Ethics in Advertising - Dilemma or Reality

ETHICS IN ADVERTISING DILEMMA OR REALITY
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Sr. No Contents Page no
1.1 Executive summary 8
1.2 Introduction 10
2.1 Background 13
2.2 5 Ms of Advertising 15
2.3 Objectives of Advertising 23
2.4 Advertising objectives in relation to PCL 33
2.5 Functions of advertising 35
2.6 Product Life Cycle and Advertising 37
3.1 Advertising Ethics 42
3.2 ASCIs Mission 45
3.3 The code for self-regulation in advertising 46
3.4 I of ASCIs codes 49
3.5 Cases that were upheld 52
3.6 Chapter-III of ASCIs codes 62
3.7 Comparative study 65
4.1
4.2
5.1
Subliminal Advertising
Recent unethical advertisements
Research methodology
71
5.2 Conclusion 77
5.3
5.4
Annexure
Bibliography
79
80

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CHAPTER 1

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1.1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Inspite of the growing importance of advertising in recent years; as the quantity of false,
misleading and offensive advertising has increased it has resulted in consumers having an
increasing disbelief in advertising, and a growing resentment of it. If this kind of advertising
continues, it won't be long before statutory regulations and procedures are imposed which make
even fair truthful, decent advertising cumbersome if not impossible. This certainly will affect
your ability to compete and grow. Ethics is a choice between good and bad, between right and
wrong. It is governed by a set of principles of morality at a given time and at a given place.
Ethics is related to group behavior in the ultimate analysis, setting thus the norms for an
individual to follow in consistence with the group norms.

Advertising too, has its ethical values. Advertising communications may be artfully presented
facts but the same are subservient to ethical principles. In order to be consumer-oriented, an
advertisement will have to be truthful and ethical. It should not mislead the consumers.
Advertisements truth should be viewed from the consumers point of view, and not in the narrow
legalistic frame in order to find a loophole and to get out after an irresponsible action.

Many times a clear line of demarcation between truth and lies is difficult to establish. But the
advertisement is as much judged by its impact as by its acceptance by the consumers. As
advertising a social process, it must honour the traditional norms of social behavior, and should
not affront the moral senses of a society.

In order to enforce an ethical code throughout the world Self Regulation is followed. There
are self-regulation bodies throughout the world for e.g. In UK the self regulation body is The
Advertising Standards Authority, In Ireland the Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland
(ASAI) and in India we have Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI).

The Advertising Standards Council of India (1985) has adopted a Code for Self-Regulation in
Advertising. It is a commitment to honest advertising and to fair competition in the market place.
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It stands for the protection of the legitimate interests of consumers and all concerned with
advertising, - advertisers, media, advertising agencies and others who help in the creation or
placement of advertising. The purpose of the Code is to control the content of advertisements.
The following are the basic guidelines, with a view to achieve the acceptance of fair advertising
practices in the best interest of the ultimate consumer:

I. To ensure the truthfulness and honesty of representations and claims made by
advertisements and to safeguard against misleading advertisements.
II. To ensure that advertisements are not offensive to generally accepted standards of public
decency.
III. To safeguard against the indiscriminate use of advertising for the promotion of products
which are regarded as hazardous to society or to individuals to a degree or of a type
which is unacceptable to society at large?
IV. To ensure that advertisements observe fairness in competition so that the consumer's need
to be informed on choices in the market-place and the canons of generally accepted
competitive behaviour in business is both served.

These are the 4 chapters under which the codes are elaborated. Under every chapter there are
selected cases which were upheld by ASCI in the last 15 months. The Code's rules form the basis
for judgment whenever there may be conflicting views about the acceptability of an
advertisement, whether it is challenged from within or from outside the advertising business.
Both the general public and an advertiser's competitors have an equal right to expect the content
of advertisements to be presented fairly, intelligibly and responsibly. The Code applies to
advertisers, advertising agencies and media. United Kingdom is the oldest in terms of self-
regulation and most of the self-regulation codes are inspired by their codes. In my comparison of
the codes for 5 countries namely India UK USA Ireland and Australia I have found that the
codes of ASCI are very comprehensive. Only we should improve our implementation.

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1.2 INTRODUCTION
Imagine a day in the life of an average urban Indian male living in an apartment by himself. He
wakes up early in the morning to the sound of a hi tech alarm (which he has recently bought,
thanks to the ad of an alarm clock he seen on TV). He jumps out of bed and switches on the radio
(to hear some good music on FM punctuated with some news headline). The TV is then switched
on (to the channel on Aerobics while he works out with those slim women who promise a sexy
physique in just a couple of months).

With a brush in his mouth (of course with Close Up toothpaste for greater confidence and
so that beautiful girls may say Talk to me), he scans the news paper for a quick update while he
prepares some breakfast (the fast and highly nutritious Kellogg which once again he purchased
because of the attractive ad).

After a warm bath (with Dettol soap - for greater skin protection and Head and Shoulders
Shampoo so that he is never embarrassed because of dandruff), and a cool shave (with the very
cool Gilette Shaving foam as shaving cream is out and shaving foam is in, and the Mac3 - for
the closest shave), he bathes his cheeks with an after shave (Old Spice for that macho
feeling). He dashes off to work (whizzing past posters, billboards, hoardings all bombarding
him with different messages, schemes, offers etc.).

His bus and train journey are never boring as he always carries the latest India Today to keep
him abreast of the latest happenings. He is on the field working when he feels thirsty (but he
cannot make up his mind whether to have a Thums up as he is grown up, or to have a
Pepsi because he wants to live young forever; any way he decides to play safe and have a
Bisleri). His mobile suddenly buzzes. Its a programmed call, reminding of his date. He realizes
he is late. At the shopping center close by he buys his date a card (an Archies Im sorry Card
of course, because no one can say it better than Archies).

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Obviously his date reacts as she is expected to by giving him a hug (just like the ad). After the
great date they return home. After some TV snacking, he sets the mood with some soft music,
spruces himself (any guesses with what? yes with the sexiest, irresistible, AXE deo spray).
And the lights go out. (Hey wait a second; I forgot to mention the extra soft. Kurlon mattress
he had recently purchased thanks to the special Diwali offer). That was Media and Advertisings
influence for you.

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CHAPTER 2

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2.1 BACKGROUND
The word advertising originates from a Latin word advertise which means to turn to. The
dictionary meaning of the term is to give public notice or to announce publicity. Advertising as
a term is used by many to cover almost any topic in the promotional area of marketing.
Advertising is a marketing vehicle that is designed for the masses.

The American Marketing Association defines advertising as
Any paid form of non personal presentation and promotion of Ideas, goods or services by an
identified sponsor.

This definition can be divided into 4 parts:
Paid form:
The advertisement is paid for by an advertiser and as result of this, the advertiser exercises
control over advertisement. He would mostly decide what the advertisement will say and where
it is placed. As he invests money, he would also be interested to know its results.
Non personal presentation:
Advertising is non-personal selling. It is directed towards mass selling by way of mass
communication. It makes use of various media to deliver the message to the customers. At times,
advertising message may try to give the impression of personal appeal but it cannot be truly
personal. Advertising is an inexpensive way to reach the mass market. The cost of a personal call
involves huge money whereas a mass advertising exposure will cost only a fraction of the
investment.
Ideas, goods or services:
Advertising also sells ideas. Some firms may use advertisements to sell the idea that if an
investor puts his money in a certain plan of public deposits over a given number of years, an
individual with small income can become a rich man. Advertising may also be used to sell the
ideas that they need your help
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Example
Mumbai Traffic Police advertise asking drivers and pedestrians to cooperate to help the
department to maintain normal traffic flow, free of bottleneck and accidents.
When people think of advertising they imagine an advertisement is for tangible objects. But
these days this perception is held wrong as many advertisements sell services e.g. Banks,
insurance, restaurants etc.
Identified sponsor
Advertising tries to influence the recipient of the message. Advertising wants the sponsor of the
message be known. Advertisement without an identified sponsor is a wasteful use of advertising
budget. The advertiser is interested to identify his product with maker and the maker with the
product.

Advertising is a form of communication with the public. The communication is usually one-
sided and in one direction from the advertiser to public. The members of the public are free to
respond to it on their own.

Advertising is an identified communication. The advertiser signs his name to his advertisement
for the purpose of publicizing identity.

Remember, each advertising is a specific communication that must be effective, nor just for one
customer but for many target buyers.

Nothing can be more important to the success of your advertising program than a thorough
understanding of what advertising is and how it operates.

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2.2 5 MS OF ADVERTISING
While making an Advertising program five Ms should be taken into consideration, they are:

1. MISSION What are the Advertising objectives?
2. MONEY How much can be spent? (Advertising budget)
3. MESSAGE What message should be sent?
4. MEDIA What media should be used?
5. MEASUREMENT How the results should be evaluated?

Money

Factors to
consider:
1. Stage in PLC
2. Market share
and consumer
base
3. Competition
and clutter
4. Advertising
frequency
5. Product
substitutability

Message

1. Message
generation
2. Message
evaluation &
selection
3. Message
execution
4. Social
responsibilit
y review

Media

1. Reach,
frequency,
impact
2. Major media
types
3. Specific
media
vehicles
4. Media timing
5. Geographical
media
allocation

Measurement

1. Communication
impact
2. Sales impact

Mission

1. Sales goals
2. Advertising
objectives

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Mission
Mission can be classified as to whether their aim is:

To inform

This aim of Advertising is generally true during the pioneering stage of a product
category, where the objective is building a primary demand.

This may include:

Telling the market about a new product
Suggesting new uses for a product
Informing the market of a price change
Informing how the product works
Describing available services
Correcting false impressions
Reducing buyers fears
Building a company image

a. To persuade

Most advertisements are made with the aim of persuasion. Such advertisements aim at
building selective brand.

b. To remind

Such advertisements are highly effective in the maturity stage of the product. The aim is
to keep the consumer thinking about the product.

Money
This M deals with deciding on the Advertising Budget. The advertising budget can be allocated
based on:
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Departments or product groups
The calendar
Media used
Specific geographic market areas

There are five specific factors to be considered when setting the Advertising budget.

