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<ul><li>Organized by Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) &amp; The Advertising Club (TAC), the event will be held from 7th to 9th April, 2022.</li><li><keyword id="8989426" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="jaideep-gandhi" source="Orion">Jaideep Gandhi</keyword> has been elected as the Chairman for the <keyword id="135079" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="goafest" source="Orion">Goafest</keyword> 2022.</li><li><keyword id="1193084" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="rana-barua" source="Orion">Rana Barua</keyword> is the Chairman of the Awards Governing Council to the coveted <keyword id="138019" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="abby" source="Orion">ABBY</keyword>’s 2022.</li></ul>After a hiatus of 2 years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Goafest is back for its 15th edition. The event that recognizes consummate industry talents is curated by Advertising Agencies Association of India &amp; The Advertising Club and is set to be held in Grand Hyatt, Goa from 7-9 April, 2022. The three-day grand event will be helmed by Jaideep Gandhi as the Chairman of the Goafest 2022 Organizing Committee. Rana Barua has been elected as Chairman of the Awards Governing Council for the renowned ABBY Awards 2022. Being organized from the last 50 years, ABBY Awards is a prestigious, one-of-its-kind ad award show which is attended by more than 1500 to 1800 professionals from the marketing, advertising, media, research and PR fraternity. Speaking about the 15th edition of Goafest, <keyword id="937472" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="anupriya-acharya" source="Orion">Anupriya Acharya</keyword>, President, AAAI, said, “Goafest is the definitive festival for the advertising, media and marketing industry in the sub-continent. This time the festival is coming after a gap of two years and so one can imagine the anticipation the industry professionals will have! We also expect a lot of first timers this time given a lot of new young talent has joined in these two years. Goafest 2022 will be a good platform to celebrate our industry’s resilience as well as the potential.” On Mr. Jaideep Gandhi’s appointment as the Chairman, she further added, “Jaideep is a seasoned industry professional with vast experience on Goafest. Certainly, it will translate into a delightful and engaging festival experience for all.” Speaking about the return of the prestigious event, Jaideep Gandhi, Chairman, Goafest Organising Committee, said, “It’s the illustrious return of Goafest 2022, with its 15th edition, where recognition, innovation, collaboration and celebration all happen under the same sky. Ensuring all safety protocols that’re necessary in a post-pandemic world, I believe it’s time for the industry to rediscover the power, joy and magic of connecting once again in the real world. I’m grateful to the previous Chairmen ‘Mr. <keyword id="1635027" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nakul-chopra" source="Orion">Nakul Chopra</keyword>, Mr. Ashish Bhasin’ for the learnings I received from them and thankful to the President of AAAI - Ms. Anupriya Acharya for her continuous support and encouragement.” Ecstatic on the return of the premier event, <keyword id="274365" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="partha-sinha" source="Orion">Partha Sinha</keyword>, President, The Advertising Club and President, Times of India said, “The return of ABBY and Goafest not only mark the return of normalcy in the advertising, marketing and media landscape of India but it also underlines the reason for which most of like this profession – the celebration of excellence. The ABBYs is the highest honour in this country for excellence and we wanted to ensure that we bring the big one back with all its glory. We have used the hiatus to our advantage and the award will witness some big forward movements in this Goafest. Watch this space for more details.” On Mr. Rana Barua’s appointment as the Chairman, he added, “Rana has first-hand experiences of organising and winning both creative and media awards. His experience will be hugely beneficial as the Chairman of the Award Governing Council. It’s a complex job and we had to entrust the right person with that job.” Speaking about the forthcoming ABBY’s, Mr. Rana Barua, Group CEO, Havas Group India and Vice President, The Advertising Club and AGC Chairman, said, “After 2 extremely tough years for the industry, I am extremely happy to say that ABBY’s is back. ABBY’s has always been recognized as the best in creativity for our industry and winning Abby’s will continue to be an inspiration and motivation for the new generation of marketers, agencies and brand custodians. Since the period of entries will be from 16th February, 2019 to 15th February, 2021, I encourage all to come forward and celebrate their best work.” The Awards Governing Committee for ABBY’s Awards includes: Rana Barua, (AGC Chairman), Group CEO, Havas Group India Jaideep Gandhi, (Chairman – Goafest Organising Committee), Founder, Another Idea Partha Sinha, President, Times of India Shashi Sinha, CEO-India, IPG Mediabrands Ajay Kakar, Chief Marketing Officer, Aditya Birla Capital Limited Ajay Chandwani, Managing Committee Member, The Advertising Club Malcom Raphael, Senior Vice-President, Times Response Anupriya Acharya, CEO South Asia, Publicis Groupe Prasanth Kumar, CEO-South Asia, GroupM Media (India) Pvt. Ltd. <keyword id="32716" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sam-balsara" source="Orion">Sam Balsara</keyword>, Chairman and Managing Director, Madison Communications Pvt. Ltd. Rohit Ohri, Group Chairman &amp; CEO, FCB Group India Hephzibah Pathak, Vice Chairperson &amp; Chief Client Officer India, Ogilvy &amp; Mather Pvt. Ltd. Presented by the Advertising Club and AAAI, the Goafest 2022 will once again see the entire advertising and marketing fraternity to come together in Goa from 7th to 9th April, 2022.

