tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59133714513604927392024-03-14T02:21:02.466-07:00Six Degrees PR BlogWhat do you get when you combine the agility and flexibility of a boutique PR agency with the expertise and strong methodologies of an established consultancy?
Six Degrees PR.
Founded in 2009, we are headquartered in New Delhi and present in Mumbai and Bangalore. We deliver national-level campaigns with the support of an extensive network of partners in key markets across the country.Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-8799795414089030352015-07-27T23:36:00.001-07:002015-07-28T21:55:55.504-07:00What’s the social buzz word?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEX6xU-khOCunoYP0uNKiPLcjcEX6AbLhlwkyHVzKSjTSyfGhyphenhyphenF7c8BVRc8HPffdqEEUluBYF1xDvJWjuEIXIC8PCi7litsxsHr-gC8o4CphDXwxDJ7NxQiu3QcfsN0cBPReXfAAElhxoO/s1600/selfie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEX6xU-khOCunoYP0uNKiPLcjcEX6AbLhlwkyHVzKSjTSyfGhyphenhyphenF7c8BVRc8HPffdqEEUluBYF1xDvJWjuEIXIC8PCi7litsxsHr-gC8o4CphDXwxDJ7NxQiu3QcfsN0cBPReXfAAElhxoO/s320/selfie.jpg" width="320" /></a>Quite recently, my mom asked me,
‘Can you tell me..what’s a selfie?’ I wasn’t surprised at her question, as my
mom has always had a penchant to learn new things much faster than my dad. I
explained the process of taking a selfie and even demonstrated it on my mom’s
smartphone. Well…guess what…she wasn’t very impressed. ‘That’s it? That’s a
selfie? It happens to me all the time,” she said “Sometimes I press the camera
button by mistake and it clicks my picture! Why is everyone so crazy about
it??”<o:p></o:p></div>
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Hmmm…she did have a point. What I
couldn’t really explain to her is that while the selfie itself did not hold
much value, being part of the social media buzz, where posting a selfie is a
considerable achievement, is what made our lives really cool.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Today the online world is a
profusion of a million voices, each one vying to grab its five minute of fame.
Almost every second that we are online, there seems to be an avalanche of
information. How much can we consume and what really stands out in the clutter,
is the perennial question.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As PR professionals trying to
reign in the wildness of the online space, this is a dilemma of our lives. What
should you do to stand out? After wading through pages of advice on this topic,
I have put together a few pointers for the uninitiated:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Long or short?:</b> Do you know how much time does the average reader
spend on social media? A poll by GlobalWebIndex indicated that <span style="background: white;">the average user logs 1.72 hours per day on social platforms,
which represents around 28 percent of all online activity. And have you ever
guessed what is the optimal time that can hold a reader’s attention? Seven
minutes. Here again, on an average, 3 minute posts tend to have the most views.
This does not mean that we must rush to write either very short or long posts.
What you write and who you write it for matters equally. For e.g a newly
pregnant mother will spend hours reading posts on prenatal child care and
expect details on every possible scenario. On the other hand, a young geeky professional
reading up on the latest technology trends, may prefer a concise view of the
latest trends and spend between 2-3 minutes, before he moves on to the next
post.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2SsHp_BduMxe5sPS4tSIWu-cFH5a6hJXW0HE97VxPJSXooi1GkdIMSlr2oFslRtEtYqKyqnOMtAR3EFt9_T1R84T9oDOOEwoqks_lbCfTBCCd5nbYfXjK8NymH6bk6V5qbbPDJR8huwzw/s1600/social1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2SsHp_BduMxe5sPS4tSIWu-cFH5a6hJXW0HE97VxPJSXooi1GkdIMSlr2oFslRtEtYqKyqnOMtAR3EFt9_T1R84T9oDOOEwoqks_lbCfTBCCd5nbYfXjK8NymH6bk6V5qbbPDJR8huwzw/s320/social1.jpg" width="320" /></a><b>Making content a conversation</b>: If you want your post to register in
the reader’s mind, remember that whatever you say, do put your heart in it.
You’re telling a story. Say it like you mean it. Content should grab attention,
be understood easily, be topical and considered worth sharing. Ride on the wave
of what’s happening at the current moment in time, it will resonate better and
have a higher chance of being shared. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Who is reading your content</b>: Be aware of your target audience. What age
bracket do they belong to? Are they students or working professionals or
retirees? Identify what they want to hear and then give them the right content
which will make them listen.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Shout it from the rooftop:</b> So you have an FB page and have been
posting regularly. You have the same set of people liking it and a few shares?
Obviously you’re not doing enough. Have you thought of other mediums of
communication? Tag it. Tweet it. Instagram it. Say the same thing, but increase
your reach by spreading yourself across different platforms. Remember
…somewhere, someone is listening. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>What makes content go viral?</b> Ever wondered how a post or a video
spiral out of control and goes viral? The answer is nobody really knows. There
is no fixed formula on what really creates the spark. But most posts that have gone viral have one
or more of these ingredients – intrigue, emotion, information, feel good factor.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Make it visual:</b> Want to grab someone’s attention quickly? Get
visual. Research has proved that the human brain processes images faster than
words. Boost your content with either a visual or an infographic. It gives more
credibility to your post and increases the chances of it being shared. <o:p></o:p></div>
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So that’s my two penny worth tips
on creating content that is delicious enough to be consumed and shared. There
is no foolproof method, but it’s important to be consistent and to regularly
revisit earlier posts to see which ones were liked or shared more than the others.
