Edward Bulwer-Lytton was absolutely right in every way when he said "The pen is mightier than the sword". However, in the current world of extremely alacritous and bullet-train speed proliferation of smartphones and laptops - be it in the World or in India - the proverb needs to be tweaked a bit - "The keyboard is mightier than the pen"!
With this MODIfied DIGITAL proverb to suit this day and age, I will proceed from where I had left earlier in my previous blog. I am talking about that atrocious meme! that was created without any understanding by the certain select few who grossly mislead the public for their own vested interests by creating further rubbish memes like:
When I was pursuing my MBA in Marketing from a well-reputed B-school - Amrita School of Business, Coimbatore to be very precise - I was very glad that someone in India had the gumption to use the social media in the right way to its full effectiveness for a big, important and main event as the Indian election to target the voters especially the tech-obsessed youth.
India was standing on the cusp of a life and death situation where the wrong person would have driven the nail in the coffin to the hilt for our excellence and advancement in all spheres of life. Luckily, sanity prevailed and Modi was the beacon of light to breathe a new life into our heavily debilitated economy.
With immediate and drastic measures needed to correct the financial course that would pave the road to a future action and prosperous nation, he undertook his first journey to Bhutan on June 16, 2014. Little did Modi knew then that he would be enormously and erroneously subjected to indecorous ridicule of inordinate degree for the strenuous efforts that he has been undertaking to woo the investors and propel our nation's growth by flying to all corners of the world, I know that our Earth is an Oblate Spheroid! (It's a bad joke with reference to corners of the world!), to clear the smelly mess left by the previous government.
What our PM is doing is like planting a seed now so that it grows into a full-fledged, strong and unshakeable Banyan tree tomorrow. Prepare a solid foundation by carefully nurturing the plants and Voila! The results will be mind-boggling! Marketing is all about that - Look forward positively to a thriving future. Strongly riding on the opposition's and certain media's tall tales that our PM is wasting a lot of the tax payer's money on foreign trips, the clamorous outcry from the general public has been steadily increasing with time due to such false claims and many memes have been circulating the net like wildlife:
I was extremely saddened on seeing such gross misunderstanding and misrepresentation of what NaMo has been fantastically doing since the baton had been passed over to him in 2014. In fact, I was very frustrated and irritated for the past two years seeing all the unwanted news about Modi when he is ACTUALLY doing good for our nation especially with regards to his canny Marketing efforts. I was patiently waiting for the results to manifest itself knowing very well that the lotus will swiftly bloom and spread its delightful smile. Now, the outcomes are speaking for themselves and it was high time that I blow off my steam with solid facts.
It is indeed a political masterstroke that he not only addresses the socio-economic problems that are plaguing our society in isolation but also collectively by frequently flying to establish to the world leaders that India should be the first choice place for investments. In short, an effective Brand Building exercise to create the perfect Top-of-the-Mind-Awareness for the state heads of the developed and developing nations to park their resources into our country. From a 'doom and gloom' situation in 2014, it has become 'boom and bloom' (Sometimes, I like my meaningful rhyming very much!) for our nation with his 'Make in India' mission and strategically positioning India by strongly exhorting other countries to manufacture in our country.
It is indeed a political masterstroke that he not only addresses the socio-economic problems that are plaguing our society in isolation but also collectively by frequently flying to establish to the world leaders that India should be the first choice place for investments. In short, an effective Brand Building exercise to create the perfect Top-of-the-Mind-Awareness for the state heads of the developed and developing nations to park their resources into our country. From a 'doom and gloom' situation in 2014, it has become 'boom and bloom' (Sometimes, I like my meaningful rhyming very much!) for our nation with his 'Make in India' mission and strategically positioning India by strongly exhorting other countries to manufacture in our country.
How does he do it? Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy! By leveraging our country's core competencies (Falling in love with my own Alliteration here! Jokes apart). India has a very rich and abundant reserves of natural resources to go hand in hand with our whopping great talent pool of population - Skilled and Unskilled Labour. So, when he gives his sales pitch by convincing the various powerful and numero uno's of the respective countries making the best use of what we are exceptionally good thereby giving our nation that vital and distinct competitive edge which provides us with the tremendous upper hand over the other developing nations.
By September 3 2016, NaMo has undertaken 52 foreign trips across 43 countries. To give a detailed breakup of his broad abroad itinerary:
2014-2015 - 9 countries
2015-2016 - 28 countries
2016-2017 (as of today) - 15 countries.
He has visited USA 4 times which would have enabled NaMo to imaginarily and successfully say "If you smell what NaMo is COOKing"! Yes, I am referring to Tim Cook's exploratory tour to India during the hot and humid May. Though Cook didn't exactly spell out the investment ideas in India, the initial barrier has been broken and the first steps have been taken.
To put it in a nutshell, NaMo is a ruthless and tough Corporate PM who gets what he wants unlike his predecessor MMS who did what was said to him based on an SMS! I don't have to say who would have sent him the messages as the entire world knew it. Nevertheless, every cloud has a silver lining!
NaMo is a highly savvy Corporate person who knows and understands the nuts and bolts of India's economic landscape - that the way to a rapid development is through having sufficient sources of legitimate funds so as to generate enough employment in the country. In fact, IMHO, he is a brilliant and genius Marketing personality. Sharp, Smart, Traditional, Hip and Debonair - NaMo has an eagle-eyed taste and sophistication when it comes to his attires.
Some people may say that he is doing a political stunt just to garner good media attention and coverage. Unfortunately, there is something called Cross-Cultural Management which is a crucial and an indispensable element for conducting International Business. "When in Rome, do as the Romans". NaMo has internalized it to such an extent that he dons several hats, pun intended, in many countries.
