MxMIndia

Tag: Ford Figo

  • If Indian advertising has been trending recently, it has been due to the Ford Figo Fiasco and other F words that have since followed. But it is time to ditch all things F, says guest columnist Vinod Natesan

    Guest column by Vinod Natesan: Moving on from F words

    By Vinod Natesan

     

    If Indian advertising has been trending recently, it has been due to the Ford Figo Fiasco. And F words have since been used liberally around it.

     

    Festering at Goafest

    Controversies still continue around Goafest, India’s answer to Cannes. Leo Burnett and BBDO followed JWT on the scam trail. Leo Burnett’s radio spots for Tata Salt Lite were not paid for by its client and BBDO’s entry for DHL couriers was found to be very similar to work done in Singapore by Ogilvy for Allied Pickford. Both ended up having to return their awards. It is likely that many more agencies may also join that club if plagiarism is proved. Goafest therefore, has every likelihood of festering into a Goafarce.

     

    Finding the fountainhead

    There is indeed a need for the Indian advertising industry to introspect on where it is headed and what it needs to do.

     

    Marketing companies need advertising agencies, simply because agencies can do something which they cannot, even if they had the spare time. That “something” is the talent to unleash the drama in the given product, in a memorable manner, through mass media. The agency therefore has to have a DNA pool which produces ideas that can be monetized both by the agency and the client. Awards, to an extent, build credibility for this claim, since they represent an endorsement by the peer group. This is the only rational reason for awards and for Agencies to go hunting for them.

     

    In an interview, the head of a network mentioned that awards actually translated into the agency being able to make better margins for the services rendered. The awards provide credibility to the claim of superior creative firepower within the agency. Agency heads have therefore been pushing for metals to be won and showcased. While this is perfectly a valid ambition, the means adopted to meet this requirement have been suspect at times.

     

    Frauds and followers

    Talent spotting and nurturing the right talent possibly has been a casualty in agencies. Allegations of recruitment interviews becoming “idea shopping festivals” are rife. Creative Directors are alleged to move jobs with their own cliques in tandem. These cliques reportedly include “preferred” vendors for film making, model coordination, photography and even printing! Cabals emerge as power centers, driving away those who are not party to the “setting”. These often include talented, but upright professionals. Plagiarism of ideas within the agency and names being excluded from creative ownership lists are also refrains heard often. Absence of genuine talent could very well be a consequence in the agency. As an Indian saying goes, “You cannot grow mangoes from jackfruit seeds.” Scams, plagiarized work and work done by freelancer, all find their way into award shows.

     

    Filmi fever

    Celebrity endorsements in India have been the norm recently with astronomical sums being paid to “brand ambassadors”. Rather than ideas that are rooted in the product truth, it is the “celebrity fit” that seems to guide creative ideas. The brand differentiation is therefore linked to the celebrity endorser. Apart from the risk and implications for long term brand health, what is worrisome is the questionable nexus between the celebrities and the Creative Directors. Brand ambassadors end up endorsing film scripts written by the CD’s and finally starring in it. Ads done to curry favor with movie stars are not exactly award winning stuff. Scams therefore suddenly find life around the awards season.

     

    Fooling the client

    Random viewing of commercials and ads in recent times leaves most people perplexed. Even basic comprehension can sometimes be an issue. In a majority of the work released, the “consumers’ voice” is clearly not heard and the “consumer insight” is therefore conspicuous by its absence. The work therefore, has body and craft, but no soul. It would not provoke the consumer to move even a muscle. It is something that alienates clients and results in scam entries at awards. With the economy sliding into stagflation, advertising spends have begun to diminish. Patience with the Agency’s non-performance at the market place would probably have worn thin. Celebrity endorsements have been fatalities in many brand plans. Plagiarism for many clients is tantamount to counterfeiting and faking of intellectual property ownership. Releasing of brand communication without due approval would mean violation of copyright and the contract itself. Quod erat demonstrandum, agencies putting priority to awards over market share, and indulging in scams and plagiarism, may soon discover that an irate Client has put paid to the relationship.

