Mykarma.in

Being in the industry by passion and working for the industry by choice. I have seen a lot of action in my three years. The boom period, The hiring spree, The VC fundings, The innovations, The entrepreneurial spirit and The Rush for Moolah.

The recession has changed this a lot. No boom but actually a bubble on a brink of bursting. Yes the bubble 2.0 . Leave hiring, its a workforce slashing spree.VCs are tired.. they have lost hope that any of India’s digital properties will become a orkut or a facebook of India. Innovations are now rare and the entreprenurial spirit has gone into hibernation.

There was a boom in social networking sites… So much spamming.. oops ! I mean marketing but everything was the same just with a makeover. No one offered a unique proposition..

then came the ad networks boom.. I have lost count of the number of networks in the market. Everyone is buying each other inventory and selling it off to their local advertisers.

Yes how can we forget the numerous digital agencies that sprung up overnight and also washed out over day. Even the promising lot are living on the edge.

The twitter fad is still there. Many other portals came in with their own versions of twitter but still no success.

You can’t forget mobile ad networks.. Many came and I heard from them once and then were never seen again.

The current market scenario has hit many of them. One by one they go down. the spending spree continues, the employees are left high and dry. And one of the worst things is that some companies do hire new guys with handsome packages but fail to honour their commitment.

So what an agency/publisher/company/individual do if they want to survive ?

Its always survival of the fittest.

Agency

Digital agencies are suffering but some are enjoying attention as their clients have been put on a new track. As marketing spends are te first casualty in cost cutting Marketers are finding internet as a good low cost option to reach to their audience rather than the mass campaign on print, TV and OOH media.

The digital agency should approach clients with a proposition that will offer value without spending much. Dont pitch and propose big budget spends.. or else the guy you are talking to may have to cut his own salary to pay for it.

Other good way to go is “consolidation”. Digital agencies should tie up with offline agencies to offer digital marketing mix to the conventional plan. This will help both the players i.e the offline agency as well as the online agency.

Publisher

Go full blast in to the market and dont just approach agencies for business. Go directly to the client so that he would personally put you in the media plan.

Offer more value than just impressions. Give them customized plans and free inventory. Fixed spots and custom sections are one of the best ways to show value to the advertiser.

Also be flexible in approaches. Leaner times calls for more tactical and flexible approach. Money has to flow one way or the other.

Company

Reduce spends on the conventional medium and don’t cut your marketing spends.. he he.. I mean if you are reducing the marketing spends focus on more unconventional medium like internet and mobile where you can reach your audience at a fraction of your costs and can track every rupee spent. Internet is a great medium for ROI.

Even during recession the right approach is needed to get the audience and sales numbers. Communication and strategy should be according to the current economy.

The Indian economy is not in recession mode. People have money they just need to be approached right so that you have the money. The habit of savings is passed down from generation to generation and is a part of Indian culture which has saved us from the effects of the global meltdown.

Individual

Buckle up.. You are a part of everything I said earlier. Start working harder. Be proactive. Spend responsibly. Got laid off inspite your best efforts. Use your network to your advantage and find a new job and if you have that entreprenurial spirit. Now is the best time to grow. Recession mode reduces your monthly expenses and motivates you to reach further out.

How has the supposed global recession affected you ?