The reltoK Show

The 'Clarity of Purpose' with Pulak Sarmah

I've had the unique opportunity to work with Pulak on one of his favorite marketing campaigns; one for Kotak Bank called the Kotak Jifi. This was 2014; and cut to 2021; we've managed to stay in touch and even travel together scouting for Ratnagiri Alphonso mangoes in 2018. While banking and financial services have typically been heavily regulated; it comes as a breath of fresh air to interact with a marketer who's made it so very appealing as a consumer!  About Pulak Sarmah Our guest today has been conferred with the CMO SUPER 30 HONOR in 2019 by the Internet & Mobile Marketing Association of India and has won numerous awards at the IDMA, DMAi Echo & also the Brand Equity Shark Awards for his work. We have with us Pulak Sarmah who has been in the space of advertising, marketing for over 15 years.  Starting as a brand manager for Kotak Life Insurance, he moved to become a core member of the corporate brand team at Kotak Bank and was responsible for multiple high decibel brand campaigns including Kotak JIFI & KAYPAY. In 2014, he took a break from corporate life to give shape to his entrepreneurial dreams and started Not Just Momos. 2016 saw Pulak coming back to the corporate world, as the head of marketing and founding member at Kotak General Insurance. An alumnus of Xavier Institute of Communications (XIC), Mumbai, he is a speaker, panelist and jury member at prominent industry events.

Never Hesitate to Iterate with Aparna Bhawal

About Aparna BhawalAparna is the VP Marketing for Hindustan Times and based out of New Delhi. A post graduate from Symbiosis Institute of Business Management - Pune, she has had intensive stints with FMCG majors like Glaxo Smith Kline, Coke, Proctor and Gamble before moving to the news and publishing industry.Aparna Bhawal is a 3 time Effie Awards Jury member, Jury for IMPACT 30 under 30, Speaker and Gold Awardee at the International News Media Association (INMA) World Congress 2021.Episode NotesEvolution of marketing from a creative function to a central business functionConsumer insighting and positioningStory telling and driving a narrativeCreate intellectual properties that also drives revenue with partners and customersNever hesitating to iterateDoing sales stints before marketing, and its importance.How Coke changed the way Aparna looked at marketing.How post graduation shapes one's career by driving a different value system and education is what you make it! Finally, how MBA teaches you to shape yourself as a brandTaking the digital leap of faith - as a team and initial days when digital marketing from being seen as an extension of the IT team to creating impactAparna's moving from FMCG to media and how Media is rooted in realityGaining the INMA - International News Media Association recognition.How Hindustan Times pivoted into the new normal Integrated NewsroomOne HT SalesStarting an incubation wing called the HT Idea Lab which was responsible for the recent launch OTT Play AppHT Smart CastTrends to look forward to in the News and Publishing Industry - 2021 and beyondDigital Publishing will ride on data, insights and content consuming habitsSubscription content and freemium modelsOriginal Content from Publishers, SEO Focus for more visitors, journalists and writers gaining prominence once againBuilding incremental Revenue StreamsPrint will not be going anywhere but Podcasts and audio assets will see a fresh boom.For the complete episode notes and links to the marketing campaigns mentioned by Pallavi Singh, checkout the reltoK websiteHosted on Hubhopper Studio

Being 'lioness' hearted like Pallavi Singh

Having always watched the automotive from the outside as a coordinator in the Royal Enfield community (2012 - 2017) and then as co-Founder of the Road Trips Co which was in partnership with an automotive major in 2018; there were a few marketers I had always longed to work with. Pallavi is one of those distinguished marketing leaders who has worked in making luxury cars even more aspirational to the difficult and discerning Indian buyer. For someone who was inspired by a poster her mother gave her when she was a little girl, this podcast is about the journey to becoming a 'lioness' hearted soul on two wheels (and four!)  About Pallavi Singh Pallavi is a passionate and pioneering senior business and marketing professional who has worked in leadership positions with iconic global brands such as BMW, MG Motor & Harley–Davidson. She has spent over 15 years in building bridges between art and science to create best–in–class digital first and marketing roadmaps for the premium market segment. While her areas of impact have been building brands, MarTech, digital & customer experience; she believes in an integrated, KPI and business led approach to marketing. In her career thus far, Pallavi has won many awards and recognitions including the Corporate Business leader award by World Association of Women Warriors, Top 50 Indian women in marketing by Brand Illustrated magazine and Most powerful influencers by Adgully. Pallavi has now shifted focus to driving impact projects and initiatives for brands start-ups & non-profits. She serves as an advisor to the Giri Foundation and her new abode online is Pallavi on a Break. Episode Notes * What makes Harley Davidson so Special for Pallavi and how customers became family * What is marketing all about today - From 4Ps to 4Cs of 2000's and now the 4 Is * The childhood poster which inspired Pallavi and How her mom shaped her into who she is now * Starting her career with Yamaha, and how the Japanese make such great automobiles! * Meeting her first mentor at Harley - Anoop Prakash * Making something very intense, a lot of fun and living like your customer with Harley (and beyond!) * The story of when Pallavi met Bill Davidson (for the 1st time!) - Exclusive on reltoK! * Working with her 2nd mentor, Rajeev Chaba * Learning the ropes of Digital Transformation with Udit Malhotra * A hiring hack for anyone wanting to build a better organization (Bonus!) * Challenges faced in getting Indian buyers to accept foreign brands, working with global teams to tweak marketing to suit Indian buyers * Marketing as an art and science. Connecting emotionally but talking rationally * MarTech as a business conversation, CRM being the heart of the marketing function * Why the automotive industry needs more women * Getting the seat at the board for the CMO; and then becoming a CEO * Being Brave, as a way of life For the complete episode notes and links to the marketing campaigns mentioned by Pallavi Singh, checkout the reltoK website [https://reltok.show/pallavi-singh] Hosted on Hubhopper Studio [https://studio.hubhopper.com/?utm_source=host_feed_programme&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=hubhopper_studio]

