Tuesday, March 1, 2011

A Day In The Life Of Marketing Executives by Tanmay Joshi


11th January, 2011
Mumbai

Bandra Kurla Complex is true to its name, because it is really complex! Whoever “branded” it was indeed      
thoughtful; and his strategy, future looking!
Never mind the sarcasm; I start my narration without further ado...

1.41 P.M., BKC
A scribbled, almost illegible address on my left palm suggests a building called “Trade Centre” wherein I am 
scheduled to meet Ms. Deepali Naair, Country Head,  Branding and Corporate Communications at L&T 
insurance.
Thanks to diligent help from my senior, Ms. Mahek Mehra, I fortunately locate the place in no time, however 
complex the “Complex” may seem!

My first impression of the place is “Swanky building!” (belied by its pedestrian name, Trade Center). I reach 
floor 6 and get down from the elevator. After a brief wait in the reception area, I am greeted with a warm 
welcome by Anjum, Ms. Deepali Naair’s assistant. Escorted by Anjum, I trudge along the corridor, passing 
several cubicles, or “activity centres” and finally reach her cabin.
 The rest of the L&T Insurance marketing team is seated just outside her cabin and is buzzing with 
palpable energy. Deepali sure knows how to keep her staff happily engaged.

2.15 P.M., L&T Insurance, Ms. Deepali Naair’s cabin

The cabin is neatly arranged; an expected sight, as I discover Deepali herself is a much organised professional. I quietly look around to notice awards and trophies citing marketing excellence, books on subjects ranging from branding and management to philosophy, a neatly arranged desk, photographs of her son and sundry memorabilia.

“Welcome Tanmay” I am warmly greeted by Deepali. “You will be guided by Dhruval here when I am not around, and you can ask him questions on our activities. Deepali points to a member of her team, Dhruval, who enters the cabin with a beaming face. By that time, another senior team member, Saumitra walks in and engages Deepali in an urgent discussion and takes away her attention to the work at hand. I decide to utilise this time understanding the company, and most importantly, marketing activities by interacting with Dhruval (by quietly slipping out).

Outside, a giggle, two hi-fives and a resounding laughter is heard at the backdrop as Dhruval smiles and I return the favour.
I bite on a slice of guava brought in by an attendant. I indulge in the eating activity as Dhruval pauses to grab a slice for himself. Through the transparent facade of her cabin, I notice that Deepali & Saumitra are engaged in a very intense and animated discussion which ends with both of them nodding vigorously in agreement.  I bring myself back to ask Dhruval-

“Can you tell me about the important activities carried out by the L&T Insurance marketing team?”

 Dhruval explains “Since insurance is among the first mass consumer facing businesses of the iconic L&T Group, the marketing activities here are very unique and exciting. One key area of focus for us is marketing research. We have taken a strategic decision to do extensive consumer work to understand and identify the right segments so that we can design suitable products for them. Marketing research helps us internalize the customer insights into the product & service offerings.

Meanwhile Deepali has received two calls and I see her leaving for an urgent meeting along with two of her team mates. By now few other team members have also voluntarily joined into our discussion.

They all talk to me “Building a brand, with as rich a parentage as the L&T group, has both its advantages and challenges. We have a major advantage that most of our target customers trust this name. The biggest challenge for us is to develop a strong association between the already well known associations of L&T with the insurance category.
All our collaterals are well defined and well designed. We try and differentiate from our competitors by building simple and easily understood products. In line with our brand philosophy, we want our customers to make informed choices. We are still in a start-up phase, hence the promotions and marketing activities currently are local and below the line. During important festive occasions like Durga Pooja, Navratri, we have supported local communities in key cities by erecting stalls. Here our sales force, mainly insurance agents armed with their sales pitch, flip charts have always been effective in lead generation.
We have also worked for branding of all customer touch points like our branches, website, call center etc. We have developed attractive Rewards and Recognition programs to motivate our sales force. We have planned to mark our presence on the social media and traditional media to generate the required buzz about the company”

As the question is answered, more laughter is heard in the background.
I observe that Deepali has come back from her meeting and I grab the opportunity to interact more with her.

2.55 P.M., With Ms. Deepali Naair

Marketers are known to be active at all points of time in the day, but in this particular lady at L&T Insurance, there is something different that you can observe. Her passion and energy for her brand rubs off on all the people around her and specifically her team, who burn the midnight oil quite regularly and very willingly.

