Neha K Bisht, Co-Founder of Blue Buzz, a boutique PR firm discusses how the pandemic has resulted in the acceleration of digital, the impact of COVID-19 on BlueBuzz and the industry, the rationale behind its rebranding, and the trends we should watch out for in 2021.
Neha has more than ten years of experience in the PR Industry across different verticals. She started her career with a boutique PR firm and moved on to work with MSL India. During this time, she handled PR campaigns for STAR Plus and later joined the talent discovery platform Talent Next as Chief Operating Officer. In 2014 she founded Blue Buzz (formerly NB Group), a niche PR and communications firm that championed Entertainment, Hospitality, and Corporate PR.
What was the goal behind NB Group’s transition into Blue Buzz, and what results have it yielded?
After spending nearly, a decade in the PR industry, I decided to set up my own PR firm and that’s how NB Group was born. A niche PR and communication firm, understanding the need for critical marketing, we championed entertainment, hospitality and corporate PR.
After a successful run of 4 years, evolving and looking to cater to the need of the times and achieve the next level for us, we rolled out a major rebranding vision for the firm, about 2 years ago. Developing from a vanilla PR firm, today, Blue Buzz operates on the vision of being a complete boutique agency with three new verticals – Digital Marketing, Design Studio and Media Buying.
The intent behind the rebranding was Growth, for us as an agency and for the clients associated with us. We are moving forward on the premise of helping upcoming companies build their brand as well as providing innovative, cutting edge solutions to established firms.
In its more powerful avatar, Blue Buzz adopts a distinctive storytelling approach to suit its client’s individualistic needs and position them for long term success, with every solution they need, under our unified platform.
Tell us about Blue Buzz’s different verticals, its team size and what sets it apart from other agencies?
We offer brand solution across four verticals – PR, Digital Marketing, Design Studio and Media Buying. Our focus is on innovative brands that are spearheading the new-age innovative wave, such as edutainment platforms, creative startups and corporate houses. I personally lead the different verticals across the agency.
We are headquartered in Mumbai with a taskforce of 35+ talented professionals. We have a network presence across India as well as a branch in the US. Our team is a potent combination of experienced and fresh talent and we take a complete 360-degree approach in our communication strategies.
I believe our most distinguishing factor is the ability to stay relevant. The times are changing rapidly and with that it has become even more necessary to create communication that is suitable for new-age digital mediums.
How does the current roster of Blue Buzz’s clients look like and where do you see yourself in the pecking order today?
We have a healthy mix of corporate brands, SMEs and individuals across sectors such as Edutainment, entertainment, tech, sports, women empowerment, and more. I definitely see us scaling higher in the order in the coming year.
We have been instrumental in Brand Building and Online Marketing Segmentation for some of the biggest entertainment corporate like ZEEL’s, ‘Mind Wars’ and India’s leading online auction platform ‘Bzinga’, Star Plus, BookMyShow and more.
We are also managing the media relations in India for EPL’s select teams such as Wolverhampton Warriors and Watford FC. We’ve also worked with names such as Chef Vikas Khanna, Chef Kunal Kapur, Olive Bar and Kitchen, in the food sector, to mention a few.
What has been the impact of COVID-19 on your business and how have you helped your clients navigate through this crisis.
We have been focused on creating strategic and well-researched communication strategies, that are relevant to the changing times. To champion new avenues for our clients, we harnessed our new age thinking and strengthened the positioning of our clients by maneuvering effectively through the changing avenues, the pandemic wave notwithstanding.
During these hard times, how are you keeping up the morale of your team?
Looking after one’s mental health has become more important than ever. It has been a challenge adjusting to the new ways of working, for everyone. The team powered through because we knew that we were in it together. The management ensured that the team was supported in every way possible.
Being a close-knit set-up, each one of us had each other’s back. One of the primary reasons for a dip in the morale of people has been the absence of human interaction and feeling of isolation; digital mediums have surely helped reduce this distance.
How have brands changed or modified their communication strategy post-COVID?
The pandemic has resulted in the acceleration of advent of the digital era. We have evolved our communication strategies to make them relevant and effective in this pandemic era. Where earlier we would employ a combination of ATL-BTL activities and print media, we are now creating communication that reaches our audience directly on their phones and laptops through digital mediums.
We have done live streaming for events, conducted intensive engagement activities and upped the social media game, thereby bridging the gap between the clients and audiences.
How are entrepreneurs, SMEs carving a way to grow business during these challenging times?
People have taken a more collaborative approach. The relationship between a client and service provider has grown to being partners battling a situation together. If there’s one good thing that has come of this pandemic, it is the fact that people have realized the importance of supporting each other.
The way we communicate changed drastically in 2020. What were/ are some big changes that will shape the communication industry in the coming years?
The digital wave is all set to become a tsunami. We are headed for a second phase of lockdown, but people have adopted new ways to stay afloat. Digital mediums are certainly being used more powerfully than before.
Audio visual content is slowly increasing with features as reels, stories and so much more, enticing users. Messengers are becoming a single point utility for communication, payments and promotions, facilitating business growth.
Can you share with us your plans, strategies for Blue Buzz’s brand building and growth?
We have always been committed to growth for our clients, and thereby us. So, this year, we could say we are even more committed towards delivering a great output with truly innovative communication that will make right impact, for all the brands we work with.
We are super excited to kick in the new financial year with some great developments and are only optimistic to build on to the momentum.
What are some key trends the communications industry should look out for in 2021?
The world has gone digital, and this is going to only grow. Storytelling is important; don’t sell, connect with your audience.