 2 of the best know Brands across the country have goofed up a bit when it comes to what they claim v/s what they deliver. One of them is HDFC Bank, other is Dominos Pizza. Dominos Pizza is not purely a service brand, but a product cum service brand, given their emphasis not only on Pizzas but also on 'free door delivery' and 'delivery within 30 minutes'.
Lets talk about HDFC Bank first. A brand which is synonymous with Mr. Deepak Parekh (India's unofficial man for crisis) though he is not at the helm. A brand with whom I am associated for the past 5 years and so far have nothing much to complain. Probably because I did not frequent the bank much and got my transactions done through the internet or ATMs. However, I have been visiting one of their branches every month since March. I observed a basic flaw which I never observed with any of the public sector banks. 5 times I have deposited a cheque and each time I have noticed that the person at the counter doesn't verify if the amount written on the cheque matches with the pay-n-slip. Again, there is no verification if the amount and other details mentioned in the bank's copy of pay-n-slip matches with the customer's copy. The teller simply bangs a seal and the whole transaction is over within half-a-minute. This is in stark contrast to what happens in a public sector bank, where the teller takes almost a minute before a seal is hit to the pay-n-slip. When some may shrug it off as a petty issue, I see it as a potential to create confusion later on which might require me to visit the branch quite a few number of times (without forgetting the calls to/from Customer Care and mail trails which it will accompany)
Let me take a dig at Dominos now. Though I have not been a big fan of Pizzas, something tempted me to go for it. And I ordered it online. In about 30 minutes, I got a 'missed call' from an unknown number. This was followed immediately by a message from the same number "Sir pizza delivery boy. Not able to find your house. Please call back". I promptly reverted - "Call me back or you and the pizza can go back". I got the call and guided him to my place. Owing to no change with me, I paid Rs. 200 for what cost Rs. 170. The delivery boy requested for some time to get the change. I asked for his name and asked what do I need to do if he doesn't turn up within the mentioned time. He simply uttered his name and said "Call up to the store and complain for your thirty rupees". I was taken aback but remained calm. I got the change, but, after 6-7 hours and after making a call and informing the Dominos store.
What is similar in both these cases?
The interface between the customer and the organization hasn't displayed credibility and professionalism. When those on top and in the Marketing role of organizations have always ensured to 'build a brand' by building credibility via various exercises, those at the grass-root and who often interact with the company's 'bread & butter' i.e. clients, have often failed to display it. This (dis)connect between what is claimed by the top management and what is being delivered by the grass-root can hamper the brand. At times, brands will not only lose that particular client but also several other clients by way of negative word-of-mouth communication about the brand by the disgruntled client. This very blog itself speaks negatively of Dominos and HDFC Bank, doesn't it? ;-)
Service marketers cannot afford to let their interface act with a lackluster attitude. No brand is bigger than a client's ego and his hard earned money. Absence of empathy, arrogance, disconcert by the client-organization interface will affect a brand much more than a goof up in a service. Afterall, products might be manufactured in factories, but brands are 'manufactured' in the minds of the consumers.
Regards... rather, re-guard (lots of brands need to take one)
Common Man
Photo courtesy
i. http://magusdialog.in/images/logo_hdfcbank.gif
ii. http://www.balloonsoverwaikato.co.nz/images/143230_DominosLogo.jpg
iii. http://marketingevolution.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/customer-service2.jpg
Read someone asking "How about Freida Pinto as the Brand Ambassador of Kingfisher Airlines?". To those who have no much clue about Freida, she is the one who featured opposite Dev Patel in Oscar-winning SlumDog Millionaire, walked the red-carpet at the Oscars, pipped to be the next Bond Girl and also claimed to be the highest paid Indian actress.
Freida for Kingfisher - Is it a good fit?
