Essence is Essential !

Ad By: Wieden + Kennedy

Beautiful things MAKE beautiful things indeed !

While the entire cosmetic brands industry is busy in convincing ladies (teens to thirties, beyond that no product can help you and thats why are not shown as target market anywhere) of all age that their product will change their lives leading them to fame, success, love and more, there is one brand that connects you with it instead of forcefully trying to connect itself to you. "Forest Essential" is the brand running their same ad from past 2 years but is still as fresh as their product or models. When a lady thinks of buying a cosmetic product, she certainly values it if its expensive but more importantly she is always concerned about the artificial products and chemicals that it carries. While the other cosmetic brands try to tell her that it will give results that the lady is looking for, Forest Essential is simply saying that you are wise enough to understand "Beautiful things MAKE beautiful Things" indeed. 

The visuals and background music of the advertisement are beyond discussion. No one can argue that it is so appealing that there are moments when a conversation is paused when these super beautiful things (read models) come walking/moving in the forest with a heart beating music, and mind you not uttering a word or giving a "i feel so beautiful" smile. What is more interesting and profound is the classy way they communicate 3 things through one message (tagline). Firstly, the beautiful ladies in beautiful ambience catch your attention, telling proudly that the brand stands for beautiful makers. A company/ brand is established by its makers and clearly we know we have beautiful makers here. Confidence in the brand established ! Secondly, the product is made of natural ayurvedic products, which is otherwise boring and is not easily or rather excitedly taken up by today's market who usually falls for vibrant and loud entities. They show oils, herbs and other natural ingredients from the forest coming together in such a beautiful way that the audience can feel the beauty of nature sitting in their television room. Confidence in the purity of product established ! Thirdly, whatever a brand communicates, at the end of it the purpose of its origin is to make the product user more beautiful (from whatever he/she is). The beautiful brand and the beautiful product before closing their story, tells you that we make beautiful thing "You". Confidence in yourself established ! What more a customer wants - Confidence in Brand, Product, and Yourself ! 

The most essential things are most beautifully covered by the brand. The essence of the brand is not to make you a achiever rather to tell you that if the basic ingredients and makers are beautiful then there is nothing else that matters. "Forest Essential" has definitely changed the way ayurvedic products are looked at, the way cosmetic brands are looked at, and the way advertisements are looked at- they don't need to change every season or year, they are sometimes eternal like your brand !

If its Beautiful, It is Essential Forever !

Change the Fame !

Ad By: JWT

Shortcut to Fame- Change the Game !

There are few brands that don't need any campaign for their product promotion. They are so much part of everyones day to day life that all they need is different campaign for buzz innovation. Pepsi, Coke, Maggi are few such brands. When these brands advertise, their purpose is not to register their product into minds of customers, rather their sole intention is to stay in mind of masses and be always a topic of discussion. Having big celebrities as their brand ambassadors, doing activations in not so cornered places of big cities, buying all the inventory possibly available with television, newspapers, magazines; these are few endeavors taken by them resulting which not a single living human is unaware of their name. 

Following the trend of buzz, Pepsi has recently started something which they name as their new campaign- Change the Game. It definitely creates a buzz in mind when it is not clear what they are trying to say. Are they saying that all the money they have spent in taking up gods of one of the religions (read cricket) is meaningless and waste. Are they saying that all the money they have spent in getting the international players do some animated acts is just to tell them that India can make even those legends change their game. The cricketers play football and footballers play cricket, but at the end of that robotic act cricket wins (somewhat). So does that mean, Pepsi wants to say any sport would change into Cricket in India. Certainly not ! Hence confused sperm. Even if for a moment, the idea is taken and everyone is convinced that change the game, then from now on cricket fans should move towards football. Few months later, these converted football fans should move towards hockey, then boxing, then wrestling, with no end to the list. After all, "change" the game would remain constant and thus would keep changing the game once established. 

What is shown is not what is conveyed. It would be better to "Add" the game than to change the game. When you bring along legends of two sports, you are adding two pictures in one frame and not removing one to replace with other. If a brand tries to change the mindset of each consumer, it might result in loss of trust. Using a positive sentiment like "add" is risk proof option than to loose fame with rebellious word like "Change".

Long strategy to fame- Add in name !

King Don Ring Wrong !

Ad By: Credit to Shahrukh Khan

The ringtone plays at 3:35/5:45 in the clip

Don movie is almost synonymous to Shahrukh Khan!

Bollywood is altogether an industry where competition is about marketing the movie and the product/service brands. Shahrukh is one such leader of that industry who is known as the marketing guru and such a marketer who he is also a part of the management institute where lessons of marketing are taught. While the story for his way of marketing his movies is unending, the number of brands he endorse is also not an easy number to keep the count of. The movies he make and become part of are marketed so well that the movies are acknowledged with his name, like "Don" not really is a movie now but is another name for Shahrukh. Thats his impact on movies and the range of his brand endorsement goes from face creams, automobiles, electronic appliances, beverages to mobile phones. One amongst these brands is Nokia, who has Shahrukh as its brand ambassador from seemingly always. 

