Political Symbols

When corporations create brand identities, they design and craft symbols that represent their lines, business or philosophy. The result is a differentiated visual identity that both enhances how these corporations are regarded; as also acts as a receptor of all perceptions about the corporation. Eventually, the symbols get so loaded with meaning, that a single glance at them unlocks defined associations in the minds of the viewer.

The design sophistication, choice of colour and the elegance of crafting all add to the power of the symbol and add elements of professionalism, quality and trustworthiness to the overall corporate brand.

The political symbols in India are handed out by the Election Commission – and at best are chosen from the repertoire on offer.


There is little scope in design (some of the symbols are used in colour as well), but the opportunity for the symbols to have a deeper meaning is certainly present.

Apart from AAP, and for the first time in a small way – Congress; no other party has used their symbol to describe or further their philosophy and manifesto.

  

Give Your Career Break A Break

We all have a starting point and we all get to the end. Most keep walking. But some take a pause. A large population being the corporate women. And it’s for these women that Cerebrand, Times of India takes an initiative to get them back @ work. Or rather Workplace. Hence, P.inc. This initiative launched in March 2014, through seminars, training workshops and access to employers will provide career resources and a service support system to mid-career professional women enabling them to overcome challenges and return to working life.

We too at DY Works believe in setting the ball rolling. Building the brand by manifesting the corporate identity through logo and website template design of P.inc and P.inc Talking Tour, a unique look and feel was developed.

 Our challenge was to create a progressive P.inc brand that balanced empowerment and endeavor, yet contemporary - positioning P.inc as the ‘restart platform’. In order to create the brand framework, we had to understand its objectives and nuances: ambitious, desirous ex-working women wanting that one push towards their career. Next we deciphered the triggers and deterrents of our target audience to establish the logo design that depicts the vision, mission and values of P.inc clearly.

The use of colors, Grey & Pink, inspired from the corporate world and womanhood, was the perfect branding exercise. P.inc is an initiative to help women reclaim their professional identity. The logo brings out the true spirit of a woman without undermining her confidence and aspirations. It’s a strong visual identity, hard to miss. Just like the women it talks to.

This was translated to the entire brand framework which included a new brand identity, clear brand positioning, stronger brand architecture and definite brand guidelines.

And, taking it forward, the first Talking Tour was held at WeSchool, Mumbai, a significant engagement program where a team of expert panelists discussed important aspects in the areas of female employability and gender balance to a 700+ audience.

With everything revolutionizing around us, it’s time that women on sabbaticals go back and get the life and career they deserve. And we in our own capacities should keep motivating and encouraging them to do so. Like we say it at DY… Don’t  Stop.

By
Prabha Kadam
Brand Partner
Integrated Corporate Practice
DY Works

Experiential marketing: Automakers’ new tool to build brands

Ketan Thakkar, ET Bureau Apr 11, 2014, 07.07PM IST

MUMBAI: Jann Mardenborough, a 22-year-old race car enthusiast, will soon participate in GP3 racing and take a step closer to his dream of racing in Formula 1 championship.


The platform for Mardenborough was being offered by Nissan's GT Academy in Europe which has now come to India. The academy aims to reach out to 5,000 young people in five cities in India to test their driving skills on simulators installed in malls. The company will filter 14 best drivers, but the main aim is to spread awareness of the Nissan brand to the participants.

This kind of experiential marketing is increasingly turning out to be a new brand building tool for automakers in India. Be it Mahindra's Great Escape `off-roading rally' for its customers or Tata Motors' recent truck racing.

"Experiential marketing is a fast gaining currency in India for high engagement categories such as automobile and luxury goods. Advertising is increasingly very expensive and is like carpet bombing,'' Alpana Parida, president at DY Works, a brand strategy firm said.

Parida said there was a direct correlation between higher level of customer engagement with a brand to conversion and preference for that brand.

"Experiential marketing reaches out to opinion leaders, who are the innovators and early adopters in a category. They are the influencers, the enthusiasts, who today, thanks to the evolution of technology, are more important than ever. They create a viral buzz that quickly reaches a wider audience. This is a very effective strategy to build brands beyond advertising," Parida said.

