But stories are all we have, right? Yes, because as humans we have been blessed with senses and emotions. And we yearn for a good story that either makes us laugh, sheds a tear, teaches us, or probably just gets us thinking. In a country dominated by businesses and preferences, there are a lot of stories that we come across, outside the books and cinema halls. Yes, I am talking about the big fat advertising industry that now fuels entertainment. But do they now come at a cost? No, not the obviously high production budgets, or the fees of a celebrity or their entourage or vanities, but the cost that often goes unnoticed (pun intended)- the product not being in the hero showcase.
We all remember those kid-powered ads that Flipkart used to run a few years ago. As weirdly funny they sounded, the motive of those ads was to convey that online shopping is as easy as a child’s play. Yes. But the most it could get out of the online shopper is either a chuckle or an ‘Aww’. And when it is about story-telling, can we forget about the hyper-nostalgic approach that Paper Boat made their bible? The only paper boats being preferred by the masses is an actual paper boat that has a lot to do with basic origami than ‘childhood in a pouch’.
On the other hand, some narratives have overpowered the industry itself. Fevicol doesn’t sell glue anymore; it is selling an unbreakable bond. As a brand that dominates 95% of the space in the adhesive industry, it does not need to show the product anymore. Till when, though? I, for one, believe that the brands playing in that 5% will showcase product narratives so uniquely (or at least there is a chance for them to) that Fevicol will eventually start fading away from the psyches of the audience that is not the primary audience or an influencer in the buying decision.
Utilisation of the loud, brute, and expensive celebrity force for CRED was less about conversion and more about cultural occupancy, don’t you think? I remember the ad narratives quite vividly, but have I ever downloaded the product? Not even the overly curious side of me cared for it. Sure, they made a massive cultural noise, but never did they convey what the product was. Wise? Probably. Did it work? They are still making losses. You tell me…
When we’re talking about loud brands that made NOISE, how can we miss out on the phenomenon called boAt? As a music and audio fanatic myself, I never cared about the positioning that boAt has. They somehow tried to convert commodity electronics into a youth lifestyle. But little did they know that they are competing in crowded, and technically similar categories, which ultimately resulted into disproportionate brand recall. Yeah, that seems like the right word.
And as long as we’re on the subject, can we also please talk about the misery of Byju’s? Billions of rupees (not even theirs alone) spent on celebrity endorsements, majestic sponsorships, and what not, just to lose to Allen’s ‘This girl scored 99%’. Byju’s could’ve done better in a market that prioritises student education, not just for a better lifestyle for the child, but a better future that the parents couldn’t make a reality for themselves.
The list of examples is endless, but another list of case studies is also prominently knocking at the door, challenging the original question. But this is not an open forum so you listen to the side of the story I have. A narrative should overpower the brand only when the brand has established itself or at least one of their products in a specific industry in multiple geographical locations; otherwise, the narrative just wanders around in the digital space for a while, and then dies and carries the hefty investment with it. While if there is a product somewhere in the mix, at least you would’ve absorbed something more out of it, right?
Now, because this is a blog on an agency’s website, I am done with my side of the story, and this is where we talk business- we don’t mind if you want to create just a banging narrative (we’d advise you against it), but what we recommend is a 360-degree solution to take your brand up, up, and above. Yes, it invites great costs, but great things that work great are a tad bit expensive. Get a consultation from one of the finest, and for SEO purposes, the best advertising agency in Gujarat- www.rioconn.in
