He started off as a marine engineer but made the radical shift to being a radio jockey and then involving himself in brand management. Ajit John spoke to Richard Dias about the problems he faced trying to be a brand consultant in Goa and what his future plans were.
Herald: How easy is it to be a brand consultant or rather an evangelist for total marketing solutions in Goa?
Richard Dias: Very difficult, please understand that this most of the small time businessmen are traders and hence that mentality persists. They want immediate returns. When they invest RS. 100 in the morning they want Rs 120 or 140 by the end of the day. Advertising as a concept is alien to them and it requires a great deal of education. They are not open to the idea of advertising and branding is totally alien. So if they agree to an adv they then want all the information to be included. The concept of design and space in an adv is alien. in the When i started off in radio sales it was crazy, no one understood it and the budgets that we were given were miniscule but we pushed it and today people who work in radio today find it easier. I suppose being the first makes it that much tougher to work.
Herald: What is the kind of client who works with you?
RD: We have some very interesting clients i will admit. People who are Goan but dream of conquering the world with their products. Madame Rosa, Damian, Marco artefacts are some of our clients. We started off with Leela Goa by doing all their internal communications and then did something similar for the Raddison group. As you can see we have a pretty eclectic bunch of clients who believe in us, respect our advice and follow it.
Herald: So how do you sort this out?
RD: It is a long journey, and we are prepared to rough it out. We do not take all the clients who sometimes approach us. We like to stay debt free which means we are still small. We had a billing of Rs 2 crores last year. We are introducing people to new concepts , to people who have essentially not been involved in stuff like this. We are determined and it will happen.
Herald: How do you see this market panning out in the years to come?
RD: This market will grow, and businessmen will realise that in order to survive and grow the business they will have to advertise and the old trader mentality will not work. It should be a interesting ride.