Let's first discuss Kingfisher and West Indies. The flagship brand of UB Group got registered in my mind for the first time in 1996 when India toured West Indies, where in one of the 5 Test matches, India were bundled out for some 80 odd runs, chasing a paltry 120 in 4th innings for victory. They had a TV commercial starring the players of that team. Here is the TVC - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93RtE9_Gc5I - Hence, UB via Kingfisher, sponsored the West Indies Team. That was the time when West Indies' cricketing standards hadn't reached a level where it was today and had some greats - Richardson, Walsh, Ambrose, Bishop, Lara and the likes. The 3 former names might be a terror for the batsmen when on field but the converse is also true when they are off the field, for that matter it is true with most West Indians. For those used to watch Cricket in West Indies, it is no secret that West Indies is synonymous to, say, beach, beer, partying, fun & frolic etc. Hence, so are the West Indians, not so surprisingly. Some of their celebrations after a wicket or victory look simply crazy. "Work hard, party harder" seems to be their mantra.
They had some marketing advantages with it -
1. Instant multi-country visibility (something stopped me from saying 'global' visibility'). It would anyways be visible amongst the Circket crazy Indians, but, sponsoring West Indies Team also meant visibility of the Brand outside India. The series was telecast LIVE on ESPN-STAR and it ensured that the Brand became visible in atleast 6-7 Cricket playing countries.
2. Brand Mantra was in sync with the team they sponsored. Kingfisher, be it through their alcohol Brand or airlines Brand, have always called themselves 'King of Good Times'. Their Chief, Mr. Mallya himself carries the 'Good Times' image, be it by his dressing, by his passion or actions, or even by surrounding himself with glamour. He walks that talk. Even during the heights of recession, KF Airlines did not cut down on frills which is their soul.
Sponsoring West Indies Team was a beginning. They then went on to get Saurav Ganguly and Ajay Jadeja in the late 90s. Ganguly was an upcoming Cricketer in the late 90s and Jadeja was a jovial Cricketer of his times, very chirpy and flamboyant too. This was followed by getting Michael Vaughan and Andrew Flintoff in 2006, who were certainly the Kings of Good Times which was prevailing, following their inspirational victory in the Ashes 2005.
So it is amply clear that, one who associates oneself with UB Group (or read as Kingfisher) needs to be flamboyant, possess a happy-go-lucky outlook, bring in glamour value with him or her (unless untill they are not endorsing a dull Brand like Mangalore Chemicals & Fertilizers Ltd. of the UB Group) So when someone said Freida Pinto could be the Ambassador of Kingfisher Airlines, I felt it to be a wrong choice. First and foremost, she is not a popular figure in India, though she has several credentials on her side early on in her career. She doesn't carry the 'Good Times' image, according to me.
How about Sania Mirza? She is a face seen in a few continents, thanks to the Grand Slams (where she grandly gets slammed each time). Well known in India too, glamorous, something which Mallya desires as well as deserves. But her inclination towards attracting more Fatwahs than FAT-WAHs can be a game-spoiler. You never know when the clerics of Islam will get offended on hugging Mallya or even mere endorsing the KF Airlines since Mallya also owns 'Daaroo ka aDDa' (Daaru is 'Haraam' as per the Islamic tenets) Now, the complexities of getting Sania as an endorser might as well double with her marriage to a Pakistani and the Dubai connection. In any case, distancing from Sania is a safe choice for Brands (Burqa Brands are an exception)
Then like always, we can move towards some Bollywood actresses, who are the front-runners for most brands and products that demands glamour and skin (Now that skin-showing is no sin) Someone chubby-bubbly, like what Priety Zinta was in her debut movie Soldier is what KF Airlines requires. From the current lot, Genelia D'Souza could be a fit. Though hailing from South India, she is recognized well amongst the TG of KF Airlines. Deepika Padukone endorsed KF Airlines for sometime. Getting her back might not be a sensible move, moreover, with her growing stature, she might endorse more Brands (and Cricketers!) which might not be pleasant for the Brand as it is not 'one among all' Brand. Limited popularity of Bollywood actresses in other countries must also be considered before getting them to endorse (Though Shilpa Shetty might be on her knees and toes and even on hips as we saw in her Yoga, to endorse KF Airlines)
But, for me, one name stands tall. Only that person can carry the 'Good Times' image. Even if Mr. XYZ is appointed as the Brand Ambassador of KF Airlines, he might look ordinary against my Choice. My Choice talks and walks 'Good Times'. My Choice so far has been unbeatable in that 'Good Times' image. My Choice is Vijay Mallya himself. He is in a league of his own. He is like a proud Lion, the newbies and the wannabes of whichever field you chose, come distant second to him. He can get as many hugs from Bollywood actresses as his son who is in his early 20s get. Even the economic downfall couldn't challenge his 'Good Times' mantra. He found other ways to deal with it (Extension from the Govt. to repay the dues to Oil PSUs, 'MoU' with Jet Airways) He plays big stakes and plays openly. He can buy Tippu's sword for you in an auction, he can bring back Gandhi's possessions, he can buy a F1 Team, owns a few Yachts. Anything he does, does it in style. Though booze hasn't been ingrained in India's culture completely as yet, an Indian owns the world's 2nd largest brewery today. He is a 'Good Times' tag himself. He is the Richard Branson of India (Though he doesn't have a condom brand like Branson does)
I rest my point of view with the readers.
