ADVERTISING IS ALL GLITTER AND NO TRUTH

Against:

1.  Advertising, coming with its various forms, keeps the mass updated about uncountable new products, the must have’s and the social issues –to name a few. From  covering TVs, radios, digital medium, to prints, billboards and pamphlets while rushing through the bus-stand, munching a Mac burger or maybe even catching a metro. Advertising, has always been on fleek!

2. The newspapers,  magazines etc would have costed a dime more, had not the advertisements been published there.

3.  Advertisements have a positive impact on a consumer’s life- assisting them to amp up their lifestyle without the involvement of  any middleman as such. Ranging from Faasos, Housing.com, OLX to TrulyMadlyDeeply- it has catered to the minutest of our pressing needs when probably no such dependable source is around.

4.Targeting the populace for a legion of social causes- be it the villagers or the eco-friendly town people-advertisements have helped creating social awareness and a strong bondage with the remotest of lands. Be it “ Kodaikanal won’t” rapping the malaises faced by the mercury –littered hill-city- crowd or our very own HUL’s “Kaan Khajura Tesan” injecting entertainment into the lives of millions in the Hindi-Bhojpuri speaking belt, ads have extended their hands always

For:

1.       Advertisements are misleading to a great extent by painting an illusionary picture of a utopian world. People tend to take these much-hyped ads to such an extremity that they get caught in the vicious cycle of consumerism, finding it difficult to resist their temptations.

2.      Bewildering customers by publishing bizarre offers on eventful days, turns out to be a blooper most of the times when there are big contenders competing in the same industry. Citing ‘ The Big Billion Ruckus’ – by Flipkart, Snapdeal and Amazon last year.

3.      Advertisements create a sense of dissatisfaction and inferiority complex among the lower strata of the society, for the quality of life they can never  be a part of.

4.       Raunchy ads cluttering the ad space- Manpower contraceptives, Axe and  Passport deos etcetera  leave a dark impact on the audience especially children and teenagers, who tend to go astray morally at times.

MY TAKE:

Advertisements to me are the best creative medium to bridge the gap between vendors and consumers. Helping us  to sort our check list , saving ample of time while conveying information in an entertaining way- ads do take a bow! But at times advertisements get a bit pushy and persuasive, forcing people to purchase things unnecessarily. If creators are successful in carving out advertisements with a hint of fact and fun, without harming a particular section, strata or age-group of people