LAUNCHPAD: Stardust goes Deutsche

Last week I was pleasantly surprised when I met a German from Berlin who could talk more intelligently about various bollywood stars than some of us in India. Cristof Kaul was in India for a week and we met at Synapse in Goa where I work! The talk veered from Goa’s IFFI to Berlinale 2006 and how two Indian movies including ‘Parineeta’ were shown there. Cristof could talk at length about Shahrukh Khan’s rise, Kajol’s comeback in Fanaa, Aishwarya versus Madhuri as leading ladies in Indian cinema and so on.
And, as he suggested, Bollywood seems to be big in Germany. A proof of which is the ad in today's Indian Express announcing the launch of ‘Bollywood Stardust’—First Indian magazine to be launched in Germany. The ad claims that for the first time an Indian magazine is being printed for a European country in their language for the local market. Great idea! And good going Magna.

Media Ads: Time Magazine's Outdoor Campaign

In its outdoor campaign "TIME. Where news meets business" Time magazine's red borders create a timely, recognizable portrait of current world events says Amy Corr of Media Post. Eight ads (of which three are shown below) were created in-house by TIME and placed at high-trafficked business and commuter locations in London.


One ad in the campaign featured a group of borders lined up to create a gun with adjoining copy stating, "Urban warfare & hostile takeovers." Another featured a wall with an opening in the middle, and compares "breached borders & boardroom oustings.
A slot machine full of TIME borders compares the gambles of "social hazards & high risk investments." In another ad, a series of tiered borders represent "celebrity pairings & mega-mergers."

To know more about the campaign you can read: The Fine Red Line Between News And Business

TIP: Five Small Changes that don't Cost Much

Marketing consultant Lou Ann Sabatier was one of the many experts at Folio:Show 2006, to offer tips on marketing magazines. Her five simple strategies can be used by magazine publishers to give new life into their magazines without spending a bundle.

1. Conduct reader surveys at least every three years. If you can’t afford to hire an outside research company, create one your self. Try to avoid in-book surveys—they cost a lot and probably won’t generate the number of responses you’re looking for.
2. Create a tagline if you don’t have one. Your editors will be able to help you create a tagline for your title. It’s a free addition that will help you establish your brand better.
3. Create a positioning statement if you don’t have one. Different from a mission statement, your positioning statement should be limited to one sentence that explains exactly who you are. If you can’t explain your brand in one sentence, maybe it’s time to restructure.
4. Fifty percent of your marketing efforts should fail. If that’s not the case you’re not being creative enough or taking enough risks.
5. Readjust your marketing budget. Go back and reassess when your marketing budget was established and why. What does it make allowances for? Budgets should reflect the advancements in technology and branding opportunities available.

Download her presentation here: The Mission of Marketing
Read the Folio: article on her talk here: Small Marketing Changes That Yield Big Results

Design: New Slimmer WSJ

Last one month has seen a redesign of some well-established mastheads. (Very interesting for me as I am also working on a relaunch issue)

1) La Tribune, a Paris financial daily, relaunched in early november with a Garcia Media-led design. Apart from content reorganisation, new typographic fonts—Gotham Bold for the new logo; Miller for headlines and Guggenheim in various weights define the new look. The design also features innovative advertising configurations.

2) The Times of London adopted a new typeface 'Times Modern' and a redrawn insignia along with other design changes under the supervision of Neville Brody

3) The new-look slim WSJ in consultation with Mario Garcia is next. From Jan. 2, 2007, The Wall Street Journal will shave three inches from the width. The new front page will have five columns instead of six. A 48-inch width will make the paper more convenient to hold and carry. New, easy-to-read typography, improved labeling, more prominent headline styles, innovative summary boxes, and advanced infographics are some of the changes readers can expect.

To read more about WSJ redesign, visit dowjones pressroom

To know more about the other two redesign, visit newsdesigner.com

LaunchPAD: Recent Launches I Missed!

G2-The Global Gujarati: This is an English language magazine from Cymbal Media, Lokmat Group’s newly launched magazine division. Priced at Rs 125, the magazine will be on stands beginning December. With a large international format, the magazine will cover interviews and achievements of Gujarati and Parsi diasporas.

T3: The Indian edition of Tomorrow’s Technology Today launched in November. T3 is brought to India as a result of a tie-up between Infomedia India and UK-based Future Publishing. It is a magazine on gadgets and claims to be 'World’s No. 1 Gadget magazine'.
Interestingly, another media house seems to have discovered Indians’ rising obsession with gadgets. Haymarket SAC Publishing India formed as a joint venture agreement between uk-based specialist publisher Haymarket and Sorabjee Automotive Communications, plans to launch ‘Stuff’ which calls itself 'Earth's best-selling gadget magazine' in 2007.

Money Today: Launched by the India Today Group, Money Today is a fortnightly personal finance and investment magazine that aims to teach its readers how to ensure safe and healthy returns on investments. The magazine launched in October with an initial circulation of 100,000. The publication also has an interactive blog 'Professor Calculus'to help readers through financial number crunching.

Finally, feast your eyes on this amazing double-spread I found on the Money Today magazine website. :)