The Hindu Business Line : What's with the WORD?

WHAT does the word `thanda' signify? The literal meaning may be `cold', but the moment one asks for a thanda you immediately relate to a bottle of Coca-Cola. You are at once reminded of Aamir Khan saying `Thanda Matlab Coca-Cola', dressed as a Hyderabadi paanwala, a Gorkha or a Punjabi farmer.

Similarly, the phrase `Yeh Dil Maange More' invariably reminds you of brand Pepsi, or `Hoodibaba!' is bound to bring to your mind scenes of a father driving his son to school on his Bajaj Caliber, while the son blissfully does his homework on the way.

Have words begun to substitute the brand? Are the ad catchlines becoming equal to the brand?

"The words actually speak about the idea behind the ad," says Suguna Swamy, Former Creative Director, Ogilvy & Mather (O&M).

"Thanda, for instance, is a word used for soft drinks in India, and by its clever usage in the campaign, it has now become a buzzword for Coke. Similarly, the word Josh instantly reminds one of Ford Ikon. This again is a smart usage of the word to position the brand as a young, bratty, yuppie car, available at the right price," she adds.

Swamy says the right use of words dramatises the product. "Hoodibaba, for instance, doesn't mean anything but the campaign did do wonders. Similarly, `Mirchi' is yet another smart example of a brand built on one word. It reflects its spicy and stylishly desi character and content."

If a catchline works for a brand, does the advertiser prefer to stick to it forever or is he on the lookout for new ones?

U. Jayraj Rau, Vice-President and Client Services Director, J Walter Thompson (JWT), says that though some brands look out for new words and messages, quite a few of them prefer to continue with the same phrases or metaphors. "Even though the catchlines remain the same, we try to develop the brand's personality each time we shoot a new ad by refreshing the visual content, or the audio or colour."

Talking about how many advertisers want to stick to a particular phrase, Swamy cites examples of Vicks and Wills. "These are brands which have continued with their catchlines for decades. `Gale mein khich khich' can be nothing but Vicks, while `Made For Each Other' will forever refer to Wills."

On the other hand, Shashi Kalathil, Executive Director (Marketing), Pepsi Foods Ltd, says Pepsi usually stays with a particular tagline for two to five years.

"Typically, Pepsi changes taglines when the stance of brands shifts. Given the nature of the brand, these are not huge changes, but opportunities to infuse energy as a part of the constant process of self-renewal that actively marketed brands require."

Though many advertisers prefer to continue with the phrases that work for their brand, others believe in change. Girish Chandrashekar, Vice-President & General Manager, McCann-Erickson India, feels words have diminished in importance as ads have become more visual. "Copywriting of late has become more of sloganeering. The Thanda Matlab catchline is a classic example. With the attention span of consumers becoming limited, copywriters are looking for catchy phrases. Gone are the days of verbose copy," he states. Even IT-training companies and tourism bodies, which have traditionally relied on long copy, also prefer short and crisp phrases today, he adds.

Chandrasekhar says this trend has increased the usage of Hinglish phrases. "This trend has put a lot of good English copywriters out of a job, as being exclusively English in writing copies may not be sufficient. Knowledge of local and cultural nuances has become essential to produce catchy phrases."

He says ideas are becoming much more crucial than words. One has to think of core ideas which will live with the brand, and words would automatically flow in. "For instance, to break the barrier between Coke and the man on the street, a street-level kind of phrase was required."

Chandrasekhar feels brand advertising is going to become more visual. "Both the clients and the agencies want their campaigns to be visually stronger with less usage of words," he says.

Rau of JWT also agrees with Chandrashekar's view. "A picture is worth more than a thousand words," says Rau. He feels the industry has gone through a cycle of wordy copy and catchy phrases, and it is now the turn of catchy visuals and illustrations. He feels that with the clutter increasing each day, it is only a catchy visual that can make an impression. "Gone are the days when bubbly and tingly Hinglish phrases made an impact on the consumer's mind," says Rau.

In fact, he feels that the Indian consumer has become a lot more mature and bubbly phrases no longer appeal to him. "Copywriters are now trying to match the lifestyle of the people. The Parryware campaign, for instance, earlier played on the word `Glamourooms', but now it says `Sparkling clean glamour'. Therefore, copywriters are no longer just talking about outer beauty, but beauty with a meaning. Brands are now trying to connect with a consumer's lifestyle, unlike earlier when they used to connect him with a make-believe world."

Reiterating the increasing significance of visuals in ad campaigns, Rau says illustrations, pictures and graphics are going to be the in-thing now. Brands such as Wills, which have always relied on words, now need to concentrate more on visuals. "Words will just play a good support role," he says. Get the picture?

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