Goafest to be held in physical form between April 7-9

<ul><li>AAAI and <keyword id="3051440" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="The-Advertising-Club">The Advertising Club</keyword> announced the deferment of both <keyword id="135079" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Goafest">Goafest</keyword> and the <keyword id="9012474" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="abby-awards-2020">Abby Awards 2020</keyword> amidst Covid-19 lockdown.</li><li>The Advertising Club and AAAI expressed confidence that both would be back next year on an even grander scale. </li></ul>The <keyword id="137213" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Advertising-Agencies-Association-of-India">Advertising Agencies Association of India</keyword> (AAAI) and The Advertising Club who had recently announced the postponement of Goafest 2020, today announced that both Goafest and Abby Awards 2020 will be deferred for the year. This is inevitably necessary in the face of the prevailing global and national crisis. The Abby Awards at Goafest are the biggest and the most sought after recognition in the advertising, media &amp; marketing industry – while Goafest itself is the premier Indian event for the communications, media and advertiser fraternity. The Advertising Club and AAAI expressed confidence that both would be back next year on an even grander scale. The Abby Awards saw some of the greatest works being submitted this year and inspite of a muted economic scenario and a global health pandemic the number of entries were at almost at par to that of last year. Such large participation numbers for the Abby awards are a testament to its covetous stature in the industry. The team at Abby Awards and Goafest urges all patrons to maintain social distancing, be responsible and support the Government.

Goafest Abby Awards 2020 deferred for the year in face of Covid-19 lockdown

<ul><li>After a hiatus of 2 years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, <keyword id="135079" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="goafest" source="Orion">Goafest</keyword> is back for its 15th edition.</li><li>Organized by <keyword id="137213" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="advertising-agencies-association-of-india" source="Orion">Advertising Agencies Association of India</keyword> (AAAI) &amp; The Advertising Club (TAC), the event will be held from 5th May to 7th May.</li></ul>Goafest Organizing Committee today announced the change in dates for <keyword id="12725462" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="goafest-2022" source="Orion">Goafest 2022</keyword>, postponing it from April 7th - 9th to the 5th- 7th May 2022. This change will also facilitate extra time for the prestigious ‘One Show’ which has collaborated with the <keyword id="137220" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="abbys" source="Orion">Abbys</keyword>. Also, with Omicron cases on the decline, the committee truly believes that agencies and organizations will be more enthusiastic to participate in this iconic festival after a gap of two years. On the rescheduling of dates, Goafest Chairman Jaideep Gandhi said “Ad Club joining hands with ‘One Show’ will truly take the Abbys - India’s premier and longstanding tradition of creative excellence, to the world. However, keeping in mind the ongoing pandemic situation, we believe the celebration of this unique, game-changing partnership would be better experienced with the 15th edition of Goafest scheduled in May, 2022. After all, a celebration of creativity and innovation gets even better when the world around us is safer.” Speaking on the tie-up, <keyword id="937472" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="anupriya-acharya" source="Orion">Anupriya Acharya</keyword>, President, Advertising Agencies Association of India said “I would like to congratulate <keyword id="322477" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ad-club" source="Orion">Ad Club</keyword> for the tie-up with ‘One Show’. The One Show is one of the most reputed advertising shows globally and further adds to the significance and the excitement around the festival that is returning after two long, eventful years. And similarly, the 2022 edition of Goafest provides a perfect platform for the redefined Abbys. There is much for everyone to come together and share at the festival.” Goafest is the definitive annual festival for the advertising, marketing and media industry - it attracts over 2000 people from across India. At the heart of this unique festival is an eclectic platter of knowledge, recognition, networking and of course, celebration that makes each day at this 3-days event a remarkable experience.

