Gone are the days when Ramayan meant pin-drop silence and staring at the TV in rapt attention. Gone are the evenings when gullies would go quiet as everyone wished Sachin a century.

With proliferation of media and tailor-made everything, India’s collective conscious has reduced to the size of a pea. There was a time when what everyone watched on TV last night was Close-up Antakshri or Philips Top 10. That’s what kids spoke about, that’s what mothers discussed and that’s what years later endured in all their memories.

Entertainment, advertising and media in general, accounts not just for our present but helps build memories for tomorrow and provides a country with a collective consciousness that binds them together. Brands that have been a part of that live on.

But in today’s India not only is the divide between the rich and the poor excessive to say the least, it is also just as extreme between a metro-mini-metro, metro-metro, north Bombay- south Bombay, Sidhi garden-mahavir enclave…

When was the last time Bollywood, India’s dream generator, gave the country a nation-wide hit? When was the last time a movie had people queuing up not only at multiplexes but at that run-down theatre in Bathinda too?

People are busy opposing Telangana and Gorkhaland when the boundaries in their collective experiences have long been formed and have led to a disintegration of the collective consciousness of India. No wonder today, that Phir Mile Sur Mera Tumhara doesn’t give you goose bumps. No wonder, today then, that not everyone has even seen Phir Mile Sur Mera Tumhara.

But then how does it affect us in advertising?

Sample the current twitter tag of ‘#iconic ads’ and you’ll find people reliving ads that spoke to them all. From Deepikaji to ‘papa ki karan petrol khatam hi nahin hunda’. Ads that they all remember. Ads they all enjoyed. Ads that form a part of this collective consciousness.

If there really is very little that binds us all, then perhaps this is both a challenge and an opportunity for brands to bring us together. To be the common thread that expands these silos.

With advertisers spending a lot of time identifying the exact target group right down to the underwear they wear, there seems to be a serious risk of dividing people into boxes that probably exist only in our heads.

So then would it serve the brand right if advertisers were to kill themselves (and their planners) in trying to narrow down to this perfect consumer? ‘for the busy woman who works in a BPO or is an air-hostess’, says a client. He wants it in the body copy. Must we really bother with telling people that this product is for them? Can they not figure that out for themselves once they know what it does. Why must we specify it in such detail that perhaps even reduces the spill-over effect?

Enough has been said about the increasingly unhealthy silos people have created for themselves. They say social networking is pulling us apart instead of bringing us together.

If the product is customized, should the advertising be?

Advertising tells stories. Interesting, warm, funny, engaging stories. Stories that people want to share. Stories they want to, perhaps, hear again.

Perhaps then there is merit in using your exact definition of the TG in deciding your media plan.

And leaving brand planners to find that elusive culture sign that brings people together. Picking up that macro cultural trend that isn’t found in excel sheets but instead in the pulse of the nation.

Considering the decline of the collective consciousness thanks to micro-targeting, is it then time for us to not scoff at the client who says ‘my product is for all women’? Instead, find him a story to tell that brings people together and not just take the easy way out by micro-defining his TG for him. No wonder most average advertisements today are 30 second definitions of the TG, than what the brand’s story is.

I can see my friend Sultie smirking at this header. Truth and advertising is as much of a possibility as me and a raise. (but then that’s another story for another time)

You see, I read this post by Dave Trott where he spoke of the need to be honest. He said in advertising, like in life, you must be honest. While I completely appreciate the sentiment, advertising lies in its exaggeration. In drama. In romance.
Okay so you migt say, give the fancy schmancy to the consumer but at least be honest with the client.
Now I think we can still be honest to the consumer but it’s even tougher being honest to a client. As in any service industry, in advertising too, you get business per square inch of arse licking. Gross as it is, it’s true. Don’t be surprised if you think your agency is fabulous but the numbers are still heading south. It’s probably a case of your agency doing that horrid TVC to keep you happy knowing fully well that consumers won’t pick up your product even if you paid them.
There is a constant struggle in agencies, to maintain this balance. Keeping the client happy and keeping his brand happy. Unfortunately they never lie on the same plane. Clients pay us the money, no wonder then, that sometimes the see-saw weighs in favour of the brand manager who pays by square inch.

