 With that, ladies and gentlemen, we are moving straight into our next keynote speaker. Here we have with us a brand which launched their new identity on such a great scale during the most difficult times of 2020. The brain behind this most successful launch of the year is amongst us. And it's my privilege to welcome Ms. Kavita Nayar, Chief Digital Transformation and Brand Officer for Vodafone Idea Limited. Our address will focus on creating a brand for the digital age. A very warm welcome to you, Ms. Nayar. Thank you very much, Katya. Thank you very much for having me here and thank you for those kind words. We are delighted with your presence and looking forward to your session now. Oh, thank you. And I hope that I can add some, you know, thinking or, you know, open up some, you know, thoughts, thought starters for the audience here. And thank you very much for listening in to me. I think I will, I do have a little bit of a presentation to share because it just helps to tell the story better sometimes. So we can see the presentation now on the screen as well. Excellent. Yeah, so I think when Khyati and team said that building a brand for the digital age and I think they, this whole brand conclave is about how to really shape brands during this new age. I was thinking about it and actually the key here is that and what I was thinking more about was if I just look back on my journey means I had the privilege to build telecom brands four times over whether it is, you know, Max Touch, Orange, Hutch, and now we, and even though I have done this many times over and I may have some, you know, Guinness Book of Records of, you know, killing brands and then, you know, launching them in New of Thar, which consumers love, there is really in this era, right? It is, it is just not the logo and the brand name that has changed. And I think I was resonating with what Varun was saying before me that the consumers have changed, the marketing landscape has changed and that's really very, very important for us as marketers, as people who look after brands to think about and when we were planning to do this brand integration of these wonderful two brands, you know, Idea and Vodafone are these two admired brands that we had in our arsenal and when we were trying to integrate it, we said that, of course, we should borrow from the legacy, but we must build for the future. We must have a new, you know, dynamic edge to this new brand. And the whole part was that we should really think of how do we really talk to the New Age Indians. And in this case, it means I will call it the digital Indian because I feel that digital has really given consumers, smartphones have given consumers a new purpose. They really believe Indians are a young country. We are a young country. We are very optimistic. We are very ambitious. And I feel that this combination of smartphone technology data has really helped Indians to really unlock many possibilities to help them get ahead in life and also find newer ways and newer business models to, you know, how to work together to make things happen. And we were very, very keen to tap into what I call, you know, the culpability of this rising India. So we was actually built for the New Age Indian for this connected ecosystem and we wanted it to be relevant not only today, but for many, many years to come. And this is for the customer. We also thought that this is a great opportunity because we remember we sell air. So, you know, all our employees that are our brand is what a brand does. So they are the ones who are really helping deliver the experience of this brand. And so we wanted to really craft something which is also which will help us build a future fit organization for us. And if I then look back as to what we really did and it is only three months old, but we designed the digital first brand. This was before the lockdown when we designed this. And we did not launch just a brand identity, but, you know, brand identity is what people every PC is, but the whole positioning around it. But we created a we didn't go through the normal books of, you know, the marketing landscape, which is which in my previous avatars that I have done this, you would say, how will be this logo? How will it come in black and white? How will it come in print outdoor? And then of course, whatever it is, you will slap it on TV. We said that we have to create this brand for the screens, the large screen and the small screen. And what I really love about this is the flexibility and the various possibilities, not only as a design system, but also it flexes across consumer and enterprise, rural and urban, socioeconomic classes, old age, youngsters, everything. Right. So if all of you have seen it, you don't see it in one way. It is quite unique, means you can see it in different manner. So you're not really not guidelineized, you know, if you know what I mean, because you know, brand books, you don't really need to be guideline. You know, you have the ability to build it for this new screen, the new kind of people who are really consuming our brands. And I think it really reflects the throbbing. We would like to be a brand which is together for tomorrow. And that's, and that is the purpose of the brand. And we would like to really help our customers get ahead in their lives so that we can all together build a better tomorrow. So and when we launched this, and Kathy, I think mentioned that it was done during lockdown. So to that extent, it is a it is a true testimony of teams really working virtually to do a brand launch of the scale and magnitude. And it was about saying that how do we really deal with crisis? Do we look at it as glass half full or glass half empty? And we decided that