Goafest to now be held between May 05-07 in a physical form

<ul><li>Calls for the industry’s creative minds to design inspiring behavior change campaigns</li><li>Announces a special award ‘<keyword id="8665774" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="the-red-abby">The Red Abby</keyword>’ for the winning campaign that will be amplified across media channels ensuring reach and impact. </li></ul><keyword id="3051440" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="The-Advertising-Club">The Advertising Club</keyword> (TAC) and the Advertising Agencies Association of India (<keyword id="188611" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="AAAI">AAAI</keyword>) is calling the industry’s creative minds to design inspiring behavior change campaigns at <keyword id="8279044" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="goafest-2020">Goafest 2020</keyword>. The communication program will aid the fight against violence towards women. The winning campaign will be crowned with the newly instituted special award ‘The Red Abby’ that pays a tribute to the women of our country and their spirit. <div type="image" title="Creative _Goafest 2020_ Communication program to fight violence towards women" msid="73693472" hostid="261"></div>

 Speaking about the initiative, Ashish Bhasin, President AAAI, said, “Violence against women is an issue that has been a significant area of concern. It is critical that we as an industry that is responsible and renowned for driving awareness and building perceptions, use our collective capabilities for the betterment of society. We hope that this initiative will help us put together a high impact campaign that will empower women and help change mindsets.” Partho Dasgupta, President - The Advertising Club President, added, " Addressing the Indian Merchants Chamber, I spoke on this very critical issue and committed the support of the Advertising Club to try and see how communication can be a force for good and help change things for the women in our lives. I strongly believe that it is imperative that everyone from the industry comes together and leverages our circle of influence to bring about positive social change. “ The most effective and impactful campaign will be recognised through a special award at ABBY’s 2020. Leveraging the media linkages of The Advertising Club and AAA’s of I, the winning campaign will be amplified across media ensuring reach and impact.

Goafest 2020 calls for campaigns to fight violence against women; best creative to win The Red Abby