I. Stage in PLC

New products typically receive large advertising budgets to build awareness and to gain
consumer trial. Established brands are usually supported with lower advertising budgets as a
ratio to sales.

II. Market Share and Consumer base

High-market-share brands usually require less advertising expenditure as a percentage of
sales to maintain their share. To build share by increasing market size requires larger
advertising expenditures. Additionally, on a cost-per-impressions basis, it is less expensive
to reach consumers of a widely used brand them to reach consumers of low-share brands.

III. Competition and clutter

In a market with a large number of competitors and high advertising spending, a brand must
advertise more heavily to be heard above the noise in the market. Even simple clutter from
advertisements not directly competitive to the brand creates the need for heavier advertising.

IV. Advertising frequency

The number of repetitions needed to put across the brands message to consumers has an
important impact on the advertising budget.

V. Product substitutability
Brands in the commodity class (example cigarettes, beer, soft drinks) require heavy
advertising to establish a different image. Advertising is also important when a brand can
offer unique physical benefits or features.
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Message Generation

1) Message generation can be done in the following ways:

I. Inductive

By talking to consumers, dealers, experts and competitors. Consumers are the major source of
good ideas. Their feeling about the product, its strengths, and weaknesses gives enough
information that could aid the Message generation process.

II. Deductive

John C. Meloney proposed a framework for generating Advertising Messages. According to
him, a buyer expects four types of rewards from a product:

Rational
Sensory
Social
Ego Satisfaction.

Buyers might visualize these rewards from:

Results-of-use Experience
Product-in-use Experience
Incidental-to-use Experience

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The Matrix formed by the intersection of these four types of rewards and the three types of
experiences is given below:

POTENTIAL TYPE OF REWARD (Sample Messages)
Rational Sensory Social Ego Satisfaction
Result-of-Use
Experience
Gets Clothes
Cleaner
Settles Stomach
upset completely
When you care
enough to serve the
best
For the skin you
deserve to have
Product-in-
Use
Experience
The flour that
needs no sifting
Real gusto in a
great light beer
A deodorant to
guarantee social
acceptance
The store for young
executive
Incidental-to-
Use
Experience
The plastic pack
keeps the
cigarette fresh
The portable
television thats
lighter in weight
easier to lift
The furniture that
identifies the home
of modern people
Stereo for the man
with discriminating
taste
Message evaluation and selection
The advertiser needs to evaluate the alternative messages. A good ad normally focuses on
one core selling proposition. Messages can be rated on desirability, exclusiveness and
believability. The message must first say something desirable or interesting about the product.
The message must also say something exclusive or distinct that does not apply to every brand
in the product category. Above all, the message must be believable or provable.

Message execution
The messages impact depends not only upon what is said but also on how it is said. Some ads
aim for rational positioning and others for emotional positioning. While executing a message the
style, tone, words, and format for executing the message should be kept in mind.

STYLE
Any message can be presented in any of the following different execution styles, or a
combination of them:

Slice of life shows one or more persons using the product in a normal setting.
Example: Coke 1litre ad, showed a family enjoying Coke, with a game of
antakshari when there is a power failure.
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Lifestyle Emphasizes how a product fits in with a lifestyle.
Example: Collection, Asmi and Platinum ads, that focus on lifestyle of
persons using their products.
Fantasy Creates a fantasy around the product or its use.
Example: VIP Frenchie ads, showing a woman thinking of the Frenchie
man saving her from a villain.
Mood or image Evokes a mood or image around the product, such as beauty, love, or
serenity. No claim is made about the product except through suggestion.
Example: Kingfisher Beer ads, saying the King of Good Times.
Musical Uses background music or shows one or more persons or cartoon
characters singing a song involving the product.
Example: Ads of Old Spice After Shave Lotion
Personality Creates a character that personifies the product. The character might be
animated
Example: Ronald McDonald for McDonalds
Testimonial evidence: This features a highly credible, likable, or expert source endorsing the
product. It could be a celebrity or ordinary people saying how much
they like the product. Example: In ads for Sunsilk, they had hair expert
Coleen, endorsing the product.

TONE

The communicator must also choose an appropriate tone for the ad.

Example

Procter & Gamble is consistently positive in its toneits ads say something superlatively
positive about the product, and humor is almost always avoided so as not to take mention
away from the message. Other companies use emotions to set the toneparticularly film,
telephone, and insurance companies, which stress human connections and milestones.

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Word

Memorable and attention-getting words must be found. The following themes listed on the
left would have had much less impact without the creative phrasing on the right:

Theme Creative Copy

The society should be enlighten

Let there Be Light

Format

Format elements such as ad size, color, and illustration will make a difference in an ads
impact as well as its cost. A minor rearrangement of mechanical elements within the ad can
improve its attention-getting power. Larger-size ads gain more attention, though not
necessarily by as much as their difference in cost. Four-colour illustrations instead of black
and white increase ad effectiveness and ad cost. By planning the relative dominance of
different elements of the ad, optimal delivery can be achieved.

Media
The next M to be considered while making an Advertisement Program is the Media through
which to communicate the Message generated during the previous stage. The steps to be
considered are:

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Measurement
Evaluating the effectiveness of the Advertisement Program is very important as it helps prevent
further wastage of money and helps make corrections that are important for further
advertisement campaigns. There are two ways of measuring advertising effectives. They are:
Pre-testing

It is the assessment of an advertisement for its effectiveness before it is actually used. It is done
through
Concept testing how well the concept of the advertisement is. This is be done by taking
expert opinion on the concept of the ad.
Test commercials - test trial of the advertisement to the sample of people
Post-testing
It is the assessment of an advertisements effectiveness after it has been used. It is done in two
ways
Unaided recall - a research technique that asks how much of an ad a person remembers
during a specific period of time
Aided recall - a research technique that uses clues to prompt answers from people about
ads they might have seen
Step I
Step II
Step III
Step IV
Step V
Deciding reach,
frequency and
impact
Choosing among
major media
types
Selecting specific
media vehicles
Deciding on
media timing
Deciding on Geographic media
allocation
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2.3 ADVERTISING OBJECTIVES

Two Distinct Schools Of Thought
What should be or what could be the objectives for advertising? A controversy around this
question is still running hot in the ad world. One school holds that ad has to necessarily bring in
more sales and therefore ad objectives should certainly include sales growth.

The second and diametrically opposite view is that ad is essentially a communication task and it
should have only communication goals, or goals intended to shape the awareness and attitudes of
consumers

Sales as an objective
Many marketing managers view their advertising and promotional programs from a sales
perspective and argue that sales or some related measure such as market share is the only
meaningful goal for advertising and thus should be the basis for setting objectives. They take the
position that the basic reason a firm spends money on advertising and promotion is to sell its
products or services. Thus they argue that any money spent on advertising should produce
measurable sales results.
Example

There are many companies of low involvement products like confectionery and sweets whose
advertising objective would be solely of sales. However over the time even these companies have

Advertising
Objectives

Sales Oriented
Objectives

Communication Oriented
Objectives
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realized that sales cannot be the sole objective of advertising, ad building a brand and
establishing a favourable attitude towards the brand is also important.

Drawback of using sales as the only objective of advertising

Sales are a convenient and really attractive advertising objective for many managers, but except
for Direct Action Advertising, they are usually unsuitable for most advertising. In todays
increasingly competitive market conditions, marketing and brand managers are often under
pressure to show sales results and their perspective is short term in evaluating advertising. They
look for quick fix solutions for declining sales, ignoring the dangers of linking advertising
directly with sales

1) In case of sales as the advertising objective, it would be quite simple to evaluate the
results of the ad campaign. Sales objective however may not be operational in certain
cases because advertising is just one factor among many others that influence sales, to
identify the contribution of advertising alone may really be difficult. Other factors that
may have significant effect on sales are product features, price, distribution, personal
selling, publicity, packaging, competitors moves, and changing buyer needs.
Example

APPLE computers advertised their iMAC in some selected print media vehicles in India;
the ads were very successful and did in fact draw many potential buyers to dealerships.
However in good number of cases the matter ended there. The problem was not with the
ads, the campaign was very successful attracting and creating product liking but the
price and non-availability of peripherals discouraged them. It would be unfair to
measure the success of ads themselves by the number of Apple computers sold to home
users.

2) The time lag between audience exposure to an ad and when that ad may lead to an actual
sale could be quite long because majority of the ads usually produce sales effect after a
long period of time.

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3) Sales as an advertising objective, offer little guidance to creative and media people
working on the account. They need some direction regarding what kind of ad message the
company hopes to communicate, which will be the
Target audience and what specific response from the audience is desired.

Where Sales Objectives for advertising can be applied

In spite of problems that sales objectives pose, there are certain situations when sales objectives
can be appropriate.

1) Direct Action Advertising

Some direct action advertising attempts to induce quick response from the members of
the target audience, such as ads offering some kind of incentive, or ads announcing
contests, or encouraging prospects to place orders on phone or through internet. In such
cases evaluation is based on sales results.

2) Sales Promotion Programs

Many sales promotion programs have sales objectives since their goal is often to generate
trial or short-term sales increases
Example
Many companies have the Scratch and Win offers, which are usually advertised on
television. One such company was VIM bar, which had a scratch and Win offer for about
two months.

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Types of Sales Oriented Objectives

Type of Sale
Increase
Media Policy Creative Content Example

Existing Products

Existing Product
to Existing users

Maintain
insertions in
current media

Suggest new uses for your
product, or reasons for
more frequent use, building
on existing contacts and
goodwill

DETTOL Antiseptic
advertised on the different
usage of the product, like for
washing babys clothes, for
shaving, etc.

Existing Product
to New users

Consider new
media

Explain the basic benefits
of your product, and your
company record, to people
unaware of them.

PHILIPS, ONIDA launched
their colour television sets in
rural markets and had related
advertisements for it.

Existing Product
to users of rival
products Brand
switching

Consider
competitors
media
patterns

Comparison campaigns
pointing out the advantages
of the product over rival
brands and of changing
established buying habits

FAIREVER advertised to
switch the Fair & Lovely
users to its product.

