Ad industry maturing in Pak  ( November '12,2003, The Times of India)

Not surprisingly, the 22-member delegation from Pakistan has grabbed the spotlight at AdAsia. A surefire indicator was the warm and spontaneous applause that greeted the head of the delegation at the inauguration ceremony.

There was more to follow as delegates went out of their way to mingle after an exhausting 22-hour journey via Dubai to get to Jaipur.



According to Seema Jaffer, head of Karachi-based Bond Advertising, the market in Pakistan is maturing. ‘‘The TV boom, particularly the local music channels — is opening up whole new careers in advertising and related fields.”



Recently, media buying houses have started coming up in Pakistan and Jaffer points to new institutes focusing on production as a portend of exciting times ahead. She says there is a new space emerging for advertising targeted at younger audiences. ‘‘Though all in Urdu, its funky and new wave.’’



Scott Bedbury who was behind Nike’s path-breaking Just Do It campaign and Starbucks caffeine high, feels most advertising looks and feels the same. ‘‘Part of the problem is due to the research process.



Taking any idea to the consumer just to validate research ends up in unremarkable advertising. His solution: Never split advertising into products and brands. Focus on the latter. He feels that though Asia is a dynamic market, that’s why lots of brands continue to struggle.



As for the future, he argues that brands that establish talk with consumers rather than develop a one-way communication on a website will take control over the customer experience.



And as for Brand India, Mr Starbucks asks, ‘‘Why doesn’t an Indian company take advantage of the growing demand for tea as a health trend in the US? There is no chain as yet. His message is clear: Step up to be noticed for retail is a tough business to be in. Be significant or a small brand but don’t be in-between."