Media Moguls

To all those who thought that their knowledge of media was better than the next person, they now have a chance to prove themselves right! MICANVAS in association with Dare2Compete.com presents Media Moguls – the media quiz!

The event starts at 10 PM and ends at 10:30 PM on the 28th of October. A few things to remember for all interested:

1. The online quiz is open to all B-school participants.
2. Each team can consist of one member only. Each team can take the quiz only once.
3. The registrations for the quiz are open on www.dare2compete.com. Please go to the Quiz tab for the same. Registrations will close at 9:50 PM on the 28th of October.
4. The results will be declared shortly after the quiz is concluded.

If you think you can beat the best as far as media is concerned (and if you are right), you stand to take away Rs. 1500! And if you just fail to notch the top spot and come in 2nd, there’s Rs. 1000 still waiting for you.

Enough of incentives. It’s now time to put your media prowess to the test!

Blogger's Park Entries Up!

Yes, all the Blogger's Park entries are now up!

Just scroll down and you'll find all of them here. You can also view all of them together at this address.

Keep these few points in mind before commenting on an entry:

• Anyone can leave a comment, but only from a valid id, and not as an anonymous person.
• The comment should start with ‘I Like!’
• People are free to add any further comment that they want, but only ‘I Like!’ will count as a point towards the blog post.
• You can make comments on as many entries as you wish but no more than one comment will be considered for a single post. All other comments from the same ID will not be part of the final evaluation.
• All the comments before 8 AM, 24th of October will be considered invalid and will be deleted from the post or not counted for the final evaluation.
• All comments have to be on the blog www.micanvas2k9.blogspot.com

Once again, the rating begins 8 AM on the 24th of October, 2009. Let the best blogger win!

Cin-cinema-tti

**Stage I submission deadline extended to 28th of October, 11 59pm**

Shoddy film-making is something we have all been subjected to since the day we were born. How many times have we left a cinema hall wondering what inspired us to watch the film we just did, complaining about the acting, the story, the screenplay, the direction itself? Considering the amount the Indian middle-class spends on cinema watching today, we wouldn’t mind killing a director or two, would we?

But what is good film-making? To find that out, MICANVAS presents ‘Cin-cinema-tti’, the short film-making contest. So if you think you have a director in you, read on!

The event will take place in two stages. As part of Stage I, the participants (in teams not exceeding 2 members each) need to send in a short live action film (not excedding 5 minutes) on any topic of their choice. The videos should be uploaded on YouTube and the link should be sent to us.

The entries must be mailed in by 11:59 PM on the 24th of October 2009. All entries must reach us at cincinematti.micanvas@gmail.com.

From the entries received for Stage I, six shortlisted teams will be announced on 27th of October and these will be invited on campus during MICANVAS 2009 and will be given a topic on which they are expected to make a short film. The teams will be asked to present their films to a panel of judges the next day, followed by a Q&A session.

After Stage II, the team that comes out on top will win Rs. 12500 and the runner-up will win Rs. 7500. This is your chance to prove to the world that there’s more to direction than what the present lot has to present!

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

Mudra Presents Mudra Spark!

**Stage I submission deadline extended to 25th of October, 11 59am**

Education has and will always be one step behind, won’t it? While we sit in classrooms and study theories, do case studies and presentations on various issues in the fields of marketing and communication, we little realise that the world outside is moving at its own rapid pace, that what is novel today is passé tomorrow.

This single fact makes it even more important that we concentrate on opportunities that can influence the thoughts of tomorrow rather than just reading the case studies of yesterday. MICANVAS and Mudra present 'Mudra Spark', where you get the chance to give form to the future.

The event will be conducted in two stages. As part of Stage I, teams (of not more than 2 members each) are required to submit a paper of not more than 2000 words with a clear and differentiated view point on ANY ONE of the topics mentioned below:

I. Brand Mythology – Is It A Marketing Tool?
Myths transcend time, geography and culture, surviving long after the people who wove them. If brand mythology is the cultural and contextual understanding of a brand’s past and present, can the mythology of a well-established brand influence its consumers or attract new ones? Are there any brand myths that have done exceedingly well, and what can we learn from them?

