Agency Feature: All you need to know about Excellent Publicity

Excellent Publicity was founded by Vaishal Dalal and Manan Joshi, two friends with different backgrounds but one shared ambition: to build something remarkable from the ground up.

Vaishal’s journey is particularly unconventional for the advertising world. A qualified Chartered Accountant, he followed the traditional path of working in finance but quickly realised that his real passion lay in creating brands, not just balancing books. With no formal background in advertising but a deep-rooted belief in hustle, storytelling, and consumer behavior, he took a leap of faith and co-founded Excellent Publicity. 

They began by experimenting with a restaurant table-booking platform, something like Zomato. The idea didn’t take off, but it planted the seed. Next came a hyperlocal magazine titled On Wheels, placed inside rickshaws and taxis. From writing and designing to printing and physically installing shelves inside rickshaws, they did it all themselves. It didn’t become a commercial success, but it exposed them to the untapped power of transit media. That was their turning point.

Their first real campaign was for a local sweet shop; they branded 500 autos across the city. That small but impactful project laid the foundation for what would become Excellent Publicity.

They started with zero capital. They stood at Panjarapol crossroads (a major junction in Ahmedabad) holding banners in hand, trying to advertise what they could offer. In the early 2010s, when internet access was free only at night, they’d stay awake scraping data and building databases manually, sending cold emails to generate their first leads.

Scaling without a legacy or formal training in advertising meant they learned everything from scratch. They faced every kind of challenge, building trust, hiring the right team, delivering consistently, and even being conned out of ₹7 lakhs early on. But they turned every obstacle into a learning curve. They stayed client-obsessed, hired smart, adaptable people, and built systems that could grow with them.

Today, with a team of over 120 people headquartered in Ahmedabad, Excellent Publicity is a full-service independent ad agency known for delivering multi-channel campaigns across India. From outdoor to digital, transit to cinema, they manage over 5 lakh+ media options in real-time and cater to clients across categories and geographies. The team is young, agile, and always hungry to create work that pushes boundaries.

To further empower their clients,the agency has built an AI-powered, self-serve ad platform, a first-of-its-kind media planning and buying tool that lets brands explore, plan, and book campaigns seamlessly across formats and geographies. What once took days of back-and-forth can now be done in minutes, reflecting their constant push to innovate and make advertising more accessible and intelligent.

At the agency's core, it is a team of  young, agile, and fearless people driven by hustle, curiosity, and a desire to keep pushing what’s possible in advertising.

What’s in the name?
The name 'Excellent Publicity' was never just about sounding confident. It was a statement. From day one, the agency wanted to assure clients that if they chose to work with them, their brand would be represented in a way that is nothing short of excellent. Over time, that name became their benchmark and promise, and the agency works every day to live up to it.

What we do

The agency offers comprehensive media planning and buying solutions across four key verticals: Digital, Sports, Offline, and Gifting. Backed by a strong network of 50,000+ vendors and access to over 5,00,000 media options, the agency helps brands connect with the right audience, at the right time and place.

The agency's approach combines on-ground expertise with technology. From strategic planning to execution and performance optimisation, everything the agency does is driven by speed, scale, and efficiency. The agency's AI-enabled self-serve ad platform gives clients the power to discover, evaluate, and book media seamlessly, all in one place.

Whether it’s a high-impact national rollout or a targeted local campaign, the agency ensure every touchpoint delivers measurable value.

Why we do it?

The founders started the agency with one simple idea: to bring structure, strategy, and accessibility to media buying and planning, especially in a market where these services were often unorganised, relationship-driven, and lacked transparency.

What began as a passion to streamline traditional media through outdoor and transit advertising quickly grew into a larger mission: to simplify media planning across platforms and geographies, making advertising more data-driven, efficient, and scalable.

As the needs of brands evolved, so did they. Today, they’re not just buying hoardings; they’re building the tech to automate and optimize media buying and planning through AI integration. Their platform empowers marketers to discover, plan, and book campaigns in real time, across cities, media types, and budgets.