<div class="image-container float_right click-to-enlarge" style="width:400px"><div class="image"><a title_source="Leo Burnett" title_caption="Leo Burnett's Credle" class="zoomin" href="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/51559d4becad041d02000004-960/credle-1.jpg"></a></div>Leo BurnettLeo Burnett's Credle</div>Two of <keyword id="35666" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="advertising">advertising</keyword>'s most important creative directors, John Boiler of 72andSunny (works for Samsung) and Susan Credle of Leo Burnett (works for Sprint), <a href="http://adage.com/article/news/chief-creatives-sound-scam-ads-industry/240606/">told Ad Age</a> what everyone has known but refused to say aloud for years: That the ad business is filled with people who lie about their work and cheat to get ahead.
The admission came after <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ford-wpp-apologizes-for-offensive-car-ad-2013-3">Business Insider extracted an apology from Ford and its agency, JWT India</a>, for publishing an ad that showed cartoons of women, bound and gagged, in the trunk of a Ford Figo. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/execs-fired-over-ford-ads-starring-silvio-berlusconi-with-tied-and-gagged-women-2013-3">The CEO and managing partner of the agency were fired</a>. Then it emerged that the agency had entered the ads into India's premier ad creativity awards contest, Goafest, even though they had never actually run in paid media.
They were cheating to make themselves look good, in other words.
This practice — creating a fake ad that never actually runs (usually because clients are creatively conservative) to juice your chances in awards shows — has been going on for years.
Back in 2011, for instance, I exposed the fact that a <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505123_162-42749505/cannes-yanks-awards-given-to-pedophile-ads-for-kia-and-exposed-by-bnet/">Kia campaign had won two Cannes Lions even though Kia's chief marketing officer told me</a> he never commissioned the ads and, in fact, thought they were terrible. In a first, the Cannes festival removed the Lions from the agency that made the ads, Brazil's Moma Propaganda.
Previously, when agencies entered fake ads to award shows, not much was done about it. Only in <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505123_162-42743248/art-directors-club-bans-scam-ads--except-for-those-in-its-scam-ad-award-category/">2009 did Cannes and lesser awards shows begin banning fake ads</a> or requiring <a href="http://adage.com/article/agency-news/cannes-art-directors-club-issue-scam-ads-guidelines/139683/">proof that ads actually ran</a> in paid media on behalf of real clients.
So Ad Age's gathering of quotes from senior creatives who admit, on the record, that their competitors and colleagues are cheating when it comes to bogus award show ads, is highly refreshing.
<div class="image-container float_right click-to-enlarge" style="width:300px"><div class="image"><a title_source="Twitter / John Boiler" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/51559e6469bedd124d000040-960/mug-3.jpg"></a></div>Twitter / John Boiler</div>72andSunny's Boiler said:
I can't think of a punishment too severe for agencies who promote scam ads and pollute shows with them. It's the most disgusting manifestation of ego in our industry. Hurts clients' and agencies' reputations. And the ones awarded ultimately deserve, and will likely receive, the legacy of Lance Armstrong.
Leo Burnett's Credle said:
... every once in a while, we create work that can damage the world. We need to take what we do seriously. Sometimes, we are so consumed with winning awards that we forget how public our work is. ... I don't really understand scam ads. The most exciting part of being in the business of advertising for me is watching work become a part of our culture. This is impossible to have happen with scam ads.
<div class="image-container float_right click-to-enlarge" style="width:300px"><div class="image"><a title_source="Deacon Webster / Twitter" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/51559e91ecad04220200001d-960/profile_pic-1.jpg"></a></div>Deacon Webster / Twitter</div>And Deacon Webster, of Walrus, a small New York agency, said:
Scam ads have been around forever — you can spot them pretty easily. For instance, if it's supposedly a "magazine spread" and yet you notice that the vital part of the image and 90% of the type runs right up the middle of the page, where the gutter should be, it's probably fake. Real spreads avoid the gutter like the plague.