II. Sensory Branding In India
A complex media environment and consumers annoyed by interruption from marketers has made it challenging to build brands today. The idea that brands should engage consumers on a variety of touch points is not new, but to do it through the different senses is still an emerging thought. To what extent is this already being done in India? Does such a thought hold promise for Indian brands? Are there ways to touch the senses without invading them?

III. Advertising and the Cultural Divide
India is a diverse country and we see numerous national launches of marketing communications with regional adaptations. The North - South divide has been debated for years now. Expressions in Hindi passing off as ideas and translations that make no sense whatsoever for a Malayali or a Tamilian, the usage of caricatures and stereotypes like Rajanikanth or global ideas slapped onto advertising in India. Can this communication connect with its consumer? Is the world truly flat?

IV. Social Responsibility - A Cause Or A Charade
Consumers these days want to associate themselves with brands they feel good about rather than a product with functional utility. Recognizing this, many brands today espouse a social cause, and create campaigns that aim to bring about a social change. Are these ‘causes’ building better brands or eating into media budgets? Or are these campaigns only catering to the egos of people who created them? What should advertising do to make a real change?

V. Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus
Women are the most influential buyers yet most marketing theories were developed in the days when men were the key influencers at both the supply and demand end of the market. Women now play a large role in the workplace and the marketplace. Is there a need to recalibrate these theories? Should there be different marketing campaigns to communicate with consumers depending on their gender? What kinds of brands need to take another look at how they are talking?

VI. Rural India - A Market That Defies Logic
In a country where 70% of its population lives in rural areas, successfully marketing to the bottom of the pyramid presents a huge opportunity for marketers. While large companies have been winning on the back of their distribution strengths, the proliferation of Direct to Home television (DTH) services is a surprising trend. A nascent industry in India, 10 % of rural households have a DTH service while only 6% of urban India subscribes to these services. What drives this growth in the erstwhile media dark areas? How will this affect the story of marketing to rural India?

The entries must be mailed in by 11:59 PM on the 23rd of October 2009. All entries must reach us at spark.micanvas@gmail.com. The six best teams, whose names will be announced on the 27th of October, will be invited to the MICA campus to make their final presentations as part of Stage II.

A few things to keep in mind for the Stage I entries:

• Papers must have a clear and differentiated point-of-view rather than solely participating in existing debates
• Questions listed at the end of each topic description are merely indicative of the kind of discussion and debate your paper should generate. These are not mandatory questions to be answered
• A case in point has to be included, where you throw some light on either an existing scenario or a possible strategy to best utilize the insights from your opinion on the subject
• Even though you may draw from global examples, the work has to be relevant to the Indian scenario
• A photograph and five line biography of the author(s) is to accompany the paper

After the end of Stage II, the team which comes first stands to win Rs. 25000 and the runner-up wins Rs. 15000! The incentive’s there, also a range of topics to choose from, and the chance to shape the future rather than reading about it as history some years later. So, without wasting time, get ready to do exactly that!

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

Metrotopia

Ah, those were the days! When the affairs of Batman and Robin used to take most of our time, when Spiderman captured and ruled over every part of our imagination, when Superman was what each one of us wanted to become when we grew up. None of us would ever have doubted that any of these superheroes were real, living super-human beings, and not just a figment of someone else’s imagination.

But it wasn’t just their imagination, wasn’t it? Most of the time, it was ours too. Most of the time, we gave our superheroes powers and characteristics we would like them to have. Well, this time around, you get the chance to do exactly that again. MICANVAS presents ‘Metrotopia’, where you get to create your own superhero! You decide what he looks like, what his superpowers are, and yes, whether he wears his chaddis inside or outside. Once you’re done creating your superhero, market him/her to us and if we like it, we’ll give you a place in the Metrotopia hall of fame – where superheroes unite!

