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February 12, 2014

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Maxus helps companies build brand value

Source: Shanghai Daily | February 12, 2014, Wednesday | Print Edition

Maxus Global is part of GroupM, the world’s largest media investment management group by billings and parent firm for all WPP’s media agencies.

It accounts for one-third of the purchases of media advertising in the world every day. Established in 2008, Maxus Global is the newest member of the GroupM stable and the only one born of the digital age.

Chief Executive Officer Vikram Sakhuja, who started his career with Procter & Gamble in 1988, has worked for more than 25 years in advertising with global brands like Coca-Cola and broadcaster Star TV.

During a recent exclusive interview with Shanghai Daily, Mumbai-based Sakhuja talked about advertising in the digital age and world advertising trends.

Q: What proportion of your billings now come from emerging markets and how do you see that trend in the future?

A: Maxus has a very balanced revenue structure. We get one-third of our billings from each of three continents, (North) America, Europe and Asia. We’ve seen strong growth from all of these regions, not just emerging markets. 

We’re trying to grow our business in categories where we don’t have business yet, and we hope to cover wider industry sectors. That’s been our approach in the past few years.

In Asia, Australia, China and India are currently our biggest markets. Elsewhere, in mature markets like the US, UK and Canada, the growth pace is also very fast. 

Q: You are among the few ad agency executives based in India. Does that reflect your dedication to emerging markets?

A: Where I’m based has very little to do with our business decisions. Our global chief strategy officer is in London, while the financial chief is in Singapore. Our executive board is diversely distributed across our markets.

In today’s world, location is no longer relevant because new technologies have made connections possible anytime and anywhere.

For me, London and New York take up a lot of my time. I tend to spend more time where the big clients are located.

Q: Based on your experience working with Chinese companies, what challenges do domestic companies face when trying to make their brand name recognizable overseas?

A: Different companies have different problems and challenges. Chinese companies are not short on entrepreneurship or the skill to make great products.

One of the key metrics of brand value is the ability to charge a premium for the service or product. That’s an area where more work needs to be done.

Adding value is important. Building brand value and having a better connection with consumers’ emotions would help push Chinese brands into the international realm.

Another area for improvement is in media return on investment and integrated marketing strategy. Chinese brands need to strike a balance to manage media investment. They need more integrated marketing approaches that include digital and traditional channels.

Intelligent media planning should be a catalyst to build a strong emotional connection with consumers.

Q: What are your thoughts on digital trends? Do you prefer to work with in-house teams or external agencies on digital campaigns?

A: Nowadays, digital plays a critical role in consumers’ purchasing decisions because product evaluation and comparison are becoming very convenient, making marketing strategies even more complex. We aim to simplify the process of connecting with consumers. As a relatively young agency, we are naturally biased towards digital marketing and like to do it in-house.

My preferred option is to work with integrated teams where they can provide one-stop service for clients. It’s crucial to create a brand image that’s consistent across different media channels.

Before digital marketing emerged, there was only one media planner who oversees TV, print and radio so now the same should work here. While that is the aim and we do have integrated planners in some markets, in some countries, we do have digital specialists.

Q: GroupM parent WPP has made a string of acquisitions in the social business intelligence and digital sectors in recent months. What’s your attitude toward acquiring smaller agencies in niche markets?

A: Speed and capability are both required in the fast-moving industry. Trying to build capability by organic hiring can slow things at times, so acquisitions are a feasible option to consider. My view is that acquisitions should be aimed at enhancing capability, not capacity.

In my opinion, buying another company just to have manpower doesn’t make sense as it may bring big issues like culture gap and financial pressure. Acquiring specialty talent and leveraging that capability to build up a new team makes more sense to me.

 

BusinessBiz Special


 

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