Marketing campaigns and product advertisements with specially youth in the mind- the underlying changes
I recently happen to see the new Godrej Cinthol commercial with Hritik Roshan swishing and splashing in the uber cool way. Another ad of Vimal having an old corporate honcho handling over the reins of his company to younger blood, clad in Vimal fine suit is what points the trend of the advertisement is taking in India. May it be Virgin Mobile or the Maruti SX4, all seem all geared up to pamper the youth (read 20-30 somethings) with their offerings. Sprite and Thumps up have already gone that way, following the lead of Mountain dew in the youth centric campaigns.
Gone are the days of a family centric ad for a particular product (not in Toto but you get the hang of changing things). What we are witnessing is the slow but steady shift from the collectivistic thinking patterns of the late 90’s to a more individualistic decision making pattern of the contemporary India. With most of product categories gearing their advertising campaigns centering on the younger crowd, we are in the middle of a definite paradigm shift. We need to remember what Nike and Pepsi did with their campaigns featuring exclusively youth. Be it Whirlpool ad featuring a younger couple (onscreen- Kajol and Ajay) or an HSBC ad focusing on a young leader in the making. And we need not forget the well though campaign of Aditya Birla Group, enticing youth to work for the true Indian Multinational. As more and more youth go to work in the Tier 1 and 2 cities from their hometown/ other cities, it becomes a growing phenomenon of new settlers driving consumption. (More on this later). And with a renewed confidence in sync with a buoyant economy, the youth of the nation is finding flavor with the life style advertisement campaigns which focus experiential marketing as an in built tool.
For example, the HUL- Sunsilk “Life cant wait” campaign focusing on the independent and self conscious young women of today hit the base with its core appeal and emphasis on the self coming first before anything else- a clear indicator of the changing ideologies of today’s Indian Youth. FMCG sector as such seems to be preparing for capturing heart and mind of the youth, and I think many more life style campaigns are in the making from various FMCG majors like P&G, Marico, Henkel, Dabur, ITC etc. The scooter king of the yester years- Bajaj seems to hit the bull’s eye again with its fantastic commercial of the new Pulsar. For saying mildly, it left me awestruck. It hits on the core appeal of youthful exuberance coupled with I-am-the-king of the road mindset. Long way from Hamara Bajaj Campaign!
The Indian advertisement scene is set to witness more unprecedented campaigns, according to me. Consumer Durables majors will be shifting their focus from traditional joint families to a typical young couple. With Murjanis bringing more and more Luxury brands in clothing to India, watch out for more youth centric ads in the media. And automobile sector may just be opening to the change in the buying power of the youth, a long way from a typical family decision to buy a family car.
I may sound way futuristic in my views here, but we can’t just ignore the zeitgeist. We are in the middle of a rapidly changing time. And I strongly feel that marketing is just undergoing a massive transformation.
And results are all too apparent to u, pointing to something more fundamental- priority to Individualism.
Gone are the days of a family centric ad for a particular product (not in Toto but you get the hang of changing things). What we are witnessing is the slow but steady shift from the collectivistic thinking patterns of the late 90’s to a more individualistic decision making pattern of the contemporary India. With most of product categories gearing their advertising campaigns centering on the younger crowd, we are in the middle of a definite paradigm shift. We need to remember what Nike and Pepsi did with their campaigns featuring exclusively youth. Be it Whirlpool ad featuring a younger couple (onscreen- Kajol and Ajay) or an HSBC ad focusing on a young leader in the making. And we need not forget the well though campaign of Aditya Birla Group, enticing youth to work for the true Indian Multinational. As more and more youth go to work in the Tier 1 and 2 cities from their hometown/ other cities, it becomes a growing phenomenon of new settlers driving consumption. (More on this later). And with a renewed confidence in sync with a buoyant economy, the youth of the nation is finding flavor with the life style advertisement campaigns which focus experiential marketing as an in built tool.
For example, the HUL- Sunsilk “Life cant wait” campaign focusing on the independent and self conscious young women of today hit the base with its core appeal and emphasis on the self coming first before anything else- a clear indicator of the changing ideologies of today’s Indian Youth. FMCG sector as such seems to be preparing for capturing heart and mind of the youth, and I think many more life style campaigns are in the making from various FMCG majors like P&G, Marico, Henkel, Dabur, ITC etc. The scooter king of the yester years- Bajaj seems to hit the bull’s eye again with its fantastic commercial of the new Pulsar. For saying mildly, it left me awestruck. It hits on the core appeal of youthful exuberance coupled with I-am-the-king of the road mindset. Long way from Hamara Bajaj Campaign!
The Indian advertisement scene is set to witness more unprecedented campaigns, according to me. Consumer Durables majors will be shifting their focus from traditional joint families to a typical young couple. With Murjanis bringing more and more Luxury brands in clothing to India, watch out for more youth centric ads in the media. And automobile sector may just be opening to the change in the buying power of the youth, a long way from a typical family decision to buy a family car.
I may sound way futuristic in my views here, but we can’t just ignore the zeitgeist. We are in the middle of a rapidly changing time. And I strongly feel that marketing is just undergoing a massive transformation.
And results are all too apparent to u, pointing to something more fundamental- priority to Individualism.
posted by Raman Sallaria @ 7:22 pm
1 Comments:
At 11:59 am ,
latecomer said...
Good Post, Raman. I wouldn't really buy your argument though. What you really seem to have conveniently forgotten is the fact that Advertisements have always been about the youth from time immemorial... except, of course, when they are selling pension plans or ye olde 30 plus capsules :) Fact is, advertisers have always tried to hard sell glossed up dreams to their audience - an ideal world, an ideal life, an ideal family, an ideal You!- and trust me, there never was and there never will be an ideal middle age or an ideal old age. Everyone wants to bask in the fountain of youth, you see! Hence advertising with PYTs has got nothing to do with the neo-Y culture (if at all, the impact is subtle), it rather has all been about selling an illusion- showing the audience what they want to see - and making a hell load f moolah in the process!! Long live advertising. :)
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