The event will be conducted in two stages. As part of Stage I, you are required to conceptualize a superhero that is relevant to the current scenario and create a marketing plan for the same.

The participants (in teams not exceeding 2 members each) need to send in an entry no more than 1000 words in length detailing:
1. Name of the Superhero
2. Background Story
3. Superpowers
4. USP
5. Attire
6. City in which he is based (along with reasons for the same)

The judging criteria for the same are:

1. Creativity
2. Appeal
3. Relevance
4. Originality

Teams will be scored more highly if the superhero is relevant to the Indian context. The entries must be mailed in by 11:59 PM on the 21th of October 2009. All entries must reach us at metrotopia.micanvas@gmail.com.

On the basis of these entries, the six best teams will be announced on the 27th of October and invited to the MICA campus during MICANVAS to make a final presentation.

For doing something so enjoyable, there are prizes in the offing too! The team coming first will get two Nokia phones worth Rs. 15000 each and the runners-up will get two Nokia phones worth Rs. 10000 each. Now, what else can one possibly ask for!

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

SBI Presents Bank On Us!

Imagine yourself going to the bank for some important work. Now if this was, say 1990, getting something as basic as getting a DD made wouldn’t be that easy a task. You would probably ask the clerk at the entrance where to get it made, who would then forward you to someone at the far-end of the office. The person there (if he chooses to talk to you) would then send you to someone at the other far-end and so on and so forth. You get the drift.

But those times are behind us. Banking today is a whole lot more systematic and customer-oriented than it used to be. With the proliferation of consumerism and choice, the customer has assumed the status of god. Banking isn’t to be left behind, with customer relationship officers designated to make your entire banking experience as smooth as silk.

But that’s not to say that all is perfect. There is ample scope for improvement in the ways in which customer satisfaction can be achieved. MICANVAS and SBI present ‘Bank On Us’, where you get the chance to do a branch experience audit across SBI outlets and tell us how it can improve on its in-branch experience.

In simple terms, you are required to identify the essential parameters that increase customer satisfaction during retail banking transactions and conduct a branch audit of SBI. All interested teams will first be required to register by sending an email with their names, university name and contact details to bankonus.micanvas@gmail.com by 11:59 PM on the 18th of September 2009.

As part of Stage I, The participants (in teams not exceeding 2 members each) need to send in an executive summary no more than 1500 words in length detailing secondary research on the branch experiences for customers of banking services in India. This stage need not be brand-specific and should talk about practices and steps taken by the industry as a whole. The entries must be mailed in by 11:59 PM on the 21th of October 2009 to bankonus.micanvas@gmail.com.

Based on the entries received, the six best teams will be announced on the 25th of September and these will be invited for Stage II at the MICA Campus during MICANVAS.

All right till here? Now, the most important part. The 1st prize for the event is Rs. 20000 and the 2nd is Rs. 10000. So without wasting too much time, get on board to change banking as we know it today!

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

Last Man(ager) Standing

‘Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are on ocean’, goes a very famous saying. That does make an awful lot of sense but it’s one of those quotes which make you feel that you could easily have said it yourself. Whoever said it didn’t hand mankind a secret mantra with this one line. Everybody knows how essential team-work is, and the wonders at can do for a group of people, that two and two can actually make five.

But what when the onus is on you and you alone? What when you are put to the sword and there’s no team to help you out with matters? MICANVAS presents ‘Last Man(ager) Standing’, one of the most gruelling events on the B-school circuit. This is one comprehensive event which is bound to use up all your leadership skills and test whether you have it in you to turn the fortunes of a miserably ailing firm in a jiffy.

The event will be conducted in two stages, the first being an online submission. All interested participants are required to submit their creative CV (in either a document, picture, audio or video format) to lastmanagerstanding.micanvas@gmail.com by 11:59 PM on 21st October 2009.