New Products

New Products to
Existing
Customers

Maintain
insertions in
current media

Explain basic benefits,
building on existing
contacts and goodwill

LAKME introducing new
products like Sunscreen
lotion, Moisturizer with
Peach Flavour, Winter
Cream Lotion with
Strawberry ingredients, etc.

New Products to
New Users

Consider new
media

Explain the basic benefits
of your product, and your
company record in other
fields

FA and NIVEA introducing
products for men.

New Products to

Consider

Explain basic benefits and

PEPSI AHA aimed at
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Competitors
Customers
competitors
media
patterns
overcome established
goodwill.
advertising itself in bars in
order to switch the alcohol
drinkers to use Pepsi Aha
instead of Thumbs Up as
their mixer in the drink.

Communication objectives
Introduction of new products
For the new products or services, reminder advertising is clearly inapplicable. Here the task is
one of basic education informing potential customers of the benefits they will reap by
purchasing the new product.

Example
Livon Silky Potion, when introduced, the ads differentiated the product from the shampoos and
conditioners by explaining usage the product, positioning it to be better than the conditioners
and how hair becomes very manageable and silky after using it.

Reinforcement advertising

Related to reminder advertising is reinforcement advertising, which seeks to assure current
purchasers that they have made the right choice. Automobile Ads often depict satisfied
customers enjoying special features of their new car.

Example
Hyundai Santro had some ads quoting how customers were satisfied with the Mobile service
that helped them in a difficult situation. This is a classic example of reinforcement advertising.

New customers from other brands
One must try to find out which existing users of the competing brand are the most dissatisfied
with it and target these switchable consumers. Alternatively one should try to acquire those
customers of the competing brand who are the most likely to grow their sales volume in the years
to come. And/or are the most profitable. For many product categories about 20% of the
customers (heavy users) are likely to account for 50% of the sales volume and profits and are
clearly worth focusing on as new brand users.
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Example

ARIEL v/s SURF: When Ariel was launched, it showed comparisons between itself and a known
detergent (Surf packet without its name). Through its ads, it showed how it was better than Surf
and thus wanting to shift the Surf users to Ariel.
New customers from other categories

Another approach is to attract people from those not now using the product class. The firm in the
industry that has the highest market share, the largest distribution, the biggest sales force and the
highest awareness is the one most likely to get the sale from a customer just entering the product
category.

Example

PEPSI might conclude that it is easier to get young coffee drinkers to switch from coffee to
PEPSI, than it is to switch COKE drinkers to PEPSI
UJALA, when it entered the market, proved itself better than Neel (blue) and made the users
shift to it

Brand Image / Company Image
The company needs to have a favourable image of it brand in the eyes of the customers. For this
reason, the company undertakes various campaigns to build the brand and the company. This
will enhance the preference of the customers to use the particular brand in the market of
numerous brands. There are various factors that contribute to the favourable brand image. They
are:

a) Unique Selling Proposition

Example

SAFFOLA previously advertised the feature of its oil, which said that its consumption
would not lead to any heart problems.

b) Brand Personality

Example
MCDONALDS - Family oriented, Genuine, wholesome, cheerful, fun
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c) Performance
Example
MRF Tyres run huge ads in print media on the onset of monsoon, telling users to trust
MRF for monsoon. Also, in all its ads it talks about the awards it has won over the years,
as the best tyres for Indian roads.

Supporting other sales promotion activities
Many times the company introduces sales promotion activities for its consumers. For this, they
advertise on different mediums to support the sales promotion program in meeting its objectives.

Example
FILMFARE uses hoardings at the latter part of the month to advertise about the freebie attached
with the next months issue.

Increasing usage
It is possible to increase the usage of existing customers in the product class. In essence the goal
would be to increase the amount consumed per usage occasion.

Example
CLINIC PLUS recommended through its advertisement, that its shampoo must be used three
times in a week Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday.

Increasing brand loyalty
The company is not the only one in the market who advertises its product. The competitors are
perpetually trying to steal their customers away or trying to increase their own share of
requirements. It is very important therefore to recognize the effect that advertising has on
reinforcing the present customers, existing preference for the companys brand. (Though actual
experience with the product is probably the bigger determinant of brand satisfaction and loyalty)

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Example

INDIAN EXPRESS ad Hammer home the truth, we do it every day was meant primarily for the
existing readers of Indian Express, to promote brand loyalty. The ad conveyed the true
journalism aspect of the Indian Express.

Umbrella campaigns
Many organizations are found active in many activities and have multiple brands for different
categories, with separate divisions marketing separate products to separate markets via separate
advertising and selling campaigns. Many such organizations realize that linking their self-
contained business operations would benefit all component companies. Hence through one
advertising campaign, all the products of the company are exposed to the audience. This also
builds up the image of the company and all its brands.

Example

AMUL - REAL TASTE OF INDIA campaign that was quite successful.
Other umbrella campaigns are that of CAMLIN, WIPRO, ADITYA BIRLA GROUP, PARLE
world of happiness, etc.

Campaign to push declining sales
In this the purpose of the campaign may not be to increase or stabilize sales, but to hold off a
decline. This overall category masks various types of decline for which different advertising
approaches are necessary. One advertising campaign may have as its purpose countering the
natural decline in the market. Another purpose might be to sustain an existing brand against
competition. Other purposes might be to slow down a permanent trend or to reverse a temporary
decline.

Where the market for the companys product is steadily diminishing, it is unwise to expect
advertising to work miracles and reverse the permanent trend: it may however be able to make
some contribution by slowing the rate of decline, thus giving the company time to seek new
opportunities in other directions. Whereas advertising can make a far more positive contribution
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is in countering temporary falls in sales. Positive advertising, emphasizing value for money, can
help people adjust more swiftly to the new conditions.

Example
RASNA was a declining product even after being in the market for 4 years and even though it
was an entirely new concept of a branded soft drink concentrate. In 1982 non-aerated soft drink
market was estimated at around Rs 13 crores. Squashes and syrups were the leading product
categories, accounting for 84% of the market. Soft drink concentrates had a share of 7% only. It
was recognized that there existed a good potential market for Rasna, if advertised properly.

Social objective
There are many companies or institutions, which have social advertisements. These
advertisements focus mainly on some social issue likeAids, Cancer, AntiTobacco, Safe
Driving, etc. The companies mainly advertise on these grounds because each company needs to
fulfill some social responsibilities, and also these kinds of advertisements, might enhance their
company image and value.

Example

LOWE Advertising Agency, has a hoarding on the Pedder Road, Mumbai which emphasizes
on different social messages such as AIDS etc.
FCB ULKA Advertising Agency has a hoarding on the busy road near Pedder Road, Mumbai
that said Drive Safely

Generating trial purchases and store visits
Many companies and stores insert coupons in print media to come to the store and exchange
them for trials. Also, sometimes they have advertisements for more footfalls in the store.
Example

When KWALITY WALLS opened its outlets, it had coupons in newspapers, giving free ice
cream in exchange of those coupons on the first day of the outlets.

27

Recent campaign by MCDONALDS talking about the Aao Match Karein, where
consumers come to the store and match different words on the packages of its products

Countering competition
The market today is no longer a oneman show. There are innumerable companies, all of them
having their own products to offer. In such a situation, a company needs to constantly advertise
to remain in the minds of the consumers. With the MNCs entering India, a lot of Indian
companies have been facing tough competition. Most companies position their products so as to
differentiate their brands from the competition.

Example
MOOV used its competitor IODEXs negative point in its advertisements. It showed how the
usage of IODEX (name not revealed in the ad) left stains in the clothes making other people
know about it. The tagline said Kissi Se Kuch na Batai

Responding to a campaign, IODEX launched a big campaign where it had a character entering
a shop and refusing to take MOOV, which was offered by the shopkeeper and said No, Move,
Move.

Repositioning the brand
Sometimes, the companys product is not accepted in the market with its original features. Thus
in order to change the image and become favourable in the eyes of the consumers, they need to
reposition their brand.

Example
MARUTI OMNI had to reposition itself clearly different from the Maruti car in the potential
buyers minds. They also had to enhance the image and personal values of the brand. It also had
to generate at least short-term growth in sales to match current production potential. Their ads
had a vivid demonstration of the spacious car, positioning, and each presenting the vans
spaciousness from a new unexpected viewpoint.

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2.4 ADVERTISING OBJECTIVES IN RELATION TO PRODUCT
LIFE CYCLE
After understanding advertising objectives, we can relate them to the product life cycle of a
brand. It is seen clearly from the following diagram. It also enlightens the three kinds of
advertisements, which is commonly used over the product life cycle. This helps a marketer to
understand where exactly does his product lie, and what kind of advertisements he needs in order
to meet its objectives.

Informative
It is used to develop initial demand, typically used in the introductory stage of the PLC
Example
Print ad of a Printer giving details about its specifications

Persuasive
It is used to increase demand for an existing product. It has a competitive type of promotion and
is typically used in the growth and early maturity stage of the PLC
Example
McDonalds Print Ad

Reminder
It is used to reinforce previous promotion by keeping the name of the product before the market,
typically used in the late maturity and decline stage of the PLC
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Example
Chlormint, also Amul has constant reminder ads using humour related to current events.

2.5 FUNCTIONS OF ADVERTISING
As a form of mass communication, advertising delivers relevant messages to target audiences
and by changing mental states, it can perform a number of functions. Advertising moves
consumers from being unaware of a product or service to finally purchasing it. An ad is
considered effective if it propels the consumer a step further in this process. This is how the
function of advertising is viewed.

The different functions of advertising are viewed as follows:

Stimulates Demand
By informing consumers about the availability of a product in the market, advertising stimulates
latent needs, and reinforces the aroused needs. There is a general agreement that advertising has
some effect on aggregate consumption.

Strengthens other promotion Mix elements
Advertising does the pre selling of the product and makes the job of the sales people easier.
Advertising reaches a relatively large audience and makes them favourably predisposed. Ads
carry the sales, promotional messages and often produce quick sales response.