This is your quickest feedback to understand what is working and will help you
to develop better content.<o:p></o:p></div>
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So let’s get started…happy writing
!<o:p></o:p></div>
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- Anju Verghese</div>
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Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-12561058504655563182015-06-22T21:17:00.000-07:002015-06-22T21:17:57.635-07:00Art of driving a car<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Few months back a handful of us
were asked to suggest a topic for our blog and then write</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNkWt3_AJJYVNibZaVAUniCY-p7RXXTgkrG3AzRWtCu5T6DTa2JDI3_8IH4oZDnP2g8-79D2xxsF6lbVoNCCZLk2-Ehow73lj5KcIYoTLsVgMJojPgEoarVt9CJ5zCyQ2r-Yc7SyRdwEYZ/s1600/DrivingCar1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNkWt3_AJJYVNibZaVAUniCY-p7RXXTgkrG3AzRWtCu5T6DTa2JDI3_8IH4oZDnP2g8-79D2xxsF6lbVoNCCZLk2-Ehow73lj5KcIYoTLsVgMJojPgEoarVt9CJ5zCyQ2r-Yc7SyRdwEYZ/s1600/DrivingCar1.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> few </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">hundred words on
it. Well the topic needed to be interesting and end of all leave the readers
with something to ponder on.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As it turned out with all my sanity (reads
insanity) put together, I suggested ‘Art of Driving a Car’! and I had hoped to
be able to pen down something, that is intelligent and correlated with the
industry we work in. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What? was I thinking! And why didn’t I think of topics
like Leadership? Teamwork? Communication Skills?... considering that one has
been making a living in this field for more than a decade. Then I thought that I
have also been driving a car on Delhi roads for close to a decade now. Which actually
stood synonym to my years of working (prior to that I rode a scooty… a moped…
hmm let it go).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I still recall my first drive to office, thinking that the
roads will be empty on a Saturday and with no traffic I will manage the drive
as smooth as an ice cream, without realizing that the damn ice cream had nuts
and raisins added to it… that Saturday happened to be the first weekend of
India International Trade Fair… roads were infested with people needless to say
the other living beings followed…I somehow managed to office and the feeling….that feeling actually was incomparable. The truth, however is that it wasn’t
the feeling as much as the challenge, confidence and of course the belief that
(yipeeee) I can drive all by myself surpassed everything. So my friends,
nothing as the old saying goes is impossible.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many of us go through this (you
can choose to say no, but Mr. Einstein we all have) …could be with family,
friends and of course not to miss the place where we spend 8 x 5 </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">per week(quite a few spend less or maybe more…
but I am not judging here) … office! I have often noticed that at work, we tend
to miss feeling the feeling and give up very easily; stop taking challenges and
even more stop believing in ourselves, so here are few tips that you may want
to ponder on</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">I do understand that the
environment today is quite challenging and the hurdles it presents are not
uncommon at all. But then we complex it further by believing in the
environment. </span><strong style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Take the challenge!</strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> All we need to do is to understand and get the
basics right. If we know what our deliverable are, align your efforts then
hurdles by themselves disappear<br /></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">I believe that I can fly, I
believe that I can touch the sky (not a Bette Midler song). What is key here
is, for you to </span><strong style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">believe in your efforts and that you too can achieve it</strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">. It is
important that you are true to your task and what you are doing to achieve it
is in the right direction, if you are unsure then ask, someone is there to
guide you (for sure) and then nothing is impossible<br /></span></li>
<li><strong style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Learn from experience; don’t
let it wither away</strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">. Pick brains of those who have been there, done this and that.
Gather as much understanding on learning from others, even mistakes that they
had committed and how they resolved it…. Interestingly these will give insights
and perspective which will come handy….. Try it. Never fails.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
At the end you would be wondering,
what has, ‘Art of Driving a Car’ got to do with the blog written above…. Well I
drove you till the end of the article.. didn’t I? </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> So
till we meet next, drive safe.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"></span><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- Deepika Bansal<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
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Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-61046096199213025482015-06-08T21:10:00.000-07:002015-06-08T21:12:21.930-07:00An Interesting World of Contradictions<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;">I read a few
days ago about India getting its first transgender principal at a women’s
college</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinO7WdCjDiGeOGjmiho2xX9D__puilIRsHTZ_RF1BbKj1qAX4jwaAtqXZSGHjl_PsHjRexyyga__UJ3Tj1fEU6xz58w8trHL-zOA2PjD3MpqO4l_uXhGg1V0gJqQ28eYvW1SVxeLxBciZN/s1600/An+interesting+world+of+contradictions.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinO7WdCjDiGeOGjmiho2xX9D__puilIRsHTZ_RF1BbKj1qAX4jwaAtqXZSGHjl_PsHjRexyyga__UJ3Tj1fEU6xz58w8trHL-zOA2PjD3MpqO4l_uXhGg1V0gJqQ28eYvW1SVxeLxBciZN/s320/An+interesting+world+of+contradictions.png" width="320" /></span></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"> in West </span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bengal - this is definitely a massive leap for us as a society
but the bigger achievement lies in the fact that this news comes from a state
that is known to many to be mostly conformist and laidback, albeit of course not
to forget the land of intellects, writers and poets as well. What makes this even
more radical is that this move has the full support of the state government
without which even conceiving such an idea would probably not have been
possible! </span><br />
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<span style="color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;">Interesting
to note is that while some in India are taking bold steps towards slow but sure
transformation, the military of one of the world’s biggest superpowers defines
gender nonconformity as a psychological disorder (!) forcing those serving to
do so under constant fear of being revealed!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We live in an
interesting world of contradictions where in many cases social boundaries are defined
by the strata of society we live in, or the gender we belong to, or maybe even
what we eat and what we don’t – the list is endless. But we have to admit that
we are infact a very privileged lot to be part of a generation that is privy to,
and in some cases even the driving force behind social change.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Manabi
