The Yaxis Live by Rajesh Kumar

Let me state this upfront. This series was taken up by me in response to a question from a friend, who is a marketing tiger, but a wet cat, when it comes to anything digital. Now read the last two posts to get a sense of what I am talking about!

Look at this blog from Income Tax Department of India. Yes, government departments too have realized the importance of a conversation(atleast pockets of the government have), which those in India, will agree is a complete change. So, you can register, post a question of common interest, and Income Tax department will address( Yes, sometimes you get to ask them a question and they would answer). I would not say it has really taken off big time, but certainly sounds a very promising idea. Which brings us to the central point of this post – how many of us really know about this particular blog?

‘Discoverability’ of a blog may not be automatic, and certainly require some promotion. Barmer Police Blog is a case in point. It is listed in Narad, which is a Hindi feed aggregator and also has a relatively simple URL which a citizen can remember. You certainly would find it hard to remember the Income Tax Department blog referred earlier in this post. So the next two points of a good conversation platform is their discoverability and simplicity of URL.

And by the way, please do go and see the two blogs we refered here, with all my recommendations, because in both of these, you would see a certain passion of a government servant to connect to the citizenry in a meaningful way.

Last post I mentioned about talking about the brand blogs we see in India in different segments. I started to think what yardstick to use to talk about them, and what to measure. So, first things first.

The most important criteria in defining a brand blog in my view remains the ability to create content by the target segment themselves. This could be by way of full length text articles, reactions, pictures, videos, links or just comments. Some form of prosumption is a must to have to get the conversation going. In my judgment this is what differentiates a community and a conversation from a billboard or a print ad, which you just see, smile or ignore, and walk on. In short, this is which engages and builds the readership ,this is what makes people come back again and again. A glossy looking site, is bound to fail, if the target segment thinks that is an advertising portal. Finito. So make them talk. I looks at glossy ads only when I am getting bored waiting for my medical appointment! And you?!!

Earlier this week, I went to Goa for a conference.For me this was a new state added to my list, having been to sixteen of them earlier. Yes, number 17 and the youthfulness of Goa go so well together!

I and some of my colleagues chose to stay in beachside tents at a resort on Varca beach.And we flew Kingfisher where we had a completely different experience, which is certainly setting up very high standards. Will tell you why, in the next few lines.

To be frank, we did feel a little weird in choosing to stay in a tent, which did not even have a lock on the door, only a zip slider! But then I have been a little adventurous type in these matters. The Mumbai Goa Kingfisher flight was an A321, which not just had a personal screens on all seats, but had two channels, that were better than the live TV that was playing on other 31. One of them was the GPS channel, which gave the aircraft location, speed, altitude, and time to destination etc. The other one was a real treat. The aircraft had a camera facing the front, so that one could see the pilot view during take-off, landing and indeed during the entire journey. It was an instant hit as soon as we learnt about this channel, and even before the aircraft took off, this was playing all over! The Goa airport is on the coastline, and one should give premium to get this awesome view, as the aircraft comes in to land. We kept talking about it much after we landed. We found Remo Fernandes waiting for his bags at Dabolim baggage carousel and I lost no time in shaking hands with him. That really got us into the mood.

Upon conclusion of the business sessions, we had a little beach party, which of course was attended by King Momo and his entourage. It was good fun.

We also had the chance to have a dinner on a boat ambling lazily in gentle waters of Mandovi river, and we soon learnt that the Goan party does not stop, especially for tourists like us. Goa, trust me, we will be back.

Comparisons can be odious I agree, but sometimes necessary too, as they happen without any effort and results are starkly different. Last week I had to visit two bank branches, one of State Bank of India and another of ICICI Bank and the experiences were so different.

At ICICI Bank, I encountered a queuing machine with very confusing options, and as I stood trying to figure out how to get a token to the correct service desk, a smart looking lad appears, asks me what service I require, quickly punches a few buttons on the machine and hands me a token. Before I say thanks, he asks me whether I need a credit card. I say no, thanks. Lifetime free, he says (What a positioning!). I reach the counter, finish the address update business and head out. On my way out, again confronted by a girl, do I need a credit card.So, ergo, I declare I have one issued by ICICI and hope I would be able to peacefully, she snaps back, “which one is that- Gold?, we can give you Platinum, Titanium”. I step out of the bank without making an eye contact with anyone else so as to avoid any more sales pitch, and once out, I am so relaxed. There are quite a few form holding folks standing near the ATM, so I decided I do not need money now!

Next day I go to State Bank of India to check an update on an account transfer. I get into a branch full of people, but in about five minutes I am out of the branch after successfully collecting the pass book. My overall experience is very pleasant. (Infact, the branch manager of the previous branch had even made an unsuccessful attempt to convince me to continue the account with his branch) Ten years back one found it so difficult to open an account with this bank.Today I felt welcome. What a transformation.

My only problem with the PSU banks is with their marketing.In their quest to emphasize on history alone, they take a slightly tired, old, positioning. It is time for them to show how meaningful the bank is to people early in their life, not to pensioners alone. It is clearly a case of brand management function lagging behind. Have you seen the latest Canara Bank commercials, for instance?

So the truth is finally out- world’s largest software company has accepted defeat by almost saying - their index is better than mine. Microsoft wants the search and advertising capabilities of Yahoo, which essentially means an excellent products company is seeking to integrate the capabilities of a wonderful services company. Saul Hansell of NYT wonders likens it to taking two aircraft carriers and making a new one out of the spare parts. And mind you, two aircraft carriers of different make and flags. Will this work indeed.

The sad truth is that Yahoo is not just search or banner advertising. Its portfolio of services is amazingly diverse. In slightly curt business language, it is not a one trick pony.

Microsoft’s letter to Yahoo’s board is perhaps the politest communication one has heard from MSFT in last decade. Give me your crown jewels, I need them and I know you guys need money, else.. is a one line summary. So instead of frightening Google which is going beyong just web search and advertising, Microsoft has let the secret out- Rest of Yahoo can go to dogs, we want the search and banner advertising. Mr. Ballmer, this does not inspire any confidence of some real upcoming competition.