Ashish Kulshrestha: Secrets to Digital ShoutOuts’ Success
In this exclusive interview, we speak with Ashish Kulshrestha, CEO and founder of Digital ShoutOuts Media. With over 15 years in the media industry, Ashish excels in brand solutions, client management, and innovation. He shares pivotal moments that shaped his career, the strategies driving Digital ShoutOuts Media’s success, and his vision for the future. Ashish’s insights on digital marketing, gaming, and live streaming reveal his confidence and forward-thinking approach, offering a glimpse into the evolving media landscape and the company’s ambitious expansion plans.
With over a decade of experience in the media industry, can you share some pivotal moments that shaped your professional journey?
Thank you for this opportunity. When I entered the digital industry, I was uncertain about what lay ahead. This market’s inherent unpredictability keeps one excited and continually moving forward. With a technical background and a degree in Cyber-Crime Law, I grasp market dynamics and stay prepared to tackle challenges.
Reflecting on my journey, my initial three jobs were pivotal in shaping my career. At Justdial, I learned the significance of data, particularly B2B data. Way2sms was transformative, providing insights into data monetization. I gained extensive experience across various digital mediums like SMS marketing, email marketing, display ads, pop-ups, and push notifications, alongside mastering platforms like DoubleClick, AdSense, and AdWords.
My tenure at Taskbucks immersed me in the app ecosystem, focusing on user installation processes, tracking, attribution platform behaviors, and retargeting. Each company held significant market leadership: Justdial as the largest B2B publisher, Way2sms in SMS, email, and display marketing, and Taskbucks in app installations. Working with these leaders offered deep insights into user behaviors and advertiser needs through client interactions.
I’ve also successfully launched and developed divisions throughout my career, offering valuable insights into market dynamics. Drawing from these experiences, I founded my company in 2021, and today, we take pride in our achievements.
Congratulations to Digital ShoutOuts Media for completing 3 glorious years and for the launch of a new office in ME! Can you share how it came about to you launching this agency?
Thank you. I’ve always wanted to work in the creative field. Throughout my career, I’ve collaborated closely with many brands and creative agencies, though I spent most of my time in performance marketing. When I decided to start my company, I aimed for over 80% of our work to focus on ideas and innovation. Now, after three years, I can proudly say we are recognized in the market for our innovative brand-building work. Additionally, over 90% of our revenue comes from branding campaigns.
I am proud to have achieved the purpose for which I left the performance industry and founded Digital ShoutOuts Media. With a similar purpose and goal, we are now entering the Middle East market. I am confident we will soon have another interview where you will congratulate us on our success in this new market.
What strategies do you use to stay on top of the latest adtech and media trends?
I believe experience and vision matter. The Adtech industry is evolving rapidly. I have spent over 14 years in the media industry. When I entered the digital space, there were a few big websites, slow-loading internet, Nokia phones with VGA cameras, and the launch of Android and 3G in India. At that time, barely 1% of users had access to the latest technologies. Now, brands are focusing on the Metaverse, AI, and VR. I have witnessed this transformation closely.
The key is to stay updated with upcoming trends. While no one can predict the future, living through such a transformation allows you to anticipate what might come next. Trust your anticipation. My first client was a major FMCG brand seeking simple clicks at Rs.5 CPC. Recently, we pitched a robot for a phone brand, but the client wanted something more. This journey from simple clicks to sophisticated robotics illustrates the industry’s evolution.
My advice is not to do everything your competitors are doing. Excelling in the same areas as your competitors isn’t necessary. Everyone has different expertise. Focus on excelling in the areas where you truly want to be.
With your expertise in gaming and live streaming, how do you see these areas evolving in the media landscape, and what opportunities do they present for brands?
Before answering the question, I’d like to address a necessary change in the Indian gaming ecosystem: the mindset. In India, parents still do not view the gaming industry as a viable career option. However, gaming is not the future; it is the present. Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with top Indian gamers, significantly boosting the industry’s visibility.
Despite this, we have a USD 3.5 billion industry set to be worth almost USD 7.5 billion and create 250,000 jobs by 2025. India has about 146 million real money gaming (RMG) players and about 202 million non-RMG casual gamers, with 57% of RMG players and 51% of casual gamers residing outside major cities. The game live-streaming market in India is projected to reach USD 200 million by 2024 and USD 250 million by 2027.
Most of these gamers are Gen Z and Millennials, who make up 52% of India’s population. Brands love this age group, especially those in the OTT, BFSI, soft drink, automobile, e-commerce, cosmetic & personal care, and apparel & fashion industries. Many categories want
to target this audience. Live streaming gaming offers numerous brand integration options with the latest technologies, providing unskippable, unstoppable content with 100% viewership. We are now focusing more than ever on our live-streaming solutions with the latest technologies.