     

    False favours

    Given their self-absorbed life styles, one would be forgiven for claiming that Corporate Social Responsibility is something that is preached but never practiced by agencies and people who populate them. However it has been a happy hunting ground for most creative agencies. Many sneer that these campaigns are akin to the devil quoting the scriptures. But the scriptures have somehow been used well enough to win awards in this category. It is, however, a big question mark whether the target audience ever saw this campaign and if it was given sufficient media weights to cross the threshold level. A tea brand recently did a highly rated campaign for encouraging people to vote. The voting percentage however dropped drastically in the following elections in Mumbai, the capital of Indian advertising.

     

    There is also lax follow-up when it comes to these causes. Adoption campaigns have been created, but not a single soul has continued with the effort to see where this issue has progressed to. Gender discrimination and domestic violence have been causes celebre in the advertising world, but people accused of sexual harassment still find favour and patronage in these circles. It is as if even charitable causes are being plundered for personal glory.

     

    Finally, the way forward

    It is clear that lust for awards without the consumer connect would only lead to a rape of the brand. Something that is clearly unwanted in India. To free itself from the shackles of the ills plaguing it, the Indian advertising fraternity needs to move towards genuine passion for the work, and nothing but the work. Then would come the greater glory and the good. God be with us.

     

    Vinod Natesan is a 21-year veteran of the industry and today runs a boutique brand and marketing consultancy, Mayan Consultants International. He can be reached on Twitter @vinodnatesan

     

  • MxMIndia Editor-at-Large Anil Thakraney analyses the issues thrown up by the JWT-Ford scam ad controversy, and puts things in perspective

    #Scamadgate | Anil Thakraney: Let’s face the facts

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    For many creative people, it’s not been a long weekend to celebrate. I noticed there was high action on social media, as folks got busy venting over Bobby Pawar’s unfortunate sacking. While on one level I am delighted to witness this ‘standing up for a colleague’ campaign, must say that in all the furious excitement, people seem to have overlooked some key considerations. Also, I could not help but notice a similarity between the outcry and another campaign that’s underway simultaneously: And that’s ‘Pardon for Sanjay Dutt’. In one case, Bollywood has launched a massive PR drive to save their ‘hero’. And in the other one, ad land is seeking justice for their own fallen star. Both campaigns have one thing in common: Lost in emotion, we aren’t able to view the situations objectively.

     

    So allow me to deal with the main arguments put out by the creative people:

    It’s not a scam, the posters were approved by the client: This is technically correct. If a Ford executive endorsed the ads, they become official work. And the news is that Ford has sacked the concerned employee. This seems fair. However, that still doesn’t change the fact that these ads were created purely for winning awards, that they were never intended for media usage, and therefore they still fall in the ‘scams’ category. In my previous post, I have already discussed the issue of scam ads, and on what needs to be done thereof. Scam ads are rampant in the ad world, several guys and gals do it. But the JWT gang got caught with their hands in a very messy scam, and therefore there had to be retribution.

     

    Bobby Pawar is the convenient ‘fall guy’: Ermm, not really. When work produced by an ad agency brings global disrepute to a client (as has happened in this case), the buck must stop at the desk of the creative chief. The captain has to take full responsibility of his ship, that’s the right way to go about professional life. Sacking only the crazed, award-hungry youngsters is a cop-out, that would send the wrong signals. Also, now that it’s clear that Ford had indeed endorsed this work, it’s no longer a case of some stupid kids jerking off in the back office. JWT’s responsibility becomes total and absolute. And the leader of the pack becomes directly accountable.

