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Ad By: Various

Benefit to two in cost of one!

The advertisements were generally considered as a platform wherein one product is talked about so as to take attention towards that one product. However, the ad today is not just about product but more about attention. The brand should be able to grab the attention of the audience, in process if the product centricity vanishes then that is taken as worthy. Similar effort for attention is co-branding wherein two brands come together in active and passive format. One brand develops an ad and forms a concept which culminates with discussion about that brand but in the process we also see the presence of another brand (passive brand). The passive brand is not talked about or mentioned but its presence completes the ad story.

The latest ad of Lava Mobiles wherein a guy with some other brand mobile is given candy for a change of money whereas when a Lava mobile user comes for a change he is handed over with Surex condoms (S placed instead of D to keep it obviously unobvious). It is a very strong depiction for defining the target segment for the product. A learned, smart and sensible customer would have condoms and likewise for Lava Mobiles. Though it somewhere leaves an impression of being a male centric mobile. Another example of co-branding is the advertisement for Everyuth face wash where in when the ad starts it shows a set up of an open restaurant with few females sitting across a table. The table places the cans of Sugarfree Dlite and until the face wash is introduced, the strong presence of cans reflects as if the ad is going to talk about the healthy (sugarfree) drink for young females. Both the products being from Zydus group makes the best out of a single platform. More so in the ad with our most widespread endorsers from Cricket. The cricketers endorse a pain relief ointment with Aircel branded team t-shirt. So their communication actively is about ointment but passively without verbally mentioning a word they show their association with Aircel. Such ads are good idea to deliver about a product or a brand when they make the ad story strong and does not interfere with the main concept. But when a product is placed without any contribution to the story then it gives a very lame look to the entire concept and ruins the image for all the products.

A very different and interesting co-branding came across when a brand used the other brand but did not show it or mention it. The mobile handset company Airfone used the already popular and acknowledged couple of Cadbury ad to show their story. The couple in Cadbury ad sits at a bus station and talk about guy’s mom, the same couple in same constume is now shown seated in the bus in Airfone ad. The girl takes the conversation left in Cadbury further in Airfone ad by mention of guy’s mom. The Cadbury ad was already known to audience and it was an amazing act to take the attention without investing much into it. The sequel of ads is an innovative way for a brand which understands its size in the market and thus acts wise by leveraging on a big brand without disturbing the essence of either.

It is an interesting and mature advertisement strategy when two are highlighted on one stage.  It certainly benefits two though unequally wherein it is difficult to decipher which one benefits more.

Air tells about new AIRTEL !

Ad by: JWT

Any change is difficult to manage. 

Airtel has undergone a change that has called so many apprehensions which are now becoming a difficult task to manage. The black, white, red combination word starting with capital A was known to every living soul. Suddenly, the web is crowded, people are talking and Airtel building on NH8 is changed. The new logo is artisctically written small 'a' above Airtel with its letters in lower case and dominating red color against white background. Along with logo, the tune that existed for more than 10 years is also changed, this time again by AR Rahman. All these changes are showcased by new advertisement having a new concept. So, Airtel has gone for a rebranding. Just like, Vodafone had undergone or rather when Hutch was acquired by Vodafone. Hutch was a strong brand but still it had gone thru that rebranding making it even more stronger today. 

Airtel had to take this challenge of having a change. Indian telecom market is saturated and this makes competition for Airtel really difficult. This became a reason for them to cross the boundaries and become Indian MNC with presence in 18 countries post Africa based Zain's acquisition. So today they are the 5th largest telecom company, with 200 million users in India, 40 million in Africa and 10 million in Bangladesh, Srilanka. Primarily 3 reasons justify the Airtel rebrading: Speak internationally, Connect with youth across all geographies, Sync with 3G services. Airtel needs to appeal to several markets now being meaningful to all of them, and at the same time depict that it is an MNC brand with presence in many countries. Thus the new logo which seems to be inspired by Zain makes it more appealing to masses across the world because of its simplicity. Likewise, the dynamism of the logo and tune turns to be more modern, vibrant, and friendly so as to reach the youth across globe. Also, Bharti Airtel spent $23 billion for 3G services and thus they need to get prepared for them to balance the investments made. 

