Such an Insightful Ad.

Good ads are rare. Ads that strike a chord based on a grain of truth are like uncut white diamonds. This ad from Mass Mutual is just that. We all come to a point in our lives when we tussle with our parents over picking up the cheque after a meal. This ad shows this little struggle and also goes one step further. It shows what goes in the minds of a father and son as they fight over the bill. It's cuteness personified. And yet, it's solid marketing. Insightful, thought-through and hence, effective.

GPS Failure. #Microfiction

It was a complaint hidden behind the sweetest of smiles. 'Why did you take so long to get here?', she asked.

His hands went into a half-shrug and then his eyes met hers, 'I didn't know what I was looking for.'

The Journey. #Microfiction

They picked up pace. The speedometer now read 30. The palm trees bent down to greet them. 

Looking out of her window, she pondered, 'Are we there yet?'

'I'm in no hurry to reach', he replied. 

'I ain't either', she replied. 

Take a Walk, Green Tea.

I like Green Tea. It has its positives even if it doesn't have the same kick or taste of traditional Indian tea. So I was really amused to find this scene in Martin Scorsese's Kundun where someone takes a shot at green tea and extols the virtues of green tea.

The movie is about the 15th Dalai Lama and his exile after Tibet was merged into present day China. The Tibetan Prime Minister is refusing to accept certain unrealistic demands made by a Chinese General. The Chinese General wants to take a shot at how much tea the politico consumes in a day and how he finds a way to import it despite difficulties. His point is that Tibet will find a way to meet his demands too. Right then, the Tibetan Prime Minister comes up with a great comeback.

Chinese General

How much tea do you drink,

Prime Minister?

Tibetan Prime Minister

It depends on the quality,

and that it be lndian.

The general loses his lid after this. Turns out the Chinese take as much pride in their green tea as much as we do. Craving some tea now. Even though its 2 in the morning. :D

A Change of Location Always Helps.

Nearly all late night talk show hosts shoot from their own dedicated studios. Nearly all of them (at least the present crop) do a good job of it. But Conan O'brien goes the extra mile. Whenever a special event comes up, he doesn't just have one of his comedians do a segment from that particular event. This guy actually goes the extra mile and shoots an episode from there. When Cuba and America resumed their trade relations, Conan was the only late night host who went there and shot an entire episode on location in Cuba. And boom - the internet exploded. With just one move, his views and coverage skyrocketed.

Here's him doing a bit straight from Comic Con.




What's the big lesson here? Always go where the action is? Well, yes, if you are a late night TV show host. But most importantly, when you are doing the same thing over and over again, try and change your location. Stuck while writing? Take a walk and watch how the words come to you. Sometimes a little change in the landscape is all you need to actually see things differently.

PS: Bruce Wayne must be hating on Conan so much after this clip. 

How to Make a Commercial that Goes Viral.

Firstly, don't make a commercial. The world. such as it is, isn't waiting to watch your commercial. They aren't streaming music on YouTube hoping to find your commercial. What you can do though is make a viral video. And, how do you do that? Well, to be honest, there's no formula. Cats, pups and babies seem to do the trick. You can also tone down on the brand and go off the wall. The weirder you get, the better your chances become. Will that dilute the link with the brand? Possibly. Will that dial up the chances of your video being watched? Let's just say if the videos below spoke of the relative benefits of Levi's in a more obvious manner, they wouldn't net 8 mil views.

Cornetto Is Quietly Nailing This Content Marketing Thing.

There’s this image inside your head. Of you and the love of your life, sharing an ice cream. Looking into each other’s eyes as you sit atop the bumper of your car. Chances are you have shared a moment like this already. Even I don’t know how it works but ice cream somehow is a romantic dessert. You don’t think of soufflé or pastries or Tiramisu when you think of romance. Ice cream, though, is made by cupid himself.

Possibly that was the insight that drove Cornetto to stick to its proposition of Cornetto Cupidity and commission short love stories across the globe. When you think of content marketing, you think of Red Bull and Go Pro and their larger than life set pieces. Cornetto decided to stray the path and do something radical. They decided to go for simplicity and pardon the choice of words, heart melting cuteness.

