1. Tell us about your background and journey.
I often tell people that in an ideal world, I would have been a Physicist, however, life had other plans for me. After scoring a 97 in Class 12th Physics I joined Delhi College of Engineering as a Civil Engineer in 1998, however, I didn’t enjoy applied science and looked for an opportunity to spread the wings of my imagination which I found in the field of Marketing. I joined IIM Indore in 2002 and was the Secretary of the IIM Indore Marketing Club and also founded UtsAha!, the IIM Indore Marketing Fair.
From there I entered the world of FMCG and worked for 15 months with Wipro Consumer Care, then did a decade with Mondelez, 2 years with Diageo, and 5 years with Britannia as the Marketing Head of their International Business and subsequently the Dairy Business.
I joined the vibrant world of telecom with Vodafone Idea in Aug 2022 and I handle Products and Services for the Vi Prepaid Business. My mandate here extends from the creation of new innovative products and features, looking at data growth and device partnerships, and also managing recharging on the digital medium including the Vi App.
2. What has changed about marketing in the last decade and what will be the future according to you?
While the fundamentals of Marketing as a function don’t change, which is to deeply understand your customers, and the legacy of Brands, and to deliver a Return on Investment on Business through Campaigns yet much has changed over the past decade that I have been a practitioner.
The first significant change has been the gradual shifting of businesses towards e-commerce and digital mediums. This has led to a widespread appreciation of digital campaigns and performance marketing.
In tandem with this change has been the growth of social media and always on engagement that the consumer expects from brands. Trends like Moment Marketing and social listening have emerged as a result of the same.
The next is the growth of buzz marketing and the understanding that user-generated content has a significant role to play in building brand perception through influencers and meme marketing.
Also, consumers increasingly expect brands to take a stand, and identifying of your brand's purpose helps brands stand out in an increasingly cluttered media landscape.
The growth of OTT led by the penetration of smart TVs has further moved media dollars from conventional media to digital mode.
Finally, the large profusion of available customer data is leading to applications of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and now generative AI to deliver personalized experiences and to identify propensity bases more likely to react positively to your brand campaigns.
3. How do you study the impact of your brand campaigns?
In order to make the most of brand campaigns, it’s critical to start with the campaign task which could be either of
- Awareness: To deliver Brand awareness through memorable creatives.
- Consideration: To shift perceptions around your product or service positively by communicating a brand proposition
- Purchase: To deliver business gain by calling our brand/ product features or a consumer offer.
The best way to study the impact of Brand actions is through consumer research which studies the movement of the brand funnel on the above parameters pre and post-campaign.
4. What is your greatest life lesson so far and a piece of advice that you would like to share with future marketers?
This question takes me back to a conversation I had with my father perhaps 25 years back, where he explained to me that as an Admiral serving in the Indian Navy, he visualized life as a Ship. He then asked me why the Titanic sunk despite being made of the toughest metal known to man then. The reason was that while it was the toughest metal, it was also brittle. Every ship has 6 airtight compartments at its base. Even if one compartment remains intact the ship floats. In the case of the Titanic, once it hit the iceberg all 6 burst at once as the walls of the ship were brittle.
Similarly, in order to live a good life we must isolate each of our compartments from each other, a compartment for our career, one for our health, another for our family, one for our interests and hobbies, and also one for our friends. Each of these compartments must be nurtured individually and we should let one impact the other. So if you are struggling in your career for a while, ensure you are caring for your health. Spend time on your hobbies and also with your family.
Hence, while I enjoy my job, I know that my overall well-being needs me to have goals for my hobbies as well, be it investing time writing on Linkedin or working towards a book.
My advice to future marketers is that as you plan for your life and career make goals not just for how you will progress in your professional milestones but also the personal goals that you plan to achieve and you will eventually live a full and satisfied life.
5. Which is your favorite book and why?
While I have enjoyed reading Al Rice and Jack Trout for the best marketing reads, the book on marketing which I really enjoyed in recent times was “How Brands Grow” by Byron Sharp as it’s a very pragmatic take on marketing that challenges conventional beliefs around positioning and segmentation.
In fact, I have recently penned a book for marketing practitioners called “The Practical Marketer” which would take students, entrepreneurs, and budding marketers through all the steps followed in Brand Management in an FMCG right from building brand strategy to execution of campaigns.
Brief Bio:
Saurabh Bajaj is the Executive Vice President Prepaid Marketing Head for Vodafone Idea since Aug’2022. He is an alumnus of Delhi College of Engineering and completed his PGDM (MBA) from the Indian Institute of Management Indore in 2004. He has since, spent over 19 years in the field of Sales & Marketing.
He worked for a decade with Mondelez, then as the Innovation Head for Premium & Luxury Spirits with Diageo for a couple of years, and has been the Head of Marketing for Dairy & International Business at Britannia over 5 years and joined Vodafone Idea last year. He has been recognized as 50 Best Marketing & Communication Professionals by White Page International in 2020 & as a DMA Trailblazer Rising Star CMO in 2021.
Saurabh is passionate about sharing his experiences and has given over 40 talks at campuses including the IIMs. He is in the midst of completing his book named ‘The Practical Marketer’, which is a practitioner’s guide to practical marketing for corporate employees. He has also kicked off a web series named “Iconic Ads with Devleena & Saurabh” where they explore the story behind Iconic pieces of Advertising and a podcast named “Buland Future with Saurabh & Manas” where they talk to visionaries and explore future trends.
Interviewed By - Himanshi
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