Some things to keep in mind when making the submission:

• Only individuals can take part in this event. No teams will be allowed.
• The names of all deliverables should follow the format Last Man Standing_(Individual Name)_(College Name)
• The subject of the mail should be of the format Last Man Standing_(Individual Name)_(College Name)
• The mail should contain the following details:

1. Name
2. Institute
3. Program
4. Email address
5. Telephone number (with city code)

• Acceptable formats: .doc / .jpeg/ .mp3/ .mp4/ .avi
• Document and pictorial (.doc and .jpg) submissions should not exceed one A4 page in length
• Video and audio submissions (.mp3, .mp4 and .avi) should not exceed 1 minute in length
• Usage of Adobe Photoshop/ Flash/ Movie Maker is permitted.

24 best candidates will be shortlisted based on the following criteria:

• Originality
• Effectiveness
• Creativity
• Quality
• Completeness

These 24 candidates whose names will be declared latest by the 25th of October will move into the next stages of the event which will take place on the MICA campus on the three days of MICANVAS. Each round will function as an elimination round and the number of participants moving into subsequent rounds will go on decreasing.

The man who survives them all stands to win Rs. 80000! What else is there to wait for? The gauntlet has been thrown and it is for to accept.

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

Dare2Compete.com Presents Ad Mad World!

How do people pass their free time? Some play, some watch films, some listen to music, some just chatter away with friends. What does a marketing manager do to pass his time? He watches advertisements. And there are countless of them available these days too, be it in print, on radio, on TV or on the internet.

For all those who believe themselves to be knowing more about ads than the person next to them, and are willing to put their prowess to the test, MICANVAS and Dare2Compete.com present 'Ad Mad World', the advertising quiz. In a short thirty minute session, we intend to filter the biggest ad buff of them all!

The quiz takes place on the 14th of October at 10 PM and concludes at 10:30 PM. Registrations are now open at www.dare2compete.com and will close at 9:50 PM on the 14th of October itself. This quiz can be taken in teams of one by all B-school participants.

For a short little test, the winner takes away Rs. 1500 and the runner-up Rs. 1000. Now if this doesn’t amount to minimal investment for sizeable returns, what does? Get ready to find out how ad mad you really are!

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

TAM presents Media Metrix!

There was once a good old time when an advertiser could simply put an ad in a newspaper or a jingle on radio, and sit back content. Well, as Mr. Harrison said, all things must pass. And those days surely have. Television took over in a whirlwind, and not only did it take over, it provided unprecedented opportunities for visual advertising. And just when advertisers had started to figure out how best to make use of this particular medium, consumers were bombarded with a host of radio stations, giving the concept of choice a new dimension. How then is an advertiser supposed to plan a campaign in this overdose of choice? What do we do when consumers start ignoring our ads, or worse, switching between channels and stations?

As an advertiser, one’s chances look bleak, don’t they? But before you get all depressed about the situation, let us tell you that’s there's hope. There are companies in the marketplace such as TAM whose aim is to simplify the lives of advertisers and media planners alike by providing them with relevant information that can be used for more targeted and hence more effective advertising. And that’s where you come in. How would you use TAM and RAM to generate higher awareness for advertisers? Read on!

MICANVAS and TAM present ‘Media Metrix’, an event requires you to submit a paper answering the following two questions:

1. How should an ADVERTISER/MEDIA PLANNER use TAM and RAM data to build higher visibility/awareness for an FMCG/durable sector brand in a competitive category environment?
2. How should a RADIO and or a TV Broadcaster use TAM and RAM data to build higher viewership/ listenership levels for a new program launch in any ONE of the genres given below?:

· GEC
· Music
· Movies
· Sports
· Kids
· Infotainment

Interested? The first step is, of course, the registration. All interested teams will first be required to register by sending an email with their names, university name and contact details to mediametrix.micanvas@gmail.com by 11:59 PM on the 16th of October 2009.

Media Metrix will be conducted over two stages. Stage I is an online submission. The participants (in teams not exceeding 2 members each) need to send in a paper no more than 3000 words in length answering the above mentioned questions. The entries must reach mediamatrix.micanvas@gmail.com by 11:59 PM on the 20th of October 2009.

