Yahoo! and MediaCom launch Style Factor for Procter & Gamble in India

The site offers content on premium fashion, beauty and personal care for women and is inspired by a similar successful initiative called 'The Thread' in the US.

Yahoo! India and MediaCom have launched a custom branded content and entertainment site for Procter & Gamble (P&G) called Style Factor. Style Factor is inspired by a similar site called 'The Thread' on Yahoo! Shine, once again developed for P&G in USA.

The site will focus on content around celebrity news, information on fashion, skincare, hair care and make up for Indian women. After the beta launch a couple of weeks ago, the site is now live and available on Yahoo! India Lifestyle.

On the new initiative, Archana Aggarwal, country media manager, P&G India, says, "Style Factor is a site for a digitally savvy woman who is smart and discerning about engaging with brands online. In keeping with P&G's vision of touching more consumers' lives more completely, this partnership with Yahoo! has shown how custom branded content will help us to engage with our consumers and create meaningful conversations around our brands."

Aggarwal insists that digital remains a big component in P&G's marketing plans and the group is continuously learning and evolving its strategies on the medium.

The site is a showcase for P&G brands � Pantene, Whisper, Ariel, Oral B, Olay and Head & Shoulders. It leverages trending topics related to leisure and entertainment content and offers locally produced content hosted by model and actor Nauheed Cyrusi, with a dedicated editorial team supporting the production of local news online. Yahoo! will draw from a range of syndicated and original editorial material that will be rotated each month according to the featured P&G brand.

Video entertainment will be an integral part of Style Factor. Developed by Yahoo!, the premium video series will integrate P&G products through localised and thematic storytelling.

Explaining how India is among the most cluttered markets when it comes to advertising and how advertising is getting increasingly intrusive while consumers have begun to filter out communication, Hemen Desai, managing partner, MediaCom India says that content such as this are set in the right context and helps to pass the desired message to the consumer.

"Custom content experiences offer unparalleled opportunities for marketers to engage with users in a more meaningful way, thus generating better business results for brands. Indian audiences are passionate about fashion, beauty and lifestyle-oriented content. By creating customised content, P&G aims to go deeper and draw insights into how consumers engage with their brands online,"

says Desai.

"Today, the new age Indian woman is turning to the internet to discover international fashion trends, beauty, personal care, grooming and home-making tips. The timing is just right to bring in Style Factor to India, in partnership with P&G to offer the audience an essential guide to celebrity trends and star style. We are happy to strengthen our global relationship with P&G in India to offer the brand the right kind of audience and editorial strength required to launch the branded entertainment experience to connect with relevant consumers," adds Vishal Maheswari, senior director and head of sales, Yahoo! India.

Maheswari states that the content produced must not be mistaken for advertorials as the former is generated such that it is relevant to the featured brands and not created especially for them.