The Airtel subscribers or non-subscribers across the nation held a connect with old Airtel. Sudden change in everything associated with the brand certainly leads to an abrupt disconnect that takes the consumer away from the brand. As a brand, it is understandable that to meet the market need a rebranding was compulsory. But at the same time, it is an equal responsibility of the brand to understand that what its market needs. A new logo is acceptable only if it is more dynamic than previous one, a new tune is enjoyable only if masses can't stop humming it after listening to it once, a new ad is watchable only if it reaches masses' heart. From a brand like Airtel, who gets 2 million viewers on first day of introducing world's first voice blogging service- Airtel Blog, much more is expected. Airtel has annoyed its customer base by giving them what they don't desire and taking away what they always adored. 

Hopefully, the impact of change washes away with time. 

SMS- Superbly Messed Service !

Ads By: Slim Belts, Property, Insurance, Education courses, ETC

You have a New Message. 

TA-, TD-, TM-, AD- and many more ! There is certainly no one today whose inbox is not flooded with messages carrying these prefixes. This mode of reaching to customers is not restricted with any kind of boundaries. Anytime of the day or night, there could be a beep on mobile phone trying to educate us about latest Sauna belts, numerous real estate choices that have been made especially for us, various distance learning courses that would take our career to new peaks instantly, so many banks trying to make us healthy and wealthy. There is no escape to them, there is no end to them, but also there is no need of them. 

These bulk messages have become such constant source of irritation that a sight of standard format on phone screen and it is deleted even without reading beyond three alphabets. The new TRAI regulation has insisted to restrict the Sender ID for these messages to minimum 6 characters. Three character specify the SMS service provider and from where it has originated followed by a hyphen. So when we see AD-Something, it signifies that "Something" is using bulk SMS provider based at Delhi (D) which uses Airtel (A). Likewise TA means Tata Andhra Pradesh, TM means Tata Mumbai, BA means BSNL Andhra Pradesh and so on. Thus, these initial 3 characters act as caution that what follows this is just a bulk message and carries no personal significance. Though there exists an option of sending Do Not Disturb to 1909 and get rid of this bulk but somehow some options are just feel good factors and not solutions.

In around 3000-4000 Rupees a month, these companies try to reach out their customers through these messages and get their attention. They certainly gather the attention that they are clearly identified and deleted without any apprehension. Such kind of mobile marketing spoils the brand image and comes across as a cheap marketing stunt. If the purpose of these messages is to take attention then certainly it is a negative marketing which makes a consumer feel that how insignificant he has been considered to become part of a bulk list. These messages would be beneficial in cases when there is a need to inform about an event or activity that has temporary existence and thus requires immediate spread. Too much of anything indeed ruins the importance and now all messages starting with typical 3 characters have lost their viewers.

New Message with 3 characters in beginning are meant to be deleted.

AB with ABC of KBC

Ad By: Leo Burnett

Amitabh Bachchan - preparing the nation's people to prepare themselves !

There would hardly be anyone who would not know about Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC). And all those who know it also know it as a property of Amitabh Bachchan (AB). With such widespread audience already registered with the name, the relaunch does not really need much introduction. AB humming the tune of KBC is enough to declare that its coming back. Besides the most famous CID series, Sony screen is now taken by the commercials talking about KBC. From the announcement of its come back, to declare dates for registration and to gather eye balls, KBC has not missed anything in around 20 days. The launch came in a big and creative way by bringing the commercial during Indian Idol Finale which had the maximum audience glued to Sony at that time. From there starts a journey of promotions which is going to reach its destination on October 11 thats when the KBC goes on air. The marketing plan has been very creatively laid by placing the launch on birthday of Amitabh Bachchan so whatever the reasons be but TRP on October 11 for Sony is going to be record breaking. 