Develops Brand Preference
Consistent and persuasive advertising often induces brand trial or purchase. When the product
delivers the promised quality, service and value, it creates satisfied customers who become
instrumental in spreading a favourable word-of-mouth. Satisfied customers also develop brand
preference which gets reinforced by repeated ads. Products with strong brand franchise offer
some protection against the competition. Retailers develop confidence and do not hesitate in
stocking strong brands. Brand loyal customers are an important asset for the company and are
less likely to be influenced by competitive moves.

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Cuts costs
Advertising may be instrumental in cutting down production and selling costs. Increasing unit
sales decrease unit costs. Selling costs also may decrease because there could be fewer wasted
calls and less strain on sales people.
Lower Prices
In any market based and competitive economy, when unit cost of a product goes down, there are
external and internal pressures, which compel companies to lower prices to the advantage of
consumers. This often leads to deeper market penetration.

Competitive Weapon
Advertising by itself and coupled with other promotion mix elements, may prove to be an
extremely potent weapon to counter competitive moves. Advertising has an established role in
creating brand personality and image. It helps differentiate a companys offer in a manner that
the product may be considered as something with unique value having a definite identity of its
own

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2.6 PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE AND ADVERTISING
The life cycle of a product starts with some kind of stimulus, this stimulus is usually found by
the marketing activity, and represents the reason for any product to exist: its need. A series of
marketing activities during the pre-design stage are critical in the success of a product.
Marketing activities such as Marketing research, market analysis, situation analysis, competitor
analysis, forecasting, marketing management, product planning, etc., ensure that the product
contains the essence of what the customer wants, all this with the ultimate objective of providing
a customer with satisfaction.
Product and market
The reason for any product to exist is its need. This need is defined by the market. "A product is
anything that can be offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use, consumption; it includes
physical objects, services, personalities, places, organizations and ideas," in this definition a
market is a set of all actual and potential buyers of a product.
Customer and need
From these definitions we can see that the potential buyers, the customers, obtain products based
in their needs and wants. These needs can be hierarchies into different levels, from the very basic
to the superfluous. An example of this hierarchy is the Maslow pyramid of human needs.
The company and customer satisfaction
If a company operates in a consumer market it would be a good idea to listen to what the
customer needs and wants. As Theodore Levitt expressed in 1977 (Brown, 1993), "The purpose
of an enterprise is to create and keep a customer. All other truths on this subject are merely
derivative." Maybe this sounds crude, but John Egan1977 (Brown, 1993), adds a variable that
both, softens the statement and provides a way of keeping the customer, "Business is about
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making money from satisfied customers. Without satisfied customers, there can be no future or
any commercial marketing." Marketing deals precisely with this, as defined by Kotler (1980)
"marketing is a human activity directed at satisfying the needs and wants through an exchange
process."
Marketing and the product life cycle
It is desirable that marketing participates in the early stages of the PLC, obtaining better
products, in terms of satisfied customer. The life of a product starts with a stimulus (Pahl and
Beitz, 1996) that may come may come from a market, the company or other source. This
stimulus is usually identified by marketing. The first stage in the product life cycle is called pre-
design and it starts from the birth of an idea (stimulus) and finishes with a product proposal that
will be used as the start of the design stage.
Pre-design in the product life cycle
Traditionally, pre-design refers to the initial stage of the PLC, where activities like marketing
and customer requirement study occur. These activities generate a Product Proposal that is used
for the design stage. The investment required for the Pre-design stage is relatively small
compared with the rest of the cycle (Pahl and Beitz, 1996), but its influence in the product is a
critical factor for its success. The product life cycle concept is an analogy from a biological
organism life cycle (Bagozzi, 1986), where birth, growth, decline and death are the stages. The
product life cycle is also known as the product realization process, but in the Marketing context
it refers to the products sales and profits in the market place (Onkvisit, 1989). Table 1, in next
page, shows the stages of the product life cycle and its related activities.
Stages and activities in the product life cycle
ACTIVITIES STAGE
Identification of need
Market study
Pre-design
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Customer requirements
Specification
Problem definition
Clarification of task

Design
Concept
Embodiment
Detail
Design
Development and testing
Prototyping

Production planning
Manufacture
Trial manufacturing
Production
Manufacture
In service
Use
Maintenance
Service
Disposal
Recycling
Disposal
Interactions
A products life starts with a stimulus, that comes from the market, company or other source, and
is usually identified by marketing. These stimulus triggers a product planning, defined by Pahl
and Beitz (1996) a "systematic search for, and the selection and development of, promising
product ideas." A promising product idea is the one that best fulfills the needs and wants of a
34

customer, as expressed by Rosenau (1996) "understanding features leads to todays dominant
products; understanding needs leads to tomorrows dominant products."
Marketing research, basically, analyses the situation using different tools (market analysis,
forecasting, competition analysis, etc) and provides analysis information useful to the marketing
management. Marketing management defines a marketing plan. This plan has the objective of
successfully guiding the organization through the market. A marketing plan includes situation
analysis, marketing objectives and goals, and marketing strategy. Marketing management
controls marketing research, using the guidelines and principles set in the marketing strategy.
Marketing management uses the information provided by marketing research to make marketing
decisions and create a product planning. The product planning provides a product proposal that is
used to start the design stage of the product. While the product continues its way to the design
stage, marketing continues working parallel to the product realization process (Advertising,
promotion, commercialization, sales, monitoring, etc)

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CHAPTER 3

36

3.1 ADVERTISING ETHICS
Inspite of the growing importance of advertising in recent years; as the quantity of false,
misleading and offensive advertising has increased it has resulted in consumers having an
increasing disbelief in advertising, and a growing resentment of it. Misleading, false advertising
also constitutes unfair competition. It could lead to market-place disaster or even litigation. If
this kind of advertising continues, it won't be long before statutory regulations and procedures
are imposed which make even fair truthful, decent advertising cumbersome if not impossible.
This certainly will affect your ability to compete and grow.

Ethics is a choice between good and bad, between right and wrong. It is governed by a set of
principles of morality at a given time and at a given place. Ethics is related to group behavior in
the ultimate analysis, setting thus the norms for an individual to follow in consistence with the
group norms.

Advertising too, has its ethical values. Advertising communications may be artfully presented
facts but the same are subservient to ethical principles. In order to be consumer-oriented, an
advertisement will have to be truthful and ethical. It should not mislead the consumers. If it so
happens and word does get out, the credibility is lost and the communication becomes ineffective
rather futile.

Advertisements truth should be viewed from the consumers point of view, and not in the narrow
legalistic frame in order to find a loophole and to get out after an irresponsible action.

Many times a clear line of demarcation between truth and lies is difficult to establish. But the
advertisement is as much judged by its impact as by its acceptance by the consumers.
What it promises must be there in the performance of products.
Advertisements should not be indecent and obscene.
Gambling or to encourage gambling is against ethical code.
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Endorsement of products by celebrities who are opinion leaders is also sometimes criticized
for spreading falsehood. Especially if the word gets out that the celebrity has endorsed
without actual personal experience, it can have a very detrimental effect on consumers.
As advertising a social process, it must honour the traditional norms of social behavior, and
should not affront the moral senses of a society.

In order to enforce an ethical code throughout the world Self Regulation is followed. There
are self-regulation bodies throughout the world for e.g. In UK the self regulation body is The
Advertising Standards Authority, In Ireland The Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland
(ASAI) and in India we have Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). It is a non-profit
organization set up by 43 founder members who are involved with advertising in one way or the
other. ASCIs propose is to adjudicate on whether an advertisement is offensive and its decision
will be binding on its members.

The Advertising Standards Council of India (1985) has adopted a Code for Self-Regulation in
Advertising. It is a commitment to honest advertising and to fair competition in the market place.
It stands for the protection of the legitimate interests of consumers and all concerned with
advertising, - advertisers, media, advertising agencies and others who help in the creation or
placement of advertising. As the Code becomes increasingly accepted and observed pro-actively,
three things will begin to happen.
1. Fewer false, misleading claims
2. Fewer unfair advertisements
3. Increasing respectability

Ethics is very subjective topic, what is ethical for one person may not be ethical for another.
The same subjectivity also applies to countries. Factors like culture taste habits etc influences our
perception of ethics.

Ethics in advertising is very important in order to protect the consumers. In order to safeguard
this ethics in advertising throughout the world self regulation is followed. In India as we have
seen the self-regulation authority is Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI).
38

Self regulation bodies complement the legal framework of the country. Unlike the censor board
the self - regulation body cannot first see the ad and then give it clearance to be aired. In fact the
self regulation body cannot take any concrete action against the violators of the code, but the
self regulation bodies ask the media to stop airing the advertisement. In India some of the
members of ASCI are from the media. When any ad is upheld by ASCI, ASCI inform the
advertiser as well as the media and the media stops the ad from being aired.

In India when an ad is upheld, 80% of the advertisers clarify their claims or withdraw their
advertisements. ASCI as an organisation is very reactive i.e. only if there is a complaint action
will be taken. When there is a complaint against a certain ad the company is informed and the
company makes presentations to the general secretary of ASCI and then he decides whether the
ad is upheld or not.

The reason behind this could be:
The typical Indian mentality There are other people who should complaint or If I dont like
something I shouldnt watch it.
People arent aware that there is an organisation they can report to in case they find an ad
offensive.

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3.2 ASCls MISSION
ASCI have one overarching goal: to maintain and enhance the public confidence in advertising.
ASCI seeks to ensure that advertisements conform to its Code for Self Regulation which
requires advertisements to be
Truthful and fair to consumers and competitors.
Within the bounds of generally accepted standards of public decency and propriety.
Not used indiscriminately for the promotion of products, hazardous or harmful to society or
to individuals particularly minors, to a degree unacceptable to society at large

ASCI propagate its code and a sense of responsibility for its observance amongst advertisers,
advertising agencies, and others connected with the creation of advertising, and the media. ASCI
encourages the public to complain against advertisements with which they may be unhappy for
any reason and ensures that each complaint receives a prompt and objective consideration by an
impartial Committee (CCC) which takes into account the view point of the advertiser, and an
appropriate decision is communicated to all concerned. ASCI endeavors to achieve compliance
with its decisions through reasoned persuasion and the power of public opinion.