Bandopadhyay’s (the newly appointed transgender principal) victory is only one
such instance but it can spark many-a debate that could free many-a communities
from the shackles of social stereotypes we could happily do without.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And while the
press is playing its own part in mobilising this change, it’s refreshing to see
brands too becoming bolder in what they say to their audiences. So is evident
from campaigns like Ariel’s share the load, Red Label’s surprise visit,
Airtel’s boss wife, Fastrack’s move on and Shaadi.com’s ShaadiCares which are attempting
to bust traditional norms and offer a leg up to sections of society that have
long lived ‘by the rules’. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Special mention again is most
deserved by Shaadi.com’s ShaadiCares – not only have they boldly taken up against
one of the most prevalent ills in our society but they’ve done so at the risk
of antagonising their own client-base. Absolutely commendable and honourable move!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On a more personal
note, for those of us who come from traditional families where conformism is highly
rewarded, altering the way our lives were planned for us is a matter of great
debate and judgement. But it’s refreshing to see more and more families and
some sections of society putting their weight behind unconventional choices and
bringing change in the most unexpected quarters.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the midst
of all the social turmoil that we read of every day, it’s heartening to hear of
students in a neighbouring land protecting those of another religion as they
celebrate a festival of another country! At the same time it is heart-rending
to see the plight of refugees unwanted despite their worsening agony – it’s a big
question mark on ideologies around humanity to say the least!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But contradictions continue and that’s what makes our society the interesting pot-boiler
that it is today. And the more we open our minds to change, the more welcoming
some of these will be, even for those of us who don’t necessarily subscribe. </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- Naina Shetty </span></span></span></div>
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Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-70673473499654112882015-05-26T02:58:00.002-07:002015-05-26T02:58:34.178-07:00Go for the heart, wallet will follow<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">An
interesting conversation with an advertising veteran this weekend gave me some
food </span></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRaEgBxHt71TDlpKnkqnaPrJ_urniaj-9Mr3NzSOqC7a04x3ilEE3o4cgVgqx1F5PWs-dPMAE5xPdUrAeWyxmgMT-2WBLmZhEOY7Enc5npRp-yG0CF_3hs0F_pddXNbg9UgDd5IapvZ5Et/s1600/Customers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRaEgBxHt71TDlpKnkqnaPrJ_urniaj-9Mr3NzSOqC7a04x3ilEE3o4cgVgqx1F5PWs-dPMAE5xPdUrAeWyxmgMT-2WBLmZhEOY7Enc5npRp-yG0CF_3hs0F_pddXNbg9UgDd5IapvZ5Et/s320/Customers.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">for thought. Let’s call him Mr. X for the time being. He asked me if I
have ever seen a consumer. Without even blinking an eye I said I am one and I
am sitting with one. I thought it was too cool an answer that must have
impressed Mr. X who immediately rejected my thought and continued, <i>‘that’s
the problem with us marketing professionals. We think of our offering as only
product and people buying it as mere numbers that add to the profitability. No
one tries to look at the human behind that number who has a need to satisfy or
is looking for a solution to his/her problem.’</i> </span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mr. X’s
take on consumerism got me thinking. Today, many companies think of business as
merely sales and create their marketing strategy around increasing the numbers.
They tend to ignore the humans behind those numbers and don’t attempt to
connect with them emotionally. The ultimate objective of such companies is to
maintain a healthy balance sheet. What they forget in the process is appealing
to the person they want to sell to. In order to validate this, I connected with
few acquaintances and asked them to name the top companies that they loved in
the consumer technology and FMCG space. Brands that constantly popped up were
the usual suspects – Apple, Google, Sony and surprisingly Philips in technology
and Cadbury, Loreal, Nivea in FMCG space leaving behind various obvious ones
that rely heavily on advertising but still don’t resonate with the buyer. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is
simple, each of these top brands have become part of<span style="color: red;"> </span>our
lives, have truly attempted to satisfy our needs and have built a relationship
with us over a period of time. Why else will an HUL invest in creating the
largest network of dealers across India or Apple become the most innovative
company offering the best experience and after sales support in the country or
Loreal spend 18 years, millions of dollars in localizing innovation for India
and reach out to innumerable salons across India to improve skill sets of hair
care professionals. These brands also have a business to run, are profit
centric but still prefer to develop a bond<span style="color: #1f497d;"> </span>through
their offering to buy user’s loyalty. <b>Successful brands don’t sacrifice long
term gain for short term profitability. </b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Given, the
fast spreading start-up culture in India, it is important that the new ventures
keep customer connect in mind. Inspite of pressure from the investors to
demonstrate immediate return on investment, it is important for the leaders to
resist the urge of preferring immediate sales over long term bonding with the
audiences. Even the established brands that are still trying to find their feet
in the market should go back to the basics and rethink their strategy. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Few
pointers to keep in mind while trying to sell in the market are:</span></span></div>
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">People first</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> - stay true to your brand identity
and its emotional appeal. Keep reminding yourself why did you start the venture
and what purpose does it serve. Make sure that your marketing machinery is
focused on delivering this message to people across.</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Don’t let the greed of short term
profit mar long term gains</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">– be in it for the long run. Make sure you look at the person behind
those numbers who will buy your offering. Invest time and money to connect with
this person. Let the brand offering resonate with his requirement.</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Let buyers’ need drive innovation
and not the other way round </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">– Not everyone can be like an Apple that can develop great products
without any support from market research. Hence stay connected with people. Get
feedback, identify gaps and use it to improve your offering constantly. Philips
is one such company that does it well. They keep visiting people to understand
the challenges they face with their existing products and then use the findings
to improve upon their offerings. </span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Keep reminding yourself constantly
of the real business that you are in </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">– Like Loreal is in the business of beauty.
