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How does situation-based advertising that does not showcase product benefits contribute to the success of a brand?

A certain weariness is creeping into reportage on the Indian cricket team's performance, as sports writers struggle to find new synonyms for "abysmal performance" and "thrashed" with every successive news article.

But even if the press and cricket enthusiasts try to excuse the less-than-inspiring displays, the corporate sector "" which has a lot of money invested in the cricket team "" doesn't look too dejected.

Soft drink major PepsiCo India released its Blue Billion campaign just before the ICC Champions Trophy last month, in an effort to create a community of a billion cricket fans.

The "Blue Billion Express" travelled from Delhi to Jaipur, playing the soundtrack of a specially-created music video "" Oooooh Aaaaah India, Aaaaah Yaaaaa India "" as its cheerleading cry.

The Indian team's defeat and ignominious exit from the tournament should have been the end of the Blue Billion. Instead, almost immediately Pepsi aired a new TV ad. The cheerleading continued, but with a slightly altered theme.

The highlight of the new television commercial (TVC) is not "" surprise "" a Pepsi bottle/ can, but a disappointed fan. An old man is sitting in a dark room, when he sees a Team India T-shirt. Suddenly angry, he picks it up and tosses it out of the window. Instantly regretful, he rushes to the window to watch it fall.

Before it touches the ground, though, a young teenaged boy catches it and declares proudly "Phir aayega India". Smiling, the old man agrees.

"The love for cricket and the team is evergreen. You may get upset, angry and even hurt when India loses, but the passion doesn't die. You forget the past and gear up to cheer for the team the next time round. This is what we have tried to bring out in the campaign," says Hemant Mishra, senior vice-president, J Walter Thompson (JWT), which made the ad for Pepsi and aired it just three days (semi-finals and finals) after India's ouster.

Pepsi isn't the only brand that uses current happenings to communicate with consumers. For decades now, Amul Butter has been creating hoardings, week after week, that feature recent happenings "" with a twist to the tale, of course. Unlike Pepsi, it's not just cricket for Amul. Its hoardings range from entertainment to politics.

Whether it's recent releases like the new James Bond film, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's memoirs, or the much-publicised visit of Hollywood stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie to Mumbai "" there was a hoarding about each event.

It's interesting, gets talked about and is certainly topical. But here's the million-rupee question: does reactive/ topical/ situational advertising actually help the brand?

Listen to the experts: "Such advertising is not usually sales-oriented. It is more towards evoking positive images and attitudes by connecting with the consumers through their thoughts and feelings. However, in the long run, it may also help convert into good sales figures," says Abraham Koshy, professor of marketing, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

Adds Anand Halve, market analyst and co-founder, chlorophyll Brand and Communications Consultancy, "A topical or situation ad has to be done such that it seems clever or something that will connect with consumers' sentiments. Only then can it succeed in getting consumers to notice the brand."

For Pepsi, the timing of the cricket ads also drew attention away from the fact that the company had consciously not reacted to the recent resurfacing of the pesticide contamination controversy.

While rival Coca-Cola aired TVCs that showed its brand ambassadors visiting its plants and declaring themselves satisfied with quality and safety controls, Pepsi had stayed away from the entire hullabaloo. That wasn't a bad idea, either, say brand consultants who also applaud the Coke approach.

Not that the cricket ad and its sequel were planned as substitutes for commenting on the pesticides issue. JWT had, in fact, prepared two ads for the post-Champions Trophy "" one if India won, the other for if (when?) it lost.

"A reaction or a situation-based advertising will work only if there is a strategy in place and there is enough scope for the brand to react to a certain situation or topic," explains Mishra.

That's in stark contrast to Amul's thinking. For the country's leading dairy brand, the hoardings aren't really about brand building anymore "" the billboards have been part of the urban landscape since 1969.

"Amul hoardings are a part of the company's corporate campaign. We want to be democratic and communicate directly with consumers by playing the part of the social observer," says B M Vyas, managing director, Amul India.

If the hoardings are all in a day's work for Amul, even the T-shirt ad isn't really new for Pepsi "" which itself is probably a pointer that reactive advertising does work. During the 1996 cricket World Cup, the cola company ran the "Nothing official about it" campaign, a pointed dig at official sponsor Coca-Cola.

It's not just lifestyle brands like Pepsi or dominant leaders like Amul "" both of which can push the envelope a bit when it comes to advertising and marketing strategies "" who indulge in a bit of reactive advertising.

Even Clinic All Clear and MRF tyres have reacted to situations "" typically revolving around cricket "" in their advertising. While Clinic's ad proclaimed "dho daala" when India trounced Pakistan in the 1999 World Cup, MRF Tyres focuses on the achievements of its brand ambassador Sachin Tendulkar.

"Such communication will help the company display its support for India's master performer and also help the brand to communicate its features, which will also focus on good performance," says Mishra.

Advertising veterans have a word of caution, though. Warns Gullu Sen, vice-president and chief creative officer, Dentsu India, "Topical or reaction-based advertising can swing in a positive manner for the brand or negative. The consumer may feel that the brand is either playing with emotions or is just supporting them through its communication."

Analysts also point out that a brand cannot sustain itself for too long on only topical or reaction-based communication. Even a brand like Amul, which does not have direct competition and has been consistent in maintaining its market leader position, agrees.

"Although topical advertising gives us a good brand recall, we cannot only sustain the brand through this exercise. We also need to talk to our consumers about our product and its benefits," says Vyas.

For others like Pepsi and MRF Tyres, which are surrounded by competition, reaction-based advertisement or communication is short-term and in-the-moment.

Concludes Mishra, "You cannot drag the reactive ad for a long time. It has to be relevant to create an impact on the consumer. Hence, it can never be a long term strategy for the brand."