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3.3 THE CODE FOR SELF-REGULATION IN ADVERTISING IN
INDIA
Adopted by The Advertising Standards Council of India under Article 2 (ii) of its Articles of
Association at the first meeting of the Board of Governors held on November 20, 1985. The
Code was amended in February 1995 and more recently in June 1999. The purpose of the Code
is to control the content of advertisements, not to hamper the sale of products which may be
found offensive, for whatever reason, by some people Provided, therefore, that advertisements
for such products are not themselves offensive, there will normally be no ground for objection to
them in terms of this Code.
Declaration of fundamental principles
This Code for Self-Regulation has been drawn up by people in professions and industries in or
connected with advertising, in consultation with representatives of people affected by
advertising, and has been accepted by individuals, corporate bodies and associations engaged in
or otherwise concerned with the practice of advertising, with the following as basic guidelines,
with a view to achieve the acceptance of fair advertising practices in the best interest of the
ultimate consumer:

To ensure the truthfulness and honesty of representations and claims made by advertisements
and to safeguard against misleading advertisements.
To ensure that advertisements are not offensive to generally accepted standards of public
decency.
To safeguard against the indiscriminate use of advertising for the promotion of products
which are regarded as hazardous to society or to individuals to a degree or of a type which is
unacceptable to society at large.
To ensure that advertisements observe fairness in competition so that the consumer's need to
be informed on choices in the market-place and the canons of generally accepted competitive
behaviour in business are both served.

The Code's rules form the basis for judgement whenever there may be conflicting views about
the acceptability of an advertisement, whether it is challenged from within or from outside the
41

advertising business. Both the general public and an advertiser's competitors have an equal right
to expect the content of advertisements to be presented fairly, intelligibly and responsibly. The
Code applies to advertisers, advertising agencies and media.
Responsibility for the observance of this code
As the advertiser originates the advertising brief and sanctions its placement, the advertiser
carries full responsibility for the observance of this Code. This responsibility embraces the
advertisement in its entire content and form (including testimonials and statements or visual
presentations originating from other sources). The fact that the content or form, wholly or in part,
Originates from other sources is not an excuse for non-observance of this Code. As creators and
expert advisors, advertising agencies have full responsibility to ensure the observance of this
Code in as much as the facts are known to them and to advise their clients in accordance with
this Code. This Code applies to advertisements read, heard or viewed in India, directed to Indian
consumers even if they originate or are published abroad.
The code and the law
The Code's rules are not the only ones to affect advertising.
There are many provisions, both in the common law and in the statutes, which can determine
the form or the content of an advertisement.
The Code is not in competition with law. Its rules and the machinery through which they are
enforced are designed to complement legal controls, not to usurp or replace them.
Definitions
For the purpose of this Code:
An advertisement is defined as a paid-for communication, addressed to the Public or a
section of it, the purpose of which is to influence the opinions of behaviour of those to whom
it is addressed. Any communication which in the normal course would be recognized as an
advertisement by the general public would be included in this definition even if it is carried
free-of-charge for any reason.
A product is anything which forms the subject of an advertisement, and includes goods,
services and facilities.
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A consumer is any person or corporate body who is likely to be reached by an advertisement
whether as an ultimate consumer, in the way of trade or otherwise.
An advertiser is anybody, including an individual or partnership or corporate body or
association, on whose brief the advertisement in designed and on whose account the
advertisement is released.
An advertising agency includes all individuals, partnerships, corporate bodies or associations,
who or which work for planning, research, creation or placement of advertisements or the
creation of material for advertisements for advertisers or for other advertising agencies.
Media owners include individuals in effective control of the management of media or their
agents; media are any means used for the propagation of advertisements and include press,
cinema, radio, television, hoarding, hand bills, direct mail, posters, internet, etc.
Minors are defined as persons who are below the age of 18 years.
Any written or graphic matter on packaging, whether unitary or bulk, or contained in it, is
subject to this Code in the same manner as any advertisement in any other medium.
To publish is to carry the advertisement in any media whether it be by printing, exhibiting,
broadcasting, displaying, distributing, etc.
Standards of conduct
Advertising is an important and legitimate means for the seller to awaken interest in his products.
The success of advertising depends on public confidence. Hence no practice should be permitted
which tends to impair this confidence. The standards that are stated in the next few chapters
should be taken as minimum standards of acceptability, which would be liable to be reviewed
from time to time in relation to the prevailing norm of consumers' susceptibilities.

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3.4 I OF ASCIs CODES
To ensure the Truthfulness and Honesty of Representations and Claims made by Advertisements
and to Safeguard against misleading Advertisements.
Advertisements must be truthful. All descriptions, claims and comparisons, which relate to
matters of objectively ascertainable fact, should be capable of substantiation. Advertisers and
advertising agencies are required to produce such substantiation as and when called upon to
do so by The Advertising Standards Council of India.
Where advertising claims are expressly stated to be based on or supported by independent
research or assessment, the source and date of this should be indicated in the advertisement.
Advertisements shall not, without permission from the person, firm or institution under
reference, contain any reference to such person, firm or institution which confers an
unjustified advantage on the product advertised or tends to bring the person, firm or
institution into ridicule or disrepute. If any when required to do so by the Advertising
Standards Council of India, the advertiser and advertising agency shall produce explicit
permission from the person, firm or institution to which reference is made in the
advertisement.
Advertisements shall neither distort facts nor mislead the consumer by means of implications
or omissions. Advertisements shall not contain statements or visual presentation which
directly or by implication or by omission or by ambiguity or by exaggeration are likely to
mislead the consumer about the product advertised or the advertiser or about any other
product or advertiser.
Advertisements shall not be so framed as to abuse the trust of consumers or exploit their lack
of experience or knowledge. No advertisement shall be permitted to contain any claim so
exaggerated as to lead to grave or widespread disappointment in the minds of consumers.

For example:
(a) Products shall not be described as 'free' where there is any direct cost to the consumer other
than the actual cost of any delivery, freight, or postage. Where such costs are payable by the
consumer, a clear statement that this is the case shall be made in the advertisement.

44

(b) Where a claim is made that if one product is purchased another product will be provided
'free', the advertiser is required to show, as and when called upon by The Advertising
Standards Council of India, that the price paid by the consumer for the product which is
offered for purchase with the advertised incentive is no more than the prevalent price of the
product without the advertised incentive.
(c) Claims which use expressions such as "Up to five years' guarantee" or "Prices from as low as
Rs. Y" are not acceptable if there is likelihood of the consumer being misled either as to the
extent of the availability or as to the applicability of the benefits offered.
(d) Special care and restraint has to be exercised in advertisements addressed to those suffering
from weakness, any real or perceived inadequacy of any physical attributes such as height or
bust development, obesity, illness, impotence, infertility, baldness and the like, to ensure that
claims or representations directly or by implication, do not exceed what is considered prudent
by generally accepted standards of medical practice and the actual efficacy of the product.
(e) Advertisements inviting the public to invest money shall not contain statements which may
mislead the consumer in respect of the security offered, rates of return or terms of
amortization; where any of the foregoing elements are contingent upon the continuance of or
change in existing conditions, or any other assumptions, such conditions or assumptions must
be clearly indicated in the advertisement.
(f) Advertisements inviting the public to take part in lotteries or prize competitions permitted
under law or which hold out the prospect of gifts shall state clearly all material conditions as
to enable the consumer to obtain a true and fair view of their prospects in such activity.
Further, such advertisers shall make adequate provisions for the judging of such
competitions, announcement of the results and the fair distribution of prizes or gifts
according to the advertised terms and conditions within a reasonable period of time. With
regard to the announcement of results, it is clarified that the advertiser's responsibility under
this section of the Code is discharged adequately if the advertiser publicizes the main results
in the media used to announce the competition as far as is practicable, and advises the
individual winners by post.

45

6. Obvious untruths or exaggerations intended to amuse or to catch the eye of the consumer are
permissible provided that they are clearly to be seen as humorous or hyperbolic and not likely to
be understood as making literal or misleading claims for the advertised product.
7. In mass manufacturing and distribution of goods and services it is possible that there may be
an occasional, unintentional lapse in the fulfillment of an advertised promise or claim. Such
occasional, unintentional lapses may not invalidate the advertisement in terms of this Code.

In judging such issues, due regard shall be given to the following:

Whether the claim or promise is capable of fulfillment by a typical specimen of the product
advertised.
Whether the proportion of product failures is within generally acceptable limits.
Whether the advertiser has taken prompt action to make good the deficiency to the consumer.

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3.5 CASES THAT WERE UPHELD
CASE 1:
Brand: Spirulina Pacifica
Company: Herbicure Pvt. Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Mileage Advertising
Medium: Print

This advertisement appeared in The Times of India dated April 25, 2001. The advertisement
glorifies active and passive smoking, both of which are fatal. This is augmented by the slogan,
pollution you love. This sends wrong signals so as to be accepted by the readers that smoking
does not harm, if Spirulina Pacifica is taken regularly. Also, the claims in the advertisement
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Spirulina Pacifica is proven to have more antioxidant properties than most other Spirulina
strains,
Only two tablets a day restore your natural power to ward off diseases, keeping you healthy
and strong,
It also reduces premenstrual syndrome,
Reduces risk of cancer, checks cholesterol &blood sugar, even helps prevent heart diseases
these require to be substantiated.
Hence this advertisement was upheld under Chapter I.1 since the claims were not substantiated
adequately. The advertisement was discontinued since then.

CASE 2:
Brand: Surf Excel Liquid Detergent
Company: Hindustan Lever Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Lowe Lintas & Partners
Medium: TV Commercial
This advertisement appeared on the product pack and on Zee TV, Sony TV, and Star Plus. The
following claims of Surf Excel are misleading and untrue:
In TVCs: (in Hindi) Naya Surf Excel liquid daag mitane ki shakti powderon ke mukable
dugna, (as translated in English) New Surf Excel Liquid with stain removing power
which is twice as much as in detergent powders.
On the product pack label: It gives you far better results than any detergent powder.

