[Exclusive Interview] This Make In India 360-Degree Communication Agency Launched New York Office In First 1000 Days Of Starting Up

Recently, we interacted with Ms Divanshi Gupta, Director, The Marcom Avenue– an integrated marketing agency that offers offline and online activation, Technical services, Branding, Video production, PR, and more.

Here are the interview highlights:

Can you tell us about the journey of TMA in establishing itself as a 360-degree Communication agency in India? What were some of the pivotal moments in the company’s growth and development?

Let’s see. Might sound a little cliched but the biggest turning point of The Marcom Avenue was setting the place up. When I went out looking for a marketing firm for my first start-up, I realized that everyone was talking numbers, but no one was talking about growth or impact. That’s how Marcom came to be – a marketing agency that wanted to make a difference. 

Then we scored our first client – YMCA, and since then, there has been no looking back. Within a year, we had our first Fortune 500 company in the form of Nestle, for whom we made 10,000 videos in just a month, which is still one of our greatest accomplishments. 

Within the first three years, we had our first international office in the US, and the very next year, I received the ET Young Women Entrepreneur Award, at the back of all the work done by the entire team. 

This year, we established an in-house production house that goes by the name of WOAH Films, and most importantly, TMA 2.0 – our rebranding effort wherein we’ll be branching out to other avenues including Experiential, Tech, Ads, PR, and Growth to give a more integrated marketing support to our clients.

That’s the story of The Marcom Avenue in a nutshell

How does TMA’s seven avenues address the unique challenges faced by clients and stakeholders in India?

Marketing is an evolving process and while Digital Marketing is bigger than it ever was, it’s simply not enough on its own anymore. The first thing that The Marcom Avenue wants to put greater emphasis on in the years to come is Technology. 

We keep seeing 3D billboards, Augmented reality based events, all this talk about AI and machine learning based technology. Can you realistically tell me that India is doing its best to capitalize on all that’s on offer? Our organization wants to not just lead the charge from the front but to set trends. 

With multiple services under the same roof, we get to address more pain points and capitalize on more touch points for our clients. We get to reach a broader audience, create more opportunities, streamline personalized brand communication across all avenues and address a broader spectrum of issues for each client. 

The scope of collaborative campaigns among multiple Avenues is vast, and when the core team handles it all, as opposed to different agencies, our clients can expect a seamless delivery of every project. 

How do you see the landscape of communication and marketing evolving in India?

First of all, the standards are skyrocketing. Good stopped being good a long time ago, and now, even exceptional isn’t good enough anymore. People want authentic content that resonates with the purpose behind the existence of their organization.

The audience, on the other hand, is getting smarter. Gone are the days of fancy packaging, some glittery showcase of offerings, and the inclusion of a randomly selected influencer or two to propel the message forward.

In a nutshell, the landscape is moving from smart to smart-authentic and mindful. And a brand is only as strong as the connection it has with its audience. 

Can you provide insights into TMA’s future plans and any innovative approaches or services you’re planning to introduce in the Indian market?

Our motto is 5X and it is fueled by the philosophy ‘Outside the Box, Onto the Next’, which is also our new innovative tagline. 5X does not just refer to the revenue that we are targeting. It stands for People. Culture, Processes, Learning, and Business. 

We are bringing global subject matter experts on board to ensure that everything that ships out from our desks, is genuine, and approved by industry experts. We currently have experts from Real Estate, FMCG, Retail, B2B, Tech, and more, and we are already beginning to see the improved positive shift in quality of the work that we are putting out. 

There’s also the Marquee Awards, our internal recognition program that we’re planning to scale up to invite participation from freelancers and agencies from across the country. 

Above all, we’ve established bases in Bangalore, Mumbai, US, Canada, UK, South Africa, and the Gulf and it’s now time to expand our reach in these regions. 

For individuals or companies looking to excel in the field of communication, what advice or strategies would you offer based on your experience with TMA?

I notice a lack of brand recall across different assets being put out by brands. Their emailers, social media creatives, and offline assets are not in sync. In addition, we become so obsessed with the quality of the assets we put out that we forget about their purpose – engagement. On social media, in particular, we tend to run after followers, whereas we should be running after engagement because that’s where your next customer is hidden and that’s the starting point of solidifying your connection with your audience. 

We also need to understand the pain points of our audience, and ensure that we offer our clients data backed services that are driven and measured by a proven metrics system such as KNOT, AIDA, or CLEAR.

And for brands, while it’s no secret that the cost of customer accusation is increasing, we cannot afford to compromise the quality of our offerings in lieu of a higher marketing budget because that’s the key to goodwill, repeat customers and ultimately, your success. 

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