Following the announcement in Indian Idol Finale, there has been so many commercials talking about KBC that these promotions themselves are citing a story giving out new facts every day. Bringing life to the enthusiasm associated with KBC, the TV commercial leaves audience to discuss who is father of Akbar. A child asks his father this question and father laughs over it. Father doesn't leave it with a laugh but shares this as a joke with his friends and also with new people he meets. Father is shown amazed that how can his son ask him such silly questions and that such questions are not supposed to be considered relevant. A night before when father is on hot seat with AB, son again asks the same thing before sleeping but father didn't find any sense in it. As expected, on hot seat, the first question which is considered to be the simplest question asked by AB was same- Who was Akbar's father? AB with complete sarcasm points that this must be so simple that even son would be able to answer. Father's head goes down, he is embarrassed and son had no reaction or action to deliver. 

Certainly, the dual purpose of commercial is served. It definitely brings along the entire family to follow the series and also puts it across that the series is not going to be that easy now. The question is shown as a difficult one in entire commercial that the father thinks that such difficult answers he is not supposed to know and AB also ends it in his witty way by giving his sarcastic comment. KBC has been about knowledge, about entertainment and about watching it with complete family. The commercial certainly makes sure presence of all this in its communication. Also, it is a bigger win for a commercial if its audience gets discussing it off screen also. That happens in a big way with this commercial when people actually flaunt that they do know who is Akbar's father and say " Humayunnnn Obviously ! ".

ABC of KBC is properly communicated.

Parachute - Per Ad Sales Shoot Add

Ad By: McCann Erickson

"Khubsurat hai badna"- Hair and Brand

Parachute has made a position for itself in market today that for major part of customer base Parachute is synonymous to Hair Oil. Be it credited to its years of existence or to its product quality or its brand awareness, everything confines to its marketing strategies. When a product gets old, it also gets experienced and with that experience comes along a pride which bounces an attitude of arrogance. With that kind of product lifecycle, a brand is ought to mess with its marketing campaigns. But Parachute has wisely taken care of its communications at every stage. From right brand ambassador like Asin and Anoushka Sharma to right tagline of "Gorgeous Hamesha" and "Khubsurat hai badna", it knows how to maintain the brand features.

The new ad talks about journey of a girl in her life where every moment becomes a milestone when she gets certain new learning developing her into a newer better person. The ad starts with a lady in saree elegantly standing besides a window and remembering her days gone by while running her fingers thru her hair. Starting with short hair when she is with a friend dressed in casual jeans, moving to a subtler attire where she gives gift to a house maid carrying her hair little longer and then shown considerate about emotions of her mother while dressed in suit and having even longer hair this time. The gesture is very broad and simple. They don't try to claim the immediate benefits of product rather very beautifully show that it takes a long journey to get those long hair like it takes a long journey to become a better person. Slowly, we move ahead in life and every small incidence leaves us with some impression where we learn something and constitute it in our character. Likewise, the nourishment for hair is used for life and it becomes part of life that stays along to keep us growing. 

The point put across is as clear as lame it is. Though it is clear that they want to talk about the journey of life and wants to show that Parachute should be a part of life but at the same time it also leaves a very lame impression. It doesn't encourage much about the product characteristics as it is instead showing that product is kind of slow resulting and it might take ages to get desired form. But perhaps, at this stage of lifecycle, a brand doesn't really need to bother to prove its product characteristics, rather only needs to show the significance of its presence. At the end, ad leaves with a beautiful thought of growing and growing beautifully. 

Khubsurat hai badna from inside and from outside.

Enter, Print, New, Revenue :Entrepreneur

Ad By: Entrepreneurs

Enter into business, print about the new idea and generate Revenues !

The tough competition and easy choices have turned many into entrepreneurs. The tough competition and easy choices have increased the scope of advertising. Every one in their every day life think of some revenue generating new ideas and many amongst everyone move forward to materialize it. Resulting, we know of many entrepreneurs today in their late 20s or early 30s who have either seen difficult times or have casually on a coffee table started with their business ideas. It doesn't take 25 years now to become big overnight. The stories of entrepreneurs existed earlier also but they were not known like they are known today. Reading about success story of small business was an occasional thing in some business magazine. There were few channels who gathered such info and shared it through print media telling them as an inspiring success story. 

