This is the 2nd and concluding part of my interaction with Shivaji Dasgupta. In this part we look at winning Indian brands such as Indigo Airlines, Paper Boat and Saregama Carvaan through the INEXGO lens and explore the reasons of why these brands own a solid piece of mind estate among customers. In case you haven’t heard the first part (S1 E4), here’s a quick recap to bring you up to speed.

Shivaji Dasgupta wears many hats – he is a teacher, an author, a trainer, a trusted brand advisor and an entrepreneur. In a career spanning over 15 years with leading advertising organizations such as JWT, Rediffusion, and Contract Advertising, he has worked with iconic brands such as ITC, PepsiCo, Eveready, Tata Steel, Tata Teleservices, Tata Motors, Samsonite, Edelweiss, and many more.

Now as an entrepreneur, he is redefining how to build brands which can create real impact on customers and business. His unique model INEXGRO (which is also the name of his venture), describes the approach to brand building in terms of Integrity, Expression and Growth, which must work in thoughtful tandem to develop sustainable brands. Shivaji defines each of these aspects as:

Integrity being the inspiring convergence of existing belief and exceptional ambition.

Expression then the imaginative and scientific interaction plan for the customer.

Growth the inevitable yet logical performance metrics that must govern every designed engagement.

You can read his fantastic articles on marketing, branding and all things advertising here.

You can listen to the episode by clicking on the player below or by subscribing to the podcast through iTunes or any other podcast app.

Key Takeaways (Clickable timestamps):

 Recap of INEXGRO model

[4:35] Looking at brand Paper Boat through INEXGRO lens

[9:34] Product Market Fit

[13:57] Looking at brand Indigo Airlines through INEXGRO lens

[21:10] What does Indigo need to change

[25:28] Double-clicking on Growth and measurement imperative

[31:00] Finding inspiration

If you like what you hear, do listen to the previous episodes of Masters of Brands.

My guest in episode 5 is Apurva Chamaria, who is a best-selling author, an angel investor, highly acclaimed business and marketing thought leader and Chief Revenue Officer at RateGain, a leading provider of cloud-based solutions to hospitality industry. He is also a former colleague from HCL, where he headed the corporate marketing function for HCL Technologies.

My interaction with him covers a diverse set of topics such as the importance of story-telling, how to tell good stories, using B2C techniques in B2B marketing, building deep customer understanding, creating unique customer experience, personalization at scale, and skills marketers should learn to grow in their careers. It really is the Marketing 101 for the new marketer!

Soon after we recorded this episode, Apurva announced the launch of his new book – Master Growth Hacking. Knowing Apurva, I am sure this will be a great and practical learning resource for all marketers. I will suggest you pre-order your copy on Amazon today at this link.

You can listen to the episode by clicking on the player below or by subscribing to the podcast through iTunes or any other podcast app.

Key Takeaways (Clickable timestamps):

[3:05] – How he got initiated into the world of marketing and branding

[4:43] – Importance of telling good stories

[6:40] – Moving from B2C or B2B to I2I communication

 – Integrating customer marketing techniques in B2B context

[11:53] – How to build a deep understanding of your consumers

[15:06] – Building customer experience journey

[19:38] – 3 skills every marketer should practice to make larger than life impact

[23:08] – Building personalization at scale

[29:24] – Business satsang (you really have to listen to this one to know what it is)

If you like what you hear, do listen to the previous episodes of Masters of Brands.

 

Shivaji Dasgupta wears many hats – he is a teacher, an author, a trainer, a trusted brand advisor and an entrepreneur. In a career spanning over 15 years with leading advertising organizations such as JWT, Rediffusion, and Contract Advertising, he has worked with iconic brands such as ITC, PepsiCo, Eveready, Tata Steel, Tata Teleservices, Tata Motors, Samsonite, Edelweiss, and many more.

Now as an entrepreneur, he is redefining how to build brands which can create real impact on customers and business. His unique model INEXGRO (which is also the name of his venture), describes the approach to brand building in terms of Integrity, Expression and Growth, which must work in thoughtful tandem to develop sustainable brands. Shivaji defines each of these aspects as:

*

Integrity being the inspiring convergence of existing belief and exceptional ambition.

