ASCI will nudge the industry towards more responsible advertising: Manisha Kapoor

The start of a new year is seen as bringing in new operational efficiencies, stronger strategies, a far greater emphasis on building deep bonds with various stakeholders and consumers. In keeping with the current market ecosystem, technology and a human approach are seen as going hand in hand.

As 2023 kicks off, Adgully has approached key industry leaders to Crystal Gaze into 2023, as part of our annual Trending Now series, to highlight the major trends and developments that they see dominating the industry in the year ahead.

Manisha Kapoor, Chief Executive Officer & Secretary General, Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), speaks at length about how the digital advertising industry is growing; their focus on building and expanding a preventive footprint, and much more.

Key trends dominating the advertising industry in 2023

We have witnessed a significant increase in digital advertising over the past few years. ASCI anticipated the need to watch some of the upcoming advertising formats and categories closely and has accordingly adapted its codes and brought in guidelines for these formats and sectors over the last couple of years. This year, we see digital continuing its growth, and with it, there will be a need to closely monitor the activity of both traditional and tech and social commerce brands. ASCI will escalate its efforts on the preventive footprint through advisory services, with the objective of helping the industry #getitright. This takes on particular importance in the context of the regulatory environment.

Major expectations

With consumers being more alert and involved, there continues to be a need for brands to be more connected and reciprocal with their audience while being cautious of what and how they communicate. Our advisory services help advertisers get their messages right. ASCI will also continue to nudge the industry towards more progressive and responsible advertising via its reports and discussion papers, all intended to commence a conversation on important advertising issues. There is more scrutiny than ever on advertising, and there will be higher reputational costs associated with objectionable advertising.

Major focus areas for ASCI in 2023

In 2023, ASCI’s main focus will be to build and expand the preventive footprint in the industry while continuing to grow our vigilance arm. We will be shortly launching the ASCI Academy, which will focus on imparting training and education on self-regulation and responsible advertising to the current and future generations of communication creators. We believe this will enhance ASCI’s role as a self-regulator by engaging the advertising ecosystem in the preventive aspects of self-regulation. We have already piloted many of our programs and initiatives to help various stakeholders in the advertising ecosystem. We plan to build on them and work on newer ways to strengthen our current systems and expand our offerings through meaningful collaborations and partnerships.