Thomas L. Bernardin is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Leo Burnett Worldwide, the third largest advertising agency in the world in terms of revenues-$807 million (Rs 3,550.8 crore) in 2005, according to AdAge-and the biggest among the 16 agencies owned by Publicis Groupe, the world's fourth biggest marketing and advertising conglomerate with a presence across more than 80 countries and $5.11 billion (Rs 22,484 crore) in revenues. Bernardin has spent three decades in the advertising industry and, in this time worked in several countries and managed many blue-chip brands like Philip Morris, Marlboro, Heinz, Amercian Express and General Motors. He is credited with having played an important part in the emergence of Bank of America as the US' first coast-to-coast banking network and of Verizon Wireless as the country's biggest national wireless service provider (from a small regional company called Bell Atlantic). Interestingly, he has changed jobs only twice in these 30 years (he started at McCann Erickson in 1976, moved to Bozell in the 1990s, then to Leo Burnett in 2004). "Life was ever-so-challenging at these agencies that I never felt the need to look out," is how the soft-spoken global boss of the agency explains this.

On his first visit to India, Bernardin spoke to BT's Archna Shukla on a range of issues, from the role of advertising in today's rather unruly media environment and the democratisation of brand communication.

We are told you are a globetrotter who has been to China many times. This, however, is your first visit to India. That's strange, because your own community is betting big on this market. Were you not quite convinced about the India growth story? Or was this because of Leo Burnett's not-too-impressive performance in India?

I first went to China in 1986 and it is true that I have been there many times after that. And this, indeed, is my first visit to India. Even I find this quite strange. I guess it is just a coincidence. It is certainly not because I underestimated the potential of this market. India, for sure, is one of the fastest growing advertising markets in the world. I am told last year, while the overall advertising business grew around 6-8 per cent in other global markets, India and China grew at between 15 per cent and 18 per cent. India particularly is a market where lots of dollars are going to be spent for the first time ever. This is a market of one-billion consumers and a majority of them will be making many consumption choices for the first time in their lives. This is a big opportunity for the advertising industry and we are quite focussed here.

"India is a market where lots of dollars are going to be spent for the first time ever. We are quite focussed here"

I am quite impressed with the performance of Leo Burnett India, too. We are present in 83 countries across the world and India is among the top 15 markets for us globally. These markets contribute around 80 per cent to our total revenues. Leo Burnett India is making an important contribution to our business and we expect it to be among our top five to eight agencies soon. The agency is doing an excellent job serving some of the best multi-national clients like Coca Cola, p&g and Heinz and some top-notch domestic brands. Our team here won the maximum number of awards at the recently concluded Cannes Advertising Festival and that says it all about their performance.

As far as China is concerned, it is, indeed, a bigger market. The difference between the two markets is not in terms of opportunity but in the way they have chosen to grow. China has a government that has decided to grow faster and it has nobody to ask how to go about it, whereas India is a democracy. Here, everyone has a take on every issue. So, may be it takes time to evolve a consensus and to take things forward. I have some concerns about China. One can't be sure of the future policies in that market. Whereas in India, one can say with some surety that it will only grow and grow in an open manner.

Talking about growth, 2004 and 2005 were considered the years of revival for the advertising industry and agencies expected the trend to continue in 2006 and 2007. Now, there is a growing concern that rising interest rates and oil prices and geopolitical tensions, like the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, might dampen sentiments and hurt both, consumer and corporate spending. That will, obviously, hurt the advertising industry...

Advertising is the first one to get impacted. Corporates tend to cut spending in times of uncertainty and advertising bucks are usually the first casualty. It is true that everybody expected the momentum that was built in the last two to three years to keep going and it has been good thus far, but the rest of the year looks somewhat challenging. However, we don't expect a drastic shift in growth. We expect the creative business to grow at between two and five per cent.

Isn't that too low?

I think four to five per cent growth is pretty solid. I am not talking about the consolidated advertising and marketing business. I am talking about the creative business and four to five per cent is the rate at which this segment has been growing in the bigger markets in the past two to three years. That brings me back to India, which we expect to grow faster and aid our overall growth.