*

Expression then the imaginative and scientific interaction plan for the customer.

*

Growth the inevitable yet logical performance metrics that must govern every designed engagement.

You can read his fantastic articles on marketing, branding and all things advertising here.

My interaction with him spans across 3 episodes and this is the first one of the series.

You can listen to the episode by clicking on the player below or by subscribing to the podcast through iTunes or any other podcast app.

Key Takeaways (Clickable timestamps):

– Shivaji’s background and his work prior to INEXGRO

– End of the era of positioning

– What is Integrity

– Evolution of differentiation

– Moving from Integrity to Expression

– How Disney has embedded the concept of Expression across its business

– What is Growth

If you like what you hear, do listen to the previous episodes of Masters of Brands.

 

 

Sajith Pai is the AVP of New Products and Innovation at the Times Group. Interestingly, he is not your quintessential marketer. He has donned many hats during his long and successful career across a variety of functions in the Times Group, one of which focused on brand building of a young education institution.

Sajith Pai was a part of the founding team of Bennett University, set-up by the Times Group in 2016 and headed the marketing function. As you will hear him say during the interview, his business roles, not only gave him an edge when it came to building a young education brand but also a very unique vantage point to look at brand building from a business lens.

My interaction with him is covered over 2 parts and this is the first part. The second part focuses on his expertise in the media industry.

Sajith is also a prolific writer and you can access his articles on Linkedin here.

You can listen to the episode by clicking on the player below or by subscribing to the podcast through iTunes or any other podcast app.

Key Takeaways (Clickable timestamps):

[4:46] Setting up of Bennett University

[7:24] Selecting the name for a new brand

Designing logo for a mobile-first world

To play with the logo or not to play with the logo

[15:37] Identifying customer segments for a University

[17:19] Getting the first few customers (students) onboard

[25:09] Crafting a pitch for the first few customers (students)

[30:18] Crafting a pitch for the influencers (parents)

[35:11] Pricing an education program

If you like what you hear, do listen to the previous episodes of Masters of Brands.

You can continue to stay in touch with Masters of Brands by sharing your email ID in the form above. And don’t forget to recommend us to your friends and colleagues.

The guest in the second episode of Masters of Brands is Amit Tiwari. Amit is the head of brand and marketing at Havells India and has many years of experience under his belt across media, branding and communications.There are three things that define Amit’s approach towards marketing. An insatiable curiosity, customer-centricity and driving change through technology. This reflects in the way he believes brands can grow and make an impact on their customers’ lives.If you think about it, these 3 are the must have skills for any marketer in today’s world.Amit is also a great writer and you can access his articles on LinkedIn here.You can listen to the episode by clicking on the player below or by subscribing to the podcast through iTunes or any other podcast app.You can continue to stay in touch with Masters of Brands by sharing your email ID below. I have a zero spam policy, so you will only get two types of mails from me – Update on content and request for feedback. And don’t forget to recommend us to your friends by using the share options in the audio player below.

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The first guest on Masters of Brands Season 1 is Karan Kumar. Karan is someone whom you would refer to as 360 degrees marketer. He has led large FMCG brands, successful retail lifestyle brands, has undertaken big-ticket sales roles in highly competitive markets and is an acclaimed marketing thought leader. Currently he is the Head of Brand & Marketing at Fabindia.

During the discussion, he delves deep into the fundamentals of branding like an experienced professor and then shifts quickly to the market realities like a seasoned brand marketer. I did suggest him to write a book on branding and I hope someday he will take it seriously.

You can listen to the episode by clicking on the player below or by subscribing to the podcast through iTunes or any other podcast app.

Karan is also an avid blogger and maintains an inspiring blog at https://boldermarketing.wordpress.com. Do check it and out.

You can continue to stay in touch with Masters of Brands by sharing your email ID below. I have a zero spam policy, so you will only get two types of mails from me – Update on content and request for feedback. And don’t forget to recommend us to your friends by using the share options in the audio player below.