Regards (and loads of Oooh la la la la ooh le lo....)
Common Man
Photo courtesy -
i. http://www.singaporegp.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/dr-vijay-mallya.jpg
ii. http://blog.mobissimo.in/uploads/ambush_marketing_kingfisher_airlines.jpg
iii. http://photos.andhranews.com/airlines-photos/kingfisher-airlines-a330-200.jpg
So the much acclaimed 3G Spectrum bidding has concluded and is expected to give the Govt. exchequer a whopping Rs. 68,000 crores approx. which is close to more than 2 times than what was estimated in the Budget 2010. As A Raja, the Telecom Minister was all smiles for all right reasons and 'otherwise', the Congress camp was in a spot of bother. If Pranab Mukherjee looked numb like always, P Chidambaram's pleasant and calm face had turned stern, something which would have scared the Maoists and Naxalites as well. Normally a quiet S M Krishna was looking as serious and brutal as Kamsa. Though the UPA as a whole was exuberant over the 3G Spectrum revenue, the Congress faction had a subtle, yet evident uneasiness on their face.
The Congress is now weary of one pertinent point - Will the popularity of 3G impact the Brand Value of Sonia'G? The Prime Minister took note of this issue and summoned an emergency meeting of all Congress Ministers late in the evening at the PMO (Prime Minister's Office). The possible effects of 3G overshadowing Sonia'G were discussed at length. A Ten-Point Programme has been worked out and would soo be implemented. Sources from the PMO who requested anonymity to avoid possible animosity with the Ministers shared the minutes of the meeting -
1. The total earnings through 3G bids will be showed at 10% of actuals. That way, revenue to Govt. Exchequer could also be shown less and hence, prices of essential commodities could be hiked. This suggestion had come from the mastermind of Murli Deora, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister who sees this as an opportunity to hike fuel prices. When countered by the Prime Minister, he justified his stand by saying that if fuel prices are hiked, public attention can be diverted from 3G to price-hike. He also assured that there won't be disruption from the opposition camp of BJP and Communists as they would anyways 'Walk-Out' from the Parliament.
2. 3G Spectrum will not be publicized on news channels, websites etc. Now along with opposition leaders, even the Press & Media are banned from entering the premises of the Ministry of IT & Telecommunications. A Raja's official residence will be deployed with additional CRPF forces to curb media entry into the premises. This point was put forward by the Information & Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni.
3. Afzal Guru's files will make rounds from various bureaucrat's tables to New Delhi Govt. every alternate day. This idea which will attract huge attention from the BJP and Sangha Parivar was mooted by the Law Minister Veerappa Moily which made him eligible for a pat on the back by state-mate S M Krishna. If tables are further fallen short of, President Pratibha Patil in a fax-message has promised to lend her table as well. Files containing various Bills which are earlier passed to her from the Parliament will be shifted to Govt. archives.
4. Lalit Modi-Shashi Tharoor controversy will be raked up as well. Support for this is sought from Sharad Pawar and Praful Patel, both from NCP which is a party to the UPA. If the NCP supremos refuse their support, Praful Patel will be accused of negligence and corruption which led to the AI plane crash in Mangalore last week and Sharad Pawar will be charged with conspiring with rich middlemen for hoarding essential commodities thereby leading to inflation.
5. A lot of arrests will be made and links will be established to various Bomb Blasts.
6. Some forgotten cases like Madhumita Shukla murder case, Lakkubhai Pathak cheating case, JMM suitcase scam, Fodder scam, Coffin scam, Stock Market scam etc. will be reopened or files will be moved bringing nation-wide attention.