These Ad Execs Just Admitted The Business Is Filled With Liars And Cheats

<ul><li>The Advertising Agencies Association of India will be conferring the annual <keyword id="188611" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="aaai" source="Orion">AAAI</keyword> Lifetime Achievement Award for 2021 on advertising veteran <keyword id="129772" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="arvind-sharma" source="Orion">Arvind Sharma</keyword>.</li><li> This is the highest honour to be given to an individual in India for his/her outstanding contribution to the Advertising Industry.</li></ul>The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) today announced that AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award for 2021 will be conferred on advertising veteran Arvind Sharma. This is the highest honour to be given to an individual in India for his/her outstanding contribution to the Advertising Industry. Arvind Sharma, an IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, has had a long and successful career in the Indian Advertising industry. What made him a true industry leader was the way he managed to make people achieve more than what they thought they were capable of. As a young leader, he was tasked with making a local agency, Chaitra, transition into the Indian arm of <keyword id="131262" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="leo-burnett" source="Orion">Leo Burnett</keyword> Worldwide. Over two eventful decades he created an organization that was both formidable and flexible. In doing this, he turned a safe and conservative agency into a creative power center. Soon, the agency’s work on Thums Up, Bajaj, Heinz, P&amp;G and many others saw it taking on the big guns in creative pitches as well as award shows, becoming one of India’s early winners at Cannes. Arvind has also been responsible for several incredible talents that have blossomed under his watch. Making the announcement, <keyword id="937472" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="anupriya-acharya" source="Orion">Anupriya Acharya</keyword>, President, AAAI, said, “Arvind Sharma has been a true pioneer. Apart from singlehandedly making Leo Burnett a top agency and a force to reckon with he has also groomed some of the finest talents in our industry. But more than that he has made a tremendous contribution to our industry across both the art and science of advertising. He is truly deserving of this honour.” Chairman of the AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award Selection Committee, Ashish Bhasin said, “Arvind is a deserving winner of this prestigious honor. Not only has he been a successful advertising professional, he has also contributed significantly to the industry in various capacities, including as President of AAAI and a key driver in launching Goafest. I am pleased to say that the entire committee was unanimous in conferring this award upon Arvind.” The AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award is presented annually to an individual who has been a practitioner of advertising for twenty-five years and had been in the top management position; has been or continues to be an active participant in industry bodies and or made significant contributions in shaping the industry priorities which enabled the advertising industry to grow, prosper and become more professionalized; individual known for his integrity, ethical practice and leadership qualities; contributed to his Company/Companies growth by innovative thinking and taking them in newer directions; involved in projects of social consequence which is seen as a role model for the industry at large and had been an industry veteran. Some of the past winners of this award include <keyword id="2890590" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="subhas-ghosal" source="Orion">Subhas Ghosal</keyword>, <keyword id="2095" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="alyque-padamsee" source="Orion">Alyque Padamsee</keyword>, Mike Khanna, <keyword id="5579220" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="r-k-swamy" source="Orion">R K Swamy</keyword>, Piyush Pandey, <keyword id="32716" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sam-balsara" source="Orion">Sam Balsara</keyword>, Prem Mehta, <keyword id="3112513" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="roda-mehta" source="Orion">Roda Mehta</keyword>, Ram Sehgal, Madhukar Kamath and others. The full list is given in Annexure-I for reference. The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) is the national organisation of advertising agencies, formed in 1945, to promote their industry interests so that they continue to make an essential and ever-increasing contribution to the nation. The AAAI today is truly representative, with a very large number of small, medium and large-sized agencies as its members, who together account for almost 80% of the advertising business placed in the country.

Arvind Sharma to be conferred with AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award 2021

<ul><li><keyword id="10212462" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="wondrlab">Wondrlab</keyword> has announced its first acquisition with What’s Your Problem (WYP).</li><li><keyword id="283823" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amit-Akali">Amit Akali</keyword>, Founder – MD &amp; CCO at WYP will now be the co-founder at Wondrlab.</li></ul>Platform-first martech company Wondrlab has announced its first acquisition with What’s Your Problem (WYP), a media-agnostic, problem-solution, truly integrated <keyword id="1127344" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="creative-agency">creative agency</keyword>, started over five years ago. In a short time, WYP is one of the fastest-growing, hottest creative agencies in India, winning never-before accolades at international awards like Cannes Lions and Clio, along with Content Agency of the year at Goafest. It has also been the most awarded agency from India at the APAC Effies. Amit Akali, Founder – MD &amp; CCO at WYP will now be the co-founder at Wondrlab. Amit comes with nearly 25 years of experience. Before founding WYP, he was National Creative Director at <keyword id="684017" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Grey-India">Grey India</keyword>, along with being part of the Grey Global Creative Council. WYP will remain a separate brand and become a part of Wondrlab’s content platform. The acquisition comes just a month after Wondrlab’s launch and will be followed by a series of high-impact reveals. Wondrlab has already bagged 25 clients and will have over 100 employees by December 2020. <keyword id="749098" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Saurabh-Varma">Saurabh Varma</keyword>, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Wondrlab, said: “I had the opportunity to watch WYP during a pitch and was incredibly impressed by their thinking, passion and ability to solve clients’ problems in a meaningful way. I decided to connect with Amit and over a few conversations realised that we had the same purpose and belief in the kind of work we wanted to do. We both believed in the power of creativity and the future which data and technology can serve us. We both felt that our future is in building our own platforms. It is truly amazing seeing WYPs journey and the incredible job Tejas Mehta, Ruchita Zambre and the entire team has done and the reputation they’ve built for it. I am proud that Amit joins us as a co-founder. I could not have asked for a better partner to help us shape and drive our creative firepower. WYP is our first acquisition and we will continue to curate, partner, launch and acquire as we move forward.” Amit Akali, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer, Wondrlab, said, “What we’ve achieved at WYP has been phenomenal. Today, we are a 60-member team at our new BKC office in Mumbai. The momentum in the last year has been even greater, with us being probably the only agency that’s grown manifold in the lockdown. We’ve been lucky to create some of the most talked-about work in the last few months, be it the iconic Johnnie Walker Travelling Billboard, Tanishq ‘Ekatvam’ or the IPL campaign for Dailyhunt. A big thanks to Praful who helped me start WYP with the other co-founders. To Tejas, who has played a key role in our growth and continues to do so. Along with every past and present employee who’s always looked at WYP as their own family and given it their all. We are thrilled to be a part of Wondrlab. I am excited about the new, even larger, playing field we’re getting. The integration is almost seamless as the vision is identical. In a digital-first era, platformisation and technology are the drivers of customised solutions for brands.” He added, “When I first spoke to Saurabh and the other co-founders Vandana and Rakesh, it was uncanny how we share the same goals, ambitions and ideals. Together we aim to be a technology and creative powerhouse.” Malabar Capital Advisors served as financial consultants for the acquisition.