The agency's vision is global, through their AI-integrated self-serve ad platform, the agency will make it possible for a business owner in New York to advertise in Mumbai as seamlessly as if they were local, without chasing vendors or relying on guesswork. 

That’s what drives the agency. Every day, they wake up asking: How do we make advertising easier, smarter, and borderless?

How we evolve

The agency evolves by staying relentlessly curious about their ideas, their systems, and their ambition. What started as a service-based agency has grown into a tech-first, AI-integrated media planning platform, driven by one simple philosophy, don’t just meet current brand needs, anticipate what’s next.

The agency actively track shifts in consumer behavior, media consumption, and emerging technologies. From mastering transit media in their early days to embracing digital programmatic and performance-led buying, growth for the agency has always been about moving ahead of the curve.

As media buying grew more fragmented, the agency responded by centralising inventory, digitising the planning process, and building real-time transparency through their AI-powered self-serve platform, allowing brands to explore, plan, and book campaigns with unprecedented ease.

Internally, the agency has scaled by investing in automation, streamlining SOPs, and equipping its team with tools and training that match the pace of modern media.

Social responsibility in social media

In an era where everything is transparent and every stakeholder, from consumers to competitors, has access to the same information, social responsibility isn’t optional, it’s expected. The agency understands that every piece of content it creates, reflects not just the brand but also broader societal values.

The agency approaches work with a deep sense of accountability, prioritising honesty over hype, inclusivity over trends, and clarity over chaos. The agency guides clients to engage in conversations with empathy, avoid exploitative messaging, and stand for something real. In a landscape where virality can’t come at the cost of ethics, the agency ensures their strategies uphold both impact and integrity.

Need of the hour

The digital media landscape is evolving at a pace that far outstrips the policies meant to govern it. From inflated follower counts to ambiguous influencer disclosure norms, the absence of a unified regulatory framework has led to gaps in trust, accountability, and overall campaign efficacy.

Key issues like data privacy, targeting ethics, and ad pricing continue to operate in grey zones, exposing brands to unnecessary risk and diminishing long-term value.

What the industry urgently requires is a clear, enforceable legal structure that promotes transparency across the board, from platforms and creators to agencies and advertisers. As an agency, it is doing its part by building tech-enabled, insight-led media planning tools that bring structure to chaos. But real progress demands collective action and policy-level clarity. 

It’s time the ecosystem evolves together, to protect not just business outcomes, but also the people and platforms driving them.

We learned the hard way

When one doesn’t come from the industry, every insight is hard-earned, and the agency has paid for them in full. The agency wasn’t born from market research, legacy connections, or investor capital. It was built from the ground up, driven by hustle, instinct, and a belief that it could create something bigger than itself.

The agency's earliest experiments, like launching an  'On Wheels' magazine inside rickshaws, taught it that not every idea takes off. But that failure became a turning point, revealing the untapped potential of transit media. What started with branding 500 autos for a neighborhood sweet shop has grown into full-scale campaigns across metro stations, malls, and airports.

The agency also learned that without structure, growth becomes chaos. So it began building systems, from hiring sharper talent to creating internal tech that brought consistency to scale. These foundational steps laid the groundwork for the next leap: integrating AI into media planning and buying, transforming how campaigns are ideated, executed, and optimised.

Trust isn’t handed out in this industry; it’s earned, one campaign at a time. They didn’t just learn how to build campaigns; they learned how to build a company. The industry taught them a lot, but it was the streets, setbacks, and sleepless nights that shaped who they are today.

We work with

The agency has collaborated with several brands in the country, including Google, Red Chillies, Starbucks, Amul, CoinDCX, Flipkart, IndiGo, MG Motor, Disney+ Hotstar, Swiggy, Burger King, Coolberg, and Matter. 

Industry as we foresee

India’s social media landscape is rapidly shifting towards a hyper-regional, AI-first, and commerce-driven future. The rise of vernacular content, nano influencers, and short-form video platforms is reshaping how brands engage with audiences, demanding agility, authenticity, and deeper insight than ever before. 

The next frontier isn’t just media buying; it’s media intelligence. Campaigns will increasingly be built on predictive analytics, real-time performance data, and AI-powered planning tools that move beyond guesswork to guarantee results. Creativity will still lead, but data will decide.