7. Sanjay Dutt has been promised a ticket in the next election if he too is willing to be a part to reinvestigate the 1993 Bomb Blasts. Mahesh Bhatt's son's help will also be sought to prick the George Coleman Hadley case. Mohd. Azharuddin has been asked to lead these 2 projects.
8. Some petty fights in Australia will be showcased as 'Racist attacks' and Home Minister will visit Australia and keep India updated about the 'sorry state of affairs'. However, PM has cautioned that this ploy should not in any way impact India's Uranium business with Australia.
9. If all this falls short of the agenda, more dossiers will be exchanged with Pakistan.
10. Rahul Gandhi has volunteered to contribute in his very own way. He has already scheduled his 'Stay at Dalit homes' for the next 6 months.
As the meeting concluded and the Ministers came out of the PMO, they were greeted by angry sloganeering by the rest of the UPA allies. The Prime Minister in his usual inimitable style pacified the protestors by saying "Ghar ki BAHU-BETIYON ka sammaan rakhna hamaara dharm hai!!!!"
Common Man.
[The above is a fiction intended for some fun and humour. The author loves all politicians and plays politics himself]
Photo courtesy -
i. http://www.cplc.net.in/cplc_magazine/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/3g.jpg
ii. http://img.timeinc.net/time/2009/time_100_walkup/sonia_gandhi.jpg
So now you know how tough it is to negotiate BOUNCERS. The Indian T20 squad failed to negotiate them even after spending 45 nights in PUBS. If the IPL, thanks to Modi and Tharoor got murkier day by day and hour by hour (or Tweet by Tweet), the T20 World Championships, for Indian fans got duskier match by match. Like Anil Kumble pointed out, we had lost when M S Dhoni said after losing to West Indies in the post-match presentation, "We will play Sri Lanka and go home", though there was still a chance to make it into the Semi-Finals. One had to know Permutation & Combination in-depth to know about that chance though.
'Consistently managing NOT to rise for a BIG OCCASION' can be a research topic on Indian Team. Zaheer 'Tweeted' about 'Improvement' after every game, but during match, it appeared as if he had talked about improvement in leaking runs. Rohit Sharma 'Tweeted' about him knowing 'What this team is made up of', but to some extent we got to know what Rohit is made up of after the match against Australia. Yuvraj seemed to have been confused by a dual role - Cricketer and a Celebrity. Pitch might seem like a ramp, every cheer-girl looks like Preity Zinta. And we expect him to perform amidst this misery!
Meanwhile, the debate over post-IPL parties have reached Twitter, Facebook Wall and even BCCI Headquarters. Probably the first time an Indian Captain has honestly admitted something. But why hold it a reason for poor performance? Were the players dragged to the parties or did they go on their own will?
Amitabh Bachchan has blogged in support of Team India. I find it a futile exercise to extend 'Moral support' to the Team. Even after prominent losses, our players have found 'Moral support' only in partying than in identifying problem areas are taking corrective action. Our only comprehensive performance in the series was against the South Africans. We couldn't even get the Afghanistani's ALL OUT! Waiting eagerly for Gary Kirsten's revelations. I have never been able to find out why most 'revelations' happen in crisis! Anyways... would be fun to know some of the pot bellies of the Indian Team :)
Common Man
One of the most recent cum lucrative concept that has emerged in Marketing is Brand Management. While the traditional concepts like Sales & Business Development, New Product Development, Distribution Management will always hold the key in any business, Brand Management too is now a front-runner.Ancient marketers believed in two simple fundas - Quality and Service. Several yesteryear brands like Bajaj Chetak, Ambassador, Maruti 800 (then the Common Man's car), Gwalior Suitings, Surf (which was successfully countered by Nirma), Godrej cupboards believed and flourished with these 2 very fundas. The guys sitting on the top of these companies (Karsanbhai Patel of Nirma, Rajiv Bajaj of Bajaj, A V Birla of the Birla Group) had a product with quality which appealed to their target audience, complemented by equally superior service and a customary TV Ad (and a Newspaper/Radio ad) The concept of Branding was invisible or of least significance. The only concept of today which was even present yesterday was Advertising to some extent. Again, non-conventional advertising hardly existed, TV Channels weren't in tones like today, promotional activities were unheard of. Ad Gurus and Brand Gurus hadn't incarnated as yet. The only time an organization co-branded itself with something unrelated is Godrej sponsoring the popular TV Serial 'Buniyaad'. Sports was sports then and not an entertainment industry like today, hence, no scope for strategic breaks or cheer-lead the product during matches.