The advertiser does not specify, compared to which detergent powder they are twice as effective,
it is reasonable to infer that they claim to be twice as effective as any detergent powder
commonly available in the Indian market. Technical tests conducted by the Bombay Textile
Research Association (BTRA), an independent organisation, clearly indicates that Ariel Power
Compact delivers significantly better stain removal performance on most of the commonly
encountered stains like clay, betel-nut (paan), and body soil stains, and showed parity
performance on stains like spinach, paint, turmeric vs. Surf Excel Liquid. Hence this
48

advertisement was upheld under Chapter I.1 since the claims were not substantiated by
advertisers test report or in their supporting technical information. The advertisement was
discontinued since then.

CASE 3:
Brand: Philips Matchline TV
Company: Philips (I) Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Euro RSCG Advtg
Medium: Print
This advertisement appeared in The Times of India. The headline in this advertisement proclaims
Philips to be the No. 1 TV, whereas the ad is referring to a particular model only. Moreover
there is no proper substantiation of the No. 1 status. The ad gives a reference to the AV Max
magazine; but the comparison done by the magazine is based on certain parameters and does not
rate any product as No.1. The ad shows a particular model but mentions two different model
numbers next to the product shot. The ad just highlights a single feature (picture quality) which
is rated marginally higher but not the features, which are rated, lower than the competitors. In
terms of overall rating, not only the Philips 100-hertz model is rated four and half stars but also
the Samsung model. However, this is not being mentioned in the ad. Hence this advertisement
was upheld under Chapter I.4 since the claims were not supported by any reference in the report
published in AV Max magazine or by any other valid data. The ad was misleading by ambiguity.
The advertisement was modified.

CASE 4:
Brand: Novartis
Company: Novartis India Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Rediffusion DY&R
Medium: Print
This advertisement appeared in The Times of India. The ad used a photograph of US President
Bill Clinton, AP Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, and a quote by Mr. Clinton. The photo
caption reads, US President Bill Clinton administers the last dose eradicating the infliction of
TB. The copy states, At Novartis, we are working towards eradicating illnesses and creating a
49

world full of wonders, a world free of disease. By developing drugs that enhance the quality of
life. So it makes us proud to say that the tuberculosis treatment dose that US President Bill
Clinton administered to two children at Hyderabad (A.P.) on March 24, world TB day, was
manufactured and marketed by Novartis. A small step towards creating a better world, -
Novartis New skills in the science of life. This ad is misleading and unfair for the following
reasons:
The ad creates an impression that, Novartis, is the sole manufacturer of Anti-TB medicines;
while the reality is that there are at least 31 major Indian companies and four other MNCs
manufacturing the anti-TB products for decades with utmost precision, most selling them at
lower cost, than Novartis.
The Ad creates an impression that TB is eradicated and that the two children were the last to
take the last dose at the hands of Mr. Clinton; while the reality is that India tops the world in
TB cases and TB is still on the rise. It also misleads as implying Mr. Clintons endorsement
of the product.
In Directly Observed Treatment Short-course, the anti-TB treatment is directly provided by
the healthcare worker who is specially trained; while Mr. Clinton is neither a professional
doctor nor a trained healthcare worker.
Did Novartis obtain express permission/ consent of Mr. Clinton and Mr. Naidu for publishing
this picture, for its goal of commercially exploiting the social event in Hyderabad?

Hence this advertisement was upheld under Chapter I.1 and I.4 since the claims were misleading
by implication. The advertisement was discontinued.

CASE 5:
Brand: Sunsilk Shampoo
Advertising Agency: Hindustan Thompson Associates
Medium: TV Commercial

50

The advertisement appeared on DD5. The commercial states that Sunsilk is made up of natural
products. It means only natural products are used so people dont have to worry about any
chemicals. But the label of the product says that the shampoo is detergent based. Facts state
that natural proteins and vitamins cannot survive with a detergent solution. The ad clearly
misleads the consumer to believe that it is made up of natural products by a visual effect, which
shows something being taken from the flower, using a syringe. Hence this advertisement was
upheld under Chapter I.1 and I.4 since the claims were false and misleading. The claim made in
the TVC was modified.

CASE 6:
Brand: Pepsodent Toothpaste
Advertising Agency: Ammirati Puris Lintas
Medium: Print

The advertisement appeared in the Sunday Times Of India. The ad states Q) What do you call
1000 Pepsodent kids with tooth aches? A) Liars. The problem in this case is the word Liars.
No Child is ready to accept that he is a liar even if he is lying. It is wrong to call any child a liar
and more so if he is using any toothpaste. There is no toothpaste in the world that guarantees
against cavities, and that can prevent a toothache. Hence the ad is false and misleading. Hence
this advertisement was upheld under Chapter I.1 and I.4 since the claims were false and
misleading. The campaign is not on air.

51

CASE 7:
Brand: Samsung Instachill Air Conditioner
Company: Samsung India Electronics Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Triton Communications
Medium: TVC

52

This advertisement appeared on Sony Max channel in March 2000. The advertisement shows a
boy stripping in front of a group of girls. The ad was being aired during the cricket matches.
Cricket is watched by the whole family especially teenage boys. An Ad with such blatant
vulgarity was being aired throughout the match. Hence this advertisement was upheld under
Chapter II since the ad was likely to cause wide spread offence. The advertisement was
discontinued since then.

53

CASE 8:
Brand: Ibaya The Complete Shopping Experience
Company: Indishop Pvt. Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Lowe Lintas & Partners
Medium: Print

This advertisement appeared in The Times of India. The advertisement which has been,
published has nothing to do with the subject matter of the advertisement. The picture is of a very
low grade and cheap nature. The advertisement (headline) states, "Think This Is Cheap?". The
54

reference to, "Alphonso mangoes at Rs.30/-" is suggestive and not in good taste. Hence this
advertisement was upheld under Chapter II as the headline Think This is Cheap?, linked with
the visual depiction, and the copy, looking for the best products at lowest prices?, was
considered suggestive and an affront to women, which is likely to cause grave or widespread
offence. The advertisement was withdrawn.

CASE 9:
Brand: MTV Cut the crap! Lets talk Farts & Figures
Company: MTV India Pvt. Ltd.
Advertising Agency: -
Medium: Print
This advertisement appeared in The Economic Times. The advertisement is vulgar and offensive.
The words - "shit", "fart", and "crap", are not acceptable in the lexicon of the vocabulary by the
Indian society. It is probably considered very liberal, cool, and modem, by some people, to
accept this in the belief that, "Oh, but it's all in good humour", but it is not. Hence this
advertisement was upheld under Chapter II as the advertisement was considered to be offensive
to generally prevailing standards of public decency and likely to cause grave or widespread
offence. The advertisement was released only once in selected publications. No repeat
insertions.

CASE 10:
Brand: Exciter Inner Wear
Company: Body Care International Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Graphisads Pvt. Ltd.
Medium: Print

This advertisement appeared in The Hindustan Times. The advertisements are most vulgar,
derogatory to the women folk and against the Indian culture and society. The way the man has
been shown wearing the underwear is objectionable, and further to it the presence of six hands of
women are most objectionable. The advertisements are in very bad taste. Hence this
advertisement was upheld under Chapter II as the advertisement was considered to be offensive
55

to generally prevailing standards of public decency and likely to cause grave or widespread
offence. The advertiser has assured appropriate modification of the ad.

CASE 11:
Brand: Lawman Casuals
Company: Kewal Kiran Enterprises
Advertising Agency: Relationship Marketing Group
Medium: Print

This advertisement appeared in The Outlook. The advertisement depicts a young man relieving
himself, and the caption says, Pop says water the plants daily. The advertisement is in very
bad taste, and is disrespectful of the elders. Hence this advertisement was upheld under Chapter
II as the advertisement was considered to be offensive to generally prevailing standards of public
decency and likely to cause grave or widespread offence. The advertisement has been
withdrawn.
56

3.6 CHAPTER - III OF ASCIs CODES
To safeguard against the indiscriminate use of Advertising in situations or of the Promotion of
Products which are regarded as Hazardous or Harmful to society or to individuals, particularly
minors, to a degree or of a type which is Unacceptable to Society at Large.
1. No advertisement shall be permitted which:
Tends to incite people to crime or to promote disorder and violence or intolerance.
Derides any race, caste, colour, creed or nationality.
Presents criminality as desirable or directly or indirectly encourages people ~ particularly
minors-to emulate it, or conveys the modus operandi of any crime.
Adversely affects friendly relations with a foreign State.

2. Advertisements addressed to minors shall not contain anything, whether in illustration or
otherwise, which might result in their physical, mental or moral harm or which exploits their
vulnerability. For example. Advertisements:
Should not encourage minors to enter strange places or to converse with strangers in an effort
to collect coupons, wrappers, labels or the like.
Should not feature dangerous or hazardous acts, which are likely to encourage minors to
emulate such acts in a manner, which could cause harm or inquiry.
Should not show minors using or playing with matches or any inflammable or explosive
substance; or playing with or using sharp knives guns or mechanical or electrical appliances,
the careless use of which could lead to their suffering cuts, burns, shocks or other injury.
Should not feature minors for tobacco or alcohol-based products.
Should not feature personalities from the field of sports, music and cinema for products
which, by law, either require a health warning in their advertising or cannot be purchased by
minors.

3. Advertisements shall not, without justifiable reason, show or refer to dangerous practices or
manifest a disregard for safety or encourage negligence.

57

4 Advertisements should contain nothing, which is in breach of the law, nor omit anything,
which the law requires.
5. Advertisements shall not propagate products, the use of which is banned under the law.
6. Advertisements for products whose advertising is prohibited or restricted by law or by this
Code must not circumvent such restrictions by purporting to be advertisements for other products
the advertising of which is not prohibited or restricted by law or by this Code. In judging whether
or not any particular advertisement is an indirect advertisement for a product whose Advertising
is restricted or prohibited, due attention shall be paid to the following:

Whether the unrestricted product which is purportedly sought to be promoted through the
advertisement under complaint is produced and distributed in reasonable quantities having
regard to the scale of the advertising in question, the media used and the markets targeted.
Whether there exist in the advertisement under complaint any direct or indirect clues or cues
which could suggest to consumers that it is a direct or indirect advertisement for the product
whos advertising is restricted or prohibited by law or by this Code.
Where Advertising is necessary, the mere use of a brand name or company name that may
also be applied to a product whose advertising is restricted or prohibited is not reason to find
the advertisement objectionable provided the advertisement is not objectionable in terms of
(a) and (b) above.