You have spent three decades in the advertising industry. How has brand communication changed in these years?

Life was much simpler three decades ago. Industry was not too competitive. There were not so many brands, nor many media vehicles. Today, consumers are spoilt for choice. There are countless brands vying for their attention. Media, on the other hand, has got fragmented and marketers have to work doubly hard to be heard and noticed and then, bought.

The positive side of the story, however, is that earlier marketers had limited choices of reaching consumers. Today, media proliferation has opened many avenues of interaction and brands can communicate with consumers through various channels.

"Today, consumers are spoilt for choice. There are countless brands vying for their attention"

The rise of new media is also a big challenge for the industry. In fact, every new technology comes with the prediction that it marks the demise of traditional advertising. The industry is already debating the death of the 30-second TV commercial...

Yes, skeptics in the industry have been talking about the imminent death of television commercials and of print taking a beating at the hands of the internet. But this happens every time some thing new comes to the fore. My personal take on this issue is that the internet and other digital media will become increasingly important but they will never replace old media. Spends on traditional media might come down because some bucks would be redirected towards new platforms. In fact, some of our leading clients are spending around 40 to 50 per cent on the so-called below-the-line initiatives but nobody has discarded old media as yet. I guess, in time to come, the chasm between the old and the new will narrow and then, there will be no difference between old and new or above-the-line and below-the-line. Old media will definitely readjust itself to the changed circumstances, like television screen becoming smaller in the form of mobile phone screens and the like. So while the shape and size of the medium will change, thereby, changing the mechanics of communication, the objective of advertising, per say, will not change. Good advertising will still seek to strike a chord with consumers.

But there is a growing concern that technology is overshadowing creativity, that medium is becoming more powerful than the message.

On the contrary, I feel that new media has reinforced the need for the idea to be more relevant and effective today. Today, instead of broadcasting a general message to a mass of consumers, one has to communicate with a distinctive set of consumers with certain consumption needs and habits. This necessity, and conversely the ability, to reach different sets of consumers has been brought about by media proliferation. In this backdrop, the idea being sold, be it global or local, which is yet another debate going on in the industry, has to be relevant for each set, otherwise it will fall flat, thereby, hurting not only the clients but also the advertising industry. So, creativity is under immense pressure today to deliver and in my opinion, it is delivering. The extension of brand culture across the globe only reaffirms this.

Some recent surveys in the US have shown that consumers don't trust advertising anymore. Juxtapose this with the new culture of blogging and digital communication wherein consumers are taking the reins of brand communication in their hands. What does this mean for advertising?

Indeed, consumers today have a much better brand insight. They don't take brands at their face value. They try to make an informed choice and there are so many avenues they can tap for the information they want. Brand communication is no more a uni-dimensional phenomenon. So indeed, if advertising makes a false brand promise, it will only hurt itself. The chances of it getting exposed are much more today than ever before. And since information flow today is much faster and more spread out, the damage will be extensive. Both brands and advertising have to take cognisance of these changed realities.

"Brand communication is not something that only brand managers and advertisers can control"

So brands and advertising have to be more accountable now?

Absolutely. This is the challenge and the beauty of the game. Brands have to perform better and be what they claim to be. Brand communication is not something that only brand managers and advertisers can control. Today, consumers can become both brand ambassadors and adversaries, depending on their brand experience. Again, as I have been saying, this scenario has a positive side to it too. Democratisation of communication also gives brands an opportunity to interact directly with consumers, to get into their minds and to know directly from them what they want.

Today, there is so much information available on the internet on consumers' point of view on products and services. If analysed well, this can give advertisers and marketers excellent insights into consumer psychology. Leo Burnett has, in fact, a team working on this front already.

Lastly, any particular reason behind your India visit. We have heard you are looking for some acquisitions in India...

We always keep looking for opportunities. We would definitely like to strengthen our below-the-line business in India. That's the reason we acquired Solutions, a Delhi-based marketing outfit, last year. Research is another area of focus. We intend to invest, either in terms of acquisition of an independent outfit or of new research tools, a good deal on this front. But overall, I am happy with the way India business is progressing and I promise to visit India quite often now.