But today, situation is totally different. Logos, colours, fonts, packaging, punchlines keeps changing every third day. Bolly Biggies, Cricketers endorse almost everything from Cars to FMCG to Insurance to Laptops. It gives an impression that marketing activities like Advertising, Sales Promotion, Brand Launching are primary and Products, Services and Sales are linked to it (Although I feel Sales is Primary and Marketing acitivity is just a supporting activity) A V Birla probably would have been in tears to see his son Kumaramangalam signing for the costliest TV Ad (costliest then, not sure about it now) [Here is the link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6aUTHYGSt4] Ardeshir Godrej, whose signature is also the logo (textual logo) of the Godrej Group wouldn't have in his wildest dreams ever thought that the red coloured font/signature would one fine day be a multi-coloured one. Rahul Bajaj wasn't too impressed with son Rajiv's decision to take a 'strategic time-out' from scooter manufacturing, which the latter felt is essential to revamp the brand image of Bajaj Auto to a motor-cycle manufacturer from 2-wheeler manufacturer.Branding can be a success, logos, punchlines, Brand Endorsers, colours will mean something only under 2 conditions -1. Deliver what you promise or commit - One cannot have Anil Kumble endorse a Brand because of his integrity and then sideline Corporate Governance, Ethics, Integrity (simply put together as 'Values') Mind you, Anil isn't a replacement for 'Values', he is only the torch-bearer of 'Values'. Mind you, just before the scandal broke, Satyam had won a Corporate Governance Award. Could Tata Nano have been a success, if it had 'Common Man' as it's mascot but made available at a price-point between Rs. 3-4 Lakhs? It's the delivery as promised, which made it a success ("A Promise is a promise" as Ratan Tata said while launching it for the first time)2. Quality of output - You better be a powerhouse of intellects if you claim yourself to be powered by intellects. When you promise fun, provide it, come what may! Wonder La has to be a 'fun' experience, it cannot cut down on that 'fun' by cutting down on water-games with power shortage in Bangalore as an excuse.'Walk the talk' to make your Branding activity a thumbs up. Sales is a revenue generator, if it fails, all Branding and Advertising efforts are reduced to a fruitless activity EOD. This is why the above 2 conditions are to be fulfilled under rapidly growing competition and dynamic marketing environment of today.Happy Branding and Happy Selling!!Common Man.
Oooops...!! I got it all wrong. Where there is 'excitement', there is an i-Pill and IPL is just about excitement, isn't it? Hence that slip of the tongue ;-) Call it 'Indian Paisa League' for the money that's splurged in it or call it 'India's Premiere Lalit' for the way he has left behind many a CMOs in terms of popularity and successful implementation and maintenance, the IPL 'Business' has kept everyone in a state of being busy. If guys are too busy to date their Sanias (!) in the evenings, so are several business establishments busy doing nothing, thanks to the reduced foot-fall into shops and malls. The IPL bug has even kept '@shashitweeroor' aka Shashi Tharoor Tweeting about the matches. So has been the IPL craze in India, which, when first took off, was regarded to have a mixed response. But now indeed it has been a massive success. Success of IPL and the strong promoter behind it i.e. the BCCI has ensured that a lot of top business houses and brands get associated with it.