it has to be a glass half full. There are a lot of learnings that I have from what we really attempted to do and brand is only means this brand is just born. It will be shaped in the future and brands are journeys and they will be built. But from just this aspect of when we shaped and crafted this brand and what we learned from it, I thought that I will share a few nuggets of what the learnings were because the results are very exciting. So all our stakeholders, whether it is the consumers who used to love for an idea, they said that he is bigger and better. And they, you know, in the first we had awareness of about 80 percent in the first week itself. And more than awareness, we met people who said that they really love it or like a brand to employees to trade partners. It really resonated with them. And if it really resonates, I thought that it's a great opportunity to reflect on certain learnings that I have, which I would love to share with you. So my learnings are building a digital first brand. So the journey is messy and pun intended because it is not a linear journey. You know, it never was. You must have heard about the Google's messy, but if I just reflect back on 10 years, it means I used to do this kind of marketing job about 10 years ago and I came back to do marketing job 10 years later. And I realized that I was the queen of 360 because, you know, it was the path to purchase was fairly linear to that extent. In the morning, you woke up, you read a newspaper, you went to work, you either heard radio or you saw something outside. Your cars or trains or buses, wherever you're traveling, you came back in the evening and you watch TV, which was prime time TV. And suddenly when I really came back to do your marketing job, the screens, the small screen had changed the way consumers look at, you know, brands and how they consume and the path to purchase is no more linear. And it is not something that you can really even control. And the importance of data and analytics, you know, and the opportunity to really use that to really better navigate it. And I think that is what I think we crafted for. We said that we will challenge the status quo. We will not really use the tried and tested methods. We have to understand that this journey to that extent is messy and how do we really participate in this consumer journey, which will really help us. So that was the first learning. The second learning is so important that, you know, we no longer as you know, brand people, brand built brands, it is not as easy as sending something to the consumer and they love it. It is consumers who build it. So rather than trying to control, we said that we must figure out how we can influence those who build it. And I'm not talking about just the influencer world, right? Because that is a that's another topic and we can talk about that. But it is about the ecosystem and the connected ecosystem and how do we really use that and how do we really influence that? And it started with a small germ of an idea. He was some strategic, you know, pillars. He said we have what a phone idea did this massive integration, whether it is network integration, distribution integration, people integration and brand integration through a lot of partners. We close up in the collaborative spirit. So we said we must use a partners to really, you know, participate in the conversation of really, you know, partnering with me. And what started with that germ of an idea really, you know, if I can say spiraled, spiraled where we had the people organically participating in this conversation and becoming our ambassadors and advocates to really, you know, champion this new brand. So to that extent we as Mark, you have to give up control, right? Because we had to really say that we have people who can really do this. And it worked for us. And I think that there is a nugget there as a principle that, you know, it is consumers who are building it and how can you really influence that? How can you really participate there in an engaging manner? And how can you continue to do that to build brands in this new age world? The third principle, I think, is that we have to engage with them on their terms, you know, on their turf. It can't be that we do these, you know, means that I'm really I'm not saying that these are called them for an event, et cetera. And then expect them to participate and be engaged. I think that part has gone and the attention spans are much smaller. And we said that there is so and for me, there is a beauty of a triage that I call marketing data and technology. I think they are coming together and the power of it is just so immense. These three pillars, I heard Warren talking about it. And I really I love it when, you know, you have industry people who are talking in the same manner because it is great. So I think marketing data and technology, how does that really come together where we can really create personalization at scale? And we also can really leverage, you know, technology to create immersive experiences. And I'll just give you a couple of thoughts on that. Where I talked about our employees. We have about, you know, about 11,000 employees. We engaged with them in a very, very immersive experience when we launched the brand rather than just saying, this is our logo. This is what it is. It was about if we really believe brand is what a brand does, we wanted the leadership team to really talk about how they believed in it and then really get them to immerse in those experiences of the new brand, along with their family, because remember, this was all during lockdown. And that really, really helped. And we said, whatever our consumer sees, you know, beta tested on our employees and, you