IndustrySpeak: ‘Scam’ ads – ‘illegitimate’ or ‘hatke’ creativity?
Scam ads have been the bane of advertising, or are they? India has had its share of these ‘scam ads’ – ads that are primarily meant for winning awards more than anything else. But what are the implications of such ads, do they affect a brand’s performance, do they affect the advertising industry itself? exchange4media looks for some answers.
Scam ads have been the bane of advertising, or are they? India has had its share of these ‘scam ads’ – ads that are primarily meant for winning awards more than anything else. But what are the implications of such ads, do they affect a brand’s performance, do they affect the advertising industry itself? exchange4media looks for some answers.
Prasoon Joshi, Regional Executive Creative Director, McCann Erickson Asia Pacific, remarked, “Every industry has its set of issues and problems – some internal and others that come up for public consumption – which may or may not have been blown out of proportion.”
Indian advertising industry had worked hard and had done superlative work in building many brands, Joshi said, adding that clients, who were a mature and prudent lot, would not undermine the worth of an industry on the basis of a few aberrations. He further said, “They know that the ad industry has partnered them in the toughest phases of a brand, market conditions and situations and have stood shoulder to shoulder on any issue faced.”
He, however, said, “It doesn’t mean that as an industry we sweep issues under the carpet. A real discussion must happen between the key stakeholders of the industry to ascertain what is the kind of work that we would support and give accolades to, what is the signal that we want to give to the younger generation coming into this field, the kind of DNA and value system that we would want to build. I am positive that sooner than later, by default or by design, we will work towards this.”
For R Balki, Chairman & CCO, Lowe India, “Awards are not about judging the best candidates, but judging the best creative on paper. As an industry, one needs to identify the problems, which pieces of advertising are trying to solve the clients’ problems, how interesting are the solutions to this problems, can these solutions really solve the problems.”
Balki further said, “We as an industry have to come to a particular scenario where we should stop calling these awards as Advertising Award shows, as today an award show is to only judge some pieces of fun that some people have decided to have, but have nothing to do with advertising. At Lowe, we do not wish to play this kind of games.”
Madhukar Sabnavis, Director & Partner, Strategic Planning and Regional Director for Thought Leadership, O&M, observed, “Firstly, controversies are part and parcel of creative lives. These kinds of debates don’t make or break the image of advertising. The image is built by the larger body of work that we do, especially for clients in India. I think the industry is much bigger than the media stories. Every industry has its issues, and just because they are highlighted doesn’t really mar it, as long as consumers continue to get value from it. In that context, the so called ‘scam controversy’ is quite peripheral to the advertising industry.”
He further said that the word ‘scam’ was a creation of the 90s and “we need to revisit it”. According to him, as long as ads entered in the award functions were true to the rules of the game and had the approval of all the parties involved, there was nothing called a ‘scam’. Ads created for creative competitions and released once could be branded ‘scams’, but were not ‘wrong’ or ‘illegitimate’ to contest and win.
Sabnavis added, “I personally see the creative award functions as benchmarks for creativity, much like the fashion shows in Milan and Paris. The fact that the ads have had limited release is much like the ‘unwearability’ of many of the designs displayed at the fashion shows. As I said, as long as they are true to the rules, it’s ok. I think we are making too much about these so called scams.”
Ali Merchant, Director, Triton Communication, said, “We are a poor cousin to most countries when it comes to scam ads. Quite honestly, as long as awards are given for ‘hatke’ creativity, any entry is welcome and should be applauded because at the end of the day, creative awards are about recognising people with unusual creative talent. Nothing should come in the way of this single minded objective.”
Aniruddha Banerjee, President & COO, Publicis Ambience, had a different take. He said, “Of course it has! It just adds to our image as a frivolous, non-accountable industry, full of people who are mostly busy chasing personal glory. Everybody knows scam ads exist, and they do so the world over. Controversies like these just make them the centrepiece of what the industry does, and makes us come out in a very poor light.”
He further said, “As it is, clients are losing respect for the industry, and I really don’t blame them. First, you have award winning ads, which aren’t even client sanctioned (or, at best, technically sanctioned). Then, you have agency heads taking pot-shots at each other. On top of that, there are a flurry of ads which have been ‘inspired’ by other international ads. All these raises questions about our ethics, our leadership and our basic creative ability.”
And so the debate continues…
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E4M Our strategy is to target younger audiences through Sports: Rajiv Dubey, Dabur
The Head of Media at Dabur India spoke exclusively to exchange4media on the World Cup, associating with Indian Idol, the company’s digital spending and much more
With quirky campaigns, memes and moment marketing, timed with the ongoing World Cup and particularly the India-Pakistan matches, Dabur India has got considerable consumer attention for its popular brands – Red Paste, Cool King Hair Oil, Chyawanprash, Dabur Vita and the recently launched Bae Fresh Gel toothpaste.