The acceptance of IPL brought more avenues*- to the IPL in terms of generating more revenue and to the various Brands to increase their Recall Value. This exercise to become a TOM Brand (Marketing terminology, defined in the end) is being tried by a few Brands through IPL. Observe those 'Big hits into the stands'. Commentators never say "Big Six", but say "DLF Maximum". A wicket falls and they say "CITI Moment of Success'. 'Time Out' is 'MAX MOBILE Strategic Time Out'. IPL can think of more such unconventional ways of advertising/promoting Brands. Probably, as the batsman goes back to pavilion - 'PARAGON Walk', a Man of the Match - 'TVS VICTOR of the Match', a catch could be - 'HAVELLS Safe catch' etc.Can these backfire? There are chances. Assume, a team not doing well in the entire IPL, losing 8-9 wickets in every match. Every batsman going back to the pavilion becomes a 'PARAGON Walk'. Hardcore fans of that team or a batsman might find it unpleasant to hear 'PARAGON Walk' frequently. As a result, Paragon might not be a preferred Brand by that city's or the player's fans. With most ardent IPL fans already turning frenzy, such risks are always on the cards. For all we know, India is also a Cricket crazy nation.
Associating with IPL also gives you an opportunity to network with industry big-wigs, celebrities, some top-notch Cricketers but most importantly - LAW MAKERS i.e. politicians. Do not forget most politicos in India like Sharad Pawar, Rajiv Shukla, Narendra Modi, Farooq Abdullah, Arun Jaitley hold lucrative positions in either the National level of State Level. Chetan Bhagat in a column in Times of India pointed out that if you show Corporate India a big reason to spend, you can generate big bucks from their wallet. Yes, you only got to show them the BIG REASON. Lalit did exactly that.Thats about Business and Branding with IPL... If all this you thought was lucrative and glamorous, there is another side to it, though not associated directly with the IPL but courtsey to IPL. From what I see around. Hotels and eateries which do not have a TV see a dip in the customer turn-out. I stopped going to my regular hotel for dinner and have switched to a hotel which has got a TV for I can watch the match. Of course, it is coming at a cost. I now order extra dishes once I am done with my regular paratha/thali, so that I can watch some more of the match. Specially, if Sachin is batting, I would have a grand dinner that night and end up spending Rs. 110- Rs. 130 when on any other day I would not spend more than Rs. 30. Expecting a dip in the turnout for late evening shows, Inox and a few other theatres play IPL matches instead of movies. So what if you couldn't afford a ticket for it is too expensive or 100% sold-out a week before you thought of buying! Enjoy it in the big screen in the multiplexes. Pubs too are playing IPL matches and lavish hotels like the Taj and the likes too hold special screening of the IPL!IPL has even made it to the Social Networking sites. Twitter and Facebook users give updates faster than Cricinfo! Most die-hard fans and supporters do not waste a minute to appreciate or criticize their favourites and their villains. Facebook 'Status Message' have temporarily turned form 'Employee Grievance Cell' to 'Player/Team performance appraisal form'. Friends have turned 'foes' for they now support different teams. 'City-based loyalty', a term coined by Lalit Modi has given him a 'Cricket-derived Royalty'.No wonder Lalit Modi is currently the Best Indian CMO. He has sold the right product in the right market to the right customer. What is India Inc. waiting for? Hire him!Common Man---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOM Brand - Suppose I were to question someone "Name the IT companies of India you have in your mind" and he or she answers "HCL, Cognizant, TCS, Wipro, Infosys.... ", it would mean HCL sits on top of his mind which will be known as TOM Brand (Top of Mind), followed by Cognizant which will be known as SIL (Second in line) and it goes so on (TIL, FIL etc.). Biggest IT company is of course TCS, followed by Infosys and Wipro.. but what matters here is what sits in the top of a person's mind. Brands normally want them to be comfortably seated on TOM of the market, not that we should buy them, but because they are an option when we intend to buy. And they become some real strong contenders to other options!---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* - 'Avenues' have to do with legal and ethical ways of earning revenues and not with what Lalit seems to be more interested at. The placement of the picture adjacent to 'avenue' is highly co-incidental but the decision not to remove it is highly unintentional (Khi khi khi....) :D
To the South of Asia, with the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal as it's Coastal Neighbours and Pakistan to the West as a terror, stands India, My Country, whose unique achievement is never to have conquered any other nation in the world, but only liberated itself from the British and East Pakistan from it's Western counterpart and is today known as Bangladesh, is a land of diversity - diversity in terms of religion, tradition, culture, food habits, language, clothing, opinions (?) etc. It houses Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Parsees, Jains, Buddhists, Athesists as much as it houses Hindus who form a considerable majority of the population chunk. There is so much within My Country to see and experience and feel that never ever have I been fascinated by the eulogies of the Vegas or the Roland Garros, ascending the Qutub Minar always seemed to be worthy than earning the Kuwaiti Dinar, Taj Mahal at Agra is probably more picturesque than Niagara, Jantar Mantar would perhaps amuse me more than Eiffel Tower!
