My Top 15 Ad Picks 2013-14

Unlike every week, wherein I come up with American ads and Indian ads and try to draw in a comparison, this week I planned to look beyond these wonderful nations and their ads and search ads from across the globe. My picks this week consists of ads from Brazil, New Zealand, US, India, UK, Thailand, Norway, Australia and New Zealand. The beauty of following ads is that they do not sell their brands outright. They are however selling ideas and making a subtle relation with the product.

15. Dove—Real Beauty Sketches (Brazil)

At number 15 is the lovely Dove—Real Beauty Sketches ad for exposing the low self-esteem in women created as a result of unrealistic beauty standards generated by ads. It shows the difference in the way woman perceives herself and the way a stranger perceives her. The stranger is more positive about her looks than herself. This ad asks women to believe in themselves and be confident in their own skin.

14. Honda - Hands (UK)

A brilliant two-minute ad which describes the engineering and innovation of Honda products over 65 years. 

13. Chipotle - Scarecrow (LA, US)

Beautiful lyrics and ear-soothing music were the key reasons apart from the great message, that Chipotle uses meat of animals which haven't been treated with drugs that make this ad so difficult to forget. 

12. Skype - Two Friends (New Zealand)

The brilliant film is about two friends, each one with just one arm, one living in US and the other one in New Zealand, meet over Skype and become friends for life. The message being how Skype played the role of uniting two people having same physical problem from different parts of the world.  

11. Ram Trucks (Dallas, US)

This film about Ram Trucks captures the importance of a farmer. The ad is composed of several still images without even once mentioning the brand in question.

10. TrueMove (Thailand)

  
This mobile network service provider ad takes an emotional route to convey how giving is the best communication. The basic message of the ad being if you do good to someone, someday you shall be paid back. This video created quite a buzz with lot of people sharing it on Facebook and other social media tools.

  9. ICICI Life Prudential (India)

While the world remains too busy discussing the partial treatment women receive in all the areas of life, this ad comes in as a wave of fresh air. It discusses how males in our lives are ignored in the course of providing justice to women. The ad depicts no matter how careless and indifferent you think men are, they are the ones who take care of the family without making too much hoopla about it. 

  8. Proctor & Gamble (Portland, US)
  
'Thank You Mom' by Proctor & Gamble pays a tribute to all the moms with this beautiful ad. Moms are the ones who teach us that falling only makes us stronger. They are the ones who encourage us to keep trying. With this beautiful message, this ad is a heart-captivating one.

  7. Guinness - Basketball (New York, US)

The 'Friendship' commercial by Guinness is another great ad that one cannot simply forget. It depicts the true meaning of friendship with all the friends opting to use wheelchair to be fair enough to their friend who is handicapped.   

  6. Dove - Peek-a-boo (London, UK)

Without too much complexity in terms of storyline, this beautiful peek-a-boo ad depicts how females irrespective of their age are shy of facing camera. It is on the lines of the Brazilian Dove ad which is at number 15 on the list. The ad pops a mind provoking question, 'Since, when did you start thinking you're not beautiful?', drawing a connection with the recent research which shows women are turning too conscious of themselves owing to the high beauty standards set by society and advertisers. 

  5. Let's Save Africa (Norway)

Intelligent and clever social cause ad which points out that there is real poverty and need in Africa, but stereotypes and western perception of the problems need updating.

  4. Google Earth (Australia)

For more than 26 years, Saroo Brierley, who was an Indian adopted by Australian family, searched for his family before finding his way back home with the help of Google Earth. The ad depicts the true story of hope, determination and technology. 

  3. Ikea - Bookbook (Singapore)

A brilliant spoof on the smart phone/tablet/iPad features. One of the must watch super funny ads.  

  2. Google Search (India)

India and Pakistan have strained relationship with each other ever since partition in 1947. This ad shows how two friends got distanced due to partition and couldn't meet over the years because of the brewing tension on the border between two countries. It then shows how with the help of Google Search they could trace each other and meet up like old times. This ad is important because lot of peace initiatives are taken by the world towards melting the animosity between these two nations. 

And finally comes the ad that needs no description because its just so heart-warming that words might snatch the beauty of the message.

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  1. Budweiser - Puppy Love (US)

Some of the above ads are high on creativity, some are high on ideas, some are just beautiful for their simplicity, some are simply heartwarming, some of them carry a social message, and some are eye-openers. None of the above ads sell product explicitly.

I thoroughly enjoyed viewing these ads. For me ads like these have hardly been interruptions and I can view them back to back just like one listens to songs on the play list. I hope u too enjoy and appreciate the beauty of these ads. Till then, bye!

Ad Culture

Over the past two decades a lot of western companies/brands have made their foray into the eastern market and vice versa. A lot of American cuisine (western cuisine), clothing lines, cosmetic products, automobiles and several other American brands that my parents' generation had just heard of in their childhood have reached Indian homes. While Pizza Huts and Starbucks satiate the hunger of a typical Indian teenager, brands such as Tommy Hilfiger and Michael Kors have found place in every upper class Indian's wardrobe. Right from Pepsi and Coca Cola to Taco Bell and California Pizza Kitchen, name it and India has it. Not all of these brands necessarily advertise but the ones which advertise differ in the message they communicate to the Indian audience and to the American audience.

India falls under the highly collectivist and high-context culture while US falls under the highly individualistic and low-context culture. American ads use direct approach, individualistic visual stances, sexual portrayal of women and comparative approaches while Indian ads use indirect communication style, collective visual stances and stereotypical portrayal of women. On a personal front, I find American ads to be highly creative (owing to the liberal nature of American society) and funnier compared to the Indian ads which are highly emotion driven (owing to the closely knit family structures) and subtle in nature.

While Apple and Samsung in US wouldn't leave a single chance of attacking each other and proving themselves as superior brands, same brands in India cannot even distantly mention each other in their ads. According to the Indian advertising law, "a manufacturer is not entitled to say that his competitor's goods are bad so as to puff and promote his goods. It, therefore, appears that if an action lies for defamation an injunction may be granted." (Adveritising Laws in India)

A McDonalds ad in India and in US serves its audience with the same cheap menu option but with a slight variation. The Indian version combines the concept of Rs. 20 (Dollar Menu in US) in a dramatic family setting which is actually quite heartwarming. While on the other hand, the American version focuses on the close shots of the burgers, people biting onto them and enjoying the taste with the closed eyes. Hence, it wouldn't be wrong to infer that McDonalds in India sells values along with the product, while in US it sells taste along with the product. There are certainly exceptions to the creative aspects of advertising. But, this seems to be the closest ongoing advertising trend in these countries.

The above examples were just described to give an idea of how culture influences the advertising and how these ads in return shape the society. The entire advertising, culture and society thing is like a circle, with each being dependent on the other one. Also, among so many dissimilarities in culture, all these brands communicate a common universal advertising theme/message which they use in all the countries they have their feet in.