The Roar Of The Lions 10 part

India's first titanium and integrated jury president, McCann's president, South Asia, Prasoon Joshi, holds forth on what integration is (and more importantly what it isn't)

Any thoughts on being the first Indian president of the Titanium and Integrated jury at Cannes?
It's a very futuristic category, featuring path breaking work. I am looking forward to this as a learning experience.

Integrated campaigns especially in India have often been about doing a TV ad and then ticking off boxes like digital and activation. What are the hallmarks of true integration?

I don't think tick box campaigns are awarded. The work should emanate not from the media vehicles but touchpoints in the consumer's life. If someone commutes everyday by train, a metro based hoarding or panel becomes an important part of the mix.
I once suggested to an auto client that for a driving safety campaign, we ought to talk to children so they can question parents who don't follow the traffic rules.
The other aspect is it being viral; there's a wrong understanding of the word. For something to be truly viral, it should have an infectious quality and must be capable of generating self movement.
I received the Happydent campaign via email from someone who said 'I hope you've seen this'; which was interesting because it was created as a TV film. But sometimes people call something 'viral' even if it doesn't have the virus (laughs).
There ought to be synergy. Global strategy has become even more important and what you do locally needs to synch with that. It's possible that my brand in Indonesia is known to consumers in India because of the internet. It can't be focused on families in one market and espouse individualism in another.
And finally, it's about a judicious mix of and an intelligent use of media. Political parties in India have used radio very innovatively this election. They can't change the hoarding everyday but can do that with radio; almost a campaign a day.

What sort of work deserves Titanium, the toughest trophy to win?
There's no such thing as definitive Titanium. I think it's something that provides an overall solution while pushing the envelope. One of my favourite cases is Best Buy which used a Twitter based campaign to convert its sales force into consultants. A TV commercial that pushes the envelope enough could be Titanium.
If someone figures a way of advertising in people's dreams, that would be a Titanium winner.

A lot of the work that wins big these days invariably has a social dimension. What are your thoughts on this?
It is a sign of an evolving society where people care. There's nothing detrimental to this. It stems from an awareness that a business will collapse if it's not in synch with humanity and social good.


How far along is India in Integrated?
The perception is we are lagging We are not. People outside have to understand our media mix. They feel there's a lack of digital but it's not because we don't want to or cannot. We just don't spend as much on it since internet penetration is not that great. The challenge here is mixing traditional and non-traditional media.

What do you think are the pitfalls to truly integrated thinking in India?
When you have a great campaign in one medium and know the majority of spend will be on it, you forget it could be even better. It's only in the absence of a great product in one medium that people say let's do something on radio or digital. 'You can do even better' should be the argument.

We hear judges and particularly jury presidents get courted by agencies across the world. How have things been on that front?
Sometimes you get a DVD or coffee table book. Eventually it doesn't work. A prerequisite for being a jury president and especially chairing the Titanium, is that the organiser, the industry and the fraternity see you as someone who is fair, takes unbiased decisions and looks beyond the nitty-gritties and everyday games of advertising.

It seems absurd to ask a jury president this but how hard are you going to try for India?
As jury chair, if you start lobbying how can you control people who represent different parts of the world? Having said that, I have been trying very hard.
We have to sensitise people to our culture and that is best done outside the jury room. Through various discussions, in forums and dinner table conversations, I've been telling people how and why we communicate the way we do.
They have a lot of questions about music and things like melodrama. Our mothers cry at a drop of a hat but our mothers DO cry a lot more than their mothers! I have to explain it's not an exaggeration.
When a mother comes to see her child off at the station, she runs with the train for a bit and keeps staring till it's out of sight. They've only seen French lovers do that. I try to give them a filter through which to view our advertising so they consume it much better. As a juror, you are an ambassador; not a lobbyist.

What's your favourite Titanium winner? And some ad that you believe ought to have won but didn't?
The year I was in the Titanium jury, the Obama campaign won. It was a wonderful piece. So was 'Dumb Ways To Die'. Historically, I'd give it to the national integration campaign that Suresh Mullick did.
Using music to integrate people and the idea of finding Raag Bhairavi which is common to all music in India from Carnatic to Assamese folk to Hindustani was a unique idea and Suresh Mullick's genius; finding that we sing the same tune. If it was presented in this way it could have made it to Titanium.

Source: Brand Equity