If those last few words inspired you, hang on! There is the other side to My Country as well. Not seriously exposed, or perhaps, we are too scared/busy/least bothered a lot to see it. The travails and tribulations of 'Common Man', who according to my parents, Social Studies teacher, CSR Professor, Industry bigwigs, Economists and not to forget my (abhi)Netas* form a 2/3rd of My Country's population i.e. 67%, and they have only been increasing day by day and years by years! Sometimes I wonder why this 67% is referred to as 'Aam Aadmi' or 'Mango Man' when actually Mangoes are not easily affordable to them (*Netas are the most precious assets of My Country. I will never be able to fix a value for them. This is why I pay for their security, lavish quarters with even more lavishly spread gardens bearing close semblance to the Lumbini, the trademark laal batti-stainless steel antenna-tinted glasses-bright white Ambassador which of-late has paved way for the Honda CRV, Ford Ikon, Toyota Innova - all foreign made luxurious SUVs and MUVs and from that steps down the 'UV Rays' aka Netas with an Indian made Khadi outfit and not to forget the 'Bharateeya Sarkaar' on the number plate, which should appropriately be renamed to *Bharateeya Sir's Car*. Oh.. I also pay for their regular trips to their constituencies, their 1st Class travel by Air India, their regular pilgrimage to Kashi/Tirupati/Gaya/Badrinath/Vaishno Devi, those tens and thousands of free BSNL calls, those free units of power, those thousands of rupees a day as allowance for attending the Parliament where they either dose off and gain more weight or 'Walk Out' and still lose none, those pensions and perquisites which they are entitled to post-retirement and the list is endless. Yes, I was right. You cannot fix a value to them. Priceless!)
From Netas, I move on to my favourite industry - MEDIA. The following quote which I found in one of my friend's 'Status Message' on G-Talk befits the modern day Media. "If you do not follow the Media, you are uninformed. If you follow the Media, you are misinformed". When most news channels and newspapers have remained a mouthpiece of some or the other groups, mind dates back to those DD 1 era where News was just 2 hours a day affair but gave you requisite information, though restricted but the same crap wasn't replayed, censored but not stitched. Of late, Media has also assumed the role of the Judiciary. From Reporting, they have moved a step ahead to Judgment. For example, 'Support SRK' campaign during the SRK v/s Shiv Sena tussle last month. Further, some of the 'disastrous' LIVE or EXCLUSIVELY ON XYZ has only aggrieved the situation and made it worse for the authorities to handle. The 26/11 attacks, which brought the entire news crew to one platform (if there is one at Gateway of India) was telecast LIVE on most news channels including the statements of the Heads of the Security and Intelligence Agencies . The perpetrators sitting elsewhere got a free access to the possible future steps of the NSGs and spot information which helped them weave an attack accordingly. Our Media bigwigs have more degrees and channels but less common sense perhaps.
Let's take a look at some hypocrisies in India. To begin with, the most recently concluded EARTH HOUR. How could I forget that! Switching off your lights and electric appliances for an hour to raise the awareness towards the need to take action on Climate Change. When celebrities from Bollywood and Politics supported the movement, elsewhere IPL matches making use of flood-lights were all in full-swing, notably, IPL is endorsed by several celebrities and politicos and also industry leaders who preach a lot of ethics and goody-goody CSR. Ohhh... the most CSR-centric ad by the Aditya Birla Group, 'Use Mobile-Save Paper'. Waiting for another CSR-centric ad by the same group conveying the harmful effects of heat and radiation generated by the Mobile Phones. Too much an ask ehh? I am also told that majority of the India is seen in it's villages and a majority of them are poor. Our leaders scream to make it audible to every nook and corner of the nation. Aila.... how come foreign delegates in the guise of being showcased REAL India are shown only the Rajpath and the Akshardham, Victoria Terminus and the Marine Drive, Bombay-Worli Sea Link and the Lotus Temple? But then, thank god there is a Danny Boyle who shows the world that which is censored by our leaders! And then, every year, Page 3 Toms and Jerrys gather in the Capital and participate in the Lakme India Fashion Week. I get to see costumes which are worn by probably less than 10% Indians and it is showcased and publicized as if it represents the whole of India or the REAL India. It's high time to rename it sensibly as Lakme Bollywood Fashion Week or Lakme New Delhi Fashion Week as it only represents a select few elite of the metros or the Bollywood.
