Publicity... As we see it.
Publicity … as it is.



Introduction of technology in today’s culture has lead to mass production and standardization, making advertising and publicity the most sought profession. Developments all over the world have lead to intermingling of cultures, thereby confusing the producers as well as consumers. The age of bewilderment stipulates competition. Competition within the production field as well as the consumer market commands baseless publicity increasing groundless consumerism.

The world has become a smaller place, well connected with a strong information database. The world now adorns a larger consumer base with higher buying powers. The economies are developing faster than before.
India being a developing country, its economy is growing rapidly. As India is closing in on the established superpowers, Indian consumers too want to be at par with its capitalist counterparts. With egoistic approaches, India now feels the need to “possess” and hence has the “willingness” to pay for the goods.

Publicity or advertisement sector involves three types of users. The manufacturers of luxury goods including the film industry, automobile as well foreign consumer products, publicize to ‘temp’ the consumer. Exploiting the ‘feel good’ factor, they aim at selling products that people actually don’t need. The western influences help the Indian market to exploit the weakness of its consumers. ‘To ape the west’ as they call it, to be at par with the rest of the world.

Low end producers increase appeal to the masses by spreading their market base at the place they belong. They aim at a particular sector of the society and hence their publicity stunts confine to regional, religious as well as social aspects of the segment they most cater to.

Social organizations as well as NGOs publicize their work to popularize their activities generating support, common opinions and charity through rallies, published literature as well as one to one interaction.

Publicity utilizes various methods of implication. Electronic media and print media both have expanded in a big way. Interactive hoardings, internet television, radio including the movie industry often leads to constant convincing through bombardment of advertisements even whilst day to day activities. For e.g. a person spends more time watching ads than those serials the television portrays.

Products after being established in the market, themselves become publicity names. For example Xerox, a photocopy machine has become a household name world over. Whisper, Google and Volvo are other such brands that have become activity, product representatives.

Advertisement or promotion is not just restricted to where the user chooses to see. Sometimes the consumer is brought to the product via publicity stunts of showcases and events by famous brand ambassadors. This is referred to as the ‘carrot and stick’ approach, which evidently persuades the ‘obsessive’ consumer to get attracted.

Each product has a ‘unique selling point’, an economic term used to niche the segment of users the product caters to. Each advertisement aims at playing on the users fantasies. Man has always been egoistic and unsettling. If the product implies the betterment of his or her life, it creates a desperate desire, hence enticing the buyer to ‘want’ the product.

Publicity has expanded to such an extent that it no more promotes selected products, putting one over the other. Now same products of different brands have equivalent promotion, hence offering the consumer such a wide choice that he/she is left baffled.

Indian society and its curiosity levels, unknowingly often backfires on people itself. Owning expensive, mostly useless products has become a status symbol. Feeding the ‘envious’ behavior of the society neighbors, the Indian buyer is suckered into falling for the products in spite of knowing that he/she has no such use for such things.

Publicity has certainly given an opportunity to a lot of manufacturers to establish them in the market and has definitely served the consumer by giving him a broader aspect of choice. But where is it leading to? Publicity evidently feeds on people’s unjustified desires and wants. It is plausible to assume that in the coming years, the world will see a presidential rise of such issues related to the people product relationship. Currently and quite obviously, ‘products rule the people, rather than people ruling the products.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………