 "Kids up the marketing game")
A little boy incessantly quizzes veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan about his films in an ad for Swachh Bharat Mission (Clean India Mission). The child around ten years old is telling him off; he is not interested in Bachchan's films, but keeps drawing the actor's attention to the problem of open defecation. In the end, an impressed Bachchan concedes defeat and the message is driven home. Increasingly children are being used to deliver hard-hitting messages that call for behavioural change on the part of adults at home and outside. Also, more and more brands are using the child’s point of view to tell their stories, with remarkable success, say advertisers.
Google's India Youtube Ads Leaderboard says: Brands are increasingly telling stories from a kid’s perspective and hitting the mark. "Emotionally engaging content is something that scores with Indian viewers. And kids in many respects allow viewers to invest their time in advertising," the search engine giant adds.
Some may see this as old wine in a new bottle; children have played the role of persuaders in ads long enough. But watch closely, advertisers say, and the difference is noticeable. Children are not being used to drive home the benefits of a product or bring out their persuasive charms. Instead, the child is the central figure, delivering unpalatable truths about society or a way of life and dispelling commonly held notions about online purchases or parenting.
Children have evolved. Research papers and studies offer ample proof about their changing attitudes and the impact on traditional family values and roles. Advertisers have been quick to tune in and tweak the stories they tell to reflect the new reality. As N Chandramouli, CEO, TRA, which comes out with the annual Brand Trust Report says, "What we are seeing today is a shift in the way a child is used to communicate an advertising message. Earlier, the child would come into the picture when the audience, he or she was addressing, were largely children. Now you have the child speaking directly to the adult and it may not be the mother. It could be the father or any other adult."
One example is the Blue Star water purifier commercial. Toddlers who can barely walk and speak bring out the message of safety at home. (Subtitles decode the gibberish for viewers) "The only time when you are not worried," says a little one, "is when you give me water from the machine with shiny lights," he declares. The product is never directly pitched, but the ad still manages to convey the message.
Blue Star executives say there was need to do something different in a cluttered market where safety is a plank frequently used by companies to drive brand salience. While consumers want to be reassured of safety, how that message is packaged and delivered today is critical. Ogilvy, Blue Star's ad agency, came up with the idea of using infants to communicate that message. The result: Since its release in early October, the ad has had 8.5 lakh views on Youtube. Viewers have been unanimous in their praise on social media and have found the ad "cute", says Blue Star. The company claims that the marketing campaign has allowed the firm to gain a foothold in the domestic water purifier market at a time when the competition is stiff between brands such as Kent RO, Hindustan Unilever's Pureit and Eureka Forbes, but declined to reveal sales numbers.
Children’s charms are being put to the test, not just in categories such as water purifiers alone, but across the board. From conventional kiddie segments such as chocolates, confectionery and stationery to mature ones such e-commerce (Flipkart), soaps (Dettol), detergents (Surf Excel), durables (Samsung) and even tourism (Madhya Pradesh Tourism). The beauty of the state’s monuments and wildlife was expressed through puppets and toys in a recent ad for Madhya Pradesh Tourism. Since its release this June, the ad has had over 23 lakh views on social media, making it to the third spot on Youtube's India Ads Leaderboard for the September quarter.
Even household insecticide makers are using kids differently, not just as family members that need to be protected but as ones who can play an important role in keeping others safe. Take the ad for mosquito repellent brand Good Knight. A little boy comes up to his mother managing his infant sibling. He wants to help. The father says that he is not experienced enough to handle the infant. The mother jumps in, however, and asks him to ensure that there are no mosquitoes around his brother. With the new Good Knight mosquito repellent, he accomplishes the task and earns his parents’ admiration. The punchline, don’t underestimate your child. Increasingly marketers don’t mind letting the world view their brands through a child’s eyes. And consumers seem to be lapping it up too.