1. You don’t watch a movie, you look for product placement

It’s a no-brainer that a good soundtrack can make people want to stick to the channel when your ad is playing. I did that for Parachute’s Gorgeous Hamesha and even the karo zyada ka irada for Max New York Life.

So it comes as no surprise that I am completely bowled over by the Discovery campaign ‘I love the whole world’. So much so that I want it as my ringtone, caller tune, soundtrack for life and whatever else there is!

The song makes me want to give Discovery a BIG hug and definitely adds to brand. In addition to being informative, discovery to me, is now totally lovable.

I can’t help but compare the rather expensive Hero Honda music video ‘dhak dhak go’. The video had its moments with people coming together and it perhaps even had some optimism about the future of our young nation… blah blah. But it didn’t really evoke any sentiment, much less a download.

Oh and you can download the official mp3 and video of I love the whole world from the discovery site. So you can viral it around. That’s something Hero Honda missed on their site. (I couldn’t find it, if you can then lemme know)

Sentiment vs Information vs Item Number
Music, to my mind, is about a sentiment, a feeling. And if you use it to just force your brand down someone’s throat you’ll be left with a B-Tex type of khujli ad and nothing more.
Though I must confess I am not sure how much good a soundtrack does to a brand in the long run, but it sure helps memorability of an otherwise run-of-the-mill campaign.
Of course one runs the risk of turning the soundtrack into an item number. Complete with background dancers, confetti and disco lights. And then just like with item numbers, another brand comes to replace yours the next week.

Perhaps like Airtel and Puma (Paulo Nutini’s ‘New shoes’) more brands need to look at their soundtrack more seriously. It might just allow their brand to live well beyond the measure of media spends.

We advertisers hate to face it, but it’s true – we don’t know shit about the consumer.

Well we may know… but when it comes to describing the people who are most likely to buy our product, we fail miserably.

We describe stereotypes. Not people.

We think ‘youth’ is an ipod-toting, yo-ing, french bearded teenager in shorts-that-run-to-his-ankles.
Of course we could not be more wrong. Surely the youth of the country don’t fall into this category.

Sample this shopping cart that a middle aged, lower middle class family checked out at Shoprite. (accompanied by their 2 young children)

1. 3 Lux soaps
2. 1 pair of brown socks for the kiddo
3. 1 Dove soap
4. 1 pack Kamasutra (x20)
5. 1 Gatorade
6. 2 Amul Kool’s
and more…

Now for the life of me I’d have never figured

• They’d prefer a Kamasutra over the more mildly advertised Moods

• That the lady would refuse her daughter a small pack of pencils but splurge on a much more expensive Dove soap presumably for herself

• That they’d be the sorts to buy Gatorade (what with their kids not having any say in the purchase process, from what I witnessed)

So maybe we ought to focus more on making our ads more appealing rather than spending too much time defining that ideal target consumer. Because there sure as hell isn’t one.

In a world of clutter, how does one little shop in Bandra stand out?

Whenever I go by SV Road Bandra, I can’t help but notice this little shop that is in the buisiness of healing broken bones.

It’s such a simple, clutter breaking… and err.. pretty straightforward shop sign

1. It visually depicts the services offered
2. Is understandable even if you are illiterate, thereby increasing number of possible customers
3. Shows smiling faces signifying positive results
4. Shows that it’s for both men and women, so women need not shy away

Anything else I missed out?

Next time you go by the road, try ignoring the shop with the weird picture of a man and woman with broken arms. You just cant

PS: I had to juggle with the steering wheel and the camera in a Bandra jam, but thankfully I managed a decent shot.

There’s something wrong with advertising. I think that reflects in our lingo.
We don’t usually consider our consumers as people. We think consumers are mindless tin-men whose behaviour depends on what we ‘communicate’ to them.

