False friendship like the shadows of the forenoon goes on decreasing, and at last, dies out; while friendship true like that of the afternoon though scant at first achieves full stature soon
Bhatruhari Subhashithani.
The same was quoted by my father, DrAyalasomayajula GopalaRao garu, in one of his books, ‘మంచి మాట’ (-one good word).
In this book, my father highlighted various aspects of life such as the importance and need of true friendships, moral responsibilities, the power of truth, strength in leading an exemplary life, what we seek vs. what’s good for us, how our inner thoughts influence our deeds, and many more—a must-read.
I am still on the first chapter of friendships reminiscing and celebrating my true friends that come and go (with my nomadic lifestyle;)) but treasured in my memory chest preciously forever. Who else can value them better than the one badly backstabbed on more than one occasion! Every experience is worth it; no light without darkness.
The author, Dr. Ayalasomayajula GopalaRao, served as a Telugu and Sanskrit languages professor at Maharaja Sanskrit College, Vizianagaram, until his retirement in the year 2003. The Government of Andhra Pradesh appointed him as one of the four members of the Official Language Commission to study the usage of Telugu, its current impact and suggest steps to improve its continued use, given the English & Hindi preponderance in our day to day lives.
Dr. Rao has conducted several ‘Netravadhanam’ a language spoken just with eyes) and ‘Angushatavadhanam’ (language based on the movement of fingers) sessions across the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. His contribution to these relatively less known aspects of Telugu literary arts has earned him recognition from the Government of Andhra Pradesh.
Dry roast vermicelli and keep it aside. Grind Indian spices (Cloves, Cardamom, cinnamon, fennel, black pepper, kasuri methi) with fresh coconut and tomatoes. Shallow fry vegetables and dry fruits of your choice, add the ground paste with ghee/butter. Add water (2:1 with vermicelli) and let that boil. At this point, add the vermicelli, let it cook until the water is all absorbed.
Dry roast peanuts, red chillies, cloves, black peppers, cinnamon, coriander and fennel seeds, any lentils, cashew, almonds.. whatever you can dry roast. Once cooled down, grind them all.
To a table spoon of oil, add chopped bell peppers, sweet corn, green peas, edamames, broccoli, and any vegetables that cook faster. Add boiled rice, salt, and butter/ghee. Once mixed well, add the powder we made. Switch off the flame and there you go!
While traditional marketing runs on the four Ps – product, price, promotion, and place; modern marketing, also called digital marketing, runs primarily on place, place, and place. Place where you find the right audience, where prospects can find discounts, a place where people find answers to their questions.
Almost every platform gives marketers statistics of their target market, right from the number of people their posts have reached to the engagement to the best day and time to reach the prospects. E.g., Google Display Network comes with AdWords, Content Marketing, Email Marketing, SEO, to name a few. Social media giants like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest have opened up their platforms for marketing and sales, all aiming at reaching prospects who could be turned into customers. This digital process fills our customer funnels or flywheels. Imagine the magic these analytics do when one pays for ads on these platforms!
Several parameters such as age, gender, interests, likes, searches, queries, etc., add to filling their customer funnels. While customers find something that interests them, marketers find ‘data’ that keeps their funnels filling. In most scenarios, customers are aware of this. However, they continue to be that ‘data’ as it’s a win-win situation for those who feel they are part of this inevitable digital society. Remember the famous adage “if a service is free, you are the product”? Well, in this case, every socially active account holder is the data!
It is estimated that there are about 3.8 billion social media users with an estimated market of about 48 billion U.S. dollars.
While studying ‘Advertising’ during my MBA times, we were made aware of the legalese that marketers are allowed to enlarge their product image by a certain percentage. That’s how we bought many products, for over a century, just being enticed by the colour and size of the images. In this digital marketing world, the phenomenon of using ‘testimonials’ and ‘endorsements’ is also an attribute of advertising by either the ordinary buyer or a celebrity to appeal to the potential buyers. As a digital marketer, I understand no ‘enlarging’ the actual features is acceptable in these testimonials. What customers express is what they feel. Of course, businesses should take reviews with personal targets and biases with a pinch of salt. This feedback marketing gains prominence with the advent of paid reviews by some big giants in this field!
This is my first marketing blog. I wanted to introduce those who see all these platforms daily but didn’t know that they are actually the data that keeps this billion market marketing world on the move.
I was part of the traditional marketing world since 2002. I started as an assistant marketing manager in India, and moving to the UK began the marketing ladder right from being a salesperson. That’s where I practised the real-time interactions salespeople have with customers that form the basis for ‘relationship marketing’ and ‘customer experience management (CX)’ –precisely what marketers need to know in their careers! Of course, thus followed awards and accolades.
With a break of a few years in my career and moving to the US, I dived into digital marketing without knowing what it was about six years ago! And in these three years, I have worked on brand awareness, email marketing, content creation, and managing advertisement campaigns for different companies and events; I’ve raised their sales by over 40% at times!
Marketing was a proven success by many stalwarts who did not have either a marketing or a management degree. With digital marketing taking over traditional marketing, we have professional degrees in place, and even coding is now a part of it. Who would have thought!
Now, the world belongs to those who are ‘masters of many trades’.
I am a hopeful individual. Because I know life is not always a bed of roses.
I am very grateful for people and their services that let us sit on our couches and keep us going 🙏.
I am certain that the present global scenario (a pandemic and an economic turmoil) will help the current generation of kids overcome the impediments and make the world more scientific, robotic, and virtual. Up until now, we’ve had only complaints about kids on the phone, not having in-person interaction, lack of communication skills, etc. But, now, in this shelter-in process, they are better placed: better organized, active personal connections and limited distractions (they’re preparing for their academic and other activities) handling the curveball of Covid that life threw at us.
We as a family have come up with charities monthly that are closer to our hearts from the countries that embraced us.
Not so much worried about quarantine or homeschooling with mine. As kids, they have survived without holidays for 3 years at one point. I make it a point that they understand and absorb the emotions and priorities that maketh humans. That’s how I grew up, and that’s what I believe in!
Stay safe, and let’s kick the Covid! We can do this, and we will.
Across three continents!! 