Wondrlab announces its first acquisition with What’s Your Problem

<ul><li>With events across the globe getting postponed indefinitely or even cancelled in some cases, the experiential marketing industry is expecting the next few quarters to be very challenging. </li><li>We spoke to a few industry leaders to get a sense of how they feel this pandemic will affect the industry in the coming months, and for everybody the answer is the same, ‘How do you prepare for the unknown?’</li></ul>As the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the Covid-19 outbreak a pandemic with over 125,000 confirmed cases and 4,600 deaths in 114 countries, India has shut down its doors for foreign travellers. Just today the first death from Coronavirus in the country was reported from Karnataka, substantially increasing panic, with the government ordering closure of schools, colleges and multiplexes in cities like Delhi. While the hospitality and the entire service sector is expected to be impacted hard, the events and <keyword id="8901436" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="experiential-industry">experiential industry</keyword> is bracing itself for a few dismal quarters. With events across the globe getting postponed indefinitely or even cancelled in some cases, the experiential industry is expecting the next few quarters to be very challenging. While India has still not been affected as adversely as a few other countries, corporates are taking precautions and limiting their events. If media reports are to be believed, even big tickets events like IPL might have to be held without spectators for the first 15 days, which could affect the industry to a huge extent. AdClub’s Goafest 2020, which is a gathering of all advertising and media stalwarts and is looked forward to every year, is also postponed as several international speakers who were participating in the event have cancelled their trip to India. Facebook’s Global Marketing Summit, which was scheduled on March 9 in San Francisco is cancelled. In such a scenario, the experiential industry, which is all about creating experiences for people in huge gatherings, is obvious to face the brunt of this everyday-unfolding situation. We spoke to a few industry leaders to get a sense of how they feel this pandemic will affect the industry in the coming months, and for everybody the answer is the same, ‘How do you prepare for the unknown?’ <keyword id="8901438" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Event-and-Entertainment-Management-of-India">Event and Entertainment Management of India</keyword> (EEMA), the apex body of the experiential industry in India, recently sent out an advisory to all its members, putting together some protocols for venues that are still hosting events. The industry body set together guidelines around ‘Hygiene and Infection Control at Events’. Postponement and cancellation of many events With the government suspending travel visas and the general panic growing with each passing day, brands are refraining from organising events, which will hurt the experiential industry the most. Speaking about how the spread of the virus is already having an effect on the industry, Sabbas Joseph, Co-founder &amp; Director, Wizcraft International said, “The outbreak of the Coronavirus has caught the world of experiential marketing by shock. Multiple global events have been hit -- postponed or simply cancelled: IIFA2020, the Geneva Motor show, ITB-Berlin, the India Today Conclave, the META Awards, IMEX-Frankfurt, the Barcelona Mobile Congress…the list is endless. Additionally, product launches, promotions and activations, business conferences, business travel, MICE, exhibitions, trade shows have been simply put off or cancelled.” Adding to the list of cancelled and postponed events, Deepak Pawar, Managing Director, Midas Next added, “We had a few large events and activations for Colors, Mumbai Indians and IPL, but all of them have been canceled for now. We also had a couple of large exhibitions and conferences planned for the pharma industry and those have been postponed indefinitely. We were organizing an activation for Cadbury catering to tourists across the Himalyan belt. Since tourists are not allowed in India right now, we had to cancel that too. Similarly there was an activation planned for Lifebuoy about hygiene to avoid Coronavirus. Now since schools are also shut down, where will we do those activations?” Anticipating a few dismal quarters While India has yet not been as badly impacted as a few other countries, there are still new cases being detected everyday, with the current count being 62. As a step to contain the future spread of the virus, the government has suspended all existing visas, except diplomatic, official, UN/international organisations, employment, project visas until April 15. With it, many foreign nationals or companies that