Now, with marketing medium getting dimensionless, there is no end to subjects that are exposed and informed. Amongst, various mediums, print media is the most prominent one that has grown despite of technological advancements that acts against it. Magazines today are carefully segmented and within various segments there exist a huge competition. They still carry the success story but today the way they are segmented and targeted, the purpose of sharing those stories is entirely changed. More than a story or news, they are source of revenue for both the content maker and content publisher. The content maker (Entrepreneur) shares about his business idea in a specific magazine evaluating who is the target segment of his business and which magazine is followed by that segment. The reader would certainly acknowledge the business that is shared in an authorized magazine and would follow it. The publisher is certainly benefited from the revenue generated. It is wise to merge the resources in this way so as to get win win situation. 

Entrepreneur who makes videos for families understands that Femina would be the right choice as woman readers of Femina carry that emotional quotient to acknowledge the significance of product offered. Thus, her story is a success story in Femina which is presented as to motivate woman audience but also gives information about the product creating interest towards it which would encourage more sale. Likewise, small businesses for whom the target segment is youth -college or corporate people share about themselves in a section of Outlook Money. It is indeed interesting to notice the way various resources are utilized now. 

Significant part of entrepreneurship is definitely marketing !

Volkswagen Vows !

Ad By: DDB Mudra

Das Auto = "The Car"

Volkswagen started their campaign in India, not by coming with their brand name but by showing themselves as Category name. They emphasize on "Das Auto" in every communication which means "The Car" in German language. So when they started to reach the Indian customer, they didn't try to pitch in with their product features or with their German engineering expertize or with their well known brand name, they took a bigger challenge of making their name synonymous with automobile category - Car. Like in earlier days, for middle class of India, car meant Maruti; same way in todays highly cluttered automobile industry, Volkswagen wants the Indian customer to think of Volkswagen when they think of Car. Establishing the brand name in minds of audience, Volkswagen take it forward by presenting their international product in the most local way.

The tv commercials for "Polo" from Volkswagen came after interesting, eye-catching newspaper print ads. The tv commercial ads in series of 4 were equally noticeable and interesting. The product is targeted for Middle class with price starting from around 4.5 Lakhs and thus in every communication, it comes across that how well they have understood their target segment. A middle class family who would consider buying this product would be someone who is learned, knows about competitive world and so could be someone from corporate world with formal attire and sleeves folded, tie loosened by the end of day. When he makes a purchase decision for high involvement product like car, he tries to find out maximum information about all the basic features of car like fuel efficiency, ground clearance, safety etc. He would trust it only after he finds about it himself. This is how car is purchased in Indian families after lot of research and discussions about it. So, Volkswagen hits on this very obsession of finding about features, presenting a corporate individual in his Maharashtra registered car (MH 02 BM 1199) who tries to test his car for few specific features. The moment he takes a sigh of relief that his car cleared the test he himself put in front of it, he finds himself in a problem for challenging the obvious. Showing how they understand the thinking of their customers, they attempt to remove all apprehensions any customer carry, by voice over in the end saying Engineers have already tested the vehicle so customers don't have to bother themselves by doing it again. That is indeed like getting inside the consumers mind. Though it might also leave a negative feeling for a part of audience who might take an offense for showing them to land in pool if they try to challenge the brand but then there is very little difference in reality and optimism. 

Earlier, Volkswagen has been taken as International brand who are too good but even the best needs to get better with Indian road conditions. In this campaign, they have replied to this very challenge by giving proof that how Indian road conditions are well taken by "Polo" from Volkswagen. Also, they don't miss out in mentioning that its still German Engineering but is Made in India. That is the like making best German Engineering better for Indian conditions. Though they shoot in South Africa to show Indian conditions but that is fair enough until the point is put across well. They seem to have taken care of every minute thing and indeed get noticed in midst of high competition of automobile where every car ad looks almost same. 

360 Degree campaign showing German Engineering. Made In India.