ad:tech India 2018, the original industry authority for marketing and media technology practitioners and digitally savvy brand marketers, openned the call for submissions, for the 2nd Edition of, "The Next Big Thing Startup Competition," (TNBT).
After the phenomenal success of its debut year in 2017, and following a long-standing global run in other ad:tech markets, like New York and London the competition will shine the spotlight on some of the most valuable, new and up-and-coming companies in the advertising, marketing and digital media space.
The world is going through a time of unprecedented change, with technological advancements like we’ve never seen before. Keeping this thought in mind Nestlé India partnered with ad:tech for The Next Big Thing 2017. The winners of the 1st edition were SilverPush and Klove media – both of whom have innovative products in the Media and the Cooking space. 2017 proved to be a phenomenal year for these startups, moving them into previously unexplored markets and winning new clients, thanks to their association with Nestlé India. The 2nd edition of The Next Big Thing will be even bigger with the promise of sustained mentoring from Nestlé India’s top management to the finalists followed by a fully funded pilot project from Nestlé for the winner. Established brands like Nestlé always stand to learn from disruptive startups - access to innovation, introduce entrepreneurial spirit, learning to think differently, fail fast and iterate quickly.
Marketing challenges in 2018 includes 3 specific briefs from Nestlé India in the field of Nutrition & Health Digital Solutions and Services, Digitally Enabled Market Research and Content Creation Powered by Data and Technology. An eminent jury consisting of organization’s top management will hand pick a few finalists following this call for submissions. Then, at the 2018 ad:tech New Delhi event, the finalists will vie for jury votes. ad:tech New Delhi’s annual "The Next Big Thing Startup Competition" in association with Nestlé , will help both attendees and the greater ad:tech audience discover new technologies and/or services that will take business to the next level.
The companies featured in TNBT should be in the early stages of funding, and should have a technology or service that could potentially bring new value to the advertising and marketing audience -- the community present at the show on March 8-9, 2018, at the Leela Ambience Hotel, Gurgaon. The search committee -- seated with influential executives from major brands, technology companies, agencies and holding companies -- is looking for true game-changers. Finalists and winners will represent the best and brightest in a variety of emerging technology platforms and will stand to win a fully-funded Pilot Project with Nestle.
Speaking on the announcement, Rashi Goel, Head Consumer Communications at Nestlé India said,“ The Next Big Thing 2017 inspired startups to showcase innovation rooted in digital and technology which can be used to complement Nestlé’s existing initiatives. With the launch of the second edition we are looking forward to increased participation from the entire startup community with solutions which are sustainable & effective for Nestle India”
Also, Jaswant Singh, Country MD at Comexposium stated, “We are really excited to conduct the second edition of The Next Big Thing Challenge and contribute to the whole ecosystem of building the next set of entrepreneurs in India. Having received an overwhelming response last year; we are expecting an increase in participation in this edition. This competition will undoubtedly enable start ups to raise their profile by getting mentorship from industry leaders and provide the much needed impetus to growth.”
Timeline:
Finalists will receive: