Mahesh Chauhan, Founder, Salt Brand Solutions talks about using Facebook Live for a creative pitch for Nearbuy. Saurabh Yagnik, EVP & Business Head, English Cluster, Sony Pictures Networks talks about their latest offering, Sony BBC Earth
THE OBJECTIVE OF MY FACEBOOK LIVE PITCH WAS TO GET SHORTLISTED TO THE TOP THREE: MAHESH CHAUHAN
Nearly four weeks after Nearbuy founder Ankur Warikoo used Facebook Live to call for a creative pitch, one agency has responded to him in the same vein. Mahesh Chauhan, Founder, Salt Brand Solutions went a step further using the feature to make the world’s first Facebook live pitch. Chauhan talks about the strategy behind addressing a client in full public view.
On taking the road less travelled: About two weeks ago I had read that around 83 clients had expressed interest in making a pitch after Warikoo’s call on Facebook. If I too had sent a video or a PPT like the others, how would I stand out. There was also the limitation of not showing the strategy and the creative, and yet making a meaningful presentation. Warikoo had already taken the first brilliant step by using Facebook, if the client himself was innovating how could an agency which is pitching be left far behind.
Has he heard from Nearbuy after his pitch: Yes, Warikoo has responded to our pitch, on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. On his Facebook wall he posted ‘We gave a brief over Facebook two weeks back - I assume the first time someone has done this in India. And now Salt has come back with a pitch on Facebook - clearly the first time in the country as well. Love the way small action redefine boundaries. On Twitter he wrote ‘this is too cool’
Does SBS have an edge over the others: The objective of my Facebook Live pitch was to ensure that from the mass of agencies who have approached Nearbuy, even if our strategy helps me get to the top three who are shortlisted, my job is done. Also I hope this is in a small way is able to change the typical process of pitching and open the clients to possibilities that exist outside once you are not doing the routine and the boring.
SONY BBC EARTH WILL GET AUDIENCES TO FEEL ALIVE: SAURABH YAGNIK
Sony BBC Earth, a premium factual entertainment channel - a joint venture between Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) and BBC Worldwide - will go live from March 6, 2017. Sony BBC Earth will be available in both SD and HD in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.
Saurabh Yagnik, EVP and Business Head, English Cluster, Sony Pictures Networks India tells us what we can expect.
Content: We will have 19 hours of original content every week. Our key launch shows include The Hunt, Where The Wild Men Are with Ben Fogle, Trust Me I’m A Doctor, Snow Chick and the series Planet Earth II, which have not been seen in India. During the weekends we will showcase distinctive stories with a special slot; Earth Specials.
TG: We are targeting the young upwardly mobile and affluent households. That’s our marketing and communication TG but we will broad-base the content to appeal to everyone. Initially we are going to focus on the megacities and the 10-75 lakh towns, however the distribution will be far and wide.
Size of the Factual entertainment space: If I look at the total value chain which is the revenues from advertising subscription, etc., the size of the market would be about Rs 1,500 crore. In terms of the viewership, this category is anything between 1-1.2% of the total television viewership.
Advertiser interest: We are in talks with advertisers and the feedback we have received from the media fraternity is that the content is refreshing, innovative, it’s a very different approach and that we have got the hot buttons of the consumer right.
Feel Alive ambassador Kareena Kapoor Khan: One of the distinct gaps we saw in the category was that there was no sharp and defined positioning that anybody had taken very clearly. Our brand positioning of ‘Feel Alive’ captures the emotion of subliminal happiness which viewers experience when they consume our content. This has been brought to life through a clutter-breaking film featuring our ‘Feel Alive’ ambassador, Kareena Kapoor Khan – whose persona embodies positivity, happiness and full of life demeanour that naturally blends with what our channel and its content stands for. As for marketing, we have a comprehensive campaign which we sustain it for four to six weeks. There is a robust social media plan leveraging Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our website
