Marketing « Social Networking and New Markets

The Kraft Cadbury purchase for India/China | Advantage Brands

March 4, 2010 3 Comments

Well, that’s what we called it in India, but overall the global Cadbury’s portfolio has a lot in it for Kraft..

In India however, Kraft just has a sales rep office in Gurgaon selling Tang, Oreo and Toblerone in online marketplaces and hyper-/shopping malls. India continues to source Kraft cheese and even Toblerone from the Middle East and at a $1 price for Oreos and Toblerone, it is restricted to urban lifestyle markets ( Check out this rediff story, nice detail)

China is however a different story as Kraft already has a double digit market share in th country (however, Cadbury’s share in India is more than 50% and that of the top competitor in China also in the higher 20s or some 30s %age. Kraft is a happy buyer at $300 million and with Unilever candidate and expat Sanjay Khosla leading the International effort for Kraft ( $11bn in 2007) it may have been a different story. Apart from putting the new combined structure on the ground which could take some years, Kraft could use the ready Cadbury / ven Nestle & Unilever distribution ( there are no exclusive partnerships or zones in confectionary) Also, fora Kraft a significant challenge would be ITC Foods that has been tapping into the premium foods annd lifestyle markets with limited but growing success. Unilever on the other hand has been slow in the market, Nestle restricted to powdered milk markets and Amul and Britannia eclipsing any Cadbury sized competition in Cheeses..this just a quick post as we wait for more clarity..Cadbury’s portfolio could definitely get a rejig, but its positioning and marketing budgets would be impossible to search and replace..in any casual restructuring.

Kraft os one of the few who is tackling disparate urban clusters in China with a 20% boost in ad spending in 2009. Also going for it are the ever expanding dairy products and cookies markets that could take the merged behemoth beyond just confectionary where it is already a World no. 1 Any market where a 15% or less share globally is enough for leading industry needs to be rewritten and a Global Foods and Dairy giant that could change Buffet’s world view could well be somethhing for Irene and Sanjay to attempt.

Also, maybe an Idle mind’s natter but Kraft is not into Sports like Cadbury, An Indian Market’s demographics may be key in saving Cadbury’s Olympic sponsorships, but other markets in Asia may not work the same way, nor the home market in Europe

Filed under Marketing, Social Media Tagged with Advertising, Branding, Cadbury, Cadburys, Chocolate, Confectionary, Foods, Kraft, Launch, Marketing, retail lifestyle

Elvis memorabilia still sells | Scotland

March 3, 2010 Leave a comment

Elvis flew thru Prestwick Airport in Scotland after 2 yrs service in Germany, while returning to the USA

Lo and behold another 50th anniversary

Filed under Uncategorized Tagged with Celebrities, Event Management, Marketing

The Great Hall of the people | China

March 3, 2010 Leave a comment

A wonderful view of the ceiling where the National People’s Congress is being held in Beijing (hosting a ‘liang hui’ or two organizations) tomorrow, the second being the senate ‘equivalent’ China People’s Political Consultative Conference

Aren’t you wondering why I show it in Marketing It is this picture, but it is the whole ‘legislature’ thing in the chinese government..According to Seth Godin, that would make them marketers Also please check the CeBIT post on our other Advantage Brands Publishing factory

Filed under Marketing Tagged with China, Event Management, Marketing, National Peoples Conference

The Social Trends for Non-Profits | Advantage Social

February 26, 2010 1 Comment

Tweets have collected a lot of easy money from people donating for AIDS relief, hunger in Africa and other such causes. Head over to @mynazis for a partial list of active non profit sponsor accounts on Twitter. The serious social brands like Oxfam here. A lot of brands have been able to make their impact on the social web. While causes have been easy to sign on, esp on your casual Facebook account, many a time suspect causes turn you off mich like the technically private DM feature on Twitter which ends up feeding you all the Hormel, ever shipped on the planet in each logon to your social Facebook/Twitter account.