CASE 1:
Brand: Happy Christmas. Unhappy Deeds!
Company: Jindal Aluminium Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Chakra Communications
Medium: Print
This advertisement appeared in The Indian Express. The advertisement states Happy Christmas.
Unhappy Deeds!. The advertisement smacks of communal hatred likely to incite communal
disharmony. Hence this advertisement was upheld under Chapter III.1 (a & b) since the ad tends
to promote intolerance and derides a particular creed. The media was questioned and the media
assured that said advertisement will not be published, in future.
58

CASE 2:
Brand: Livo Plus Capsules
Company: Ajanta Pharma Ltd.
Advertising Agency: Solutions Advertising
Medium: Print
This advertisement appeared in Bombay Times. The advertisement states Protect your liver,
without dampening your spirits. The advertisement is totally misleading and unethical, as it
clearly suggests that one can continue to take alcohol as long as the liver is protected by such a
drug - Livo Plus capsules. This statement has no scientific basis, as no such drugs have been
shown to clearly have hepato -protective effects. Also, any encouragement to alcohol
consumption is against the interest of public health. Also, the following claims need to be
substantiated by the advertiser.
A 100% safe ayurvedic formulation made from plant extracts in a Unique combination
Livo Plus is 18 times more powerful than any existing liver care product

Hence this advertisement was upheld under Chapter III.3 and I.1 since the claim (headline)
protect your liver, without dampening your spirits, and the visual depiction could induce
excess consumption of alcohol. Claims, 100% safe, and 18 times more powerful than any
existing liver care product, were not substantiated, and the advertisement encouraged
negligence without justifiable reasons. The advertisement was discontinued.

59

3.7 COMPARITIVE STUDY OF SELF-REGULATORY CODES
IN ADVERTISING IN 5 COUNTRIES

CODES RELATING TO

INDIA

UNITED
KINGDOM

IRELAN
D

UNITED
STATES
OF
AMERICA

AUSTRALIA
Substantiation

Legality

Decency

Honesty

Truthfulness

Fear & Distress

Safety

Violence & Anti social Behavior

Protection of Privacy

Testimonials & Endorsements

Prices

Free Offers

Availability of Products

Guarantees

Comparisons

Denigration

Exploitation of Goodwill

Imitation

Identifying advertisers

60

- This sign denotes the presence of the particular point in the code
- This sign denotes the absence of the particular point in the code

Substantiation:
All claims made in the advertisements need to be substantiated by appropriate evidence, if the
self-regulatory body asks evidence. Substantiation has been specifically mentioned as a code,
in the codes of India, UK, Ireland and USA. Whereas the codes of Australia doesnt mention it.
The codes in Australia state that advertising should be truthful honest and should not mislead or
be deceptive. But however they do not state the need of substantiating your claims with required
evidence.

Legality:
An advertisement should not contain anything that breaks the law or incites anyone to break it,
nor omit anything that the law requires. The legality of the advertisement is important
according to all countries and hence all the codes specifically mention the complementary
relationship between the code and the law.

Decency
Advertisements should contain nothing that is likely to cause serious or widespread offence.
Particular care should be taken to avoid causing offence on the grounds of race, religion, sex,
sexual orientation or disability. All countries except USA, mention Decency as a part of their
code. In Australia the codes state that advertisements should treat sex, sexuality and nudity with
sensitivity to the relevant audience and, where appropriate, the relevant time zone.

Honesty
Advertisers should not exploit the credulity, lack of knowledge or inexperience of consumers.
All countries mention Honesty as a part of their code.

Truthfulness
No advertisement should mislead by inaccuracy, ambiguity, exaggeration, omission or otherwise.
All countries mention Truthfulness as a part of their code.
61

Fear and distress
No advertisement should cause fear or distress. Advertisers should not use shocking claims or
images merely to attract attention. UK and Ireland mention Fear and distress as a part of their
code.

Safety
Advertisements should not show or encourage unsafe practices except in the context of
promoting safety. Particular care should be taken with advertisements addressed to or depicting
children and young people. All countries except USA, mention Safety as a part of their code.

Violence and anti-social behaviour
Advertisements should contain nothing that condones or is likely to provoke violence or anti-
social behaviour. All countries except USA, mention Violence as a part of their code.

Protection of privacy
Advertisers should not unfairly portray or refer to people in an adverse or offensive way.
Advertisers are urged to obtain written permission before: a referring to or portraying members
of the public or their identifiable possessions. UK and Ireland mention Protection of privacy as
a part of their code.

Testimonials and endorsements
Advertisers should hold signed and dated proof, including a contact address, for any testimonial
they use. All countries except Australia, mention Testimonials and endorsements as a part of
their codes. In the Indian codes it is not mentioned directly as a chapter but it states
responsibility embraces the advertisement in its entire content and form (including testimonials
and statements or visual presentations originating from other sources)

Prices
Any stated price should be clear and should relate to the product advertised. Advertisers should
ensure that price match the products illustrated. UK, Ireland and USA mention Prices as a part
of their codes.
62

Free offers
There is no objection to making a free offer conditional on the purchase of other items.
Consumers liability for any costs should be made clear in all material featuring the offer. All
countries except Australia, mention Free offers as a part of their code.

Availability of products
Advertisers must make it clear if stocks are limited. Products must not be advertised unless
advertisers can demonstrate that they have reasonable grounds for believing that they can satisfy
demand. UK and Ireland mention Availability of products as a part of their code.

Guarantees
The word guarantee should not be used in a way that could cause confusion about consumers
legal rights. All countries except Australia, mention Guarantees as a part of their code.

Comparisons
Comparisons can be explicit or implied and can relate to advertisers own products or to those of
their competitors; they are permitted in the interests of vigorous competition and public
information. All countries except Australia, mention Comparisons as a part of their code.

Denigration
Advertisers should not unfairly attack or discredit other businesses or their products. UK Ireland
and India mention Denigration as a part of their code.

Exploitation of goodwill
Advertisers should not make unfair use of the goodwill attached to the trade mark, name, brand,
or the advertising campaign of any other organisation. All countries except USA, mention
Exploitation as a part of their code.

Imitation
No advertisement should so closely resemble any other that it misleads or causes confusion. All
countries except Australia, mention Imitation as a part of their code.
63

Identifying advertisers and recognizing advertisements
Advertisers, publishers and owners of other media should ensure that advertisements are
designed and presented in such a way that it is clear that they are advertisements. UK and Ireland
mention Identifying advertisers and recognizing advertisements as a part of their code. The
codes of UK and Ireland are the same except for the sections. UK has got the most
comprehensive code and covers nearly everything relating ethics in advertising. The codes of UK
are over 65 years old and the codes of most countries including India are inspired by these codes.
But the codes of USA stress more on Price and how things should be presented e.g. Asterisk etc.
it mainly stresses on honesty and truthfulness and goes in details stating how to be honest.
However Australias codes are just a one page code and misses out on a lot of factors.

64

CHAPTER 4

65

4.1 SUBLIMINAL ADVERTISING A VIOLATION OF ETHICS
Ever since advertising existed the debate regarding ethics existed. Within ethics the most
debatable topic is subliminal advertising. The Advertising industry prides itself on its ability to
attract attention to itself and the products it represents. Its principal purpose, of course, is to sell
things for its clients. But, strangely, it hasnt been able to shake the murky legend that its
burying a lot of disagreeable things, mostly of a sexual nature, in its advertising campaigns. The
advertising business has ridiculed this practice, better known as subliminal advertising, for
decades. Nevertheless, at least three-fourths of the general adult American population believes
that subliminal advertising is purposely created and used to sell products. Subliminal is also a
part of the codes of self regulation of many European countries.

We all know that the human mind is made up of the conscious, subconscious and the
unconscious. Explained very simply, the subconscious acts as a recorder, recording all
information that comes through our senses, without actually sifting and choosing, or separating
the right from wrong. Often advertising is intentionally targeted to this subconscious mind
through stimuli too weak to be consciously seen or heard by the conscious mind. It the invades
the human sub consciousness altering our taste, moods, behavioral patterns, morality .
Changing our entire identity. This advertising is called subliminal advertising.

The word "subliminal" comes from the fusion of two Latin words: "sub" and "limen." "Sub"
meaning "lower than," "beneath," or "under", and "limen" meaning "threshold". Thus, subliminal
advertising is advertising beneath the threshold of conscious perception. We cannot see it, hear
it, or perceive it in any fashion. Thus, it is believed that one can influence behavior by secretly
appealing to the subconscious mind with words, images, or sounds. If this were true, then
advertisers could manipulate consumer behavior by hiding subliminal messages in their ads.

Subliminal communication can be visual or audio:
Visually it could be words or pictures flashed across so quickly in a film or ad film that we
dont consciously remember what we have seen, or at least think we dont. For e.g. when we
watch a film we see movement in real time(i.e. as it happens in real life) when 25 frames go
66

past in a single second. In 1956 James Vicary created a device that would flash the message
Hungry? Eat Popcorn and Thirsty? Drink Coca Cola once after every 125 frames,
which is once every 5 seconds during the film. In this theatre in New Jersey where this
device was used for a period of 6 weeks the sales of popcorn went up by 57.5 % and that of
coke by 18%. Although people thought they dint see anything it did affect their behavior.
It could also be pictures, words or symbols placed within something so that we dont
consciously remember them. For example each of these sentences has the name of a country
hidden within, which in a single reading and without any clue, people wouldnt really detect:
Fighting against the strong wind I advanced. Interpol and FBI have now begun working
together. There is no catch in any of these sentences.
It could be words masked by electronic tricks in a manner that we dont consciously hear
them, or at least we think we dont. For example, a medical electronic researcher from
Louisiana created a device called a Little Black Box which played a cassette on an endless
loop. This machine was also capable of broadcasting two messages simultaneously such that
one would be clearly audible, while the other would be at a much lower decibel that it is
perceivable only subliminally. It was used in 37 US Departmental stores to communicate a
message of honesty, where the losses incurred from shoplifting were on the rise. The
message Be Honest do not steal, I am honest I will not steal were repeated 9000 times
each day at a lower decibel, audible to the subconscious. This system saved one company
more than 6, 00,000$ by reducing its thefts losses by 37% over just a 9 month period.