     

    But shouldn’t Colvyn Harris have been punished too?: Supporters of this line of argument believe thus: Why must only creative people suffer when advertising is supposed to be team work. And that surely there were servicing people involved in this campaign. Also, as the big JWT India boss, Harris should have been the one to pay. Indeed there is merit in this argument, and am hoping that the client services director who approved this work has been sacked too. However, I am against the idea of penalizing the agency CEO. For the simple reason that Harris would (assumedly) leave the charge of all creative work to his NCD, that’s the professional thing to do. That’s why you hire a national creative director at a very high cost, so that he/she controls the agency’s output. Therefore, logically, that’s where the buck must stop. Let me give you a parallel: If a newspaper runs a false, misleading, illegal story, it’s the editor who will get axed, and not the publisher. Even though bringing out a newspaper is teamwork.

     

    The agency should have stood up for its creative people: I entirely agree with this point of view. If you are expecting your creatives to raise the bar, be prepared to back their edgy work. If you are reluctant to do so, stick to hiring only the safe players. So far, so good. However, in Ford Figo’s case, the creatives didn’t raise the bar, they lowered it to a new low (refer to the para below). And this resulted in a very angry large multinational client, a client that the agency had to assuage, or risk losing forever. Some senior blood had to spill, and Sir Martin Sorrell himself would have been left not very amused if it hadn’t. So before you trash Colvyn Harris (and I carry no candle for him), you must also view this issue from his angle; perhaps the CEO had no choice. I am quite certain if this work had happened for a local, small-time mosquito coils maker, Bobby Pawar would still be inside his cabin. These are harsh realities of the global world, and we have to accept them.

     

    These ads are tongue-in-cheek, we’ve lost the ability to laugh: I must tell you I am always first in queue to back work that challenges the acceptable boundaries. All along in my career, both in media and advertising, I have landed in trouble for believing and indulging in this principle. I am also always ready for a good laugh; safe and boring work pisses me off, my ad reviews will tell you that. But to create a campaign where women are projected as ‘mobile commodity’ is being totally insensitive to the gruesome rapes that keep happening every other day in India, often inside moving vehicles, AND THAT IS NOT FUNNY. If you find these ads hilarious, you need to get your head examined and your values sorted. This nation is deeply misogynistic, and women have been paying a heavy price on account of this sick mindset for a very long time. So please get this right: If you can’t be a part of the solution, for god’s sake don’t be a part of the problem.

     

    Anil Thakraney is a senior journalist and commentator. He is also Editor-at-Large, MxMIndia. The views expressed here are personal. Follow him at @anilthakraney.

     

  • Figo is a good car at its price point. It definitely deserves better than this. If there's one change required, it's the ad itself

    Debrief: Ford Figo: So then what’s changed?

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    Change is a wonderful thing, says Ford Figo’s new TVC. That’s fine. I presume they want us to change from our Marutis and our Hyundais to Ford Figo. That would be the obvious marketing objective for this new entrant in the hatchback market. However, the execution leaves you muddled.

     

    The TVC features a young couple in a car, they’ve just finished their weekly shopping expedition. The wifey happens to be a crabby sort (poor man!) and keeps complaining about all sorts of things. Mainly that post-marriage, her hubby refuses to change his deviant ways. That he’s forever stuck either at work or with his male buddies. As the carping goes on, a phone call arrives confirming a candle-light dinner for the two. Which the chap has arranged, so he’s not such a cad after all. And in between all the carping, we are dished out hurried shots of the car’s exteriors and interiors.

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”220″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntqcYZctX3Y[/youtube]

    As I said, I am confused. Media reports say Figo has undergone some cosmetic changes. But what are these changes exactly? That never gets discussed. So that part of the communication is entirely lost. Next: There is no direct context established to the wife’s constant nagging. As a result, we get busy trying to understand her problems, and the Figo story gets buried, we don’t recall a single thing about the brand. The cribber totally vampires the car. And finally, the juxtaposition of the change in the man to the change in the car is extremely tenuous, and therefore the situation looks out of sync. Net net: One is left scratching one’s head.

     

    Figo is a good car at its price point. It definitely deserves better than this. If there’s one change required, it’s the ad itself.

     

    Rating: (On a scale of 1-5): 0. Totally confused communication