The agency is not just adapting to this change, its engineering it. Its AI-integrated self-serve platform is designed to help brands with smarter, faster, and more transparent media planning and buying, whether they’re in Mumbai or Manhattan.

As the ecosystem evolves, the agency is committed to driving it forward, ethically, intelligently, and impactfully.

A day without Internet

For a company built on data, speed, and digital infrastructure, a single day without internet is like losing sight mid-marathon. Everything, from media planning to client servicing, comes to a halt. It’s disruptive, no doubt.

But it also brings perspective. It reminds the agency, that while technology powers what it does, it’s human instinct, offline relationships, and well-built systems that keeps it steady when the digital world pauses.

In those moments of silence, they’re reminded that resilience isn’t just about speed; it’s about staying grounded when the signal drops.

Gender ratio and policies

Over 50% of the team is women. It has a zero-tolerance harassment policy, an internal POSH committee, and flexible work hours to support working mothers.

Inclusive policies

The agency champions equal opportunities for all, irrespective of gender, background, or beliefs. From flexible working models and mental health support to transparent appraisal systems and inclusive leadership, the agency ensures every team member feels seen, heard, valued, and safe. Everyone has a seat at the table, and every voice counts.

Maternity and paternity leave

As per the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017, the agency ensures its female employees receive the full duration of paid maternity leave and the necessary support during their transition into motherhood. Additionally, it offers 30 days of paid paternity leave to all male employees, acknowledging the importance of shared parenting and family well-being.

Work culture and values 

The agency has built a culture where ownership is second nature, ideas are always welcome, and innovation is constant. Hierarchies don’t get in the way; anyone can challenge a brief, take the lead, or bring a bold idea to life. No one says no to taking initiative, and it has created a space where it’s okay to make mistakes, as long as one learns from them. Beyond the deadlines, the agency values balance, mental well-being, and having a life outside the screen.

Agency growth YOY

The agency began as a small venture with just ₹75,000, with no external funding or major backing. Its journey started with a clear vision and a strong commitment to delivering value.

Over the years, it has seen steady growth, achieving close to 3X year-on-year driven by adaptability, client trust, and a constant willingness to evolve. When the pandemic hit, instead of pausing, they pivoted. The agency explored new verticals, adopted emerging media platforms, and realigned strategies to suit a changing landscape.

Through it all, its focus remained on people, which is why, even during the most uncertain times, they didn’t cut a single employee’s salary.

Today, while the agency continues to grow and expand across geographies and services, they remain grounded in the same belief that started it all: consistent effort, adaptability, and putting people first go a long way.

Client testimonials 

"We graciously appreciate our business association with Excellent Publicity not just because of their high level of commitment and distinctive way of conducting business, but also for demonstrating a supreme professional attitude. They offer one of the best in class and a wide range of business-relevant products and services, along with possibly the best rates and rapid delivery of goods. They have got a prodigious understanding of the needs and business opportunities of their client companies, which makes them the preferred partner for doing business." - Hitesh Barot

"It's really an awesome experience to work with excellent publicity, their service is always on point and fast. Basically it satisfies a customer's expectations completely, without any question required." - Saanvi Dave

"Working with Excellent Publicity has been a fantastic experience. Their team is highly professional, well-organized, and always supportive, which makes collaboration effortless. Payments are timely, and communication is always clear. It’s been a pleasure to partner with them, and we truly appreciate the trust they place in us. Looking forward to many more projects together!" - Janmejay Sahu 

Work

From Flipkart’s hoardings and society activations to Burger King and KFC’s high-visibility outdoor presence, the agency's strategies have delivered impact where it matters most.

The agency has taken Starbucks and CoinDCX to print with newspaper campaigns, helped Volkswagen and Govind Milk engage audiences through cinema and television, and supported Zydus with integrated television and digital presence.

Awards 

Over the years, the agency's work has been recognised with several prestigious accolades, including Gujarat's Young Achievers Award, Mumbai City Icon 2018, and being named among the Top 100 Promising Marketing and Advertising Companies at MADcon.