Mediaboss Marketing

Yahoo! pegs online advertising growth in India at 25-30 per cent. The Yahoo! stall at adtech. RAMESH SHARMA

February 29, 2012:

In its second year, digital media's premier event, adtech, had more attendance over 2,800 delegates converged at the Leela Kempinski in Gurgaon, compared to the 2000 a year ago. But somehow, the event lacked the fizz, flavour and fervor of the first edition in 2011. Last year, social media was still nascent and marketers were still trying to get a grip on it, and when Unilever's Vice President Global Communication Planning Babs Rangaiah took the stage a frisson of excitement coursed through the hall. And Facebook's Vice President Advertising and Global Operations David Fischer's session was such a sellout that even standing room was hard to come by. At this edition, by comparison, there were seats going empty and it was clear the speakers were preaching to the converted. Digital had gained acceptance - but there were still takeaways. Although social networks continued to be the flavor, there were glimpses of digital life beyond social as well. So here's what was new:

Packing in a digital delivery

Digital has breached the next frontier food packaging! Marketers at the summit showed how digital solutions are fast being incorporated in physical packaging.

Imagine picking up a packet of Lays chips, on which a barcode is printed. You scan it with your reader application on your smart phone and it takes you into the web page of the company where an exciting discount deal or a stimulating video awaits you.

Shiv Singh, global head of digital, Pepsico showed how the beverage and food maker was making consumers interact with brand packaging. It teamed up the application developer Stickybits to distribute video that could be accessed through bar codes on cans of Pepsi and Lays potato chips.

Nestles global head of digital marketing and social, Pete Blackshow showed how a consumer can scan the quck response (QR) code on a Maggi packaging with an iphone or Android smartphone and it leads the phone straight into a web page that shares some exciting recipes to make with the noodles.

In the US, food giant General Mills has already made its cereals and yoghurts connect with consumers in fun ways through digital technology.

Digital is now not just restricted to the Internet but being integrated into the most amazing places.

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Crunch! Your chips have gone digital