So, what else is new?

I have been seeing this on Indian television channels. Every single brand of mens' deodorant makes advertisements that follow the hackneyed Axe-effect concept. Okay, not every single brand. Park Avenue comes to mind, with its "don't be invisible" concept. Hats off to the brand and agency behind. They managed to find a different yet relevant stand for themselves.

Then there is wildstone that at least attempts to create an entirely different setting - spicing it up with some desi flavour.

What me-too advertisements do is simple. They provide free advertising to the brand that originally adopted that stand. The different brands don't register in people's minds unless they see entirely different stories in their respective advertisements.

There is a brand of deo that is currently running an ad featuring a man, seated in a movie theatre watching Bipasha on screen. He unbuttons his shirt and wham! Bips steps right out of the screen and walks up to this man, attracted by the deo he was wearing of course.

I have seen this ad a reasonable number of times and always thought it was an Axe-effect ad. Only yesterday did I happen to notice that it was a different brand. (and I can't recall which one it was now). It made me think they were doing AXE a big favour by doing exactly what they do.

I am disappointed that Airtel does the same with its newest ad. Their ad features a little girl ...a little girl..ring a bell?

Surely, you couldn't have missed the telecom brand that has been "happy to help" a sweet little girl trying to do silly things like take a shower in a cubicle by the sea or bake a cake (at her age!) etc.

I have huge respect for Airtel's iconic "express yourself" and "if only we talk to each other" ads. Even their daily ads with the little boy on his toy phone and the Madhavan-Vidya ads are charming and stand their own ground.

So dear Airtel, why this now?

(their current "keep your friends close" ad featuring the little girl, causing me to complain is not yet on youtube. So, you will need to catch it on TV)

Picture courtesy: getty images

What's wrong with today's advertising award shows?

Read this article on the 'adsoftheworld' website and decided this article deserved a mention on my humble blog.

I subscribe to these views completely. Here are 4 things pointed out by the author:

1) Effectiveness isn't considered

2) Scams are allowed

3) Patting our own shoulders - no one outside of the ad industry takes them seriously

4) High cost of entry.

Read more here.

Me & Meri Maggi

I have ALWAYS wondered why Maggi instant noodles has consistently targetted only school kids. (In India)

Though I must admit I quite liked the Maggi ads when I was growing up. I can still sing out the whole jingle, particularly the one which went:

"mummy badi gazab ki bhook lagi...* "

No matter how much kids loved Maggi, it was still a forbidden food in India. It fell in the 'junk food' food-group. I have eaten a lot more Maggi as a grown up than as a child. In the college canteen, and later when I lived alone, away from home. And at the cafeterias of the offices where i worked! Even now, after being married, I enjoy an occasional evening snack of Maggi noodles with some cheese on the side.

Which is why the new "Me aur meri**" Maggi campaign makes SO much sense! They seem to have suddenly woken up and smelt the coffee or should i say Maggi on their 25th birthday!

It feels like finally having your love reciprocated. Maggi suddenly took notice of me.

Maggi, in India is much more than a kids answer to sudden hunger. You can see all that Maggi stands for on their beautiful website meandmeri.in where consumers have themselves sent in their Maggi stories.

You can see the ad and read more about the campaign and the people behind it here.

There's even a Maggi time-machine on their website where you can find the Maggi ad of my childhood days.

* loosely translated - mummy, feeling REALLY hungry!!!"

** me and my maggi

Smile time again

Everybody seeks approval.

No matter how obviously good we may be at something, we still seek approval.

This post is in continuation of the 'smile' series of posts. Those of you who missed them can see the previous two posts on the subject here and here. A good insight always makes you smile.

Acknowledgements: I would like to thank Meraj for pointing out this insight when it unexpectedly sprang up during one of our many casual conversations.

Is 'impatience' a good word?

About Airtel's new ad promoting it's broadband service, I think it is wrong to glorify "impatience" amongst youth.

Impatience like violence is a vice and rarely leads to anything constructive.

The creators of this ad are right about the observation that today's youth have a greater drive to achieve but they are wrong in assuming that it is 'impatience' that is giving them this drive.