Everything at Loreal including R&D, innovation, sales, and marketing
revolves around making people look beautiful. Similarly, while we see Apple as
either software or a hardware company, it actually is in the business of
building ecosystem<span style="color: red;">. </span>Apple realized it way before
anyone else that cellphone or an MP3 player or laptops or tablets should not
exist in isolation but be so well interconnected that you cannot leave it even
if you want to. And while doing this they focused on experience, design,
technology and sales support that is so robust that you won’t even feel like
leaving the network. Figure out what you really want to sell in the market and
then stick to it. Let innovation stem out of this need as well.</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Have a plan to give back to the
society</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> – that’s
your responsibility and as well as marketing pull in the long run. Look at
Tata, this attribute alone has only made the brand stronger every day. The
faith that people have in the brand is so strong that it has helped the company
stand strong amidst various controversies it has been subjected to in last many
years. Coca Cola and Pepsi have their CSR initiatives in place that has helped
them wither through various crises. For a start-up this might be a big ask but
atleast make sure that your proposition and message is always towards the
betterment of the society. It will pay back someday. </span></span></div>
</li>
</ol>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although
businesses are meant to be profitable, it is people and their emotional need
that should come first. Because people don’t use logic while making purchase
decision; they buy for emotional reasons and then use logic to justify it. </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- Priyank Dubey <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span> </div>
</div>
</div>
Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-92129412009273263702015-05-12T03:05:00.000-07:002015-05-12T03:05:55.029-07:006@6 – My first Blog!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It feels amazing to complete six years with Six Degrees PR.
Also because I am the first employee to<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh0dvpBBdXXA__jcxFeOcBQkiosU1aWMmJQsUTQcCwXcIWigjYFxgaLwKFk2aM0YJuOD6KJ1oUTT1muKOOBVCXVjHQO1gjvXr8QNoDXh96-O9TDWqZKrJcjN2jMG8-B75_GToqlfn92wc3/s1600/Vilsha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh0dvpBBdXXA__jcxFeOcBQkiosU1aWMmJQsUTQcCwXcIWigjYFxgaLwKFk2aM0YJuOD6KJ1oUTT1muKOOBVCXVjHQO1gjvXr8QNoDXh96-O9TDWqZKrJcjN2jMG8-B75_GToqlfn92wc3/s320/Vilsha.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
do so, and I love to show this off! :)<br /></div>
</span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After working for one year at Turner Broadcasting - Corporate
Communications, I had joined Six Degrees to learn how a PR agency functions and
to get agency experience without any further plans. I feel I was extremely
lucky to join a start-up with amazing people like Rishi & Zach, where I
could see how a 3-4 members’ team grew to 50+ people today! It had been an
incredible journey while learning things from the scratch. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">On my first day at Six Degrees, I was just reading the office
policies’ documents and seeing how many leaves will I get in the year, am I
supposed to wear formals everyday etc. etc., Not just this, I was trying to
understand my first client Hughes and was scrolling through its website and the
DCR – which all looked French! Coming from Turner and working on channels like
Cartoon Network, Pogo & CNN; Satellite – Broadband – VSAT – all looked like
another world. This happened for a week and I was finding it very boring, but
then you don’t develop interest and start understanding things of a different
sector in one day!<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After a week, I went for my first client meeting with Rishi
& Supriya! Four engineers (as I remember) at Hughes took us through their
business verticals and all I did in the meeting was to take copius notes –
without understanding a bit! After coming back from the meeting and after being
asked by </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Rishi if I understood the client business – I had to be honest!<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Rishi then explained us in simple terms and everything seemed
clear! This is the first thing I loved about Six Degrees. If you get great
guidance and have great people around – things become easy and interesting.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Six Degrees and the clients I have worked with in the last
six years – have given me chance to grow as a professional! Some extremely
professional clients and some those – who have made us more patient in life ;-)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Another thing I loved (and still love) about Six Degrees is
transparency. Each and employee is encouraged to talk and convey issues – so
that these can be resolved. I believe if you get good environment to work in,
great people around, no politics (I haven’t seen that), good clients,
accessible leadership team – you know you are at the right place!<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Moreover, I have been really glad to have a rocking team and
super cool bosses Sid and Karan. Six Degrees has also given me some of my
lifetime friends like Deepika Mehrishi, Manveet and Sayanti! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last, but not the least, Amazing Off-sites, Bunker meets,
Office parties – have made this journey more memorable! (p.s. It isn’t my
sign-off letter ;)<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Thank you Six Degrees! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">- Vilsha Kapoor </span></span><br />
</div>
Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-8778400276133851462015-04-27T22:43:00.000-07:002015-04-27T23:10:58.243-07:00Will the ugly duckling become the swan? Why Cyrus Mistry needs to re-think the Tata Motors’ design language<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">It’s not often that a share price
can say as much without saying anything. The Tata Motors scrip</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYh8Bsx-dZt2zN-QzR3UYkv2tMhQhiPH03tS4HgwiO2jx_RnxfBDOikVk46O_G5rNgkLTaKuHn4HteeD0AX0CpbKNtbNke6D9Z7rHqBed2zTnq4CRul5ifEHm8-2tsADptQ10rlgEgLtwx/s1600/TataMotors.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYh8Bsx-dZt2zN-QzR3UYkv2tMhQhiPH03tS4HgwiO2jx_RnxfBDOikVk46O_G5rNgkLTaKuHn4HteeD0AX0CpbKNtbNke6D9Z7rHqBed2zTnq4CRul5ifEHm8-2tsADptQ10rlgEgLtwx/s1600/TataMotors.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> closed at Rs.
517.3 at day end today. Down from a lifetime high of Rs. 1340 sometime in 2011.
The scrip remains largely buoyed by a resurgent Jaguar Land Rover. The </span><a href="http://www.livemint.com/r/LiveMint/Period1/oldpdf/e02861f3-c4a1-4a24-a0e2-893b52483d56.pdf" target="_blank"><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Tata
group’s</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> bid to buy the iconic British brand (from Ford) has
perhaps not worked to bolster Tata Motors’ image as a global company and help
it go upscale (in the same way that previous acquisitions such as Tetley Tea
Ltd and Corus Group Plc. did for Tata Tea Ltd and Tata Steel Ltd, respectively).