Work reminds me of an important question that I must ask her.
“Ma’am, you have worked in the FMCG sector as well as in the financial services sector. What are the similarities and differences in working in these two different sectors?”
“The customer service aspect in an FMCG company is negligible compared to a financial services company. Again, the entire concept of B2B is much more important when it comes to financial services than in FMCG. In FMCG, the way of influencing a customer is more through pricing, packaging, advertisements etc. In financial services, we lay more emphasis on internal marketing to motivate the channel partners and education of the customer through an effective communications strategy. Concepts like Customer Lifetime Value, Renewal Strategy, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Marketing Analytics are predominantly applied in financial services marketing but not used widely in FMCG.  Basically, the use of technology is much more advanced in service oriented industries like insurance that helps us enhance our communications and reach out to our customers through new media. Another big difference is that “e-commerce” or “digital commerce” is a key focus area in financial services while it is non-existent in the FMCG sector.”

One thing is definitely noticeable in her team. Everyone is enthusiastically working. The work seems rigorous, as Deepali discusses one issue after another with her team members and the entire department is buzzing with activity!

 It is this thought that prompts me to ask her the next question:
“I see that your entire team functions at impeccable levels of activity. What is it that really drives the people in the unit? What are the four most important things that keep the passion of marketing teams going?”

She replies with ease:
“From my seventeen years of experience both as a leader and a team member, I have the following four points to share:
I think the most important thing for any team is that its members should have fun. They should have friends within the team and/or at their work place and this would eventually help them bond well and enjoy the time they spend at work”
 She quotes the example of her own team where the atmosphere is fairly informal and every new member added to the team is warmly welcomed and accepted.
“The second most important thing is creation of right opportunities. Here at L&T Insurance, I constantly expose the members of my team to new areas of marketing and also areas which are outside their current domains such as digital marketing, social media marketing and innovative marketing research techniques.  Team members with expertise in these new domains are encouraged to learn about traditional marketing arenas such as Television, Print, Advertising, PR, Event Management etc. Learnings in different domains create newer opportunities for every member and this helps them in their growth as marketers.
“The third most important thing is feedback. It has to be honest and both positive and negative. Also, the feedback should be immediate and timely. A feedback at the end of a month or a quarter is futile as you generally forget the details and only retain the perceptions and its impact.”
“Finally, the atmosphere in the team should be open where even the junior most members are encouraged to speak their mind. They must feel free to disagree with their leaders when they have a different point of view. This helps in reaching optimum solutions that benefit the organization”.

It’s 3.15 P.M. and I slowly realise that I have understood quite a lot about how a marketing department in an insurance company works and how an able leader can nurture a team into their effective best. Some questions just come to my mind as I begin to wind up.

“I am quite sure that with the level of activity I have witnessed here today, your daily routine and your successful marketing campaigns, you would have had great experiences in this company already. What has been your most satisfying experience?”

“One of my most interesting and important projects here has been the creation of the L&T Insurance brand. It involved intense work to finalize the elements that would form a base for branding in the future. These included the name and logo of the brand, identification of product verticals, personality of the brand etc. Since we are a start up, development and successful promotion of L&T Insurance website was also an important project that I’m proud of. For me, it was like giving birth to a child.”

“The insurance sector is now wide open and is rife with competition. In your opinion, which type of company with what unique edge, will sustain in the long run?”
“Any company that brings innovation to the customer with respect to all the marketing & service aspects will do well in the long run. Customer feedback is absolutely essential. The company that keeps the customer in focus and allows and implements changes that add value to the customers will do well in the insurance sector. Excellence in execution and therefore speed would also matter”

Deepali looks at her watch.  It is almost 3.30 P.M. and members of the IT team this time pour in to pull her out for yet another scheduled meeting. I begin to skim through my notepad and realise that most of it is filled. The same applies to my mind.
Even years later, I will still remember the exuberant marketing team, the agility and ability of the leader and the useful insights I received about an insurance company’s marketing department.

The hands of the clock indicate that I mustn’t extract more time out of her already packed schedule. The next few minutes are spent in warm and firm handshakes with a team that has been very warm in receiving me and is equally firm and focussed in its endeavours.

What an afternoon it has been with L&T Insurance!

An open invitation by Saumitra to join the team again soon, for some more interaction really benumbs me. I turn the handle of the door and hesitatingly begin my journey back home, through the corridor with exuberance still emanating from it. I walk past trade centre eventually, few points more knowledgeable than before....


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