The results for Stage I will be announced on the 24th of October and the six best teams will be invited to the MICA campus to make their presentations to a panel of judges from TAM as part of Stage II. Based on these presentations, the two winning teams will be announced.

What’s in it for you? The winner takes away Rs. 20000 and runner-up gets Rs. 10000. As they say, it’s time to set the ball rolling!

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

Blogger's Park

**Deadline for entry submission extended - 11:59 PM, 22nd October '09**

All of us would agree if someone says that much of management is actually common sense. In fact, if one thinks about it, it is not much of a discipline at all, like medicine, engineering or law surely are. It must seem to many a budding manager that a lot of the jargon used in management education, many of the hi-funda concepts which he/she needs to gulp down are nothing but hogwash, perhaps a secret scheme by managers themselves to instill some sort of seriousness into their common sense, to make it look as if they are really doing something worthwhile.

But what do these terms, these high-flying fundas actually mean? Yes, Kotler must have his views on each one of them, but what do you think? MICANVAS 2009 proudly presents ‘Blogger’s Park’, an event where we allow you to let your imagination run wild. For this event, the participants will be given seven terms related to marketing. You have to interpret any ONE of the terms in any way possible, and express your opinions on them in any way you might wish to. Entries can be in the form of a blog post, poetry, picture, collage, song, video or even a haiku!

The seven terms are:

• Cash Cow
• Break-even point
• Co-creation
• Guerilla Marketing
• Word of Mouth
• Below the Line
• Customer Value

Quite obviously, this event will take place solely in the online space. You are required to submit your entry to bloggerspark.micanvas@gmail.com by 11:59 PM on the 18th of October, 2009.

How will the entries be judged, you ask? Well, all that will happen right here, on this blog, and in true democratic spirit - by the people. All received entries will be put up on this blog by 19th of October and the winner will be decided simply by the number of comments on his/her entry.

A few things to remember when commenting on an entry:

• Anyone can leave a comment, but only from a valid id, and not as an anonymous person.
• The comment should start with ‘I Like!’.
• People are free to add any further comment that they want, but only ‘I Like!’ will count as a point towards the blog post.
• All comments have to be on this blog i.e. www.micanvas2k9.blogspot.com.

Rating closes at 11:59 PM on the 25th of October, after which the number of valid comments will be counted for each entry and a winner declared on the 27th of October.

Guidelines to keep in mind for this event:

• Only individuals can take part in this event. No teams will be allowed.
• The names of all deliverables should follow the format Blogger’s Park_(Individual Name)_(College Name).
• The subject of the mail should be of the format Blogger’s Park_(Individual Name)_(College Name).
• The mail should contain the following details:

1. Name
2. Institute
3. Program
4. Email address
5. Telephone number (with city code)

• Any videos created for the purpose need to be uploaded on www.youtube.com and the link needs to be sent to us. It will be uploaded on the blog as a widget.

Should your entry be crowned the best of them all, you stand to win Rs. 2000! So without further delay, give our dear old friend Kotler some rest and come up with your own interpretation of management fundas.

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

Spotlight

“I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being.”

-Oscar Wilde

No other art form perhaps captivates the mind of the audience as much as theatre. The stage with its various objects and figures, the characters whose every expression and gesture means to say something to the viewer, the various colours communicating a certain mood – theatre is one of the most unique ways of human interaction.

Plays have the power to make the audience cry, laugh or gasp as per their will. For those looking for a connection between the world of management education or marketing and the world of theatre, isn’t selling your product to the customer akin to selling your play to the audience? Don’t they both require advanced levels of communication, where there is interplay not only at the conscious level but also in the deeper, subconscious realms of the human mind? Perhaps, if one thinks about it, marketing itself is a form of theatre.

MICANVAS 2009 proudly presents Spotlight, the theatre event, where the stage will come alive once more when the finest artistes of the country rise to create magic!