In the movie Don that has and is about Shahrukh, everything invariably gets connected to him. If there is something that is shown in the movie then that is the perception of the audience that they would believe this is done by Shahrukh. So, in such scenario when mobile phone is playing an important role by ringing at every such scene that looks like turning point of the movie, it is difficult to miss noticing the "Sony Ericsson" ring tone filling the sound space of movie hall. Shahrukh is the brand ambassador for Nokia and movie has ringtone of Sony ericsson at every instance. Though it completely sounds like Sony Ericsson ringtone but if it is not then also it is not difficult to get confused with them (Read this as disclaimer). If there is any particular significance of Sony ericsson in the movie then that is not conveyed. If there is no significance, then what was the necessity of putting any acknowledged ringtone like this which leaves no impact than diluting the image of the "Don !". Another if, if at all there was a dire need of putting some mobile handphone acknowledged ringtone then Shahrukh, the marketer should have ensured putting Nokia and nothing else. For someone who notices this, dilutes the image of Shahrukh, the Don and Nokia, but yes applauds for Sony ericsson for such dominance. 

A marketer lives by the examples. It is easy to ignore such kind of small things while offering something as huge as Don to the market but it is unmatched smartness if even such small things are taken into account. 

Shahrukh is supposedly synonymous to marketing !

Namesake or fake !

Ad By: Automobile companies

The name on the automobile shows its identity.

Automobile and Telecom are two industries that seem to never saturate, be it their brands, products, ranges, prices or be it their advertisements. Considering the size of respective target markets, automobile has less competition to match up the need and want of its customers as compared to the telecom sector.  Automobile sector has to tactfully handle its strategies to reach its market as it needs to invariably understand that the spending capacity of its target customers is way too dynamic with today’s economy. With such a changing and responsive environment, automobile has to be ready well in advance to reach the right target market at the right time.  To identify this right target, the market can be defined in specific manner based on certain parameters - demography, socio-economic parameter, geography to name a few. Once identified, automobile conceptualizes all the marketing strategies around the same.

The demography and socio-economic are such parameters that are indirectly reflected and communicated through the role plays in the advertisement, that are part of entire marketing. Geography is another parameter that is directly addressed and noticed in most of the automobile advertisements these days. When an automobile company designs its tv commercial, it displays the product and its features. While the product is shown, the camera shooting the commercial is unable to miss the number plate put on the vehicle (this also emphasizes that it is not allowed by law to drive a vehicle without its registration plate/number plate). Few companies choose to put the name of the model there and others put a number plate that shows the registration of the vehicle at a particular state. As seen in the advertisement of Ford Figo- Tamil Nadu (TN) registered car, Ikon & Fiesta- Delhi (DL), Maruti Swift- Karnataka (KA), Estilo- Uttar Pradesh (UP), SX4- DL, Honda Accord- Rajasthan (RJ), Jazz- Maharashtra (MH), VW Polo & Jetta- MH, Tata Nano & Indica- MH, Fiat Punto- MH. In a country with almost indefinite number of states, it is interesting to see how an automobile company decides on a particular state for its entire communication. There can be only three reasons to choose one amongst many- the company wants to reach customers in that particular state, the company manufacturing unit is present there or the company is headquartered there. In case, none of them is the reason for same, then it definitely leads to a sense of association or else a sense of apprehension for those who notice.  If there is no compulsion of putting a registration number there, the brand should undoubtedly try to avoid the same for not losing on an association that could have been otherwise possible.

The name (of the state through registration number) shown in the advertisement should be for sake of reaching its specific target market else it stays meaningless and somewhere come across as fake communication.

The name in the advertisement talks about the strategy.

Tool called "We make the tool"

Ad By: Saatchi & Saatchi

Lenovo is just making the tool !

Whenever a brand decides to market itself, the first question in everyones mind, even of a non marketer is who is the target audience. The entire communication is designed keeping the target audience at the center but how many communications actually read out that "You" are the target audience. The purpose of every marketing strategy is to take the attention of audience, create an interest towards the brand, resulting into a desire for the brand and an action from the target audience of being associated with the band. However, most of the brands are unable to complete this journey by either not taking the attention or else not able to create an interest after taking an attention. There is no end to creative designs and ideas that become the point of discussion for all viewers but usually all those creatives are the discussed point and not the product or brand. 

Lenovo comes with a creative which took the attention only with its content, the content that took the space on entire ad space for its huge font size but more than that it took the space in mind of its readers for the message it convey. The message says "We make the tool, you make them do"and it is so simplistic in nature that it reaches the readers mind in a very subtle way. Lenovo doesn't brag about their technology or expertise in their offerings, instead they say that all they offer is just a tool and is not worth anything if the customer is not with it. The customer do the thing that makes a tool worth what it is. This communication suddenly makes the reader and ultimately the consumer feel special. There is a brand who is not just telling about its proficiency and is just not saying that customer is god but is making a perfect balance. The customers won't be able to do things they want to if they don't have the right tool and the tool would be of no use if it doesn't have its doer.

