Cadbury Celebrations
 

All over the world, chocolate is one product that gets almost uniform recognition. This is the product which is normally targeted at the younger age groups across the world. Though, of course, there is no such specific age group that can restrict the target for chocolates. It is also universally true that chocolates are generally used for celebration; they signify sharing of joy and happiness. It is a perfect gift for all, irrespective of the age they belong to. But this scenario does not hold true to the fullest in the Indian context. India is different with respect to culture, ethnicity, consumer outlook, festivities, etc. Hence, internationally-marketed products are advertised differently here. Cadbury India Ltd., which has a global presence, stresses extensively on the media and advertising. The advertisements are innovative and customer-focused. Ethnicity and culture are largely country-specific and region-specific. It is difficult to set the framework to decide the cultural and ethnic appeals for a particular customer segment. But there are certain ethnic aspects which connect cultures despite their variations in caste, religion and race. It is interesting to note that these aspects design the advertising and positioning strategies for a product such as chocolate.
 

India is very peculiar in its eating habits. The food preparation though different in various regions and cultures, there is one common thread that binds, i.e., sweet. The sweets are particularly homemade and very different from the sweets the world over. Many are freshly made and consumed in a very short time span. The variety is wide and the occasions are numerous. With this backdrop, Cadbury, one of the oldest chocolate manufacturers in the world, has made its entry into Indian market with its unique positioning strategies through innovative advertisements. It has not only been able to establish itself as the largest chocolate manufacturer in the country, but has made a silent entry to eat a small chunk of share of the Indian sweet market. Its advertisements give a fine insight into how the advertisements stride into the culture and ethnicity of India. The eating habits of the Indians are different from other nations in many aspects. Their taste for sweets is also different. The kind of sweets to be offered on different occasions is also region-specific or custom-driven. In the light of this distinctiveness, the positioning of Cadbury 'Celebrations' is very unique. Its advertisement has been able to catch up on the Raksha Bandhan Festival very well. There is a tradition across the nation for a girl to tie a rakhi to her brother and, in turn, he gives her a gift and sweet box. The sweet box over here is being replaced by the chocolate box of Cadbury's 'Celebrations', a different kind of chocolate. This advertisement does not only ensure that the chocolates will be an integral part of raksha bandhan henceforth, but also makes a silent entry to fall into the category of Indian sweets.

One of the advertisements unearths a very embarrassing situation which most Indians are exposed to. There are many occasions during which the gifts have to be offered according to the customs and as per the decorum goes these gifts are not to be opened in front of the guests unlike in many other countries. This supports passing on of the unwanted gifts and then a situation arises when the same gift comes back to the original giver after passing many hands.
 

The advertisement of Cadbury 'Celebrations' pinpoints this particular episode very elaborately. It also whispers in the ears of those Indians about certain black patches in the name of culture which we can avoid. Though sweets are meant for festivals and celebrations they can become a part of any moment which brings joy. This is the theme of Cadbury's Dairy Milk (CDM) famous advertisement. There are many peculiarities about this copy. Firstly it, associates any happy moment with chocolate for all the age groups for any small moment of joy, say the arrival of new neighbor, or the first sign of mustache for a teenager or getting a new bike for college going friend. One more important aspect depicted in it is about the friend breaking the CDM on the new bike as a replacement of coconut. The picturization of such situations takes the direct entry   into the minds of all the customer segments with different mindsets. Cadbury Dairy Milk (CDM) is the flagship product of Cadbury. Hence, it is advertised in many different ways. Here is one more instance of how it has entered into the hearts of rural India. The advertisement talks about 'Miss Palampur', a title won by the cow owned by a farmer, and the villagers are happily distributing sweets, i.e., CDM. Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan, who is featured as the proud owner of Radha, the cow, ends the commercial saying that she will appear in the films next year. This masterpiece projects the psyche of rural masses. Distributing CDM in place of sweets is again a unique feature. All the advertisements of 'Celebrations' series of Cadbury are unique. They make a smooth entry for perfect gift on occasions such as Deepavali which cannot be celebrated without sweets. Though chocolate does not fall into the category of Indian sweets, Cadbury Celebrations Dry Fruit collection certainly rinds the perfect place. The giggle, Rishtey pakne do with Amitabh Bachchan makes it more attractive. This is a unique way of acclimatizing advertising strategies with the deep understanding of ethnic marketing. Though the integral part of Deepavali celebrations is sweets 'Celebrations Dry Fruit Chocolate Box' has received an overwhelming welcome on the festive occasion. The hilarious piece of advertisement for Perk is an instance of how valuable mythological reference can be. Bollywood actress Preity Zinta requests Yamraj to pull her up while she is falling down in a valley. She removes Perk from her pocket and since Yamraj is tempted to eat it himself, he forgets about her time of departure from this material world. It ends with the association of Yam to Yummy. This advertisement, though a bit cynical about the Indian mythology, gives an insight into how ethnic aspects can be incorporated in the advertisements of non-indigenous products, so that they can secure a place in the minds of the target audience.
 

Advertising in itself is an attention-grabbing field for research. The television commercials are all the more appealing since the picturization of a situation connects the customers directly.
 

Various cultural aspects facilitate the viewers to get into the roles of the personalities portrayed in the advertisements. Since the personalities in the commercials are a direct reflection of the viewers, the impact of these advertisements is many folds. The recall level also is high with these commercials. This also allows the viewers to associate and reconfirm their own feelings. In turn, the brand image gets crystallized in the minds of the consumer to allow them to evaluate the brand against the competitor brands. Cadbury's advertisements are unique in many ways since they associate and focus on many ethnic features from the Indian ethos. The advertisements, being brandspecific, provide the flexibility and creativity. In turn, they connect to various customer segments very well, which provides larger scope for accommodating a variety of customer segments for different brands.
 

Question I: The advertising message is also governed by the creative strategy used to arrive at the message. Discuss the various types of creative strategies that Cadbury can use in its advertising campaigns."

Advertisements use various cultural references and personality types. Discuss their impact on the behavior of the consumer.