Ogilvy India has announced a joint venture (JV) between Neo@Ogilvy and the Smile Group to strengthen its performance marketing, e-commerce and mobile offerings. The JV will also set up a global media delivery hub to service Neo@Ogilvy’s global media operations. The Smile Group is a privately held group of ventures focused on the digital industry with extensive holdings in the consumer internet and media space.
Neo@Ogilvy is the performance marketing network of advertising major Ogilvy & Mather India. The Indian arm of the global agency has named Sanjay Ramakrishnan as country head for the joint venture.
While OgilvyOne drives all digital strategy and creative services for clients in India, Neo@Ogilvy's specific focus is on digital media, performance marketing, e-commerce and mobile marketing.
Harish Bahl, Chairman, Smile Group, said, “The vision of the partnership is to be able to offer world class services to local and global clients of Ogilvy and Neo respectively, using the expertise and experience of Smile.”
Ramakrishnan, President, Country Head, Neo@Ogilvy India, added, “The aim is to recast Neo@Ogilvy as one of the most effective digital media companies in the country. A gap exists in the way paid digital media is integrated with traditional marketing and communication. The goal is to change that through Neo@Ogilvy. End-to-end e-commerce solution is another unique offering that this JV brings to the table.”