know, they could be our first set of consumers who will tell us whether this is working or not. So if you look, you see here, which is, you know, you can make your unique tune, you have a number and the tune is unique to you. So which is what I was telling you, the personalization at scale, right? So you can really use your number to really create a tune which is yours and which is also branded and you would still like to make it. So the power of technology or these wonderful trails that I showed you from the identity and I said, it's not the identity, it just leaves in everywhere. They became an expression of our network. And this we said that how to really use that to give immersive experiences, which people are really happy to engage with. They're happy to share because this is this is about them and not just be intruding on their lives really, you know, a lot. We had about two million, you know, or people who did all of this and we got some really wonderful brand advocates, people who did this. We filter because it was something that they would they wanted to participate. It was not us just throwing stuff or pushing stuff in their face, which is why I'm not talking about the roadblock because that is a little bit of a traditional method that we used to really get some awareness going fairly quickly. And getting their attention is tough, you know, make it worth their while. About 10 years ago, you would say an average consumer is exposed to about, you know, 500 brands a day. But today, somebody told me that an average consumer is exposed to about 2,000 brands in a day and remembers only four or five. And it is not when I say remembers, not just remembers from a love perspective. It could even be that I don't like this, you know, remembers only four or five brands that he or she is exposed to. And all of us would like to be a part of that four or five, isn't it? Because, you know, who would want to be in a place where people don't really remember them? And we said that we have to really do this in a manner where for people whose attention span is so low, who want engaging stuff, how do we really engage with them? So if you look at it, I'm talking about a national scale launch of a telecom brand. And I'm talking a lot about how we really use digital and how do we really use digital to really build immersive experiences, engaging experiences. So some of you must have seen happy surprises where you said that we must have some positivity and joy during, you know, the first few days of launch. And of course, there could be gratifications. But even if you people are spotting a simple idea on the app and we expected about 400,000 customers who would play. We had about greater than two million unique customers who played it for 14 days, which was quite awesome. And suddenly you say that, oh, it was the simplicity of the idea. It grabbed their attention. They felt like, you know, and it was not just about the spot the logo. It was a new app, which they really like. So it is no more now about different, different functions, silos, which you have to really start integrating, because it is just not about, you know, sending them a communication piece. And then, of course, more than ever, I think if I didn't mention before, when I came back 10 years later into marketing, there are many things that have changed, but there are a few things that haven't. And I feel that creativity and storytelling still matter and they will continue to matter. They will continue to matter no matter how they will always matter. Till, you know, I think it is it is one of the things that has stayed through centuries, and I think it will continue to stay. It is just that how we tell these stories has changed, isn't it? And if you look at it, all of us are naturally building stories with a small screen, and I'm going to just show you two ants and they're different and they're still we. And but it is all built for built for the small screen, done it done in like two, three days. Done with collaborators, partners who really come together to do this. So the way you tell them has changed. But, you know, the essential part of interesting storytelling continues to matter. The prizes that I was talking about and the same brand, but in a different manner where you are getting, you know, we can roll over, but against told in a very interesting way, you can see that, you know, Sonics come together, right? Because, you know, suddenly you realize that Sonics plays a large role in the way consumers process because they are using the small screen. So they're seeing it in that manner. They may hear there is a payment process, etc. So all of these become immersive experiences across so that you can really engage with the brand at a subliminal level. Still know that this is a brand that is talking to you. Not your face. And I think. Sorry. And most of all, I think I started by saying that it is a brand which is built for which is together for tomorrow. And we said that digital is changing the way brands are being built. Of course, but it is also changing people's lives, right? And I said that Indians are really, really optimistic. They want to get ahead in life. And so this and this flexes. So you have seen some of the digital work, some of the work that is there, which is of the identity, which looks absolutely new age, touching edge. And then you have these stories, which are rooted in reality, which is also the same brand. And I'm going to show you these three films, which shows the power of what digital can do to people's lives and how we are really acting to actively participate in that. This is today's generation. The whole heart is on the phone. Tick, tick, tick, tick. What will happen to them? You can