As the year comes to an end, we step back and take a look at the advertising work that dominated 2012. Some leading creative minds give us their pick of the top campaigns of the year
In the ad-media-marketing world, each year is typically defined by the kind of creative work and campaigns that it witnessed. While 2012 did see some significant work, not a single campaign defied the parables of advertising and stood out like the iconic Vodafone ZooZoos or Airtel’s ‘Har ek friend zaroori hota hain’ in earlier years.
Was this due to a lack of risk-taking and courage to walk off the beaten track? “This year, we saw less experimenting. We need to be more fearless, more edgy and experimental in the marketplace,” observes Santosh Padhi, Chief Creative Officer and Co-founder, TapRoot India. Also, amidst the launches and campaigns, there was an underlying sense of the consumer’s purse-strings being tight; this mood of the gloomy economy seems to have eclipsed creativity this year.
Airtel’s ‘Jo tera hain woh mera hain’ did not quite do what ‘Har ek friend zaroori hota hai’ did for the brand. However, Idea’s ‘Honey Bunny’ did hit the right notes with its catchy tune and fun video, and remained on people’s minds and lips during the last leg of the year. ‘Honey Bunny’ added a fresh texture to the brand and resonated with the audience.
A TVC that was a hit with the creative fraternity and consumers alike was the Tanishq - Diwali commercial by Lowe Lintas and Partners. It captured the mood of the economy as well as Indian middle class sensibilities.
Other popular campaigns included The Hindu’s ‘Behave for the Youth’s sake’. Through its TVC named ‘Classroom’, it targeted Indian politicians in no uncertain terms and encouraged the youth, as the leaders of tomorrow, to take action. Sony’s ‘KBC - Gyan hi Aapko Aapka Haq Dilataa Hai’ ad had the feel and relatable casting of India’s common man, the underdog who wins at the end. It connected with the audience and was communicated well, besides packing a punch with its witty dialogues.
Nike’s ‘Parallel Journey’ struck a chord with a nation that worships cricket. The TVC was executed well in its portrayal of the journey of the muchloved world champions parallel to the cricket worshipping youth of India. The commercial aptly named ‘You just did it’ indeed did it for Nike.
Two brands that chose to launch commercials this year were Visa India with its ‘Dream to Advance’ ad by BBDO India that established an emotional connect with its audience and Café Coffee Day with its ‘Sit Down’ ad by CreativeLand Asia. The central message of Café Coffee Day’s maiden TVC was ‘stop creating morchas or standing up against things, and instead, sit down to talk over a cup of coffee and find a way forward’.
Talking of 2012 would be incomplete without mention of ‘18 Again’, a ‘vaginatightening’ cream. The commercial by Curry Nation not only made people sit up and take notice, but evoked discussion
and debates. It got talked about in columns and remained omnipresent on digital media for over three months after the commercial was aired. More importantly, it made people use the word ‘vagina’, locked away as a taboo word earlier by Indian households.
Also, 2012 saw the comeback of storytelling, which is the core strength of our country. The soft play on relationships was evident in ads like Cadbury’s ‘Tum mujhe I love you nahi kehte’, the Tanishq Diwali ad, the Visa cycle-generator commercial and the Parachute lotion ad, to name just a few.
“Advertising today does not hide behind special effects or graphics… there was a time when everyone wanted to use mad techniques. We have far more charming stories being told in advertising today,” comments Priti Nair, Founder, Curry Nation. Her sentiments are echoed by Sonal Dabral, Chairman
& Chief Creative Officer of DDB Mudra Group, who says “Narrative rules big time. Story-telling reigns supreme. All remarkable campaigns have a life narrative, beyond product and its benefits. The third dimension of life is evident more than ever.”
A trend that was noticeable in 2012 was the emergence of independent creative agencies, boosted and much encouraged by TapRoot India’s success. Smaller agencies seem to be the flavour of the year 2012.
Another emerging chain of thought within the creative fraternity is that advertising is a popular tool, and it should yield its power to address social issues wherever possible. Idea Cellular and Tata Tea have had a social context entrenched in their brand messaging. More recently, the Killer Jeans commercial by Grey India spoke of conserving water in an interesting manner.
