Babita Baruah

Having worked with JWT for many years Babita Baruah has learnt that brand and marketing are very connected to life itself. Citing the devastation Nepal went through a year ago, she says, “I am here to speak about the power of balance.” Her purpose was to help participants ‘Find their brand Qi’.

She advised advertisers and marketers to harness the culture winds. Baruah shares, “Culture is nothing but values that get people together, it is nothing to do with geography.” Furthermore, she talked about embracing the power of change, provoking status quo and balancing brand and life insights. “We must connect minds, market and media,” she concludes.

Bharat Avalani

Bharat Avalani, CEO of Connecting the Dots Consultancy, Malaysia, engaged the audience through a number of pictures. As the session progressed, he highlighted the importance of storytelling in marketing. According to him, storytelling is the future of marketing. He says, “You can’t beat a story with a fact, only with a better story.”

Avalani believes that as marketers who have the power to change the world, it’s important you craft your own story in order to do so. Avalani suggested that one has to identify key elements that make up a story. Further, it is also about finding the truth and sharing it. “You can’t get the benefits of telling stories unless you actually tell them,” he concludes.

Anand Tilak

Anand Tilak, Global Brand Partner, Facebook, explored the various aspects of advertising in his presentation. He says, “The main challenge for brands is to be able to connect with the audience.” He further talked about the small strategy that needs to be focused on during ad making.

Tilak took a technical approach to his presentation and explicitly described about the trends in digital media and their impact.

He further talked about the increasing use of social media and how advertisements and media are deeply connected today. Tilak says, “Brands have to think how people are behaving and be able to connect to them.”

Alvin Teoh

Alvin Teoh, Executive Creative Director of Naga DDB, Malaysia, shared his insights about branding and advertising. Teoh’s entire presentation was based on the power of emotions in a brand and how it can help connect the audience.

He says, “The pain we have can fuel so many things. We should tap into the power of pain.”

He claimed that advertising is about turning social pain into a project. The ability to rightly use our experiences to connect to the audience is very important, shared Teoh.

He concluded the presentation by suggesting that brands should look at people not as customers but as who they are.

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