Business is Marketing

Al Ries and Jack Trout would never have imagined that the newest weapon of mass destruction in marketing warfare is, hold your breath – music!!! “Aye mere vatan ke logo… zara aankh mein bhar lo pani...,” sang the melody queen Lata Mangeshkar; hearing which, even Jawaharlal Nehru (then India’s Prime Minister) who was a part of the audience, was moved to tears. That was decades ago; yet, even today, this song never fails to move you. Music has tremendous power. As Victor Hugo once said, “Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.” Advertising men have used this tool efficiently, to build brands and beat competition. Think of any big brand in any industry and most likely you will recall a catchy jingle. “Kya swaad hai zindagi mein…” Do you remember humming this tune in your car or in the shower! That was the heartwarming ad of Cadbury chocolates where the girl jives into the cricket field, oblivious of the crowd, as her boyfriend hits the winning...

“Of the 25 biggest product categories in the 1920s, 20 are still the brand leaders; and all were built on radio!” Saigon, Vietnam 1965... A secret US army base is readying for war... But one man is going to keep the soldiers laughing... And his radio show… Gooooood Morning Vietnam! Back in India, Vidya Balan set Munna Bhai’s heart aflutter as she crooned, “Gooood Mooorning Mumbai” to her listeners on the radio. Panic was created on Halloween night in 1938. A radio adaptation of H.G. Wells’ fictitious story The War of the Worlds caused many people to believe that Martians were invading New Jersey. The listeners missed the opening credits and many were treated for shock hysteria and even heart attacks. Newspaper offices (and surprisingly not Police Stations) were swamped with frantic queries, “What is happening? Where’s the nearest bomb shelter? What must we do?” Yes, a lot can happen on the radio! In fact air waves are witnessing fervent activity in India and the world over. The radio i...