Associate - Brand Activations (Brand & Communications)

Role Summary

The Brand Activations Associate will be responsible for planning, coordinating, and executing all BTL marketing activities across the assigned territory within the South Zone. Reporting directly to the Zonal B&C Lead, this role demands a proactive, detail-oriented professional who can independently manage end-to-end BTL activations, vendor ecosystems, and stakeholder relationships. The incumbent will serve as the single point of contact for all brand and communications mandates in the assigned states, with the overarching objective of strengthening the V-Guard brand.

Key Responsibilities

A. BTL Campaign Planning & Execution

• Support the Zonal B&C Lead in planning, strategizing, and executing all BTL-related activities across the assigned territory within the South Zone.

• Take complete ownership and responsibility for independently managing end-to-end BTL activations in the assigned area, ensuring delivery within agreed timelines and quality benchmarks.

• Develop and execute innovative BTL campaigns including events, promotions, trade activations, and on ground engagements- that align with the brand's strategic objectives and effectively engage the target audience.

• Coordinate and execute dealer/influencer meets, channel partner engagement programmes, and other sales-driven brand initiatives in close collaboration with the sales team.

B. Vendor & Agency Management

• Manage a diverse set of vendors across retail branding, OOH advertising, events management, fabrication, and allied services.

• Proactively identify, evaluate, and onboard BTL vendors in the region- particularly retail branding vendors- with the requisite expertise, capabilities, and capacity to handle assigned work as per defined specifications and rate agreements.

• Negotiate contracts, service-level agreements, and commercial terms with external agencies and vendors to ensure cost efficiency and quality delivery.

• Build and maintain strong, long-term relationships with vendor partners to ensure consistency, reliability, and scalability of BTL operations.

C. Brand Building & Stakeholder Coordination

• Act as the single point of contact for delivering and managing the brand & communications mandate across the assigned states, with the sole objective of building and strengthening the V-Guard brand.

• Work closely with the sales team and regional stakeholders to align BTL activities with business priorities, market dynamics, and channel requirements.

• Ensure all brand communications and activations are consistent with V-Guard's brand guidelines, visual identity standards, and messaging framework.

D. Budget & Reporting

• Manage the budget allocated for BTL campaigns in the assigned territory, ensuring optimal resource allocation and effective cost management.

• Track and report on campaign performance, vendor spend, and ROI metrics; provide regular updates and reports to the Zonal B&C Lead.

• Maintain comprehensive documentation of all activations, vendor agreements, and expenditure records for audit and compliance purposes.

Qualifications & Experience

• Postgraduate in Marketing, Mass Communication, Advertising, or a related discipline.

• 2–3 years of relevant experience in BTL marketing, brand activations, field marketing, or sales, preferably within FMCG, consumer durables, or allied industries.

• Demonstrated experience in managing end-to-end BTL activations, including vendor identification, negotiation, and execution is preferred.

• Prior experience managing retail branding, OOH advertising, and/or events is highly desirable.

Key Competencies & Skills

• Strong project management skills with the ability to handle multiple activations concurrently and deliver within tight deadlines.

• High degree of integrity, ethical conduct, and accountability in all professional dealings- a non-negotiable behavioural expectation for this role.

• Excellent vendor management and negotiation skills.

• Self-driven, proactive, and capable of working independently with minimal supervision.

• Sound understanding of regional market dynamics, trade channels, and consumer behaviour in South India.

• Proficiency in MS Office (Excel, PowerPoint, Word) and basic familiarity with AI and brand asset tools.

• Willingness to travel extensively within the assigned territory.