Even before I stepped onto the American soil, I could luckily access lot of American and other International ads online. I really enjoyed the creative aspects of not just TV ads or Print ads but also of Digital ads from different cultures from across the world. There was a time (2010-2012) when my FaceBook account used to be flooded with my own ad postings and I had gained a substantial fan base as well who would follow my each ad posting. Looking back, it sounds really funny but comparing and analyzing cross-cultural advertising, especially pertaining to industrially developing countries in the Eastern cultural environment and highly industrialized countries in the western cultural context seem extremely interesting and important. A lot of international brands create global ads with a local tailoring.
Tune into Star Plus, an Indian satellite channel and you can find it flooded with ads of leading American insurance and financial investment companies like New York Life, MetLife and State Farm among ads for several other brands. But, the way even the same insurance company advertises in America and India is as different as chalk and cheese.
Tune into Star Plus, an Indian satellite channel and you can find it flooded with ads of leading American insurance and financial investment companies like New York Life, MetLife and State Farm among ads for several other brands. But, the way even the same insurance company advertises in America and India is as different as chalk and cheese.
Ads for review—MetLife
Insurance ads (India and US)
The American version of the
ad begins with a white American family comprising of grandmother, mother and a
daughter discussing the benefits of insurance. The mother-daughter duo tries to
explain the grand mother how easy, important and beneficial it is to have
insurance. There is a continuous display of phone number at the bottom of the
screen. The male voice over runs for over a minute and explains the low rates
of premium, different payment options, and several other benefits. The male
voice over continuously hammers the ad viewers with "call now"
message almost three times within a span of a minute. Basically, the
advertisers here opt for a "call to action" format.
The Indian version of the ad
begins with a granny trying to woo her husband (grandpa) by dancing to the
tunes of a famous Bollywood number when suddenly her grandson catches her do
that. Grandson is shown as a typical naughty kid who tries to blackmail his granny
by asking for chocolate and roadside ice candy. The grandmother out of the fear of his
grandson revealing about her dance to her son and her daughter-in-law agrees to
bribe him each time. But, she gets surprised when her son reveals how everybody
in family knew about her style of wooing his dad. The ad ends with a voiceover stating that 'You never know when this game of regular monthly income in life stops and thats why opt for MetLife monthly income plan. This ad depicts the typical
closely knit Indian family that enjoys having fun. Usually the olds of the
family in India do not flirt with each other especially in front of their kids
and grand kids. Also, the kids of the family do not discuss such topics openly
out of respect to their parents. This family depicts the actual Indian culture.
While the Indian version
weaves a beautiful storyline to get to the point, the American version doesn't
believe in beating around the bush and rather talks straight to the point. It uses a 'Fear' technique to generate a need. The American version is quite informative and covers all the important information, any insurance applicant would wish to know.
There are many such American and Indian ads which I shall review in coming blogs. Till then happy reading. Bye!
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