Interview: Anindita Gupta, Woman Entrepreneur & Co-founder of Scenic Communication

Interview with Anindita Gupta, Woman Entrepreneur & Co-founder of Scenic Communication

Anindita Gupta has 14 years of professional experience in Public Relations & Marketing, she comes with a deep understanding of the dynamic media and communication landscape in India.

Through her successful stint with reputed PR agencies like Percept Profile, Genesis Burson & Marsteller, and Mileage Communications etc.,

Anindita has worked closely with clients across verticals, such as, F&B, Fashion & Lifestyle, travel, hospitality, IT, Entertainment, and corporate.

Her clients portfolio includes Flanders, Hong Kong Tourism Board, California Tourism Board, New Brand USA, GHM Hotel, Zealand Tourism Board, Aspri Spirit, Venetian Macao, Deltin Corp, Schwarzkopf, Indola, Broadcast Asia, Dwarkadas Chandumal Jewelers, BlackBerry, Giovani, Zee Entertainment, FLY mobile, Education New Zealand, Essel World & water Kingdom etc.

Her Key skills include strategizing public relations, marketing and advertisement campaign with a methodical and disciplined approach.

Tell us a little about yourself

Anindita Gupta: I was born and raised in Kolkata, where my mother worked as a social worker and my father was the India head of a corporation.

I received my Media Science degree from George College, a West Bengal Technical University affiliate.

I immediately began working while also finishing my Bhavans College master’s in public relations. I started Scenic in 2016, and seven years later, it’s still one of the most exhilarating, adventurous, and interesting parts of my career!

I have enjoyed every second of my job as a PR professional over the past 14 years, and I feel incredibly lucky and humbled to be able to do what I love!

Every morning the thought of going to work, building brands, and strategizing creative campaigns, make me thrilled and I think, for anyone to be successful, this is very important!

Can you tell us about your background and how you got involved in the PR and digital marketing industry?

Anindita Gupta: My journey in PR began quite early on, while I was still pursuing my Mass Communication Degree. I used to freelance as a journalist with a publication and that is where I first encountered the scope and potential of PR as a field.

I always had the entrepreneurial bent of mind and wanted to start something on my own, as I wanted to create opportunities for others.

So, I decided to work for some time, understand the nuances of the business, gain experience, and save some money, before I embarked on my entrepreneurial journey.

My stint at some of the reputed PR agencies, like Genesis Burson & Marsteller, Percept Profile and Mileage Communications etc., allowed me to work closely with clients across verticals, such as, travel, hospitality, F&B, Fashion & Lifestyle, Healthcare, Education, Entertainment, IT and corporate.

Scenic communication was incepted in the year 2016, with only two members and has emerged as one of the best PR firms in the country today for advocating its clients’ interests through ambitious and insightful content.

What inspired you to start your own agency, and what were some of the biggest challenges you faced in the early days?

Anindita Gupta: I always had the entrepreneurial bent of mind and wanted to start something on my own, as I wanted to create opportunities for others.

So, I decided to work for some time, understand the nuances of the business, gain experience, and save some money, before I embarked on my entrepreneurial journey.

My stint at some of the reputed PR agencies, like Genesis Burson & Marsteller, Percept Profile and Mileage Communications etc., allowed me to work closely with clients across verticals.

I wanted to open up opportunities for both myself and the people around me. As a first generation business owner, I primarily learned from my errors.

If I had come from a business background or had any mentors, many of the financial and business decisions I made would have been similar. This the challenge I faced as a first-generation entrepreneur.

What role do you see emerging technologies playing in the future of PR and digital marketing?

Anindita Gupta: The future of PR and digital marketing is expected to be significantly impacted by emerging technology.

Use of data analytics and artificial intelligence is one of the most recognized fields where technology is ready to make a big difference (AI).

These technologies will enable PR and digital marketing professionals to obtain deeper insights into their target audiences and provide more tailored and pertinent material that appeals to them.

