MDI Gurgaon Organises “Advent 2009”

MDI Gurgaon Organises “Advent 2009”

The world of advertising and marketing has witnessed a sea of change over the past few years. The onset of new-age media and the internet revolution has changed the way marketers look at the art and business of marketing, advertising and all its related functions. Today, traditional marketing concepts are being challenged, and marketers are being pushed to the limit to keep pace with rapidly fading boundaries, and a cynical, well-educated customer.

It was against this backdrop that MarQuity, the Marketing Club of Management Development Institute (Gurgaon), organised 'Advent', a two-day advertising and marketing summit. As one of India's only Marketing- and Advertising-dedicated summits, Advent attracted some of the best marketing talent from across India. With it's plethora of seminars, advertising contests, quizzes and other events, Advent predominantly aimed to generate interest in advertising and marketing among B-School students.

As has been the tradition over the years, Advent 2009 boasted of a unique advertising workshop, Adrena, conducted by experts from Lowe Lintas. The workshop was followed by an inter-b-school ad-designing contest, which pitted the best teams from each business school in a fiercely contested battle of creativity and insight.

Advent was also host to Ad'age, a corporate interaction series, graced by some of the most prominent professionals from the area of advertising and marketing. The first day witnessed Shri S. K. Swamy, CMD, R. K. Swamy, BBDO, speaking about brand leadership and differentiation. Emphasising on the continuous evolution of advertising, Mr. Swamy also spoke about co-creation of products, advertisements by involving the consumer in the message and communication. Mr. Rajiv Bakshi, Director (Marketing), Discovery Channel detailed the nuances of media planning and buying.

He also dwelled upon the current television media sprawl and the possibilities it holds for future. The final day was graced by Guest of honour, Mr. Rahul Kansal, CMO, Bennett Coleman Co Ltd., who spoke about Social responsibility and ethics in marketing. Mr. Kansal highlighted the impact of events such as globalisation on the Indian mindset which has now evolved to a state where the guilt about doing 'business' no longer exists; CSR has moved from mere tokenism to consciousness towards societal and economic issues, and a strong degree of respect for the environment. The final speaker, Mr. Prasanna Singh, COO, Afaqs!, talked about digital marketing and the media story of achieving growth through Innovation. The session focussed on the various innovations in the different forms of media targeted towards capturing the mind of the consumer.

Qriosity, the Blockbuster Connect Quiz, was another hit among the plethora of events at the summit. Participation in Qriosity reached overwhelming proportions, with over 300 teams from 27 business schools across the country trying their luck at the jackpot. In addition, on-the-spot audio-based ad identification contests, brand tagline-related dumb charades and impromptu speech contests added to the flavour of the event.

* Contributed by -
Piyush Jain,
Member, Corporate Communications Cell,
Management Development Institute, Gurgaon.

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