MUMBAI: Need for professional marketing in the business of entertainment is the need of the hour! Attempting to understand and apply the above-mentioned theme is Ad Club's one-day seminar on 'value creation' being held on 11 January 2003 at the Regal Room, The Oberoi Hotels, Mumbai. Star TV is the event sponsor for the event.

The speakers chosen for the seminars include a well-balanced panel of achievers representing diverse fields. The list of eminent speakers includes: PNC chairman Pritish Nandy; writer/director Ashutosh Gowariker; Bharti Enterprises marcom director Hemant Sachdev; Banyan Tree Communications CMD Anish Trivedi; creative consultant Rekha Nigam; Leo Entertainment director Sanjay Bhutiani; UTV Group director Zarine Mehta; Star India COO Sameer Nair and Reliance Entertainment chairman Amit Khanna.

The annual industry forums such as the FICCI Frames events and CII sponsored seminars generally focus on the larger picture and fail to focus on the key aspects of marketing entertainment and the fundamentals therein. Ad Club's focused seminar will attempt to touch the core of the issue and explore the anatomy of this increasingly popular marketing vehicle by using professional business case studies outlined by the prominent list of speakers.

Ad Club chairperson seminars committee and Percept Advertising CEO Rajesh Pant, while addressing a press meet, mentioned that there was a need to ensure professionalism in the marketing of entertainment because entertainment is the best option to satisfy clients looking for short-term answers and gains.

Pant also added that the idea also originated from the recent happenings that disproved the flurry of negative media reports expressing concerns about the sad state of the media and entertainment industry. Pant referred to the pessimistic media reports mentioning that 'the myth of Bollywood was broken and it was a failure of imagination'.

"Recent media reports have predicted doomsday warnings for the Indian film industry due to the large number of flops. However, well-marketed recent mega-hits such as Kaante and Saathiya have shown that well-packaged entertainment sells despite all odds. Hollywood films are never understated and go for the audience jugular. The marketing promotions for these films are planned from the initial stages of conceptualisation," Pant added.

The attendees will receive inputs on various facets of entertainment and marketing such as in-film product placements; creating and cultivating relationships between celebrities and companies to establish and promote brand loyalty; building the brand's image within the entertainment community; conceiving stratgeies to launch new brands within the community; creating a knowledge base and perspectives on how the programming elements can be used independently of marketing tactics; how the entertainment mix can ensure that programming elements can be integrated into the marketing process.

Pant feels that the concept of entertainment should be redefined and extended to include all those activities and events that elevate a person from the current travails of life.

AD Club Value Creation seminar itinerary

Ad Club's high-powered panel will surely be an interesting platform with a balanced mix of panelists to talk about new-age communication tools.