Coming to the specifics, the event will be conducted in two acts:

Act I

All interested participants need to decide on a one-act play script (either self-generated or adapted). The script can be in English or Hindi or bilingual (both English and Hindi). For the benefit of the audience and the judges, no regional language scripts will be allowed.

The participants need to send in their scripts to spotlight.micanvas@gmail.com latest by 11:59 PM on the 14th of October 2009. 6 teams will be shortlisted on the basis of Round I entries. The shortlisted teams will be announced on 17th October 2009.

Act II

On the basis of the scripts sent in Round I, six shortlisted teams will be invited to the MICA campus during MICANVAS 2009 to enact their one-act plays on the 7th of November, 2009. On the basis of the enactments, a panel of judges will decide on the winning team.

Yes, yes, now the prizes. The winning play and the runner-up take away Rs. 20000 and Rs. 10000 respectively and the Best Actor (which of course includes men as well as women) will take away Rs. 5000.

The good news is that the event is open to undergraduate colleges as well and there is absolutely no limit to the number of entries from a particular college. So without further delay, get on board and let the world be your stage!

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

Career Launcher presents Passion Inc.!

As Indians, one of our major obsessions has always been to crib about our country, and when we scan our brains for topics, education is something that has top-of-mind recall, if I may. And why is that? It is because each one of us has suffered through its dry, dull course as a child. Remember all those times when you were being taught about osmosis and photosynthesis in plants, when the only plant you really cared about was the one served at lunch? Or being told of the price Ashoka paid for Kalinga while all that you’re concerned with was the price you’d pay if you weren’t allowed to go to the loo at that very instant? Don’t deny it – everyone’s been there and done that!

But are these experiences an inherent part of education everywhere or does it have something to do with our education system in specific? If you think the latter argument holds more water, we have something special lined up for you here.

MICANVAS and Career Launcher presents Passion Inc., an event where you would have to come up with a business plan for the education sector. The problems, as you know, are many. Pick any one of them and tell us how you’ll go about changing the scenario. For example, an online portal for parents who are looking for the ideal school for their children would come under the purview of this competition.

Passion Inc. will be conducted over two stages. Stage I is an online submission. The teams shortlisted at the end of Stage I will be invited to the MICA campus during MICANVAS 2009 to make their final presentations to Mr. Satya Narayanan, Chairman – Career Launcher.

Stage I:

The participants (in teams not exceeding 2 members each) need to send in an executive
summary no more than 3000 words in length detailing the following:

• Industry Overview
• Need Gap Analysis
• Target Audience
• Product/Service Definition
• Financial Requirements
• Three Year Plan
• Benefits To Society
• Future Expansion Possibilities
• Anything Else Deemed Necessary

The entries must be mailed in by 11:59 PM on 15th October 2009 to passioninc.micanvas@gmail.com. This done, the six best teams will then be announced on the 20th of October, 2009 and they’ll move on to Stage II.

All interested teams are first required to register for the event by sending an e-mail with their names, university name and contact details to passioninc.micanvas@gmail.com by 11:59 PM on the 30th of September 2009.

If this unique opportunity to give shape and form to your innumerable cribbing sessions hasn’t got you all excited, then let me tell you something that surely will. The winning team will be given a Seed Fund up to Rs. 2 million (20 lakh) and incubation support from Indus World School! That’s right, we’re willing to put OUR money where YOUR mouth is.

The task is noble and the reward is high. So get down and change education as we know it!

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

Airtel Presents What's Your Calling!

India. The catchword for marketing executives the world over, the country where over one billion people might choose to interact with and purchase your product and service. A goldmine just waiting to be tapped into, but is that it? What is the Indian market really all about? Even the most passionate of nationalists would agree that it’s a continent rather than a single country, a multitude of people, languages, rituals, beliefs and traditions, so diverse that it’s almost impossible to make sense of it as a whole. A veritable melting pot, one might say.

So now that we’ve established that India is about so much more than just the sum of its (many, many!) parts, here’s a key question to ask yourself as a budding marketing and advertising executive: Is a national television campaign really the key to capturing the hearts, minds and ultimately the wallet of the Indian market? Of course not!