It is not impatience that drives today's youth to achieve more. It is increased opportunity and increased consumerism. Youth today dare to set high goals because they know they can't be stopped. The youth of today has more opportunity and a wider platform (interestingly, facilitated by the Internet) than I had just 10 years ago. Today's youth is a slave to consumerism and are prepared to work for it.

Impatience causes people to honk persistently when stuck in a traffic jam. Impatience causes you to quit your job every 9 months. Impatience makes you avoid exercise and resort to those flab reducing belts instead. Impatience makes you thrive on fast food and instant noodles. impatience makes you want to study only those sections that are important for the exam and ignore the rest. Impatient people over-speed and jump the signal.

In these times especially one needs to nurture the virtue of patience.

I can see the logic behind a broadband company glorifying impatience as it means that they respect your impatience and hence will deliver high speed Internet. That's one way to look at it.

Interesting concept from the brand's point of view. But disapproved of from a social point of view.

More importantly, this ad errs in portraying "impatience" like it is a modern day attitude.

Whereas impatience has been the wont of youth since time immemorial.

There's even an age-old Chinese proverb on impatience:

"you can't help shoots grow by puling them higher"

I will be convinced otherwise the day I meet a successful man or woman who tells me that the force behind his/her success was his/her impatience,

Until then, it's thumbs down for making "impatient" sound like it is a good attitude to have.

Meanwhile their 360 degree campaign which simply plays on the words "can't wait" is a harmless fun and relevant way to connect to the youth. Thumbs up to that.

It's like translating "yeh dil maange more" to "greed is the new way of life" and then glorifying "the greedy ones". Wouldn't sound right right?

Favourite ad award for the Vodafone 10p SMS campaign - sabko batao!!!

These ads won my heart. Apart from a high 'repeated viewability' quotient that I always talk about, these ads are fortified with brilliant acting performance and charming use of background score. The score adds to the humour beautifully.

I'd say, you can watch these ads not just repeatedly but endlessly!!!

Turns out that these ads are the follow up ads to a main ad which can be seen and read about here.

However the main ad is not a patch on the follow-up ads. The follow-up ads are crisp, short and thoroughly enjoyable. Brings a big grin to my face every time!

If there were acting awards for ad models/actors, I would give it to the girl in the 'celebrity' ad. She has done a great job! I could be biased because she is the one i can relate to most. One of my male colleagues likes the pass-fail performance better. I really wish i didn't have to refer to them as 'the girl' and 'the boy'. Would be grateful if anybody could tell me their names.

See the ads here, here and here.

It has made me realise the following:

A good idea dearly depends on execution to become a great idea.

Hats off to the casting team and the production house. Will someone please tell me who the production house is? (I have been searching on google but in vain...)

A few more smiles

Few months back, in this post, I had initiated a list of universal truths. Truths that transcend language and cultural barriers:

Thanks Meraj, Mathew and Anbu for your contributions.

My attempt in the following list is to present truths that are, lets say, on the second level of truths. The first level include the more fundamental truths such as maternal instinct, sexual desire, envy, desire for more etc...

Here's a list of truths which may not be covered in a ' basic human psychology course'.

1) Feeling pangs of guilt for being more privileged than the, I shall take this opportunity to use the most popular buzz word of the day - slumdogs. Whether we do something about it or manage to ignore.

2) An unexpected present at an unexpected time can win you a special slot in anybody's heart. Don't believe it? Try it and see! ALWAYS worked for me. (borrowed from the movie 'Finding Forester')

3) We all have wanted to prove some people wrong about what some people think of us

4) We all like to 'collect' things. The thing may vary but everybody collects something. (such as the collection of owls in the picture)

5) There is a child in every grown-up and a grown-up in every child. (the former brought out beautifully in the Fiat Linea ad and the latter in Slumdog millionaire)

6) Its difficult to stay calm in presence of a loved celebrity. No matter how dignified you are. (Shown masterfully in the new Vodafone ad. Can't find it on Youtube yet)

7) Anybody who meets/sees a BIG celebrity feels it important to later make character judgements - "very unassuming" or "big showoff" or "has bad skin" or "is very short" or "has a presence" or the favourite: "is very ordinary"

Hope each of them made you smile. I enjoyed putting them together..:)

Cheers!