In the future of PR and digital marketing, other cutting-edge technologies like augmented reality, virtual reality, and voice assistants are also expected to have a bigger impact because they present new potential for customer involvement and connection.

Can you walk us through your approach to developing a comprehensive PR and digital marketing strategy for a client?

Anindita Gupta: The foremost important thing is to understand the client what they want immediately and what they what in the upcoming 2-3 years.

Once we understand the brands vision and what they want to achieve in like brand image creation wise and sales figure and considering their other growth also.

Once we understand this, we can work on the strategy part. So, the full-fledged strategy is when we take a multi prompt approach.

Developing a comprehensive PR and digital marketing strategy requires careful planning and a deep understanding of your target audience, market trends, and business goals.

To begin, it’s important to define your target audience and understand their demographics, interests, and behavior patterns.

This will help you tailor your messaging and choose the right channels for reaching and engaging with them.

Once you’ve established your target audience, it’s important to set clear and measurable goals that align with your overall business objectives.

This will help you determine the tactics and channels that will be most effective for achieving your desired outcomes.

How do you prioritize and manage your team’s workload, and what steps do you take to ensure a high level of quality in your work?

Anindita Gupta: In terms of my team, I try to explain to them that you need to understand your strength and weakness and work on it.

That will help you understand your goals and eventually succeed in life. And finally, be happy with what you have.

Both financially and mentally. Although money does matter and is very important in life but that should not be your only focus or primary. Aim for success, aim to do well in professional life, to excel in what you and finally love what you do.

How do you build and maintain strong relationships with clients, and what do you consider to be the key components of a successful client-agency partnership?

Anindita Gupta: A successful client-agency partnership is built on trust, transparency, and collaboration. We have effective communication, consistency, personalization, and going the extra mile are key strategies for building and maintaining strong relationships with clients.

By being available to our clients outside of regular business hours, offering additional services, and consistently delivering high-quality work, build trust and show clients that they can rely on us.

Taking the time to get to know your clients on a personal level and providing personalized attention can also help to build a strong and lasting relationship.

How do you differentiate yourselves from competitors?

Anindita Gupta: We place a lot of focus on customer service. Being an external part of our client’s organisation, we collaborate very closely with them, unlike other agency roles.

Nothing we advise will not be advantageous to the client. We are really committed to maintaining open communication with our clients. These are the characteristics that distinguish us from our competition and other market participants.

What was the inspiration behind turning an entrepreneur?

Anindita Gupta: My biggest inspiration are my parents apart from them a person I inspire from is Jack Ma founder of Alibaba. Jack Ma‘s journey is one that inspires me a lot because of his self-belief and accomplishments.

Persistence in the face of adversity is a distinguishing characteristic that can be exploited to move you forward.

Furthermore, the capacity to prepare for and accept rejections and failures as opportunities distinguishes Jack Ma from others, which has influenced me the most.

So, knowing when to stop and when not to quit, in my opinion, is the difference between a successful professional and a failed professional.

What advice would you give to someone who is interested in starting their own PR and digital marketing agency?

Anindita Gupta: Someone who is interested in starting their own PR and digital marketing agency should be well-informed about national and international events.

One must be a voracious reader if they want to learn everything they can about their surroundings. Also, you must stay current with emerging trends and technology.

You must be aware of the latest tools in the market. To truly go the extra mile, you must make an extra effort.

Right set of marketing is another key component to network with people and clients for getting new set of clients.

What are your success tips for young and aspiring entrepreneurs?

Anindita Gupta: As entrepreneurs, you must overcome several obstacles and barriers. Due to a number of issues, we won’t be able to do anything we had hoped to do.

We could experience helplessness and a lack of direction. The path of an entrepreneur or creator is never simple, and some give up when things don’t go according to plan.

I think everyone can do it, regardless of where they are from or their circumstances. All you have to do is resolve or have faith in yourself.

To succeed and never give up, we simply need a little courage and tenacity. Persistence is the key to achievement.

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