Instead, we’ll ask you to devote your attention to something smaller, something more easily fathomable but something so much more difficult. MICANVAS and Airtel presents ‘What’s Your Calling’, an event which requires you come up with an effective advertisement for a local audience.

Here are the specifics. Participants in teams of 1-2 are required to pick a SCR (Socio-Cultural Region) and design a print ad and radio jingle for Airtel specific to that particular area. The deliverables are:

• Print Ad
o Single A4 size ad with a margin of 1.5 on each side
o The print ad can be either black and white or colour
o The print ad must be submitted in .jpg format only

• Radio Jingle
o Length of the radio jingle cannot exceed 60 seconds
o Radio jingle must be submitted in .mp3 format only

• Explanatory Document
o Font Details: Times New Roman, 12 point, 1.5 line spacing
o Word Limit: 1000 words
o The document should tell us:
_ What is unique about the SCR chosen?
_ Who is the target audience in the SCR?
_ What socio-cultural insight have you based your creative on?
_ Why do you think the ad will work?
_ What are the results expected from this ad?

And as this is an online event, everything will happen strictly in the virtual world. The submission deadline for all the above items is 11:59 PM on the 15th of October, 2009 at micanvas@micamail.in.

Oh yes, by the way, the prize money for the team coming 1st is Rs. 10,000 and for the one coming 2nd is Rs. 5,000. Ahem ahem... how’s that for motivation?

Phew! Now that you know everything about the event, it’s time to get started. Time to get down to the grassroots, baby, and discover whether marketing and advertising is really your calling.

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in

TCS Presents Tech-A-Tete!

Today’s world is swamped with advertisements, promotions, campaigns and just about anything to catch the consumer’s eye, with every brand looking to find its own little corner in the twisted convoluted world of marketing. IT has played a huge role in continuously helping these brands reach greater heights of brand recognition with the unlimited opportunities offered by digital media being one such opportunity. But isn’t it ironical that IT itself has remained rather aloof to something it has facilitated, unconcerned with the opportunities and possibilities it has brought to product marketing?

So far, branding for IT products has been rather minimal when compared to that enjoyed by its FMCG counterparts. But in this time of recession and consequent soul-searching for many a firm, isn’t it time that IT companies start looking at increasing their profitability by strengthening their brand?

We obviously seem to think so. MICANVAS 2009 and Tata Consultancy Services announce the launch of Tech-A-Tete, an event which, unlike ever before, seeks to bring together the likes of Ritchie and Kotler, the straight-jacketed and the flamboyant, or to put it plainly – IT and Branding. Yup, we all know how IT contributes to branding, so we thought we’d take a slightly different spin on the matter in true MICAn fashion.

For all those interested, registrations are now open. Teams (not exceeding two members) are required to register by sending an email with their names, university name and contact details to techatete.micanvas@gmail.com by 11:59 PM on the 28th of September 2009.

The event will take place in two stages. Stage I consists of writing a research paper not exceeding 3000 words on the importance of branding for an IT company. The topics to be covered include:
• Importance of Communicating Core Company Values
• Importance of Communicating Core Competencies
• Emphasis of CSR Initiatives
• Usage of Advertising Mix
• Brand Experience
• Value Proposition of Branding
• Human Resource Advantage of Branding

Be sure to mail in your entry to techatete.micanvas@gmail.com by 11:59 PM on the 10th of October 2009.

The results for Stage I will be announced on the 15th of October, after which the six best teams will be invited to MICA during MICANVAS to present their papers during Stage II. Mr. Vishal Juhunjhunwala, Assistant General Manager – Branding, will judge the event and also conduct an IT branding seminar for all finalists.

So to all the tech-savvy geeks reading this, get on board and Brand IT!

For more about the event, click here.

For any queries, feel free to contact:

Kanika Gupta
+91 9998337468
kanika8@micamail.in

Kunj Sanghvi
+91 9558816596
kunj8@micamail.in