Witness their most popular film to date. It’s one they made in Turkey and despite featuring subtitles and being 8 minutes long, it still got some 26 mil hits.

Cornetto India just shared the film online on its YouTube channel. And without media support, it still clocked 14 thousand views. That’s actually very commendable. Another smart move on Cornetto’s part was to identity a niche that would work on a global level. This way, they every region makes a film and then they can be shared across the world. Since the films are basically cutesy love stories, there’s less reluctance on part of the audience to watch the film. In fact, they will be more open to reading through the subtitles. 

Tackling Writer's Block as a Copywriter.

The fact is it's a good thing. It's terrible to have a writer's block but as a copywriter you stand to gain more from it.

A block basically means you are no longer scratching the surface. You know the usual way of doing something but you want to try something new now.

So how do you do it? You go at it. Hammers and tongs. Aim at putting a minimum number of ideas on the board. Don't think about the quality. Get the engine started. Put 10 on board. When you reach your number, you'd have either found the answer or at least got the confidence to know that in a few more steps you'd find a great idea.

Trust me the moment you pick mileage, you'll be fine. You'll surprise yourself. If indeed you do try it and still can't find a solution, then go take a walk or have a coffee. Better still, have a walk over coffee. Talk to your seniors. Talk to someone who has nothing to do with advertising. Read an article on The Verge. Or the New Yorker. Reread the brief again. Look at what the brand did before. Look at what the competition is doing. Look at the clock and call it a day. Then come in early tomorrow and show the courage to go through the entire cycle again till you find something that reinvents the wheel.

It's Better To Arrive Before Time.

Int. Corner Office. One of  India's Top 5 Agencies

Distorted sounds. Dropped lines. Greetings and guffaws from old acquaintances. Cynical young copywriter feels like all conference calls, this one too will go south.

On the other end is the regional marketing head of one of the biggest brands in the world. He's briefing all the agency partners on how to leverage their global sponsorship at the FIFA World Cup.

The cynical young copywriter smiles. This is IT. Real time responses. Dedicated apps. Separate fan-based ecosystems. On-ground integration. In-store promos. Games. And then he catches the marketing head's voice. 

The budget for digital is a little above his CTC. He's slowly accepted the fact that digital campaign budgets will always be what, 1/10th of the main marketing budgets. But this? This is the last straw.

His boss' boss is on the call with him. He's taken aback but not as surprised as the young lad .

The marketing head explains that India is still an emerging market for the sport. We are betting big on the IPL. Don't forget that there's the Cricket World Cup next year.

The boss' boss agrees. 

They start talking numbers. 

'So, what do you think is possible?'

Ever to wait his turn, he weighs in. Suggests something cheap, effective with good ROI for the client and a shining badge for his portfolio.

The client likes it. The boss' boss beams. The price is bought into question.

The boss' boss throws a number.

The client renegs.

The boss' boss and the client go way back. They both know the agency isn't out to suck his coffers dry.

The client keeps trying to find some slack. The boss' boss won't budge either. The client says, 'It's not really a big deal for us. We'd rather have you focus on the bigger events.'

The copywriter adds with some reluctance, 'But sir, that's the point. No other Indian brand has the leverage you will. No other brand will ever have any association with soccer. You will be the first to have it and eventually own it. Standard Chartered has Mumbai Marathon. This, if we use it right could be our Mumbai Marathon. Any other brand could later try to outspend us but we'll win by virtue of foresight. Indians will migrate to soccer. They have already started and when they do, they'll remember us. Anything we do here is not a marketing expenditure, it's an investment.'

The distortion and the noise on the line is so much that the client mistakes him for the boss' boss. 'I thought you weren't keen on this dude.'

The boss' boss butts in again. The conversation fizzles. Another agency steps in. One which would bite the bullet and settle for the bargain. And no one in India remembers that the food brand was a global sponsor at the World Cup.

The said food brand and soccer never form a strong association.

The cynical young copywriter shrugs and thinks to himself, 'To sit on a goldmine and not know it. To own the soccer field before other brands take a run at it. To, ah, no wonder, I am this cynical.'

The next day the boss' boss receives an email.

The subject line reads: 'Cricket World Cup Ideas for big food brand.'

Maybe he is far less cynical than he thinks.