What are your goals for the future of Digital ShoutOuts Media, and how do you plan to continue evolving and innovating in the industry?
We have been considering starting a new vertical to launch four new products and Connected TV (CTV) for a long time, but due to global expansion, we put that plan on hold. Now, in a few weeks, we will launch these new products, followed by CTV, with our creative ideas and innovations. Our strategy team is already working on it. Recently, we read that Netflix is set to launch its own proprietary advertising technology platform, which will significantly boost the CTV ecosystem.
I strongly believe that evolution and innovation are journeys, not destinations, especially in the media industry, which is ever-changing. Emerging technologies will reshape traditional mediums. The rise of AI, the Metaverse, immersive experiences, Blockchain, Web 3.0, and increased personalization will transform the media ecosystem. For the first time in decades, we are witnessing digital media provide unparalleled competition to offline spending. TV is becoming CTV, and OOH is becoming DOOH.
Additionally, we are aggressively focusing on the Non-Gaming Live Streaming industry. People are cutting their cable connections, a trend that started in Tier-1 cities and is now happening in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities as well. Everything is available online through apps. To watch the news on TV, mobile, or laptop, there are multiple options: websites, apps, or YouTube Live Streaming channels.
Indian brands love our ideas, innovations, and creativity. When we began pitching our ideas in markets outside India, the excitement among brands further motivated us. We are ready to explore new opportunities in the coming months.
platformance.io Names Hamza Sarawy As MENA’s Head of Communications
MENA – platformance.io, one of the region’s leading next-gen media and Adtech solutions provider, today announced that Hamza Sarawy has been named as the new head of communications for the MENA region, effective 1 July 2024. Sarawy has been an active advocate of the communications industry and a seasoned content professional with multilateral expertise and a deep understanding of the market.
Sarawy has 10+ years of content, communications and thought leadership experience, and blends the agency world experience with entrepreneurial experience. He’s also a founding partner of Brandberries, a MENA-focused publisher on all things brand building.
On his appointment, he commented, “ I’m excited to be leading the communications business of platformance.io and its sister entities, a real honor. As the region quickly moves into a hyper-connected tech hotspot of the world, comes media and adtech as a mobilizer voice and this is where we’re well-placed and where i plan to build on.”
Founder of platformance.io, Waseem Afzal, added, “Hamza’s appointment is a significant step in building upon our vision to incubate forward-looking entities to better align with the changing consumer marketing landscape in the MENA region. His rich background in content and communications, coupled with his entrepreneurial spirit, aligns perfectly with our vision for growth and innovation.
About Platformance.io
platformance.io is a next-generation media and ad-tech solutions platform connecting brands to consumers in a pay-per-outcome model. What sets the platform apart is the performance quadrant; connected marketing, outcomes-based pricing, intelligent data and tech as well as the operational model focused on growth.
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Driving Brand Success: In Conversation with Vishal Shah from EssenceMediacom
Vishal Shah, Managing Partner at EssenceMediacom, is a prominent marketing professional in the media, marketing and advertising industry. With a strong background in brand building, digital marketing and media strategy, he has made significant contributions to the growth and success of various brands and campaigns. As a dedicated and innovative leader, he continues to make a lasting impact in the media landscape, driving excellence and fostering strong relationships with clients and partners.
In an exclusive interview, he shares his insights on achieving agency of the Year, building brands, and embracing the future of digital marketing.
Firstly, congratulations on EssenceMediacom winning the agency of the year at Goafest! What key factors and strategies do you attribute to this remarkable achievement, and how do you plan to build upon this success in the future?
Thank you very much. We are elated about this accomplishment. It is a remarkable achievement, and we are proud to be working with the best minds in the industry. We have received overwhelming appreciation from clients and partners, who are proud and happy to be associated with an agency that is producing such fantastic work. We aim to maintain this momentum across all our brands and build upon this success in the future.
As the Managing Partner of Essence Mediacom, you have played a significant role in the company’s growth and success. Can you share some key insights into your journey and the challenges you faced while scaling the business?
Four days after I joined, the COVID-19 pandemic peaked, and authorities announced a nationwide lockdown, abruptly shifting us to remote work. Overnight, we faced numerous challenges. Firstly, working remotely on such a large scale for an extended period was a unique and unprecedented experience, requiring everyone to quickly adapt. Meeting my entire team virtually was particularly challenging given its size. I honed my voice recognition skills as many team members experienced bandwidth issues, preventing them from enabling their cameras during virtual meetings. Additionally, a significant hurdle emerged when most clients decided to drastically cut their marketing budgets due to prevailing uncertainty.
I faced a two-fold challenge:
a)Convincing clients to maintain their investment in marketing. b) Boosting team morale and keeping spirits high.
