Ad guru to speak at CII workshop  ( August '14,2001, FE)

Advertising guru Prof John Philip Jones — the man behind successful slogans like ‘The best a man can get’ of Gillette and ‘Come alive! You’re in the Pepsi generation’ — will be in Mumbai to address a select gathering.

Prof Jones will brainstorm on specialised advertising strategies for corporate success, as part of a two-day interactive workshop on ‘The Ultimate Secrets of Advertising’ being organised on August 17-18 by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The CII workshop would highlight the following issues: ‘The Problem of Launching of a New Brand’ and ‘The Problems of Maintaining an Existing Brand’.

In a bid to provide an opportunity to top-rung brand executives to exchange ideas with their perceptions of the brands in India on a common platform, the CII workshop will introduce top-rung brand executives of India Inc to the most up-to-date doctrines and data on branding from North America, Europe and Australia. Senior representatives from Tata Group companies, Aptech, Bombay Dyeing & Mfg Co, Reebok India, Parle Products, Blue Star, Britannia, Godrej Consumers, Whirlpool India, Perfetti, IBM, Satyam Computers, Grasim Industries, among others are expected to participate in the workshop.

According to a CII press release: “The seminar becomes pertinent in the scenario when ‘Advertising’ in India has gained ground very recently, owing to liberalisation and a consequent influx of foreign brands in the country.” The widespread penetration of television into the country and the subsequent importance of media in influencing Indian consumer choices and the gradual expansion of the middle class with huge disposable incomes, has led to a sudden increase in the advertisement expenditures of the companies, in a bid to create a niche in the market. Advertising has thus become a cutting-edge for product differentiation.

Prof Jones will add an international perspective to the discussions and suggest how much Indian experience is harmonious with - and how much it differs from - what is happening in other countries. The move is aimed to arrive at a general consensus on specialised marketing strategies for corporate success.