The 140-year-old company is going big on key sporting events, World Television Premiere (WTP) movies and reality shows. It is now gearing up to become the title sponsor of popular talent show ‘Indian Idol’ on Sony TV for the first time, shared Rajiv Dubey, who leads the media strategy at Dabur.
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ShareSwapan Seth's new book 'COOL' is out
The book is a reflection of the author's 'eclectic taste across categories'
Advertising professional and art collector Swapan Seth has announced the launch of his new book COOL. The book is described as "a ready reckoner to the hip and the happening, of the known and the very unknown."
The book is a reflection of the author's "eclectic taste across categories: from boltholes to exotic hideaways."
COOL has been published by Simon & Schuster India and is available on Amazon.
Seth is an ad veteran with a long and illustrious career in the industry. He became the youngest-ever Creative Director at Clarion at age 24. He was VP at 26 at Trikaya Grey. Two years later, he started his agency Equus.
He writes for publications such as The Economic Times, Hindustan Times and India Today. This is his second book and he has previously published THIS IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY.
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Disney Star signs 9 sponsors for Asia Cup PAK
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up come on board
e4m Staff Disney Star has signed nine broadcast and digital streaming sponsors for the upcoming Asia Cup.
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up have come on board for the upcoming tournament.
As reported earlier by exchange4media, Disney Star has sought Rs 26 crore for the co-presenting sponsorship on TV and Rs 30 crore for Disney+ Hotstar.
According to industry sources, the associate sponsorship on Star Sports has been priced at Rs 19.66 crore, whereas for the ‘powered by’ sponsorship on Disney+ Hotstar, the broadcaster is seeking Rs 18 crore.
As per the information available with exchange4media, Disney+ Hotstar has three sponsorship tiers-- co-presenting (Rs 30 crore), powered by (Rs 18 crore) and associate sponsorship (Rs 12 crore). The broadcaster is offering an estimated reach of 120-140 million for co-presenting sponsors, 90-100 million for powered by and 60-70 million for associate sponsorship.
A spot buy for 10 seconds has been priced at Rs 25 lakh for the India vs Pakistan matches, while for the non-India matches, the ad rate for 10 second is Rs 2.3 lakh. The India matches plus the final for ODIs has been priced at Rs 17 lakh per 10 seconds.
Asia Cup is scheduled to be held from 30 August, 2023, to September 17, 2023.
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Sorted 360 wins creative & social media mandate of Reliance Mall
The agency will manage offline and online campaigns for Reliance Mall
Sorted 360, an integrated creative and social media agency, has won the mandate to providing brand solutions for Reliance Malls across India.
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“Sorted 360's commitment to pushing the boundaries of creative communication aligns perfectly with Reliance Malls' ethos. With a pan-India presence spanning across 19 cities and growing, Reliance Malls has consistently captivated customers by offering an array of Reliance brands and third-party fashion & lifestyle brands. The mall has established an unparalleled connection with its patrons through superior quality, a remarkable value proposition, and an unmatched shopping experience,” it read further.
"We are thrilled to welcome Sorted 360 as our trusted partner in advancing our brand presence across the nation," said the Head of Marketing at Relaice Malls. "Their proven expertise in retail, shopping center management, and innovative creative strategies make them the perfect fit for our vision."
"Partnering with Reliance Malls is a testament to our commitment to shaping extraordinary brand experiences," remarked Prerana Anatharam, Co-founder of Sorted 360. "We are excited to leverage our strategic and creative acumen to further elevate Reliance Malls as the epitome of convenience, choice, and excellence."
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KlugKlug onboards Hemang Mehta as Country Manager for Indias
Mehta was most recently Head of Agency Relationships at Network 18 Media & Investments
KlugKlug has appointed Hemang Mehta as its Country Manager for India.
Mehta will play a pivotal role in driving KlugKlug's growth and expansion within the Indian market and be responsible for Sales & GTM Strategy
Prior to that, he has also represented organisations like Exponential (now VDX.tv), India Today Digital and Rediff.com. His expertise spans various domains including digital media sales, mobile marketing, media planning, and buying, social media marketing, and more.
Hemang Mehta expressed his enthusiasm about joining KlugKlug, saying, "I am thrilled to be a part of KlugKlug, a forward-thinking platform that is reshaping the influencer marketing landscape. As much as I look forward to collaborating with the exuberant team at KlugKlug, I am super excited to interact with the brands to deliver powerful data-backed Influencer solutions that will guarantee business outcomes."
Commenting on the appointment, Kalyan Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO of KlugKlug, stated, "We are excited to welcome Hemang Mehta to our team as the Country Manager for India. His extensive experience in digital media sales and marketing will be instrumental in driving our efforts to provide influencer marketing solutions to our clients. We believe Hemang's leadership will be key in scaling our operations and expanding our reach within the Indian market."
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