How else can you explain the most commonly used phrase in advertising – “hammer the audience”

Usage: ‘we’ll hammer the audience with the message through TVCs and mall activities’

Meaning: We’ll repeatedly send out the same message till they know it well and recognize it in spite of current brand clutter.

Glad you all hate wearing helmets. Makes my job easier.

So excuse me while I go and figure out new ways to hammer you all.

I saw a mention of in-tunnel advertising on TV some time back and it’s worth a mention here too.

In tunnel advertising is the newest thing to hit the market is already being used by Kotak in the Delhi metro.

What is in-tunnel advertising
It is advertising inside tunnels where neatly lined and lit up screens provide a moving picture experience to those sitting inside the train.

More about it here.

Of course people are already complaining about how marketers never leave them alone. I for one am thankful for the entertainment it offers during the commute. For once the men will be distracted by the advertising and stop staring at women passengers. No?

The Bee Gees sure got something right. Nothing is truer in advertising than this.

So I figured that I’d mention the two ads in recent times that have (IMHO) used words incredibly well.

1. Chuskiyaan zindagi ki

I just loved this. Those three words play up so much in my mind. So many memories, anecdotes. It just encapsulates the perfect Indian experience… family conversations over tea. While the CCDs of the world proclaim that a lot can happen over coffee… tea promises a lot of simple and memorable conversations. sigh. too bad i don’t drink tea or coffee. Else Red Label would be my way to go.
Though I find it off that they didn’t capitalize on a line like that. I have seen on this one commercial. Are there more?

2. Lagan ki syahi se…

Okay so I hope I got the brand right. The new TVC by Cello is really my favourite these days. Simply because of the words. If memory serves me right, it goes something like this..
mehnat se himmat se lagan ki syahi se kuch kar dikhao kuch ban dikhao

and I totally love the lagan ki syahi se part. what a nice way to look at pens.

However the situation isn’t all that great for everyone. the new Reliance Ad tries to force fit some good writing even though it has nothing to do with the brand. Sure the words are good but then make no sense with the ad:

suna hai khwaabon ko room mein band rakhne se par nikal aatey hai… it goes on like that but at the end i’m left wondering what the ad was really about. Cuz the words went one way and the brand was… well, lost.

Any ad I’ve missed out?

Update by Prof Falguni. It turns out the ad is not from reliance but by Tata Indicom. So much for brand recall Whatever happened to look & feel of a brand being similar across communication?

While many people are busy buying your cola because they loved your ad (yes for some it is as simple as that), there are plenty who aren’t buying it because they hated your ad.

When something with the ad goes a bit wrong, at most we expect people to switch the channel. However nowadays people receive so much of advertising that they’re self styled experts and will judge you for the vermin that you are.

Consumers are no long indifferent to shoddy advertising. In fact many are being quite harsh to poor advertising.

A recent verizon ad that shows a nasty pittbull has been at the receiving end.

[excerpt from Ad Age] Veterinarian Susan Ralston sent Ad Age her letter of complaint to Verizon, which says, in part: “I don’t know what your company was thinking. I don’t know how much money was wasted on this despicable ad. Perhaps you should donate the million or so spent on that ‘creative’ to pit-bull rescue in an attempt to undo the damage. I switched my BlackBerry to T-Mobile. Maybe if enough folks do the same, it’ll get your attention.”

Now it’s possible that there are only some 7-8 people who think the ad in question was inappropriate, but if those 7-8 people are blogging and commenting about it, then they’re the ones helping me form an opinion about your brand. (that’s where the internet really kicks ass)

Oh and by the way, I don’t drink 7Up. They did a very insulting radio spot on RadioCity once with a man eve-teasing a woman (in the cheapest way imaginable), only to be told that it’s the new 7Up curvy bottle. Like it isn’t bad enough having to hear suggestive stuff on the streets, now you gotta go and put that on my radio. Oh man!