Likewise, he has many firsts to his name after many a year that has ensued a very good relationship with not only our neighbours but also on a global scale. To illustrate my case in point:
Likewise, he has many firsts to his name after many a year that has ensued a very good relationship with not only our neighbours but also on a global scale. To illustrate my case in point:
On the surface, it can seem that Marketing is an expense - an unnecessary and extraneous cost. But, in reality, Marketing is an investment. I will just give some examples. As a result of our NaMo's unflinching and untiring efforts, France has pledged to invest 2 billion euros and Airbus has committed to outsource 2 billion dollars. Japan's outflow is going to be 2 billion dollars in Real Estate. I can give more such examples. But, we shall first take a look at the inflows that has been steadily streaming (I love my alliterations!) into our economy.
Note: All are in USD. Do convert the numbers by multiplying it by 66.58 (as of September 2, 2016) to have the exact value in rupees.
NaMo's expenses stands at Rs 604 crores for the trips he had taken in the past two years. The split up is as below:
2014-2015 - 37 crores - 9 countries
2015-2016 - 567 crores - 28 countries
This is excluding his cavalcades' outlay. Let's say for the two years that his ministers have been travelling along with Namo, the ballpark figure is in the range Rs 1500 - 2000 crores. Putting together the total expenditure from the exchequer stands at approximately Rs 2100 - 2600 crores.
The most important metric in Marketing is the ROI which will not only be 100 % but significantly more than that! It's not just ROI that matters but how the inflow has been transformed to make a difference to the overall economy - that is also equally important. NaMo would have earned the "Outstanding Performer" for the last two years if he were employed by any corporate but all he got was brickbats from the people!
This is just in monetary terms. When we look beyond money, there is all round growth and development when money flows into the country - The latest technologies, the best governance and management practices, the best breed of technical know-hows and most importantly, more employment opportunities in the country. When employment is there, people's standard of living increases.
Education and health takes care of itself automatically when people's disposable income is on the rise. Why? Simple. When people have the money, they consume good and services to take good care of themselves and their families. Hence, even more business opportunities and our people will get world-class facilities in education, health, sports etc at affordable prices. It's a win-win situation for everyone - Business can be happy and people can be happy.
Also, with the up-to-the minute technology at their disposable, people tend to think and begin to do smart work instead of hard work which results in better efficiency and provide a substantial boost in productivity thereby it helps in the increase of GDP. Investors flock only to those countries which shows the slightest shine of economic growth and prosperity. As a result, the entire cycle gets repeated on an endless positive note.
Now, pessimists and naysayers might come at my throat and tell me that I am painting, sorry typing!, a very rosy picture of Indian economy and that I am supporting Narendra Modi to an excessive level. Am I?
Now, pessimists and naysayers might come at my throat and tell me that I am painting, sorry typing!, a very rosy picture of Indian economy and that I am supporting Narendra Modi to an excessive level. Am I?
India has leapfrogged to 35th place from her previous 54th position in the Logistics Performance Index released by the World Bank which is stupendously in sync with NaMo's Vision "Rapid Transformation not gradual evolution". Likewise, by 2022, he has stated his Goal that every household will have 24*7 power supply, toilets and clean drinking water.
These are not simply vague words or politically correct terminologies or hot management hot catchwords like "empowerment, transparency, accountability". He really walks his talk.
Because of his extensive foreign trips, Canada supplies Uranium to India for the next 5 years. He has also convinced Australia for Uranium supplies. Examples to name a few. So, the results are visibly tangible and for everyone to see. The cornerstone of any business is Trust, Commitment and Relationship. Supposing the countries who promised us failed to keep up their promises and honor their commitments especially with the whole world watching them, do you think it would be good for their country or their leadership? Food for thought.
"Are you saying that the Congress did not do anything when they were in power"? I can hear the Congress hardliners deafeningly screaming in my ears.
Because of his extensive foreign trips, Canada supplies Uranium to India for the next 5 years. He has also convinced Australia for Uranium supplies. Examples to name a few. So, the results are visibly tangible and for everyone to see. The cornerstone of any business is Trust, Commitment and Relationship. Supposing the countries who promised us failed to keep up their promises and honor their commitments especially with the whole world watching them, do you think it would be good for their country or their leadership? Food for thought.
"Are you saying that the Congress did not do anything when they were in power"? I can hear the Congress hardliners deafeningly screaming in my ears.
X----to be concluded----X
Acknowledgements:
I would like to thank my professors Dr. Deepak Gupta and Shobhana Madhavan for their plenty of quizzes, interactive and engaging way of teaching that has enabled me to grasp the concepts of Marketing, International Business and Cross-Cultural Management to some basic level.
Feel free to check out their credentials for yourself:
1. Dr. Deepak Gupta
2. Prof Shobhana Madhavan
Disclaimer 1:
You can also check out the facts, if you wish, excepting the ballpark figure.
Disclaimer 2:
I have written everything from a pure Marketing perspective. So, macro-economic conditions like Inflation, Monetary policies, Fiscal policies etc. or the many social welfare schemes that have been launched by our PM or the internal scuffles and external tensions have not been factored in as these were irrelevant and out of scope to the main intention of writing this blog.
Disclaimer 3:
None of the images and memes were created by me. Whatever I felt was right to the context, I just did a copy and paste from the web. So, thanks to all those creators!
Disclaimer 4:
All the opinions are mine. So, whatever mistakes, blunders and fallacies that could have cropped up in the blog is the result of my negligence or partial understanding or no understanding on the topic. Will tend to be even more careful in future if someone points out the errors and flaws in my facts and writing. TIA!
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