I just hopped on to http://osocio.org, as increasingly my web browsing experience is dictated by the social web ( though I did land on the site from Dr. goog)

The latest are from GAPA/BS (Grupo de Apoio à Prevenção à AIDS da Baixada Santista) on You Tube and the launch of the 4th Annual DoGooder Nonprofit Video Awards

My definition of the social web of course precludes You tube in its current form, so it gives more to google to spin out in the google social experience across Buzz, YT and GMAIL? BTW, the most successful social campaign from this winter is definitely the Embrace Life campaign from the Sussex Safer Roads Partnership (SSRP).

Coming back to our happy definition of the social web, it’s contribution has been more than popularising social service blogs with well funded campaigns for tweets for women, children, drinking water, sanitation, Africa and AIDS patients.

Where Aid generally follows Arms and OIL from NATO in the first hypothesis, the social web allows an easier dissemination of observed needs and gaps to a common public perception. In time bigger organizations like the INdia and China centric Gates’ Foundation may also be able to globalise their voice on Twitter and Facebook.

However, the latest fashion life in UK with Naomi Campbell and some really ground-breaking stuff from Debenhams shows how seriously non-profits are poised for a comeback this 2010.

Filed under Social Media Tagged with Advantage social, Advertising, Branding, Facebook, Facebook vs Twitter, Marketing, non-profits, social brands, Social Media, Twitter

Retailers and Retailing | Advantage Lifestyle

February 13, 2010 1 Comment

Interbrands does it for everyone around the world and because we identify lifestyle options as an important backbone for the teens profligacy re-branded as economic growth, We doff that hat to Interbrand, say a sweet bye to all the brands we have passed on our way into your Top 10 and comment on another obvious which we all shouldn’t be wondering about. That’s about our day then.

Here’s the dear Interbrand Retailer list, and we went down to No. 20 for a reason. Which of these would come back another year?

: White Label is around.. in China, Retailers do well.. online

Yes, this Caption is important. Though if you want the Interbrand’s experienced thought leadership, go here and if you want established consultants in the retail space, well get back to us and we’ll lean in on the names, in your ear.

Seriously, MLM is growing, P&G sells lesser to Walmart each year, Amazon keeps growing in double digits, and oooo..h look at the office and home supplies guys. Then remember size is meaningless during the battle of the hypergrowth vs the struggling to manage growth retail. Then remember Ikea, Lego, India, China, White Label and the auction stores like Ebay..This list is one sure cracker way of buying a rollercoaster ride! Cyber Monday may beat Black Friday but Amazon is eons behind Sam and Apple Store, when is that going to add up its numbers! Macy’s may be back too..

You may write out Dell, but Costco isn’t budging from its stand on price. And then there are 200 urban clusters in China and India is that delicious bite away from opening up on the back of a strong currency. This would be the hot button list all retailers have sunk money into for good reason. And if they start using the real estate value, McDonald’s may still be back, Starbucks too..The 3PL ain’t valuing the Retailer well..the metrics have changed. The East and the West, they are all the same. Without Credit Card debt they are half of what they used to be, global retail sales worth $300 billion from $340 billion and then rising because spending goes on..afresh. A global spending class could be defined for a disposable income of around $10000 to $20000 per year..that’s rich.

That Sam is Walmart with $130 billion, everyone else can drop off and move 10 places up overnight!

Auto Zone and Kohl’s are around too, Barnes and Nobles down at #44 much below the billionaire brands at Netflix and Radioshack.

Filed under Marketing Tagged with Advertising, Black Friday, Branding, China, Cyber Monday, India, Lifestyle Economy, Marketing, Retail, retail lifestyle

Have you been immortalised in Wax?

