#MarketingEventsAwards spills: HP India's idea of events in the future world of marketing

HP specialises in developing and manufacturing computing, data storage, and networking hardware; designing software; and delivering services. Its team in India was shortlisted as a finalist for Best Event for a Targeted Community and Best Use of Influencers / KOLs, as well as won gold for Best Community Event at MARKETING-INTERACTIVE's Marketing Events Awards 2021. 

In an interview with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, Anand Appadurai (pictured), country manager, Indigo and inkjet business solutions, HP India shared on how the shift to digital has impacted the company, and how events post-pandemic can boost engagement.

This interview is done as part of MARKETING-INTERACTIVE’s winners and finalists’ interview series for Marketing Events Awards 2021. To find out more about the awards, click here. 

Tell us a little bit about how the past two years have been for you, and the steps you’ve taken to survive and thrive in a tough industry?

Appadurai: The digital printing industry has undergone a paradigm shift in the last two years making it a very interesting journey for us, our partners, and the customers. Since the onset of the pandemic, consumer behaviour has changed dramatically indicating a growing preference for eCommerce, especially to limit any physical contact. This transformation coupled with the emergence of new market trends has paved a path of opportunities for HP in the digital printing industry.

Using innovative digital marketing campaigns and initiatives, we connected closely with our customers to break through the clutter of choices available. “Project Smile” is one such initiative that has been credited by the industry and served a purpose for the community too. As per the program, the sticker photos printed on high-quality HP Indigo presses allowed patients to reveal the smiles of those frontline warriors behind the PPE kits.

With markets slowly opening, what do you think 2022 will be like for you?

Appadurai: For the year that unfolds, our vision for the printing industry to outgrow the market converters is to undergo a shift to an Indigo-first mindset, which means that an incoming job will be printed digitally unless it is very long, or otherwise has characteristics that make it more appropriate for conventional tools. This is the opposite of today’s analogue-first mindset in which most of the volume is printed using conventional tools.

In 2022, converters will see the Indigo volume of their business growing four times faster than their conventional side. For example, on average, a label converter will print 15% to 20% of its volume using its Indigo, which will account for 35% to 40% of its operating profit. This and the fact that a tete-a-tete meeting with our customers would be possible once again has got us excited and pumped for 2022.  

What are some of the new challenges you are preparing yourself for and looking to counter?

Appadurai: India is an important market for HP and despite the challenges posed by COVID-19’s outbreak, the Indian economy has demonstrated a strong resilience indicating a stronger bounce back.

During the pandemic, with the world moving towards digital, security has been one of the most serious challenges for us, and cybercrimes are only expected to become more sophisticated by the day. Due to the rise of eCommerce, the threat of counterfeit products will only continue to evolve. Ever-emerging threats will require vigilance and continued investment in new solutions, such as security inks, substrates, track and trance, and origination software for those brands vulnerable to counterfeit goods and packaging.

To help secure printing, we recently announced HP Indigo Secure, a suite of never-before-seen security and brand protection solutions. HP has also announced the new HP Indigo 6K Secure Press which is the first HP Indigo digital press designed especially for the security printing market, delivering end-to-end security solutions featuring multi-security layers printed in one pass, in a secure environment.

In this new world that we are living in, what do you think a great event really looks like?

Appadurai: To a great degree, events are hosted to leverage an in-person engagement with the customers to catch their eye and attempt to break through the clutter of countless pitches and advertisements they face every day. The new normal, driven by metaverse, has offered a unique opportunity for companies to expand their customer base by breaking through the geographical limitations and engaging in more meaningful communications with the targeted audience virtually. 

Having said that, the emotional connection and resonance enabled by a physical event and the experience it has the capacity to create is irreplaceable. Concocting the elements of both, going forward, HP is keen on exploring the possibilities of hybrid events (a blend of both virtual and physical) to reap the compounded benefits of both models. The new hybrid model for events will ready us to continue our customer engagements despite any disruption in the future and also will allow us to engage with our in-country and global stakeholders on a more regular basis.

What will be the role of events in the world of marketing in the future?

Appadurai: At the onset of the pandemic in 2020, very early on we witnessed a drastic evolution of the marketing industry. In the last year itself, marketers embraced digital transformation more than ever as they adapted to the constantly changing virtual and hybrid business landscapes in the wake of COVID-19. As countries cautiously reopened and more consumers left their houses, some businesses saw slumps in the virtual engagement and online traffic on which they'd recently relied on.

As a marketer with any level of experience, keeping up with these changes isn’t always easy, especially in the current context where there is no playbook, no precedence. To thrive and succeed in this fast-paced marketing world and maintain a sense of relevance with the audience, it's vital to stay ahead of the curve. It’s important to help businesses build cutting-edge and competitive marketing strategies in 2022, the marketing professionals from both B2B and B2C are heavily gearing up for the events in near future. Therefore, we truly favour the role of events in the future of marketing as they have the ability to build new, vital connections with customers, prospects and business partners.