New PR blog goes online

A new PR blog has been launched. Moderated by B N Kumar, a mass communications professional with over 30 years of experience the blog (http://prworld.blog.co.in/) attempts to serve as a platform not only for PR professionals and the media,  but to corporates and service organizations who are interested in PR.

 

As B N Kumar (BNK to friends) says PR is not just about getting media relations built, it is about developing and maintaining relationships for a long term benefit.

 

To begin with the blog has thrown open some interesting topics for discussion like – Who Needs PR?, Crisis Communications, Don’t ignore Press Releases and so on.

 

The blog has already aroused considerable interest among the fraternity in India.

Who is BN Kumar?

 

B N Kumar

 

B N Kumar (BNK to his friends) has over 30 years of experience in mass communications as a journalist as well as a PR professional. He has acquired varied skill sets like Strategy Planning, Media Relations, Media Training, Event Handling, Corporate Events, Networking, Crisis Communications and Corporate Communications and developed wide contacts in corporate and media circles.

 

Presently he is President at Concept PR, India’s largest, Independent PR Company.

 

BNK began his career with Free Press Journal, the then leading English daily published from Mumbai, and later moved over to United News of India, the news agency with the largest news gathering network. He has also worked with Business India and The Week magazine and contributed content to The Times of India, The Economic Times, Indian Express, Mid-Day, Newstime and a host of other publications covering a wide range of topics like business, science, space science, crime, films and politics. At UNI he was known as the “fastest reporter” and has won several internal awards.

 

He joined the PR profession with Reliance Industries Ltd where he worked with the legendary Dhirubhai Ambani handling media relations during the largest ever AGMs that the company had and public affairs campaigns.

 

BNK was part of the team that set up Ogilvy PR (then O&M PR) – the first PR arm of an advertising agency in India. The other PR consultancies where he worked included Capital Images (of Walchand Capital), DeanPielle PR and a start-up company Beehive Communications.

 

He had his second stint with the Reliance group when he joined Reliance Infocomm handling media for the company’s wireless business and several product launches and media visits to Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City (DAKC) – the largest telecom campus in the country.

 

He moved over to Concept PR in March 2006 and since then has been handling a wide array of communication for the agency’s clients.

 

Apart from several IPOs, some of the clients that handled over the years include: Sahara India Group, DLF, GMR Infrastructure, IRB Infrastructure Developers Ltd, Rural Electrification Corporation, Aditya Birla group, Birla Sun Life Insurance, Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund, Cbay India, Tech Mahindra, Idbi bank, Tourism Malaysia, Reliance Infocomm (CSR), 20th Century Fox, DaimlerChrysler; Prudential-ICICI, J P Morgan Stanley; Siemens Ltd; Kanbay India Ltd (Software), Boeing, British Airways, HCPL (Cadbury’s)and National Egg Coordination Committee.

 

One of the prestigious CSR accounts that he handled was for INTACH  (Indian National Trust for Art & Cultural heritage) for Ganga Action Plan to spread the message of keeping the Ganga clean during Mahakumbh (the grand Hindu religious fair).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who needs PR? and more…http://prworld.blog.co.in

Who needs PR? Or put it differently, “Why do I need PR?” These questions are often raised in corporate circles.  

From Presidents to president aspirants, from corporate honchos  to cops, from publishers to reporters there is no one that doesn’t need PR. Definitions could be dime a dozen,  but put it plainly PR is  nothing but relationship building and maintaining it. It is planned. It is deliberate and it has to be sustained.

With apologies to Shakespeare let me say that a friend is a friend is a friend! Can any one be a friend of yours for a limited time? If it is so, that relationship is nothing but an arrangement. Similarly, PR can just not be a business of arrangement or a marriage of convenience.

Some may like to dismiss PR is a functionality of HR which is also a relationship business. The result: neglect PR as one ignores HR.

I worked with many corporate houses including some top notch ones. And my experience is that HR people do not get the importance that they deserve. They are looked down upon as people with bureaucratic tendencies and sticklers to the rule book. I know of an HR lady of a PR agency who ultimately ended up a consultant to a housekeeping firm! Not that I have any disrespect for housekeeping people. Every one needs them to keep the house spick-and-span.

If you have scant respect for your HR, how can you expect yourself to treat PR as something great?

When you need PR, you need people specialized in it – the business of building maintaining relationships. Not certainly those who start PR firms as a pastime or because they have nothing better to do.

These may sound like random thoughts, but thoughts certainly they are! Aren’t they?

So, next time if any one asks “who needs PR” as him or her: who doesn’t?

Think PR, think Concept PR! It’s a good Concept!!

-B N Kumar

Concept, Zzebra in 1st India agency alliance

MUMBAI: Breaking trend of alliances with foreign agencies, Concept Communication has taken controlling stake in another Indian agency Zzebra PR.

“This is perhaps the first ever alliance between two Indian agencies,” said Mr. Vivek Suchanti, Managing Director of Concept Group. He confirmed that the value of the deal was to the tune of Rs 5.4 crore at the minimum level, with a step-up option based on the performance of Zzebra.

“The public relations industry in India is growing at a rapid pace, and we believe that consolidation of resources and skill sets between like-minded organizations will help us emerge as a leader in the space. With this strategic partnership, we will be enhancing the range of services provided by the Concept Group of Companies,” Mr Suchanti said.

Mr C P Thomas, founder-partner of ZZEBRA said: “We are thrilled to be a part of the Concept Group, one of India’s largest communication companies. This strategic partnership will enhance our bouquet of services, geographical spread and network of contacts in the corporate and media world. This would enable us to provide much better value and service to our existing as well as potential clients. We are sure that this dynamic combination will enable ZZEBRA to reach greater heights.”

Concept Communication is the largest independent communication company in India that has no foreign alliance. With team strength of 500 professionals and gross revenues in excess of Rs. 600 million, Concept Communication works with some of the leading brands and corporates in the country.

ZZEBRA is a communication company in the business of public relations, book publishing and distribution, founded by senior media professional CP Thomas and communication professional Pooja Chaudhri in 2003. Headquartered in Mumbai, the 50-people strong agency has offices in Bangalore and New Delh.

This strategic partnership with Concept Communication would result in a stronger team and a wider footprint for ZZEBRA PR which will now cover 12 cities and 36 other major centres across India and also the UK, Middle East and Singapore.