Instead strong performance by JLR has helped shore Tata Motors share prices
which otherwise would’ve been languishing much lower. Share price aside, the
problem with Tata Motors is extremely deep-rooted. It’s a brand that’s become
synonymous with all that than can possibly go wrong with a brand – which is
exactly what happened. </span><br />
<o:p></o:p><span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">
How has this impacted the brand? Is brand Tata Motors dead? A quick look at
Google’s search trends reveals anything but. After Maruti Suzuki, there are more
people out there searching for Tata Motors than any other auto brand in India
today. But ask a young working couple today if they’d like to buy a Tata car
and they’re probably likely to decline. The Zest and Bolt, though interesting
vehicles, have hardly set the cash registers ringing. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; text-align: justify;">That the folks at Tata Motors have
a problem on their hands is well known. The untimely demise of Karl Slym, the
erstwhile managing director of Tata Motors was definitely a huge loss for the
company. Karl had articulated a plan running up to 2020; this includes
appropriate focus on alternate fuels, hybrids and electric vehicles. The new
Tata Motors would resolve to foster a culture of customer centricity and
innovation, so that the company's products and services consistently exceed
customer expectations. That vision is now the baby of Cyrus Mistry – known to
be an auto aficionado himself.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">"There is a need for a cross-functional team, which will be manned
by young talent and monitored by senior most leaders, so that youthful team can
bring the latest insight into the products for the future," Mistry told
employees through a webcast recently. The address happens at a time when the
company is facing its biggest loss as well as lowest market share in both
passenger and commercial vehicles in a decade. With the recent launch of
the Zest and Bolt cars, Tata Motors has managed to arrest its slide in the
market, yet the company's volumes at the end of fiscal 2015 showed a
double-digit decline. Its market share of 6% was the lowest since fiscal
2005. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">So wherein lies the problem and is there a solution?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I believe that the single, most important issue affecting the car
division at Tata is design or rather the lack of it. Performance, quality,
reliability etc are defining attributes and not to be negated but for the
purpose of this article and specific to the brand resurgence required for
Tata’s car division, the three most important elements are design, design and
you guessed it, design! Everything else comes later. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Let’s see why. Go back 10-12 years. Look at the auto brands present in
India (and still existing). There’s market leader Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors,
Hyundai, General Motors, Toyota, Mahindra and Ford. All of them produced at least 1 iconic brand
(from a design perspective) that even today evokes exclamations of nostalgic
ecstasy. For Maurti Suzuki there’s the Zen that continues to have an incredible
fan following and was a great car. Hyundai’s tall boy Santro was another icon
as was its Accent (which most Indians pronounced as ‘Ascent’). The ‘Ikon’ was
the trailblazer for Ford while GM’s Optra was almost there (a good, under-rated
car that did not see as much as it should’ve). For Tata Motors, yes, the Indica
– the “More Car per Car” did enjoy unprecedented success, but simply forgot to
evolve beyond that. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="text-align: left;">All the above icons had a strong element of design that emerged as a critical aspect of success. This is also true for the Indica when it was launched (or the Sumo and Safari). But while the design philosophy of most car makers evolved with time, it did not with the Tatas. The Indica morphed into the unbelievably ugly Indigo and each iteration of the series became uglier than the last. And as old icons gave way to new icons (the Santro to the i-20 or the Zen to the Swift), somewhere down the line, the mandarins at Tata Motors lost the plot and the Indica remained exactly that…an Indica, a remnant of the coming-of-age era for Tata Motors.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Cars need to have a personality – something that talks to and engages
with the driver / owner. It can be edgy or sublime, in-your-face or subtle –
different strokes for different folks and the design (followed with
performance) will speak that language and set the context. Marketing and brand
gurus milk this for all its worth. From TVCs to ambassadors, influencers to
salesmen, customers to aspirants, everyone will speak this one language and set
the context for a particular model or series. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Automakers call this a ‘design
language’. The Hyundai’s fluidic range has worked wonders for it in India. In
contrast, Ford’s ‘kinetic’ global design language did not work in India with
the Fiesta but has done wonders with the Eco Sport. Even Mahindra did a fairly
good job of the XUV5OO and earlier with the Scorpio. At Tata Motors they’re
calling their new design language </span><b style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>DesignNext,</i></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> to
“shape our philosophy in engineering vehicles that not only look good but feel
good too.” The Bolt and the Zest followed by the Tata Hexa Concept SUV (and
other models) follow or will follow this philosophy. But given the tepid
response to the Bolt and the Zest, how </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">DesignNext</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
evolves and is communicated to a wider public in relation to newer cars, SUVs
and crossovers remains to be seen. And also whether it bites!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">- Rahul Mishra </span></div>
</div>
Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-88347812414778849482015-04-14T00:28:00.000-07:002015-04-14T05:10:08.924-07:00Stay Hungry Stay Foolish<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two great thinkers said two very profound things, that together sum up
the need of the hour. </span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08a63UMEqaMrIEZVPwonTHQdGcQU9Hx2BCKFc7rDg5jfINM3MkYQ5h2xt6ZEjv2mTmy7CMG6nNCgiwzrIdZIkzTuppEJRKeCaamlz2Fj9s8YrvBgeAK01QEeGLELbSsLP7PyAxfT6QTzp/s1600/StayHungryStayFoolish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08a63UMEqaMrIEZVPwonTHQdGcQU9Hx2BCKFc7rDg5jfINM3MkYQ5h2xt6ZEjv2mTmy7CMG6nNCgiwzrIdZIkzTuppEJRKeCaamlz2Fj9s8YrvBgeAK01QEeGLELbSsLP7PyAxfT6QTzp/s1600/StayHungryStayFoolish.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">'Stay hungry, stay foolish', made famous by Steve Jobs,
prescribed attitudinal shifts to remain successful. George Bernard Shaw said, "The
reasonable man adapts himself to the world, while the unreasonable man insists
on adapting the world to himself, therefore, all progress depends on the
unreasonable man". Wise words from two men living in different times but