In response, we revisited our strategies and implemented multiple changes in our work processes. These adjustments yielded exceptional results, fueling unparalleled growth in our business and teams over the past three years. We remain committed to building upon this success and sustaining our upward trajectory.
With your extensive experience, how do you approach the process of creating and nurturing a brand identity, especially in today’s highly competitive and fast-paced digital landscape?
Building brands has shifted from a mass media economy to a new-age economy, requiring a distinct approach and mindset. We closely collaborate with clients, developing breakthrough capabilities instead of simply cutting through. Our multidimensional approach generates breakthroughs for our brands, transcending traditional boundaries. A Breakthrough because it took two incredibly successful individual agencies and brought them together to create something new – Essence & Mediacom.
We created a new agency that unlocks the potential of the new communication economy, moving beyond brand vs. performance, digital vs. analogue, and media vs. creative. Clients trust and choose to work with us to advance, break new ground, and shape future brands and businesses. We are already delivering these outcomes for the world’s biggest and most influential brands, consistently and globally. EM is the only agency capable of consistently providing new ideas and opportunities to understand and connect with people. This is made possible by our scale, exceptional team, advanced technology, and strong leadership.
Storytelling is a powerful tool in brand communications. How do you perceive the power of storytelling, particularly its ability to create emotional connections with the target audience?
The very essence of storytelling lies in its ability to create an emotional connection between the brand and the consumer, thereby humanizing the brand and bringing it to life. It transforms the brand from a mere logo to a meaningful connection. Storytelling is unparalleled in building trust, and loyalty, and establishing a strong connection with consumers. In the marketing communications business, storytelling is at the heart of every connection between the brand and the consumer, making it the most definitive way to build strong brands.
Essence Mediacom prides itself on utilizing data-driven strategies. Could you provide an example of how data analysis has significantly impacted a client’s campaign, leading to tangible results?
The legacies of Essence and Mediacom, combined with the power of WPP, Group M, and Nexus, mean that we possess the most advanced suite of tech products and experts in the market.
This manifests not only in our individual products and agency tools but also in the embedded innovation teams within our agencies, which swiftly develop scripts to solve immediate problems.All of this is consolidated in EMOS: a global planning operating system that we can customize for clients and is utilized by our personnel every day. EMOS merges the finest technology from MediaCom with Essence’s automation, data governance, and data storage, resulting in the industry’s most advanced reporting tech and analytics suite applied to billions of dollars of client spend.
The combined tech of both agencies has created something truly unique: the ability to provide data-driven breakthroughs to every client through customized products and capabilities accessible to all our planners across all markets. Our tools are developed with the consumer journey in mind, spanning the marketing cycle, campaign cycle, and optimization cycle, enabling timely interventions for breakthrough planning.
Start-ups often face unique challenges when it comes to brand building and marketing. What advice do you have for start-up founders looking to establish a strong brand presence and effectively communicate their value proposition to potential investors and customers?
Strong brands are built over time through consistent actions. A strong brand is defined by what consumers think, feel, do, and how they interact with it, not by the perceptions of founders or investors. It is imperative to create a consistent brand experience that provides meaningful interactions and addresses consumers’ unmet needs. The brand needs to have differentiated benefits, appeal, and proposition and communicate this with consumers regularly. They will also need to continue building brand trust, as it is a gradual process that requires commitment. Maintaining the right balance between brand building and performance marketing is crucial, and consistent investment in both areas will help founders establish strong brands.
Mentorship can play a significant role in personal and professional growth. Can you share an experience where a mentor or role model had a profound impact on your career, and what lessons did you learn from them?
I strongly believe that mentors play a critical role in your personal and professional journey. With the right mentor, you can receive help and guidance across key areas, not only in your professional life but also in your personal life. I have been very lucky to have had some very good mentors who have shown me the way throughout my career. Here are the key lessons that I learned from my mentors:
1. Attitude and passion make all the difference; if they are in the right place, they will take you places. Where there is a will, there is a way!
2. Two key areas that matter the most are business management and people management. Most things we do will revolve around these two areas, and we need to continuously maintain a learning mindset to build on these areas.
As a thought leader in the marketing industry, what are your predictions for the future of digital marketing, and is the industry preparing to capitalize on these trends to maintain its competitive edge?
Digital marketing is poised to dominate the advertising industry. India ranks among the top 10 globally in terms of ad spend and continues to be the fastest-growing market worldwide.
Key predictions:
1.5G will be a game changer in many ways for India.
2.Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality & Virtual Reality will become mainstream.
3.Understanding and investing in data and technology will not be optional; it will be crucial and require super acceleration if brands and marketers want to remain relevant.
4.Influencer Marketing
5. Voice and everything related to it will have many more use cases and applications.