create any website, any app, the way it is possible. Look, who is on the phone now? Yes, I think these were some of the principles that I thought I must share with you that we learned as a team on when we were trying to shape a new brand. And if this brand was built for the new age, Indian, as I said, from identity positioning to how it is really coming to life. So these were about the six principles, which I thought I must share with all of you what has gone and. This is just, of course, the beginning. And I said, brand is what the brand does. This new brand is about three months old. So there is a lot more doing that is to be done. Thank you very much for listening to me and hearing me. Thank you. Thank you for sharing your insights with us. We do have a couple of audience questions that come in for you. So we're going to take a few minutes for you to answer them. So first, foremost, the question gaming coming from the audience said, why rename it V? Is there any specific reason behind it or just because of the Vodafone idea collaboration? No, so I think it borrows from the legacy, right? So it is an abbreviation of these two wonderful brands, Vodafone and Idea. So it is, you know, VI, which is V, but it is much more than that. It is and which is why I said it is V. It is not just about me. It is about all of us, all of it is about the collective. It is about the collaboration. It is about what this whole inclusivity of what this brand is all about. So and if you look at stuff, which is the logo, which has, you know, the the eye, which has a dot below, it is an exclamation. This is a surprise when you deal with us. So it is much more than just an abbreviation. But yes, it starts from the fact that V comes from a legacy which borrows from the legacy of two really wonderful brands. Right. It's a new dynamic edge. So here is another question which is saying that the communication so far consists of a film that we've seen a couple of advertisements or audio visuals. What else will you plan to do to communicate this change? Now, we know it's in the nascent space. But what are the plans? Yes, actually, I didn't share with you what happened during launch. And I think the films were just a small part of it. I think the large part was about so the first week of first was about getting the name changed and we as I said that we had awareness of about 80 percent and about, you know, I think the after recall of about 80 percent awareness across even town classes as low as, you know, 50,000 pop strata. And we really combined the power of TV and digital to really build this. And most of which are the substantiators, as I can call, you know, a lot of it is rooted on our network and we really named the network giga net. So I've not really shown all of that. I was assuming that the market certainly must have got bored of seeing these things. What we did. But, you know, the giga network, which really then, you know, makes a big credibility of our network because that work integration is what would have been ideas all about the back, you know, the backbone of it. And how does it really help you get ahead? And then, of course, the IPL sponsorship and all of the digital, you know, immersive experiences that I showed. So it is much beyond a film, actually, you know, for me, which is by marketing data and technology, you know, to come together. And for me, it is about content that you create and which then can go to a big screen or a small screen. But those are the screens that really are top of mind for us. Basically, it's possible. Right. Now, there is a big question which says then this network integration was clearly in the making for two years. Was it always the plan to launch it in September 2020? Or did you speed up the process because it made sense to launch it during the pandemic with the increased reliance on telecom players? OK, that's a good question. So now, you know, you can't really do launches like this, like overnight, suddenly saying, OK, pandemic, you should do it. So strategically, the decision always was that we must launch the new brand after the network integrations and almost near completion, right? Because how will you see the value of a new brand? How will you see a changed experience if you don't really have a network syndicated? Now, the key is that the pandemic started in March. We launched in September and you're right about it. That with the pandemic, the telecom brands, all of us, you know, came back into the consideration set of consumers because we were helping people stay connected with what mattered to them. But that was actually not the reason for launching in. It's actually complicated because, you know, to launch brands at scale. If somebody and I and for people who know me, we'll know that impossible doesn't really, you know, exist in my dictionary. But if somebody told me about nine months ago or ten months ago, that he would have to launch a new brand in this kind of a scale without meeting each other all virtually. I would have said near impossible, but actually made it happen. Because the keys are not met each other. So it did not, we didn't bring it forward or anything. It was the strategic choice that people have to do, you know, post the network integration and just manage and then, you know, we just launched the brand. It just happened that we had to launch it in the middle of a pandemic. But thank you so much, Miss Nair, for spending this time with us, sharing your insights and story of we as a new brand to for all of us. And exchange for media, thanks you for your time. Thank you so much. You're most welcome. Thank you very much. Thank you very much, audience, for listening to me and have a good weekend or rest of the week. Thank you.