The Hindu Business Line : On the agenda ...

GoaFest this year will be bigger - with more participation and more people, and greater commitment, says Jagdip Bakshi, Chairman of GoaFest 2008. One can sense more than a dash of optimism and passion in Bakshi's voice as he assures that the festival will not turn out to be a "whining" session like last year.

Although sincere attempts were made last year to figure out what ails the advertising industry, at a conclave prior to the awards night, somewhere down the line it turned out to be a platform to air grievances and point fingers.

NAILING THE TRUE VALUE

GoaFest 2008 promises to be different, and more importantly, think and act positively. The need of the hour is an attempt to unlock the value within that will enable the industry to demand what it deserves and also make the clients sit up and take notice, says Bakshi. "What should we do to nail innovation and value in the industry? What is great ideation? What are the expectations of the client?" The three-day festival, which will kick off on April 3, aims to provide a platform to understand all this and more, and will see industry heads discussing ways of `Nailing the True Value in the Advertising Industry'.

The advertising industry needs to get out of the "discount regime with guys getting pushed around," says Bakshi, also the CEO of Contract Advertising (India). There is simply no `rate card' in the industry to go by.

The discussions at GoaFest aim to provoke the ad industry to start thinking on these lines. But we first have to answer this important question: "Are we all one side?" asks Bakshi.

GoaFest 2008, organised by the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI), has roped in Lalit Modi, CEO of the Indian Premier League, who will share his experience in creating the billion-dollar IPL value proposition. While D. Shivkumar, CEO, Nokia, will outline what value advertisers expect from creative agencies, Balki of Lowe will join other panelists to deconstruct the value inherent in advertising. The client vs creative debate gets hot as Harit Nagpal of Vodaphone takes on V. Shantakumar of Saatchi & Saatchi. Kiran Karnik of Nasscom will talk on the role of an industry body in creating value.

Looking beyond GoaFest, Bakshi has a few long-term plans for the industry. They include getting the top 20 agencies in the country together to frame a "common programme" so that the advertising industry develops a strong association, like the Nasscom is for the software sector. "We need standards and systems of payment and compensation so that the ad industry does not become a `dog eats dog world'."

The industry also needs to address the issue of attracting young talent. Besides the Mudra Institute of Communications, there are few places to tap talent, rues Bakshi. "But what has the industry done to attract young talent? We need to raise awareness about how cool the trade is - maybe through workshops and agency attachments. We also plan to invite students from different colleges and institutes to next year's GoaFest to question the industry leaders on various issues," says Bakshi.

GoaFest will also organise presentations by Donald Gunn of the famous Gunn Report; Craig Davis, worldwide creative chief, JWT; Stephen Gatfield, Chief Executive Officer, Lowe Worldwide; and Herman Vaske of Emotional network.

ABBY AWARDS

The highlight of GoaFest is the `Abby' awards for excellence in advertising and communication from the Ad Club Bombay. (Till last year, the Abby awards were awarded by Ad Club Bombay, with the AAAI organising its own awards festival.)

The absence of leading ad agency Ogilvy & Mather from the GoaFest awards last year was noticeable. The agency would only take part in the Abby awards. But this year, things have changed with the coming together of the AAAI and the Ad Club. Indeed, the industry is bigger than individual egos!

Awards will be given for 14 categories across verticals such as print, film, radio, out-of-home and integrated advertising. The Abby has received about 3,800 entries from across India.

This year's jury comprises Piyush Pandey, Executive Chairman & National Creative Director, India and South Asia, O&M; K.V. Sridhar, National Creative Director, Leo Burnett; Alok Nanda, Director, Alok Nanda Communications; and Ravi Deshpande, Chief Creative Officer, Contract.

Last year, McCann Erickson walked away with the Grand Prix in the television category for its commercial for Happy Dent. It bagged quite a few other awards too. (Incidentally, McCann is not participating this year.) On the flip side, there were no Grand Prix awards in the press and radio categories.

There were several Silver and Bronze winners, but very few Gold winners. Will things be different this year? Has the industry learnt from its mistake? Is the zip back in the creatives? Bakshi believes it is. "The creatives are better than ever before this year," he signs off.