highlighting the same issue – the risks posed by our inherent need to
‘conform’.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Workplaces today are dominated by professionals that would rather
‘conform’ than ‘transform’; in turn putting at risk the very notion of what
these places were meant to be - a highly
charged environment of talented individuals focused on improvisation,
improvement and innovation. A conformist attitude brings with it huge risks,
and for a creative services industry like Public Relations, those risks can be
dire. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Over the last 15 years, PR in India has evolved in many ways. From
offering geography based media engagement services at a time when information
and access was at a premium; to offering multi-stakeholder engagement services
today when both are a given; and ‘authenticity’ and ‘advocacy’ are the Holy
Grail. The wave of technological innovations that are changing the way we
connect and engage with people, make this an exciting time for PR professionals
– challenging and often confusing, but with great potential. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-align: justify; text-autospace: none; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The industry at large is responding quite well – with new service
lines, standards and processes being developed to manage this opportunity. At
the same time, we also need to be careful to ensure that these don’t stifle
‘creativity’ and ‘imagination’ and encourage ‘conformism,’ which is rampant. Here
are some basic questions we need to ask ourselves to check if we’re headed
towards conformism:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;"><i><span lang="EN-US">Are we clear about the differentiated value of PR in the
evolving communications landscape</span></i></b><b style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US">? </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;">Many of us struggle to
understand and articulate this, which eventually bears on our ability to
ideate.</span></span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;"><i><span lang="EN-US">Are we rewarding process and compliance, and stifling
curiosity, creativity? </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;">I often find that
missing deadlines becomes a bigger issue than coming up with mediocre ideas. </span></span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;"><i><span lang="EN-US">Are we too scared to fail?</span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;"> PR agencies have always had it tough, and the external
change is making it tougher. Conforming to expectations, is digging ourselves
deeper into a hole at a time when authenticity is the true differentiator.</span></span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;"><i><span lang="EN-US">Are we limited by our experience or the lack of it? </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -18pt;">The environment we operate in continues to evolve and as
such none of us have all the answers. Do we accept that and seek to learn and
grow, or stay comfortable within the scope of what we know?</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If we’ve answered yes to the last three questions, we need to be extra careful and course correct. We need to reward creative risk taking as much as the ability to manage. We need to encourage an entrepreneurial mindset as much as a ‘get the job done’ mindset. What’s also missing today is passion, and there’s nothing like invoking the entrepreneur within people, to stoke passion which is what differentiates between good, and great and is crucial for a creative services sector like ours in particular. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We need to stay hungry - look beyond short term results and be focused on driving disruptive change for our clients and big opportunities for ourselves. We all need to stay foolish - in the way we look at campaigns to challenge convention and drive real advocacy even if it comes at a risk.</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These are imperative to drive the next level of growth
for our industry. We have a big opportunity staring at us. We can augment our
foundation and build on it, or hand it on a platter to others.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.3999996185303px;">- Karan Punia </span></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-54692438174817644472015-03-30T21:34:00.000-07:002015-03-30T21:53:02.453-07:00Qualities of a Leader<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Leadership is
close to my heart, and over the years I always asked myself what ‘leadership’ actually
</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghaYRrLH1M_E5wqZAYGvR7BVNLDEWr-qizGcMU6x5ZMMjDonbLSHmWyQDo2uj56LjrmA2_i22K6lOdVoRYXQu2to26nOWRpggC7uWgN8v1rmXNVIGtoSXWphZRXxNwN7jwPqUkBoe3PIDf/s1600/max-depree-300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghaYRrLH1M_E5wqZAYGvR7BVNLDEWr-qizGcMU6x5ZMMjDonbLSHmWyQDo2uj56LjrmA2_i22K6lOdVoRYXQu2to26nOWRpggC7uWgN8v1rmXNVIGtoSXWphZRXxNwN7jwPqUkBoe3PIDf/s1600/max-depree-300.jpg" height="320" width="220" /></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">means. </span><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">According to a Deloitte research, 86% companies listed ‘leadership’
as one of their top challenges. Be it </span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">in office or home or when we are out with friends,
people who demonstrate leadership always stand out. </span></div>
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>But why do we think they are great leaders? </b></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I follow some great writers on leadership such as Bobby Umar, Jack
Canfield, Bruce Van Horn, Dan Rockwell, Jeremy Bravo, Robin Sharma, Ken
Blanchard and Peter Ducker. They have explained leadership very nicely- L</span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">eadership is not
just for CEOs and Presidents... everyone can lead. Leadership's mostly a mindset
and a way of doing things; it is not about the title on our business cards, </span><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">positions, or flowcharts. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Mahatma Gandhi was one of the greatest leaders I know
of.He dint hold any title in the Congress party, neither did he hold any
position in the parliament, yet he was able to lead many. To lead is to serve. </span><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">It is about one life influencing another. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Leadership is simply about behavior
-- and anyone of us can show it. From an office boy to the CEO, companies that
will win in these highly competitive times will be those that get people who
can lead without a title.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For each one in the organization
the desire for success should be greater than the fear of failure.</span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A business
personality who I truly admire is Sir Richard Branson. According to him </span><span lang="EN-US">what leadership boils down to, is people. Whatever your style, whatever
your method, you need to believe in yourself, your ideas and your employees.