Finally Satya Dawns on Microsoft

It took time, but it finally happened. No, we’re not talking of Satya Nadella taking over Microsoft. That is ‘old khabar’. The fact that ‘satya’ which literally means ‘truth’ has dawned on Microsoft is news worthy. And what is this truth? That Microsoft should have long broken out of the Windows trap.   


Looking back, Windows dominated as the leader in the OS space. And it was the crown jewel of the various Microsoft offerings.

But the sheer energy (and monies!) that Microsoft invested to make people accept the Windows platform everywhere – over mediums like desktops, laptops, tablets and even phones  – cost it time. And this was the time when others took over – Apple, Google and even Samsung. Microsoft was left rubbing its palms wondering what went wrong. Platforms like Android had taken over. Chrome had since long toppled the IE. What could Microsoft do? What would Microsoft do?

THE CHANGING AVATAR OF THE INDIAN WOMAN

The post- independence period in India saw a lot of focus on the topic of women in India. We have seen a multifold of change from a social and economic point of view towards the Indian women. The below article gives a glimpse of the changing avatar of the 'woman' in India

The stereotyped Indian woman 

The typical Indian woman was stereotyped to be traditional, caring, putting family before herself, very active (read “on her toes morning to evening” with unending supply of energy). She was expected to be talented in cooking and art and be the know-all about her house and the family. She would sleep after everyone in the house and wakeup before everyone (even before sunrise).

It was every woman’s endeavor to be the ideal housewife, ideal daughter-in-law and an ideal mother. She wouldn’t think twice before sacrificing her choice, wish, dream, ambition, passion for her family.

The breaking of the stereotype

While the change in her attitude is gradual, the Indian woman has started opening up. Her priorities are changing from being available at home at all times to being social.

In an urban setup, we see this change in attitude taking place rapidly; where we see that the woman is willing to juggle between work and life, herself and her family. She is now willing to explore opportunities and experiences outside of her home, with her group of friends or colleagues, or even in social circles of mums with kids of similar age as hers.

This change, however, is gradual in a rural or semi urban setup. In smaller towns, we see smaller groups of women gathering every month - they call it Mahila Mandals. She actively participates in such social gatherings in her neighborhood. She is now finding her slices of freedom at such meetings, exploring new interests or participating in various programs run by companies in her locality, for instance being Shakti Ammas (of HUL Shakti initiative) etc – needless to say, at no compromises with family.

The Indian woman is thus seen to be aspiring to make an impression in the society she belongs to and to even fulfill her own dreams.

Three Ideas Beyond Facebook For B2B Social Media Communication

All businesses want to create or manage their reputation, and online media or “digital marketing” plays an important role in achieving this objective. According to a report by E&Y on social media, top social media platforms used by businesses in India, today, are Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Linkedin and blogs. However, most B2B brand owners feel that these platforms are not suitable for them. Here are a few alternatives beyond the Usual Social Media Suspects for B2B businesses.

1. Thought Leadership Through Online Communities

What makes the CEO of a B2B firm excited is the sight of a live, healthy discussion about the brand. He envisages a platform where an online community can talk about its brand news, thought leadership, customer acquisition/retention, lead generation/management and create positive word of mouth. Long gone are the days where creating brand awareness used to be the priority. Although online platforms like Facebook and Youtube do the job of creating positive brand awareness, let us agree that they incline more towards the individual, personal or consumer end of the spectrum. Today, everything is about effective use of content and creating a knowledge pool that can be used and shared by many. We came across few online communities, if you know about more do share it with us.

2. Document Discovery via Slideshare and Scribd

While traditional popular social media has been explored to the T, there are several emerging avenues to facilitate this endeavour. For instance, platforms like Slideshare and Scribd with almost 60+ mn visitors/day and 75+ mn visitors/day respectively are changing the face of online marketing. Professionals from various industries are always in search of relevant content and this gives an opportunity to the brand to create a knowledge pool wherein they can highlight their strength, and thus automatically create positive word of mouth. It also provides a facility werein user can embed the document within their website and you can also do the same. Brand can also tag their document in different ways – technology, branding, corporate practice etc, increasing the chance of being found. We are planning to share our marketing collaterals on these platforms, what do you think about privacy issues?