 Why do companies make ads? “So that you can use the break to fill your bowl of popcorn’’, says a recent TV ad for Act II Popcorn. You may argue that some ads are entertaining and some are quite informative but the truth is that advertising has traditionally always relied on interruption and that is why it has started losing its effectiveness fast, especially in today’s changing environment.
1. Ad overdose: An average Indian consumer is exposed to an ad every 2 minutes on a channel, 25 ads and 100 classifieds in a newspaper, 2 ad spots for every song on radio and about 35 hoardings within a stretch of 1 km. Add to that the innumerable posters, kiosks and bus shelters. While on the internet the pop-ups and banners flash faster than you can close them. It’s a cat-fight for a brand to stand out in this clutter!
2. Power to pause
I’m sure you remember the Tata Sky ad where Aamir Khan chats on the phone during a match because he can pause and resume viewing it. And we know he will definitely fast-forward the ads on resumption. So would we. Also soon, for a slight premium you will be able to get programs / movies on-demand without ad breaks. The potential customer now has the power to zap the ad.
 3. Sliced-up media pie: 
From the earlier staple DD diet, you now have about 360 channels. The Hindi GEC genre itself has expanded exponentially to 14. Then there are 5 English & 10 Hindi news channels, 4 English business news channels, 8 sports channels, 10 music channels plus the regional channels and niche channels as well. Oh, and don’t forget the new newspapers and multiple supplements, magazines, a plethora of me-too radio channels, piled-up outdoor signages and the infinite internet sites! The viewer has become a highly confused and flirtatious media surfer, making the scenario a media planner’s nightmare.
4. Astronomical costs:
It takes deep pockets to generate the required ad brand awareness and get customer response, as the lead mass media options are extremely expensive. A single 30 sec ad on the recent IPL T20 World Cup costs Rs.12 lacs, a full page ad in The Times of India costs Rs. 20 lacs. Not to mention a single prime spot hoarding would cost Rs.10 lacs a month. It would take a brand at least a Rs. 10 Crore budget to get heard, never mind being remembered!
 The big challenge that brands face today is how to create a memorable connect with the consumer in a cost-effective manner. And a few brands have already successfully changed their marketing and media strategy. A few years ago, ICICI, to promote their Children’s Growth Fund, held a painting competition in schools for kids with the topic ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?” The Kids’ paintings were then sent to the respective fathers with a note saying - “Soon your kid will grow up & want to convert her dream to reality. Are you prepared?” Besides, the parents were also offered a no-obligations opportunity to meet up with the ICICI advisor!
 To increase its aspiration quotient against L’Oreal, Lakme ventured into fashion and created the premium Lakme Fashion Week property, while Sunsilk engaged teenage girls by creating a virtual community ‘GangOfGirls.com. And more recently TOI with its ‘Lead India’ campaign connected with people through a cause; so did Tata Tea with its ‘Jaago Re’ initiative on social awakening, riding on the election fever!
So while mass media cannot be ignored, brands should get out of the traditional ad approach and get into the fabric of the consumer’s life by giving him multi-media content he can enjoy and value, thus welcoming and imbibing it.
The new mantra comprises of 3 simple rules:
- Get out of the usual ad break and into the world of value-added content and properties
- Engage the consumer through an activation programs that enhance his life
- Embrace new-age media and technology to build interaction with the consumer
 Agencies had earlier geared up to meet this challenge by creating independent specialist divisions like PR, Interactive (Online/DM) and Activation (Events/Exhibitions etc). The new trend however is to create a fluid structure, whereby they could go to Clients with a tailor-made team comprising of select individuals of various departments relevant to the Client’s business and the current brand challenge. The focus is to partner the Client’s marketing team, to create holistic communication solutions. Also many erstwhile Event Management agencies have evolved to capitalize on this opportunity, by hiring brand consultants and strategic planners, to provide conceptual on-ground solutions.
In future, in order to be relevant and effective, brands will have to change their communication strategy from ‘Interruption’ to Engagement’!
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