were supposed to come to the country for various events are having to cancel their travel plans. Moreover, the industry was already grappling with the effects of the economic slowdown, which was followed by riots in Delhi. Speaking about how all these factors combined will have a massive impact on the industry, Sanjoy Roy, Managing Director, Teamwork Arts and President, EEMA said, “Since February, we have postponed our festival India by the Bay in Hong Kong, India by the Bosphorus in Turkey, and another event in Morocco. In India, we have just postponed the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META). And everything else we have in the pipeline is getting pushed back. There’s that unknown factor as to what is this going to result in. While there's enough information out there, the fact that the world has reacted in a particular way means that there is more to it than meets the eye. And anyway, the economic slowdown was already impacting the industry. The biggest effect was the Auto Expo. We saw around 50% of Auto Expo disappear and many of the major players did not come, and that's a big thing for most of the event companies. If I were to talk about how the industry will perform, the quarter figures are not out yet and we won't have a sense of it right now. But I am sure both the industry as well as the quarter figures will be dismal.” Agreeing with Roy, <keyword id="52304" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Roshan-Abbas">Roshan Abbas</keyword>, Founder and Managing Director, Geometry Encompass, added, “The worst hit is the experiential business. From large sporting events to film awards, concerts to festivals all have been postponed. With the 14-day quarantine, many international speakers are also cancelling. There is a sense of panic everywhere. In these times take part in spreading information and awareness. Verify your facts. Try work from home and remote working. It’s the best time to test it. Also the only hope is to try digital events and plan for the future, cut back on all expenses. This will impact Q2 and Q3 very badly.” Tackling the crisis by going virtual The experiential business is all about direct-to-consumer engagement. The business thrives on human contact and the assembly of people is an important part of the entire offering. However, whenever a crisis hits, the only way of bouncing back is by thinking out of the box and doing things a little differently. On how brands have been reacting to the entire situation and how that might lead to an overhaul in the way the experiential industry works, Joseph said, “Brands are resetting their plans, expectations, markets, delivery systems, marketing focus and logistics. This will force the experiential industry to change its method of working, composition of team structure, use of technology, data, global resources, innovation and physical space. Collaboration and Innovation are going to be the new drivers of the experiential economy.” Dalveer Singh, Head Experiential Marketing - APAC, GroupM has come up with a plan B for this predicament. His team is trying to figure out if the experience can be digitised through some virtual or augmented reality experience. He says agencies equipped with digital skills can manage to survive else, this unfortunate situation will push them to think how to take experiential beyond mass-gatherings. “One solution can be how much of the experience that we create by being physically there, can be converted into ideas that are virtual or digital. Now that's something which we as a team are planning to do and that is our plan B. Brands wanted to have physical events because virtual does not give the same amount of joy. However, today, in these circumstances, brands will be more open to doing these events digitally because that gives them reach. So marketers will be more receptive to doing things virtually. However, in this whole environment, how many experiential marketing companies are today equipped to shift from physical to digital to virtual? There are a few companies that have those skills. This means it's also an opportunity for companies to get those new skills in,” said Singh. Singh also suggested helping each other in this dismal times, especially the smaller parties and freelancers. “For putting together an experiential marketing piece, we work with a lot of freelancers across different companies. And in this whole game, I think the small agencies and freelancers are the ones who might be affected by the heat because you are the resources for them. So, we need to figure out how to protect these small agencies and freelancers who do not have deep profits and holding capacity when the times are tough,” added Singh. While things don’t look very bright right now, the industry is still hopeful that the festive season will bring about some respite.

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