Striking a chord for social cause

Amit Sutha

Are we apathetic towards bad roads, garbage dumps, and crumbling buildings?

The obvious answer is YES. 

How important are matters of society to the Indian consumer?

Who has the time? And who cares!

Then why did the Lifebuoy ad that had an 11-year-old lead a campaign to clean his area strike such a chord among consumers? So much so that the same campaign is still being used by Unilever despite it being more than a year old.

Why despite the obvious flaws and the rather simplistic take on life, did Rang De Basanti become such a talking point and a super hit?

Why do sting operations, that almost repeatedly expose corrupt politicians and government officials, continue to attract viewers? 

So though we might outwardly seem apathetic, one can feel that there is unrest among the larger population of India.

And I believe, therein lies a big opportunity for advertisers!

The millions of SMS messages, lakhs of letters from every corner of the country, and the extent of media coverage in the Jessica Lall case point to a new Indian consciousness.

According to social experts, Rang De Basanti fuelled the middle-class awareness of corruption being the number one problem in the country. The film was a hit and a talking point, not only among the multiplex crowd but amazingly even in small- town India. Newspaper reports say that there were as many as 2234 posts within four days after the films’ release.

Now imagine if we, in the media space, as advertisers, use this increasing awareness among modern Indians to sell our products!  Selfish as it may sound, we should recognise and grab this opportunity.

In India, we more than often use superstars and cricketers to sell our products. From cornflakes to computers all companies uniformly feel that if they sign on a big star, it’s an easy route to a successful product. But even the superstars these days are talking about bad roads! Preity Zinta publicly talks about cleaning up Mumbai, dragging along her blue-blooded beau and Shah Rukh Khan for support. John Abraham openly talks protecting animals and stray dogs. You might say that they might be doing it to improve their public image, but I think there may be some genuine words and action too. 

There are many serious issues around us that need to be dealt with and that can make great advertising themes. The menace of plastic, illegal encroachments…. by both the rich and the poor, garbage on roads, the never ending cementing of roads … the list can go on. The big question is “how do we make it worth our while”?

For one, could attempt to use the social cause like a media vehicle. The Mithi River that came into attention post the July 26 deluge is one the biggest embarrassments in Mumbai. Most of us didn’t even know of its existence! Surely the corporate that shares with the government responsibilities for cleaning up and beautifying the Mithi river, is going to get far more mileage and publicity than a random me too hoarding campaign.

Or we could look at inserting a socially relevant message within an already existing advertising framework. Imagine an ad in where a woman goes shopping in a vegetable market. What if she says no to the plastic bag offered by the vendor, and pulls forward her own cloth bag. Surely such an ad with a social message thrown in will connect better with the consumers.

The two examples I’ve citied are really only indicative. I know for sure that there are million other ways of effectively using this huge opportunity… it only needs a little effort from our side.

Let me end this piece with a Hindi proverb that encapsulates the benefits of associating with social causes: “Aam ke aam, Guthliyon ke daam.”

Not only do we gain the benefit and self-satisfaction of associating with making our country and our lives better, but we also get to develop that elusive strong emotional connection between our brands and its consumers.

The author is strategic planning director, JWT