Nobody can be successful alone and you cannot be a great leader without great
people to lead. You have to walk the walk as well as talk the talk. Nobody
respects a leader who doesn’t know how to get his hands dirty and innovate
personally. The trick is in striking the right balance between empowering your
staff and being an example for them to follow.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 125%; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I have
strongly also believed that leadership is a combination of someone who brings
strong strategy to the table and at the same time has a strong character. But if
he has to be without one, then he must be without strategy. Leaders must be close enough to relate to
others, but far enough ahead to motivate them. Leaders as we know have strong character and
personality and that is why they don't put others down, they lift them up. They
don’t cling to authority, they give authority to gain it. It is all about making others better as a
result of your presence. I have always seen around me how people play safe - but
playing safe is not a trait that leaders have because they strongly believe
that everything one wants is on the other side of fear. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The true measure of our leadership is how we perform
in volatile conditions versus in times of ease. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 125%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Leadership is
about the strength of our influence, our willingness to innovate, the quality
of our attitude and our commitment to excellence. As </span><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">the
great Max DePree puts it– The first responsibility of a leader is to define
reality. The last is to say ‘thank you’. In between, the leader is a servant. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 125%; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> -<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 125%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Siddharth Kumar</span></div>
</div>
Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com2New Delhi, Delhi, India28.6139391 77.20902120000005228.6139391 77.209021200000052 28.6139391 77.209021200000052tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-68553745894835093502015-03-02T21:48:00.001-08:002015-07-27T23:12:14.308-07:00SIX MANTRAS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS TO KICK-START THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA LIFE (if you haven’t, yet)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am often asked by people, most of them fairly senior level
executives, on how they could (and whether they actually should) begin using
social media to engage with a wider audience. While they were quite at ease
addressing difficult press conferences and demanding clients, they hadn't got
round to taming social media platforms like Twitter, Linkedin and Facebook.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you feel
you’re one of them, I wouldn’t blame you. While you were busy fighting
boardroom battles, the world was evolving in ways relatively unknown to you.
And before you could grasp the nature of the change, it became too important
for your businesses or job to ignore. I won’t be exaggerating if I said –
today, you are known by the social IDs you keep. Without wanting to sound like
a self-proclaimed social media guru, I could list six key lessons that
I’m confident could come handy as you decide to launch your social media IDs
and board the bus you fear you might have missed.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinP-3E4WD2E8HOOYplpI-EPUVouxsxTjndY9aF-49ag9wC3QFg9noe6urksTfORZc8WZ_XWCD9VWMpu8o30nMaD5a5dFCIPDexfjSBAF2_RkuBoSEIcklCIVWzALhdCAFs0BfB_1pDDsBH/s1600/social_media_mantras_for_business_leaders_india.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Social Media Mantras for Business Leaders" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinP-3E4WD2E8HOOYplpI-EPUVouxsxTjndY9aF-49ag9wC3QFg9noe6urksTfORZc8WZ_XWCD9VWMpu8o30nMaD5a5dFCIPDexfjSBAF2_RkuBoSEIcklCIVWzALhdCAFs0BfB_1pDDsBH/s1600/social_media_mantras_for_business_leaders_india.png" title="Social Media Mantras for Business Leaders " width="316" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>1.
Be yourself:</b>
The biggest mistake you could make on the social media is to portray yourself
as being completely different from the way you really are. It isn’t
sustainable, quite simply because it’s not who you are! It’s difficult to keep
up an act all the time, even if you’re an amazing actor. Post what you feel,
observe, believe in, know, or want to say. Be honest. Don’t worry that your
posts aren’t half as smart as those of your colleague, who has hundreds of
followers and whom you secretly envy. In time, you will realize that there’s an
audience out there who likes you just as you are. You are unique, and so should
be your social media content. The first few posts are always the most
difficult. But once you get into the groove, it becomes as easy as thinking.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>2.
Know your weight and use it judiciously: </b>While social media offers you the
freedom to speak your heart and mind, remember you have a responsibility
towards your followers and readers. You never know when a message posted in a
hurry or with an opinion based on half-baked information may return to haunt
you. Before you hit ‘enter’ pause to consider the possible reaction of at least
three of your connections (including your current or potential future employer,
and your mother-in-law). The more prominent you are in the offline space, the
greater your burden of responsibility towards your audience. Think of your
social ID as a loudspeaker that can be heard miles away, and add to it a
record-and-play device that even more people will listen to in future. Now,
pass each of your thoughts through this filter before you posting it online: do
you really want to share it? While you can always delete or recall your posts,
you never know when you might leave a trace with a watchdog out there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>3.
Add (some) value (to someone, at least): </b>Not everyone connected to you
wants to know how acute your toothache is. Telling people what you’re doing<b> </b>at
any given moment<b> </b>may<b> </b>amuse only a select set of people. And if
that’s all you’d like to do, you’re better off in a close-group environment
rather than a public forum. Unless you derive some perverse pleasure from
trying to arouse others’ envy at your (fake) lifestyle by ‘checking in’ at a
five star hotel (even if you merely drove past it) every now and then, or
posting photos of you posing with hot celebs (thanks to Photoshop), you’d
probably have a more ‘effective’ and meaningful follower base if you post stuff
that others find useful. There must be <i>something</i> you’re good at, or
you’re passionate about – make <i>that</i> the focal subject of your social
media content and you’ll attract an audience that shares your interest. Of
course, you needn’t stick to a single topic all the time – both you and your
audience need a few breathers (‘entertaining’ is useful too!).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>4.
Learn from others but don’t try to copy them: </b>There’s a lot
you could learn from ‘social media celebrities’ – their writing style, the
frequency of their posts,<b> </b>the ideas behind the content, etc. It’s
perfectly all right to borrow content (retweet, quote, or share). It will only
win you more friends and some might even return the favor once in a while. But
do be honest and give credit<b> </b>where due. Never claim someone else’s idea
as your own. Not only is it unethical, the Internet – however vast you might
think it is – is also a very small place, thanks to extremely well-networked
platform and search capabilities. You’ll lose face and credibility with those
around you if caught. I know of some people who meticulously search the Net
(some have even subscribed to daily feeds to save time) for smart one-liners
and quotes, and try to pass them off as their own! Smart, eh? I can bet you’d
take less than a minute to see through them once you’d interacted with them in
real life or simply googled their posts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>5.