Be the 'Good Marketer' with David Fallarme

David Fallarme was a recognized name in my inbox for some years; with newsletters that you used to popup once in a while from Hubspot. Eventually I also started getting emails from him about Marketing catchups and roundtables of APACMarketers.com. Having been a regular in the roundtables and a member of the community, it gave me a chance to understand the mind of a 'Good Marketer'; and I decided to reach out to David to come on the show. About David Fallarme David Fallarme currently leads marketing for HubSpot in Asia and based out of Singapore. He's built and led marketing teams at companies of varying sizes, from public companies to nascent venture-backed startups. He's driven growth & acquisition for products with millions of users, and leading marketing functions at several SaaS businesses. He also runs a marketing community called APACmarketers.com and blogs at The Marketing Student Episode Notes * Why David loves marketing and filling in the bingo card of his career * Why the marketing function depends on the company you are working for and what to look for when joining a company to build a marketing career. The dilemma of the Golden Handcuffs * Frameworks to figure if your career is going in the right direction * Setting the Gold Standard to build a high performance marketing team and what makes a company become a boring place to work * Inbound marketing and the blue ocean strategy * Building a brand with Inbound marketing * The north stars for sales and marketing teams, and setting a common metric to track for both teams. Having a whole view of the funnel and building one entire conversion process that both teams own that way * The tyranny of best practices and how to deal with it and information out there! * About growing APAC Marketers For the complete episode notes and links to the marketing campaigns mentioned by David Fallarme, checkout the reltoK website [https://reltok.show/david-fallarme] Hosted on Hubhopper Studio [https://studio.hubhopper.com/?utm_source=host_feed_programme&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=hubhopper_studio]

Marketing Driven by Empathy with Srini Adapa

After I finished recording this interview, I promptly ordered myself a double mutton whopper. The interesting part is, we did not talk about burgers at all. It was more of a tribute to a brand which has understood its audience so well - consistently delivering bulls eyes' each time. Srini took it many notches further in India by building an insight powered marketing engine that defined it's social and product relevance in the pandemic. And let's not forget a career spanning over 17 years working with iconic brands like Heinz, Kellogg's, ConAgra and Burger King! About Srinivas Adapa Srinivas has been helping build brands & business for the last 17 years. The former CMO of Burger King India has built a career which has been about building American Brands in India and other countries. From running rural marketing programs for Glucon D for Heinz, to launching Pringles in India to consumer insighting with Kenyan teenagers in Africa, to leading breakfast category marketing for Kellogg's and finally leading Burger King through a pandemic - he's done it all! An IIM Lucknow graduate, believes in leading by empathy, nurturing a team culture which puts the consumer first and creating curiosity at scale. Breaking Down the Episode Being a hopeless romantic when it comes to marketing, enjoying the yin & yang of marketing and being empathetic. Keeping the consumer at the center of everything, building a culture around that and make it a way of life and being mentored by Prof Jha and Prof Avinash Mulky in IIM Lucknow. How looking at big juicy marketing challenges on the table totally works for Srini. From running rural marketing programs for Glucon D for Heinz, to launching Pringles in India to consumer insighting with Kenyan teenagers in Africa, to leading breakfast category marketing for Kellogg's and finally leading Burger King through a pandemic. Handling the marketing for Burger King during the pandemic and understanding how * Every crisis presents an opportunity and how do you make it count? We had a clear vision * They were fortunate to have the right team * Staying close to the customer was the order of the day * Agility first and perfection later was an important step Understanding how moment marketing can be part of building a brand Impact vs effort grid in choosing the best ideas and the perils of always sticking to a calendar Building an idea engine with a strong team culture of encouragement, building rapport with the agency Why its crucial to look at digital marketing as marketing within the digital platform why its refreshing to work with digital natives in the marketing workforce but a word of caution! Building consumer insights with genuine interest in what is happening in the audience's life and culture built on curiosity and passion for understanding consumers at scale. In short, building an insight powered marketing engine Why it is important to choose the right spot for your brand in the continuum scale and then live it across all touch points to be truly authentic. The positives of the pandemic for marketing. (Yes, there are positives!) The three fulcrums of Srini's career - parting words! * Have a clearly articulated vision of the brand * Have passionate people around you * Marketing is a leadership function at all levels For the complete episode notes and links to the marketing campaigns mentioned by Srini, checkout the reltoK website [https://reltok.show/srini-adapa] Hosted on Hubhopper Studio [https://studio.hubhopper.com/?utm_source=host_feed_programme&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=hubhopper_studio]