Agency Spotlight - Tonic Media - A Day at Tonic Media

The best thing about being a part of Social Samosa is that you get to feel the pulse of the social media industry from the closest quarters. You are in touch with almost all the agencies out there and you feel like you know a lot about them through the campaigns they execute and the regular interactions with their team members.

I felt the same about Tonic Media as well. Having met Chetan and Sudish several times at awards and their office, led me to believe that I knew everything about this Mumbai based integrated digital agency.

It only took me a day in their office to be proved wrong. I knew of the kickass work they had done with McDonald’s and Sony PIX, but what I didn't know, is that Tonic Media is a madhouse. A madhouse of people who are creative and diligent, but at the same time crazy.

What Sets Tonic Media Apart

As I was introduced to all the talented professionals who make up the entire team of Tonic Media, I came across a wall with a lot of post-its stuck on it.

Each post-it was addressed to one person mentioning his/her positive qualities. On asking, I was told that each Tonicker is supposed to say positive things about his/her colleagues and that they have a “never say negative” attitude; which works to keep them driven motivated.

They have Tubelight sessions where every team member (Yes, That includes the SEO guys too!) is welcome to brainstorm over the strategy for the client. The philosophy behind this activity is that ideas can come from anywhere. I won't be surprised if this is one of the biggest reasons behind Tonic’s superlative client work.

Samir Asher, COO and Co-Founder, Tonic Media said

"What really sets Tonic apart is the unique culture that we have managed to co-create. We may not be a start up anymore, but we like to function like one. Nimble, close-knit and hungry."

 

How Tonic Media Builds Brands on Social Media

I bombarded their Social Media Head with tons of questions ranging from preparing a plan for the client to executing it. He patiently answered each one of them.

Plan for the Client

Tonic Media has a customized plan for each of its clients while approaching them. Based on the client’s industry, they brainstorm on ideas and aim to develop a solid content strategy in addition to a BIG idea that propels the brand on relevant social media channels.

Based on the scope of work, dedicated resources (copywriters, designers, developers, analysts) are allocated to the client.

Interacting with the Client

For Tonic Media, the client-agency relationship is like a marriage of sorts; and that is why when a client comes on board, the first few weeks are spent on getting to understand each other.

Regular updates and calls are made to the brand manager and several rounds of meetings are fixed. All this is done to become more familiar with the brand and to understand its pulse.

In case the client is new to social media, they make efforts to bring the client up to speed with the entire social media scenario and what results they can expect from being relevant platforms.

Once The Client is On-Board

Once the client is on-board, Tonickers get started with the proposed content strategy which is attuned towards attaining the client’s core objectives. The content decks are shared well in advance along with the BIG idea plan.

On the day I spent at Tonic, the social media team was buzzing as they were handling two campaigns for two different brands. That is when my favorite topic crossed my mind, Analytics; I just couldn't resist asking them about the tools they use.

I was informed that they have expertise in using analytic tools such as Social Bakers, Simply Measured, Hashtracking, Twitonomy as well as listening tools like Mentions, Topsy Pro and Radian 6.

Unmisha Bhatt, Director – Strategy stated that

"For us, social media planning is like Strategic Planning for any other mainline campaign. It goes beyond just likes, comments, shares and trending. It’s largely focused on evolving a strategic way forward with strong Consumer Insights. The key is to deliver campaigns that connect with the users and unlock long term value for our Clients."

 

Team Tonickers

The team is a crazy bunch of people. Tonic Media manages to fuse the professionalism of a mainline agency with the camaraderie that you usually see in a start up. Rarely will you come across an agency where the senior team members get along so well with the rest of the team.

The Social Media Team is appropriately called the Buzz team; A lively bunch of 15 people who are always on their toes, and yet having a lot of fun. It reminded me so much of Social Samosa that I didn't even feel out of place with them.

Tonic Media’s reputation lies a lot in its mindblowing creatives. Needless to say, I was surprised to know that their average turnaround time for most of the creatives was less than 45 minutes!!

Sudish Balan, Business Director

"At Tonic, we believe that each one of us are entrepreneurs. This sense of ownership and passion is seen in each and every person in the team, which also reflects in our work."

Recap

As I started to wrap up my day at Tonic Media which was filled with work, fun and Pizzas (Man! They worship Pizzas like anything), I couldn't stop admiring the way they have managed to fuse hard-work with so much fun.

When you come to Tonic Media, you won't find people glued to their systems with weary eyes. You will come across cheerful faces brainstorming on the next big thing for the client while sharing a wild laugh with the colleague (nay, friend rather) sitting nearby.