Agencies as well as clients have woken up to the fact that they cannot keep the consumer engaged by harping on the product and its benefits, and advertising needs to go beyond this to enable brands to have a continued dialogue with their audience.
Though not a year with a wow factor, 2012 was undoubtedly a year of good advertising. Here’s hoping 2013 brings with it truckloads of Cannes awards for our creative fraternity, coupled with advertising that takes risks and is not afraid to challenge the existing paradigms with a sensitivity that leverages this powerful tool for greater good.
Bobby pawar
Chief Creative officer and Managing Partner JWT India
There wasn’t any one individual standout campaign, but definitely some good ones. However, nothing that challenged advertising norms. There were a few interesting ones which went unnoticed due to lack of a big budget. Also, the mood of the economy seems to have eclipsed creativity this year.
Sonal Dabral
Chairman & Chief Creative Officer DDB Mudra Group
Brands are dropping age. Most brands seem to gun for the young Indian, his aspirations and desires. Jingles are making a strong comeback. Most successful campaigns seem to play on the musical memory of people.
Story-telling reigns supreme. All remarkable campaigns have a life narrative, beyond product and its benefits. Going forward, brands will romance simple but not simplistic virtues with emphasis on relationships/knowledge/sharing/ togetherness/personal uniqueness. Personally, I am very excited to see where advertising communication is heading and am very much looking forward to a breakthrough 2013.
Josy Paul
Chairman and Chief Creative Officer BBDO India
This was the year of celebrity deaths. Lots of well known personalities died in 2012. The news, nostalgia and content of these deaths may have overpowered the sound of advertising. Ideas that integrate with society and social issues seem to have gained greater connect with consumers. Feels like brands are going beyond selling and building something.
Two campaigns that made it big on YouTube were the films for ‘The Hindu’ and the ‘Honey Bunny’ song for Idea. May be because I catch my advertising on YouTube and not TV. Looks like, if it’s shareable it’s air-able. Allow me to add that at BBDO, we love our work for Blackberry, Visa, Racold, GE, 7 Up, Johnson’s Baby and Gillette.
Santosh Padhi
Chief Creative Officer and Co founder Taproot India
India still managed to be one of the top favourites on the global platfor m, in spite of a not-so-brilliant creative year. More and more networks want to get an early grip in our emerging market, going by acquisitions last year. India will continue to be the hot favourite for a couple of years for sure, as
I feel this is just the beginning. More and more people have gone independent and will continue to go independent. More specialist services will be offered to clients in the near future, and clients will welcome personalized service from newcomers.
Arun Iyer
National Creative Director Lowe Lintas and Partners
This year saw some very good and interesting and advertising. We are finally getting the hang of leveraging the digital space as an industry.
Manish Bhatt
Founder & Director Scarecrowasia
The game of the medium is sharply changing, and advertising is becoming very significant in the smaller pockets of India, in cities such as Indore. This is because of the kind of local opportunities available, leading to a lot of specialization. For instance, there is a different kind of advertising around elections; it is tech-savvy, and smart.
Priti Nair
Founder Curry Nation
Advertising is thankfully going back to a nice story-telling format, which does not hide behind special effects or graphics. There was a time when everyone wanted to use mad techniques. We have far more charming stories being told in advertising today. None of the ads I have named have a celebrity. A lot of trouble is being taken in terms of casting and performance, which is very good. Advertising has become more real.
Advertising should be used as a tool to talk about social issues . advertising must consciously contribute to social good , sensitivity has to come from not only agency people but clients as well. Within the stories you tell , can you take up social issues as much as possible , for eg. the Cadbury couple portrays amodern equality.
Amit Akali
National Creative Director, Grey India
This year saw more independent agencies, specifically in Delhi. TapRoot has encouraged this trend. This also deems well, looking at the current economy, though larger agencies may feel more pressure. Adver tising is taking up social causes; brands and consumers have realized that they need to add more to a consumer’s life. Our campaign with Killer Jeans was one such example which communicated the message of conserving water. We will see more of this in 2013.
Feedback: priyanka.mehra@exchange4media.com
