As part of our ongoing series on specialist media marketers, we talk to Sapangeet Rajwant, Marketing Head, Colors, to understand how the job of a media marketer has evolved in recent years in the quest to catch the discerning eye/ear of the advertiser
Q] How has the role of the marketer evolved in the media industry?
In an extremely dynamic and rapidly changing media landscape, the role of a marketer is constantly evolving. In the broadcast industry, it is critical for marketers to have a macro view of the business including functions like sales, research, programming, content, distribution, etc., so that a marketing campaign’s effectiveness can be maximized. In today’s day and age, consumers are fragmented and spoilt for choice. As such, it has become imperative for a marketer to reach out to consumers through various touch-points on a daily basis. It is equally important to choose the correct medium of communication going beyond the norms of traditional marketing to create top of mind recall among consumers.
Q] What are the challenges in marketing for a media company?
Being a part of the marketing function, especially for a media company, is very interesting because there are a lot of innovations that can be planned through various mediums. And in today’s day and age, the biggest and rapidly growing advertising medium is television. In this fast changing and volatile industry, it has become really challenging to engage with viewers directly on a daily basis, through different interactive marketing tools. Further, when a campaign is planned, it is important to track the return of investments of the activities because it is not always possible for the results to match up with the activity that has been conducted and vice versa.
Q] Can you list three points of change you foresee in the marketing sphere for the media industry in the near future?
In the volatile media industry, change is the only constant. In the near future, I foresee many developments in the industry which will prove to be a challenge for the marketer, but the results of which will benefit the business at large. The top three points of change are:
• The growing importance of digital as a medium and a vertical that businesses and marketers need to focus on. With viewers gaining access to multiple screens, it is now imperative for the marketer to utilize different means to connect with the viewer.
• Nowadays, no campaign is deemed complete until it engages with the consumer directly and creates a more personal experience for the viewer. This one-on-one interaction is critical creating the need for marketers to explore various touch-points and concepts to build a relationship with the viewer.
• While campaigns are planned and executed seamlessly, there is a growing need to check its impact making measurability an important function. The ROI from an activity gives the marketer confidence about the reach of the campaign and the number of impressions that have been made which directly affects the recall value for the brand.
Q] Can you recount a career-defining moment in your journey so far?
I have been lucky to have experienced many interesting moments in my journey, filled with challenges because of which it is very difficult for me to point out one specific career-defining moment. However, there are two moments that I recall specifically. The first is the opportunity that I got to work on the launch of a new channel which taught me a lot of things about the nitty gritty to be considered for a marketer, such that the channel makes widespread impact. The second instance that I clearly remember was the opportunity to work on the resurrection of a channel as the competitiveness of the media and broadcast industry takes centre-stage.
Q] Talk of the hits and misses - marketing initiatives that you are proud of and what made it special or any campaign that did not live up to your expectation?
Every marketer’s journey is peppered with a multitude of hits and misses. However, I personally believe that it’s important to celebrate the hits, learn from the misses and charge onwards the next campaign to make it a success. Undoubtedly, the biggest successes for us, in the recent past have been the 360-degree integrated campaigns that we have deployed for Khatron Ke Khiladi – Kabhi Peeda Kabhi Keeda, Krishndasi and Naagin. In fact, we expanded our horizons through special integrations with Mumbai’s Western Railways and Metros during the launch phase of Khatron Ke Khiladi.
Q] A marketer whom you greatly admire?
Personally, I really admire Rajesh Jejurikar who has been in charge of marketing and operations to build the farm equipment and two wheelers divisions at M&M Limited.
