The ads that stood out in a campaign-filled August

The month of August saw brands and advertisers very active with several occasions lined up. Be it the emotional, energetic or patriotic – the advertisers gave it all. Independence Day, Raksha Bandhan, Onam and Janmashtami were celebrated in August, marking the beginning of a busy festive season ahead. Advertisers came out with campaigns to mark these festivities. At the same time, we also saw brands like Philips spreading awareness on World Breastfeeding Day and Whatsapp spreading awareness about its policy with Messaging Privately. Royal Enfield took the narrative literally on the road as it created a film with breathtaking shots of Ladakh, following a lone female rider’s journey back to her roots.

Adgully takes a look at the ad campaigns that stood out and struck a chord in August 2021. 

Philips

Breastfeeding is beautiful, but it’s not easy. This World Breastfeeding Week, Philips wanted to communicate that breastfeeding should not be seen as an issue that concerns only women and mothers, but rather as a shared responsibility for both parents through the launch of their campaign – #TeamBreastfeeding. In the campaign video created, #TeamBreastfeeding, takes one on the journey of a mother and her struggles with breastfeeding. It’s a heart-touching narrative, which puts into focus a mother’s psychological and physical transformation.

Royal Enfield

Royal Enfield recently rolled out a brand-new film digitally, which talks about returning Home. The film has been conceptualised and executed by Coconut Films, a Mumbai based production house, which was then taken up by Royal Enfield. ‘Home’ follows a sole rider’s journey through Ladakh on a motorcycle, the wheels mapping out the circle of life beneath them. Targeting all biking enthusiasts, the film has been released digitally across social media platforms.

WhatsApp

WhatsApp launched the India edition of its global consumer marketing campaign – ‘Message Privately’. Building on its previous ‘It’s Between You’ brand campaign, which was launched in July 2020, this campaign reinforces WhatsApp’s commitment to user-privacy through its end-to-end encryption technology.

Snapdeal

Snapdeal, India’s largest value e-commerce company, announced its brand campaign “Brand Waali Quality, Bazaar Waali Deal” in the Southern markets – Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala. The campaign targets savvy, value-conscious buyers. It communicates Snapdeal’s unique value proposition of good quality at affordable prices for high utility items, including fashion, accessories, homeware, and more. The campaign takes a lighthearted dig at the burden users feel about desiring a “branded” lifestyle. Moving the humorous narrative forward, it showcases how the users are liberated from this burden when they discover the depth of high-quality, affordable selection available on Snapdeal.

Mother’s Recipe

The new normal has brought about a lot of lifestyle changes which has made our lives mundane and dull. Good food is one of the things that can add some happiness & excitement in life. Mother’s Recipe, one of India's leading food brands, has launched Desi Szechwan chutney with no added MSG under the brand name ‘Recipe’. The brand unveiled its new TV commercial, which focuses on the theme ‘Life ko Spicy Banao’ and relates to how Recipe Desi Szechwan can add excitement to an otherwise boring day.

Parle Marie biscuit

Parle Products, India’s leading biscuits, snacks and confectionery manufacturer, launched three new TVCs in Maharashtra for Parle Marie biscuit. This new localised campaign is part of the company’s regional marketing strategy designed to drive engagement and build relationships with Parle regionally. The regional campaign, “Jithe story thithay Parle Marie”, resonates with the quintessential Maharashtrian experiences across generations and evokes the fun and frolic nature of ‘Adda Baazi’ i.e., casual everyday gatherings.

Policybazaar.com

Policybazaar.com, India’s leading online insurance marketplace, released its new digital film centered around the traditional definition of a family. The film, released on the occasion of Independence Day, draws attention towards core human values of lending a helping hand at the time of need reminiscent of insurance. The brand wanted to give a positive larger-than-life message while staying salient to the category.

Cadbury Celebrations

To make a meaningful difference to the lives of these children and help them celebrate this bond in the most fulfilling way possible, Cadbury Celebrations partnered with Social Hardware, an organisation working towards providing assistive devices and rehabilitation services to underserved communities to develop a unique senor based prosthetic arm that will let children feel the sense of touch, an integral part of growing up. The brand has pledged to provide these low-cost sensor-based hands to many children across the country by continuing to partner with Social Hardware in the coming year. Building on the same sentiment, a campaign film was released, which beautifully captures the story of a sister and her physically disabled older brother, Shubham, who yearns to experience the feeling of a Rakhi tied around his wrist. The feeling is turned around as the brother’s wish is fulfilled with a low-cost sensor enabled prosthetic hand, advised by his doctor. The story sees a sweet end as the dearest older brother spiritedly prepares for the festival, excited to experience his first Rakhi in the most real way possible.

Tata Tea Premium

As an earnest gesture to lend support to the Indian Artisan community, Tata Tea Premium celebrated Independence Day by bringing out a unique #DeshKaKulhad collection in partnership with Rare Planet, a start-up which promotes the work of local Indian artisans. The proceeds of the sale of these exquisite hand-painted Kulhads helped to lend support to the artisan community that has been severely impacted by the current times.

Dunzo Daily

Dunzo Daily, the latest offering from Dunzo in Bangalore, has become synonymous with ultra-fast grocery delivery. As India’s fastest and leading quick commerce delivery platform, Dunzo has always pushed the envelope in ensuring Users get what they want in the fastest time possible. Dunzo reinforces that proposition and sheds light on the wait time and hassles surrounding online grocery delivery. Kicking off the campaign with its first ad film for Dunzo Daily, veteran actor Sunny Deol reprises his iconic dialogues from Damini and highlights Dunzo Daily’s proposition of seamless, on-demand delivery of groceries.

CARS24

Adding to the joy of Onam, CARS24, India’s leading e-commerce platform for pre-owned vehicles rolled out a new digital film on its social media platforms to celebrate the festival of Onam. Denoting the spirit of fortune, success, and happiness among family members and loved ones, the Malayalam film, with English subtitles, showcases the local elements of Kerala during festive celebrations.

Hindware

Renowned bathware brand Hindware launched the second leg of its successful marketing campaign – ‘Thoughtful is Beautiful’. The campaign features Hindware’s newly launched touch free products, including sensor-based faucets and water closets that have been designed to enable better safety and hygiene in households across India amidst the ongoing pandemic.

IndusInd Bank

In the year 2016, IndusInd Bank had unveiled “#JeetkaHalla”, a campaign to honour its para-athletes under the Para Champions Programme, and brought to light their contribution to the country by creating a nationwide movement of support. Retaining the essence of ‘Jeetkahalla’, IndusInd Bank, in collaboration with GoSports Foundation, launched a brand new campaign to commemorate the achievements of its supported para-athletes across various sport disciplines.  Christened ‘phirse #Jeetkahalla’, the new campaign speaks about the rigour of the preparation undertaken by our para-athletes, as they gear up to compete with the best in the world at an international arena.

Airtel

After releasing the first ad for its Airtel Black offering, Airtel is banking on this word. It is hailed as “India’s first all-in-one solution for homes”, and allows Airtel customers to combine their Fiber, DTH, and mobile services into a single plan. The commercial depicts a harried man who is responsible for responding to each family member’s complaints about slow internet, unresponsive cable guys, lack of wi-fi access, and unpaid phone bills.