Brace the democratic nature of social media: </b>Now this is a
bit contrary to point 2 above. While you may be used to a patient, receptive
audience listening to you sincerely in the offline space given your position,
the social media gives everyone out there the power to voice their opinion,
positions notwithstanding. It’s a level playing field! Add to it the
option for the audience to remain anonymous. People with or without any
credibility or even name may challenge your solid, well-researched posts with
logic-defying arguments. Unfortunately, there are few laws or referees that
work in the online environment, at least not yet. You may feel it’s not fair
but that’s the beauty of this medium. Prepare yourself to brace the power
of this extremely democratic network, and shed some of yours with humility. And
if you are doing or saying the right thing, hang on there for a bit, for you
can expect surprise supporters to come to your rescue.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>6.
Finally – no you don’t ‘have to’ be on social media, but it helps: </b>If you are still
uncertain whether you should ‘take the plunge’ – trust me it’s far easier,
safer and more economical than getting married. Not kidding! Let’s accept it –
the social media have become too strong to ignore, and are here to stay and
evolve. The good news is you can ‘start slow’ by simply ‘listening’. As in the
real world, when you join a new group, you tend to begin by ‘sniffing’ the
context and other members (well, not literally) before actively participating.
You could do the same on social media too. Since there generally are no rules
(some unwritten guidelines are followed, though) on the frequency of your posts
and absolutely no charge for membership for any kind, you can be as slow or
quick as you want to be. You can sit by a poolside and watch others swim, but
you’ll only learn to swim yourself once you jump into the water. So go ahead,
and enjoy the splash!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- Amit Gundh </span></div>
</div>
Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913371451360492739.post-86241309633939631702015-02-16T05:15:00.000-08:002015-02-16T23:46:36.156-08:00OUR DRUNKEN DREAM... (On Six Degrees PR turning six)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b><span style="color: #444444;">by Zacharia James (Zach), Managing Partner & Co-Founder<span lang="EN-IN"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-IN" style="color: #833c0b;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhs-_i8NyXPmvCEeX8XzoXLmEAwXieSNvLh5-OJiflaeJEQdf1kq1GogSzg_sc5uJFV3ZLyWuhbtDt0A_qoQpJkryQcCkSXz6Smb94bFK1wpaDjsoSZhczkf4wz8AOZKf6nGUHGyRiBAGD/s1600/6d_six.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhs-_i8NyXPmvCEeX8XzoXLmEAwXieSNvLh5-OJiflaeJEQdf1kq1GogSzg_sc5uJFV3ZLyWuhbtDt0A_qoQpJkryQcCkSXz6Smb94bFK1wpaDjsoSZhczkf4wz8AOZKf6nGUHGyRiBAGD/s1600/6d_six.png" height="190" width="200" /></a>We’d given
ourselves two years. I believe if one is on to something good, that timeline is
adequate to assess the probability of success. A few years ago Rishi and I met
over a drink, it was one of those nights where one drink was just right, two
was too many and three were too few, so we turned superheroes and took it upon
ourselves to bring greater respect to the PR profession in India. The next
morning, when sober we quickly lowered our aim just so that we could reach our
goal and avoid disappointment. We decided to build a company that would be the
most respected PR firm in the country. I continue to use alcohol, Rishi and
Karan to make business decisions more so the tough ones - my conscience though
is clean as I’ve never used it. Six Degrees completes six years and I know, I
speak on behalf of the team when I say we are proud of what we have achieved
and are happy that our journey, though a long one, is a journey well
begun.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUfTuxVuPdshodER1VM3QpcnhKFmAbC5B3hZp2_kvpLkCkR2F9QE938cBaicPV2gqVUTDLw_AN1JkmIF_3c9523wIzfbZg_OCn36hL-WuCxCAcs9-jNFJ5sIa3X09j-_yV0nRY34rikta_/s1600/6dTeam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUfTuxVuPdshodER1VM3QpcnhKFmAbC5B3hZp2_kvpLkCkR2F9QE938cBaicPV2gqVUTDLw_AN1JkmIF_3c9523wIzfbZg_OCn36hL-WuCxCAcs9-jNFJ5sIa3X09j-_yV0nRY34rikta_/s1600/6dTeam.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a><span lang="EN-IN">When we
create for oneself or for others is what I believe gives meaning to life and
for me, my journey at Six Degrees and Alphabet has helped me realise just that.
However, what continues to keep me motivated at work is the daily learning the
team makes possible. They say, you can only be as good as your team and I’ve
been lucky to have a team that makes me look better than I really am – that
proposition is tough to beat. Our journey has had its share of challenges – in
the initial years there were times we felt nobody cared until we missed a
couple of EMIs. There were periods I’m sure you too couldn’t see the light at
the end of the tunnel but let me assure you, it was turned off due to budget
cuts. Challenges required us to change and that played an important role in our
success. Our ability to respond to market needs and make changes of the status
quo have proven to be a differentiator. These changes can be seen in our
service offering or in the younger talent that’s driving the company today –
you have to step back at times to connect (at Rishi and my age, our backs go
out more often than we do). Every change we’ve made has been well accepted by
most and there were those that didn’t but I’ve learnt never to argue with
stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and beat you with
experience.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN">These six
years wouldn’t have been easy without the explicit support of our anchor
clients, many of who have been with us from the beginning of our journey. I am
grateful to them and all our other clients for helping us realise our drunken
dream and helping us sail through this journey and not the first two years
alone. The next few months and years are going to be even more exciting -
change will be a constant as we haven’t given up drinking. Finally, I thank
each one of you for your contribution in helping us realize the success and I encourage
you to continue to do a great job and never quit or lose sight of our
goal of being the most respected PR firm in the country. If quitters never win,
and winners never quit, I definitely don’t want to be the fool that will,
"Quit while you're ahead".<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-IN">Happy
birthday to each one of you and all the best.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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- Zach.<br />
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Six Degrees PRhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09921091131059375352noreply@blogger.com2