Amidst all these going around and countrymen being taken for a ride, what's in store for the 'Common Man' of My Country? Is there anything rather?
"If they answer not to thy call, Walk alone, Walk alone, Walk alone" - Rabindranath Tagore.
Regards,
Common Man.
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Corrigendum to the previous post
I had a few queries from what looked to me as disgruntled readers. Let me try to clarify them.
1. If I have a proof (an URL/written literature/recorded document perhaps) of M F Hussain saying that he draws nude only those whom he hate - Let me clarify that this is something which I either read in some website or heard during a debate on a news channel. I must confess I am not able to recall in which one of these two did I come across that piece of information, but come across I have for sure. I did some Googling to find out the URL, but did not get any. It directed me to some discussion forum though, where one of the readers claim the same about MFH as I did. But I find it unworthy of producing as a proof. Hence I confess that I do not have a proof right now. But that doesn't change my opinion(s). I am not a critic of MFH but that particular act(ivity) of his. Hate the sin, not the sinner. Mahatma or Christ told this perhaps.
2. "how do u feel that he should not respect the goddess of other faith"? - Respect has to come from within. One cannot force the other to respect someone or something. This is the point I was trying to make when I mentioned that I don't expect MFH to respect the goddesses of other faith. I also did not say 'disrespect that which is Holy to others'.
Marketing services is quite a challenging task compared to marketing products, given the intangibility of the former. With the latter, a prospect can see it before hand, touch, feel or even use the product for some time before the actual decision to buy or not to buy is made. Service is something where the production as well consumption happens together, or in quick succession. For eg. - claiming medical bills from Insurance companies or withdrawing cash from a bank or an ATM. Hence, the role of Marketing gets even more rigorous and challenging when it comes to a service. All a service provider hence can do is to come out with attractive captions, logos, Brand Ambassadors, claims & other Brand Elements and display professionalism in their interaction with the prospects as well as their clients.
Lets talk about HDFC Bank first. A brand which is synonymous with Mr. Deepak Parekh (India's unofficial man for crisis) though he is not at the helm. A brand with whom I am associated for the past 5 years and so far have nothing much to complain. Probably because I did not frequent the bank much and got my transactions done through the internet or ATMs. However, I have been visiting one of their branches every month since March. I observed a basic flaw which I never observed with any of the public sector banks. 5 times I have deposited a cheque and each time I have noticed that the person at the counter doesn't verify if the amount written on the cheque matches with the pay-n-slip. Again, there is no verification if the amount and other details mentioned in the bank's copy of pay-n-slip matches with the customer's copy. The teller simply bangs a seal and the whole transaction is over within half-a-minute. This is in stark contrast to what happens in a public sector bank, where the teller takes almost a minute before a seal is hit to the pay-n-slip. When some may shrug it off as a petty issue, I see it as a potential to create confusion later on which might require me to visit the branch quite a few number of times (without forgetting the calls to/from Customer Care and mail trails which it will accompany)
Let me take a dig at Dominos now. Though I have not been a big fan of Pizzas, something tempted me to go for it. And I ordered it online. In about 30 minutes, I got a 'missed call' from an unknown number. This was followed immediately by a message from the same number "Sir pizza delivery boy. Not able to find your house. Please call back". I promptly reverted - "Call me back or you and the pizza can go back". I got the call and guided him to my place. Owing to no change with me, I paid Rs. 200 for what cost Rs. 170. The delivery boy requested for some time to get the change. I asked for his name and asked what do I need to do if he doesn't turn up within the mentioned time. He simply uttered his name and said "Call up to the store and complain for your thirty rupees". I was taken aback but remained calm. I got the change, but, after 6-7 hours and after making a call and informing the Dominos store.
