Do Ads really sneak thoughts into our heads?

Authored by Mihir Nair, Group Account Manager - Account Planning, SoCheers

Advertising from the caves.

They say humanity took off as a species when we realized the potential of opposable thumbs, built tools, harnessed the power of fire, and learned the power of togetherness. A cave lion could easily pick off a puny human, but against a group of fire-wielding bipedal creatures?

The odds shifted in our favor.

But what truly unlocked our potential as a species was finding a way to communicate with each other.

From paintings to developing hieroglyphs to the modern-day alphabet and numerals,

From naturally occurring canvases like stone and papyrus to paper and digital screens,

From Human-messengers to avian allies to the telephone;

Mankind in its DNA has always strived to communicate better.

 What does the above POV have to do with advertisements?

A simpler definition of advertising:

A form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action, usually concerning a commercial offering, such as an item for sale or a service.

 Advertising - a present-day POV.

The irony of an advertisement is that it’s perceived as an intrusion by most. Watching IPL? An ad break is allotted as the bathroom time/chore time. Watching a movie in the theater? Ad time is the buffer time to get popcorn. Playing a game on the mobile? An ad unlocks extra rewards for you. Listening to the radio and an ad arrives? Change stations!

 So if the above is true for the majority out there, does that mean advertising has lost its value in modern culture?

 Some questions before going ahead;

‘Kya aapke Toothpaste mein namak hai?’

Remembering something?

‘Kyu Chauk gaye na?

That rang a bell too?

‘Isi baat pe kuch meetha ho jaaye?’

 The above conversational lines may have triggered some associations in the mind…

Advertisements have always been an integral part of the cultural fabric of society. The beauty of the medium is that the masses seldom realize how the messages of advertisements have a place in one’s everyday life.

An argument made in discussions is that traditional advertising made it easy to have memorable ads that stick in the minds of the masses. While there is a valid point to that argument, it's still an achievable target in the digital era.

The key difference in the digital age is that the game is about creating memorable content so the audience remembers the brand that provides content they like on platforms they access constantly. Instead of interrupting them (as we established above, the audience avoids ads whenever possible!), the goal is to create engaging content.

 Creating impactful (the ones that sneak into the head) ads   content 

What is a good ad?

• That has a beautiful story but nobody remembers?
• That has a bizarre narrative that has nothing to do with the product but you remember the brand name?

 That’s an argument for the purists in the industry, but the ones who have skin in the game and need returns on investment in the marketing funnel, would pay for whatever gets the message home to the masses - be it collaborating with a renowned adult film star or having A-listers don their most recent roles to sell construction materials.

 There’s always a silver lining for the ones who still believe in making ads with powerful narratives. The vehicle of message delivery has moved beyond just videos. The avenue of making content on topics that matter to the masses is where entities will continue delivering thoughts that will drive preferences, conversations that become part of everyday life. Just look at your favourite food delivery apps or your favourite streaming service.