Its difficult to be simple and strong. Lenovo is perfectly making a strong communication with a very simple creative. If any brand is able to make the audience feel special and is able to sustain the attention beyond that moment of notice, then the audience in itself becomes the brand ambassador for life.

Consumer is making the tool do ! 

Flush the Confusion !

Ad By: Mall Revenue Generators 

The area most frequented and most ignored.

In todays time, hangout for people in and around metro cities is the nearest or farthest (for experiencing a change) mall to them. Counting the footsteps in each mall irrespective of what it offers is possibly an employment avenue now. The malls are competitive in terms of outlets they offer, the carpet area they have, the aesthetics, the crowd, the food court, and even the washrooms. When the uncountable crowd reaches this competitive mall, there is a high probability of more than 50% of them to visit the washroom of the mall. Without a need of experience, it is certain that the washroom for men and women, both are equally good platforms for advertisers. While there would be hundreds of ad in a mall but they wont take our attention the way less than ten ads would take in a washroom of a mall. 

When the walls of a place where you are present completely for a specific purpose are filled with supposedly washroom centric brands, then there are no doubts about the attention taken by those advertisements. Till the time attention remains on the advertisements, it is insightful and definitely talks about the kind of brands the mall support. But the moment, it is observed that the brand in the ad is different from the one used, it ruins the entire image of the brand in ad, brand in use and the marketers of mall. In one of the premium malls of Vasant Kunj, Delhi, it shows the shower fittings of brand Grohe in the advertisement but the fittings used otherwise are from different brand. Definitely, the mall would not have showers fitted and thus can be debated about the difference in brands. But at the same time, when a brand is placing its ad in presence of another brand which belongs to same domain, then it dilutes the image of each brand. Grohe comes across as unconfident of their other range of products and seem to be certain about showers only thereby not placing their product in the right place but just the ad of the product which has no use there. 

Generally, placing such ad does not make a difference to the brand as hardly any one observes what they see and what they use at such places. But it is definitely an onus on the brands to understand where they are placing themselves while positioning themselves in the market. More so, it is an onus on the marketers of respective malls who portray themselves to offer the best. They should certainly make sure that what they advertise they believe in it. It is no less like Ranbir Kapoor advertising Nissan but driving Volkswagen. So, audience is smart today to notice even the unnoticed and hence it is very much necessary to make sure the avoidance of any such confusion of brands. 

The area most frequented is also most significant. 

Balance mind ! Scooter can wait!

Ad By: BBH

Try to convince them about balance !

TVS Wego is certainly trying to convince its audience about the balance feature that the new scooter has. The usual ingredient of an automobile advertisement are present in this ad too so as to make sure that it is served right. Handsome guy driving the vehicle, smart girl always happy to be pillion rider, interesting background music, beautiful roads that are seldom found in India, some crowd who are present on road for sole reason of ogling at girls (not the product) and last but not the least- the product itself. TVS Wego thrills everyone watching this new ad that highlights the USP of product as its balance. They create a pleasant surprise story that ends with telling the balance of vehicle as reason behind this setup. 

The ad starts with complete calmness when two couples are minding their own business and are being responsible citizens by stopping on the red signal. Suddenly, everything changed - the calmness vanished, the life of two couples turned into ego of two ladies, responsible citizens became irresponsible passionate dancers who even forgot their helmets for their passion of dance. Two ladies look into each other's eye and one look to other lady made the guy lucky. They realized that the men they have is better than the other one and each lady shows some move to other that how smart she is to do impossible things on a scooter. They don't care for safety, for traffic rules or regulations, for the guy who is actually riding the scooter when she is making all efforts to wobble it, don't even care about the third lady hand that comes in between. The point of focus in the entire ad and in the background music is that how proud the lady is about herself and her partner. The entire ad didn't talk responsibly about the product but instead was a clip to show the human nature wherein girls hold ego in front of each other and guys hardly care about anything whats happening on their back.

The dance poses, the moves, the flexibility of ladies indeed at the end gets justified when it shows that because they were on TVS Wego they were able to do all these tricks. But certainly, the concept is not full proof. If they had to highlight the balance, they could have shown one scooter supporting the feature and the other one failing to do so. When a vehicle is talking about balance, then the viewer is not interested in knowing that would he fall if he dances on the vehicle. He is interested in knowing if vehicle would be able to balance his body in difficult situation or in bad road conditions. The ad doesn't even show that ladies are proud of their vehicle, the way it comes across is that they are proud of themselves only. It only showcases a shallow mind of the riders in the ad and not specifically the balance of vehicle. Even if we ignore all these, an automobile company can not afford to miss on safety regulations like wearing helmet. 

When can't convince them, confuse them!