A significant percentage (75 to 80 percent) of the U.S. population believes that advertising
agencies and the companies they represent purposely use subliminal advertising. That is, despite
industry claims to the contrary, most people believe that advertisers engage in the practice of
embedding images, words, or sounds in print, audio, or video advertising media, so that they are
not consciously seen or heard, to help sell their products. These same consumers also believe that
subliminal advertising actually "works. In fact, consumers spend about 50 million dollars a year
on subliminal self-help products.

Subliminal advertising first came to the publics attention in 1957, when Jim Vicary conducted a
subliminal advertising strategy i.e. "drink Coca-Cola" and "eat popcorn" messages. This study
67

was the focus of much public attention. Consumers were concerned that advertisers could now
"trick" them into buying products without their knowledge and/or conscious opposition since the
advertising was being conducted at a "subconscious"

Belief in subliminal messaging reached a surreal apex in 1980 with the publication of The Clam-
Plate Orgy and Other Subliminals the Media use to Manipulate Your Behavior by Dr. Wilson
Bryan Key. Key claimed that advertisers were using subliminal messaging of a very serious
sexual nature in order to manipulate behavior. In a chapter titled "Sex is Alive and Embedded in
Practically Everything", Key says, "Sex is the most frequently embedded word in the American
advertising industry". He claims the one-word cue for lust is hidden in everything from liquor
ads to Ritz crackers, the holes of which he says are arranged during baking to form several
depictions of the letters S, E, X. "Words such as fuck, cunt, ass, whore, prick, and death are also
used frequently as subliminal triggers to motivate purchasing behaviors", Key explains.

The book also announced more subliminal sex findings. Key claims that while carefully
examining a Howard Johnsons menu, he saw that a plate of clams pictured on the menu was
actually the portrayal of a sexual orgy, which included various people and a donkey. Key
suggested that this is only the tip of the iceberg of a subliminal conspiracy of major proportions.
Subliminal stimuli "have been regularly used in North American media for over twenty-five
years without anyone getting wise to what was going on," he wrote. Commenting on the $20
billion then spent annually on advertising, he claimed that "an enormous proportion of this
expenditure today is devoted to the research, development, and application of subliminal stimuli
with strong sales or manipulative potentialities".

However critics say it is not possible to advertise to the subconscious mind. So there are two
categories of people i.e. people who think subliminals exist and people who think it doesnt exist.
But if subliminals does exist and is used by advertisers, it is a threat to consumers, who would
not have control over their buying habits which is a violation of basic principles of Advertising.

68

4.2 RECENT UNETHICAL INTERNATIONAL
ADVERTISEMENT

69

70

CHAPTER 5

71

5.1 Research Methodology

Research question;
Evaluating the effectiveness of emotional appeal and sex appeal; in commercials as well as
Printed Ads, on adolescents.
Q1: The impact of gender on the degree of affection to the Ads
Q2: The impact of age on the degree of affection to the Ads
Q3: The effect of emotional appeal and sex appeal in Ads, on the consumers buying decision
Q4: The effect of Television viewing frequency on adolescents sense of judgment
Q5: The effect of magazine reading frequency on adolescents sense of judgment
Q6: Marketers insight towards the effect of emotional appeal and sex appeal on adolescents.

Data collected from primary sources:
This research is an exploratory one, however, two types of research designs were used when
conducting this market research; it involved exploratory as well as descriptive research designs
in order to help develop the conclusion; answering the research questions.
The research first began with an exploratory research design, which is a type of qualitative
research design; its purpose is to further understand the topic on hand and to have a better
understanding about the issue. Two types of exploratory research were conducted; focus groups
and in-depth interviews. A direct approach was used, in which the purpose of the project was
disclosed to the respondent and is obvious.
Four focus groups for both genders separately were
conducted to avoid any kind of bias or discomfort and four in-depth interviews were conducted
with people of professional marketing background. It is important to note that all in-depth
interviews were conducted with marketers that work in advertising campaigns , to give the
researcher a more professional and accurate insight about the issue from the inside as well, and
10 by that helping to further understand the ethical dimensions behind the dilemma on hand. The
moderator guides and the in-depth interview questionnaires are disclosed at the end of this paper.
The second step taken was to further analyze the results of the qualitative research with a
72

descriptive quantitative one, to match the results and confirm the findings using facts and figures.
The results were analyzed using SPSS.

Data collected from Secondary sources:
The internet served as the source for the secondary data used to research the topic of the ethical
dilemma of advertisement, through chapter 1 and 2. References of these sources are attached at
the end of this research. It is important to note that both data collected through primary and
secondary sources were used to help conclude the research and offer recommendations.

Research Limitations
In an attempt to minimize errors, qualitative and quantitative research was conducted, to further
enhance the search and increase its accuracy. However, there were inevitable limitations. Time
and money constraints, were the largest limitation. If given more time and resources, a larger
sample could have been tested and it would have been possible to hire more professional
interviewers to increase the accuracy of the research. Another limitation, was due to the fact that
16
convenience sampling was used, and due to that reason the two age groups tested werent of the
same size, which inevitably couldve cause biased in the results. However, since age generally
had an insignificant effect on the findings, the results were not that affected by such limitation.

73

5.2 CONCLUSION
Ethics is very subjective topic, what is ethical for one person may not be ethical for another.
The same subjectivity also applies to countries. Factors like culture taste habits etc influences our
perception of ethics.

Ethics in advertising is very important in order to protect the consumers. In order to safeguard
this ethics in advertising throughout the world self regulation is followed. In India as we have
seen the self-regulation authority is Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI).

Self regulation bodies complement the legal framework of the country. Unlike the censor board
the self - regulation body cannot first see the ad and then give it clearance to be aired. In fact the
self regulation body cannot take any concrete action against the violators of the code, but the
self regulation bodies ask the media to stop airing the advertisement. In India some of the
members of ASCI are from the media. When any ad is upheld by ASCI, ASCI inform the
advertiser as well as the media and the media stops the ad from being aired.

In India when an ad is upheld, 80% of the advertisers clarify their claims or withdraw their
advertisements. ASCI as an organisation is very reactive i.e. only if there is a complaint action
will be taken. When there is a complaint against a certain ad the company is informed and the
company makes presentations to the general secretary of ASCI and then he decides whether the
ad is upheld or not.

I have studied cases upheld by ASCI in the last 15 months and I have found out that most of the
complaints were intra industry complaints and very few were actually complaints by
consumers.

74

The reason behind this could be:
the typical Indian mentality There are other people who should complaint or If I dont like
something I shouldnt watch it. or
people arent aware that there is an organisation they can report to in case they find an ad
offensive.
ASCI is now working on the fact that people need to be informed. And ASCI have started
advertising both in print and on TV. This should make advertising more safe.

More over the awareness should increase, telling people what are the various aspects that
constitute ethics in India. People think ethics in advertising is all about having decent ads. In
India most advertisers follow this; it can be seen from the fact that there have been only 5 ads
upheld under chapter 2 which deals with decency in content of ad in the last 15 months. The only
ad that made a great deal of news in terms of decency is the very famous TUFFS, its still a
question to me whether they purposefully did the ad for publicity i.e. they will make news after
they are caught any way it worked for them. I guess thats the worst weve had where as abroad
there are companies like candies shoes, opium perfume actually have nudity in their ads and fcuk
which is pronounced as fuck got away as they justified their name as french connection united
kingdom. We are doing extremely well on these fronts with advertisers understanding the Indian
culture.

Any way we have got a lot of ethics in advertising as compared to a lot of countries in the world,
where people actually talk of advertising to the subconscious and no code of decency. As I
watched the ads that were said to be the best ads in the world that is ads from Cannes there were
ads that were very disturbing there was an airline ad which should very disturbing picture of
killings rape etc. and had a head blocking some part of the screen and it said if you were flying
on that airline you wouldnt miss anything because of a head of the person sitting ahead of you
as you had your own TV on the seat ahead. Looking at these my conclusion would be Self -
regulation in India is working really well.

75

5.3 Annexure

Dear Sir,

I am Karishma Kumar from SIES college. Being my academic requirement I am

conducting some research concerning the publics opinion about the level of ethics in

advertising. In order to answer these questions, I need your help. Following is a short

questionnaire:

Please the following fields:-

Age:

Gender:

Education level:

Please answer the following questions:-

1) Businesses have responsibilities with society that go beyond job creation:

Yes:

No:

2) It is possible for a business to be both ethical and profitable:

Yes:

No:

3) Advertising shows an accurate view of reality:

Yes:

No:

4) Advertising helps to shape societys view of the world and itself:

Yes:

No:

76

5) How do you view the level of ethics in general advertising:

Very high:

High:

Average:

Low:

Very low:

6) Have you ever decided not to buy a product/service because you perceive its
advertisements as unethical:

Yes:

No:

7) Would you invest in a fund/company with high ethical standards if it presented
slightly lower returns than a fund/company with low ethical standards:

Yes:

No:

77

5.4 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Principles of Marketing Philip Kotler
Special Studies in Marketing Romeo Mascarenhas
Advertising and promotion Belch
Advertising Today Warren Berger
Management Magazine ICFAI Publication 22
nd
July Pg 24
Global Educator IMS Publication August issue
Advertising Mania IMS Publication 4
th
August Issue
ICMR research papers
CMIE research papers
CII research papers
Exchangeformedia.com
Agecyfaqs.com
Magindia.com
Indiatelevision.com
Indiainfoline.com/b-school/biz.asp
www.agencyfaqs.com
www.jivhathetongue.com
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/catalyst/2004/04/08/stories/2004040800110400.htm
http://www.iupindia.org/806/ijmm.asp

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