i9 on a Training spree!

-Sameer Gupta

A training Saturday as the name suggests is meant for training of some sort. Blue Lotus has had a history of talented people from various fields coming in and sharing their knowledge and expertise with us. But, the last training Saturday for i9 was surely the Baap of the them all, as i9 had a series of record breaking 3 back-to-back training sessions. We decided to relive the day for you.

The day began with a chic presentation given by our fashion aficionado Asad Khan. This was a very light hearted session where Asad took us through the basics of Fashion, covering the Industry as well as the aspiration aspects of it. Mesmerizing – is how I would describe this session. Asad shared a lot of stylish inputs and a great learning experience on the current fashion trends. His views on what fashion means to us has been very informative. Did you know that the outrageous clothes that some designers showcase on the ramp are not actually meant for wearing? No right? Well, these are artistic expressions like any other form of art. When these collections reach the stores they are appropriately edited and made wearable. Fashion bloopers, Colors, seasons and individual preferences were all part and parcel of the presentation. “Fashion is not about utility or good choice; it’s about picking the right thing for yourself for the right season” said Asad. Well, right after the session, I started mentally working out details of updating my wardrobe!

The next on schedule was meeting Subhash Pais in our very own conference room for training on sales and marketing. “How many of you think you are sales people?” asked Subhash. Some said they think they are, while some said they think they aren’t. “Then wait and just listen to me, I’ll ask this question when I’m done with my presentation.” Replied Subhash. And then he started off. With different aspects of sales and why sales is so important, he really made us think by taking instances form our daily lives. Sales along with marketing ideas, sales strategies, communications, building relationships with the clients and client servicing, it was a complete experience. A proper training that should be made necessary for every PR and Marketing person, he also made us think from the client’s perspective. Points such a ways to increase your leads, customers and sales along with selling strategies was a part of the discussion. Well, by the end of it, everyone was convinced that all of us are sales people in some form or the other.

A good speaker that Subhash is, his vast experience in this field just added that extra touch!

Then came the most awaited session of the Day. I sat with my cup of coffee and listened enthusiastically to Shibani Keshkamat, the one who coined the term ‘Engagement Marketing’ was here to share her ideologies on the same. “Engagement Marketing” sometimes called "experiential marketing," "event marketing", "live marketing" or "participation marketing," is a marketing strategy that directly engages consumers and invites and encourages consumers to participate in the evolution of a brand. This kind of marketing looks at clients as active rather than passive components.

Shibani, a writer from the United Kingdom, happened to mention the term Engagement Marketing to Subhash in one of their meetings and was invited by him to share the same with Blue Lotus. Since this being a relatively new subject, it was presented to us in a very detailed manner enabling us to know more about this kind of marketing. Being a contents person, the amount of knowledge that she has about marketing, PR and advertising is applaudable.

Overall, this training session has been an immense learning experience. One of the unique aspects of this training session was that there have never been 3 training sessions held together in a day. But we had the privilege of this and the understanding of this training session has been remarkable for all of us at i9! Look forward to many more! We were quite exhausted by the end of the Day, but a little shopping trip just did the trick!