February 11, 2010 Leave a comment

Wax museums are a cerebral concept. Especially when you want to say to your personal brand – “I’m there”. Madame Tussaud’s uses it well to sign up new celebrity faces including Shahrukh, Aishwarya Rai and Amitabh Bachchan from the East, Harry Potter and Britney Spears from closer home and Brad Pitt & Barack Obama. Madame Tussauds has locations in New York and Washington DC as well.

Are you sure he has a twin brother?

Bangalore has its own Wax works at the Innovative Film City from Luis Tussads along with the Ripleys Believe it or Not stuff at the Innovative Film City

Filed under Bollywood, Hollywood, Marketing Tagged with Advertising, Asia, Branding, Celebrities, Event Management, India, Innovative, Marketing, Sports, Sports Marketing

Oscars are coming to Town

February 11, 2010 1 Comment

People wait in line to buy tickets on the opening day of the 60th Berlinale International Film Festival on February 11, 2010 in Berlin, Germany. The 60th Berlinale will run from February 11-21. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images) People wait in line to buy tickets on the opening day of the 60th Berlinale International Film Festival on February 11, 2010 in Berlin, Germany. The 60th Berlinale will run from February 11-21. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Filed under Bollywood, Hollywood, Marketing Tagged with Advertising, Branding, Digital Media, Entertainment, Marketing, Media, Movies, Orcars

Rihanna comes to Asia

February 11, 2010 1 Comment

Isn’t South Korea a new starting point? It’s a wonder why music does not send talent to Asia before the tired 4th album…

Filed under Bollywood, Hollywood, Marketing Tagged with Adv, Advertising, Branding, Celebrity, Celebrity Managementding, Events, Marketing, Music, Sports, Sports Marketing

Will the Sports gravy train ever stop? | Advantage Sports

February 9, 2010 Leave a comment

South Africa 2010, London 2012, Rio 2014, Superbowl XLIV, FIH Hockey World Cup, IPL, NFL, NHL, NBA, MLB, Rugby Union, Vancouver (Winter Olympics) 2010, F1, Barclays Premier League, Bundesliga, Spanish Liga, Barca, Liverpool, Manchester United, Beijing 2008 – And some of them are seriously overdrawn, Man Utd debt of GBP 452 M however is just 1% of the Greek ship going down as we speak..Oil seems to like soccer yet!

Transport for London, Swedish Local Government , would these be comparable brands in the next two years? How about Field Hockey? Will the Indian consumer catch the Kraft bait? Will Bollywood sponsor another game? Banks are still in the game. In fact ING and HDFC Bank had just started in Asia. HDFC Bank is around with Fatafat Cash too..but no ING, no Citi, no BofA after the Mets game or the Mariners , take your pick.

Filed under Sports, Sports Marketing Tagged with Advertising, Branding, Marketing, Sports, Sports Marketing

The Ad Menagerie | Superbowl Sunday

February 8, 2010 Leave a comment

Apart from the Oprah plus Jay Leno plus Letterman ad for CBS, the advertisements that got fun ratings at the Brand Bowl and the USA today rating championships were more or less the dull and boring repetitive themes from yester years. Doritos’ crunching a few bones and a casket this time, The Betty White Snickers Football game and some of the Bud and the Coke magic.

Hyundai was a good consolation prize and Audi and Motorola more marks for freshness than anything else. It seems to be swinging Pepsi’s way, their social millions designed to deliver much less noise and much stronger bonds with the growing audience.

And then there is that apparition 40 million of you will be getting used to in the next few days with Comcast reinventing itself. TV watching has become too tedious. Reinventing the Game is up next for the NFL guys as we ready for the Draft rush. Come by tomorrow..and do not miss the big story of the new IPL in India up at http://brands.advantages.us. The game just reinvented itself. And Saints have their only Superbowl of date. All the campaigns you want to see are already here and at Advantage Brands site on advantages.us.

Filed under Digital Media, Marketing, NFL, Sports, Sports Marketing, Superbowl Tagged with Advantage Brands, Advantage social, Advertising, Branding, dvertising, Marketing, NFL, Superbowl