Advertising – Nothing Official about it!

The world of advertising never ceases to amaze – the sheer number of tales that emanate from its heady world is as numerous as they are fascinating.

Especially if such tales happen to be recounted by people who have been there, done it all: advertising professionals! All they need is a podium and an audience, the rest like they are wont to say, is always mesmerising.

The Bhawanipur Education Society College (BESC) did just that – provide a platform and a receptive audience of about 400 students to Subodh Tagre and Chawm Ganguly for a back to back display for advertising fireworks.

Subodh, veteran advertising professional, presented a sleekly made power point to bolster his argument explaining the birds and the bees of advertising.

From the communication faux pa’s that led to the ultimate failure of the much-vaunted Tata Nano protect, to how the Marlboro brand established itself in Marlboro Country – he traversed the entire spectrum in a lucid way, interacting with the awed audience even as he went about singing his paeans to the art and science of advertising.

“The way he carried the audience, was simply out of this world” gushed an obviously impressed student who had already chosen advertising as his career option.

Advertising’s sacred secrets were laid bare, with an almost conversational nonchalance and the assembled students thanked their stars for the opportunity of hearing it, like they say, straight from the horse’s mouth.

Okay, make it the Marlboro Man’s horse’s mouth.

Chawm took off from where Subodh left, concentrating on the “Nothing Official about it” tagline.

As an associate of Pepsi during those heady days when the “Cola War” was at its peak, he had a ringside view of the circumstances that had led to the coining of the term and the campaign that was built around it.

He not only talked about the logistics that were involved, the all-important market shares that were being fought over and the sheer passion with which both sides went for each other’s jugulars but also explained how the same communication message was used as a tool for Pepsi’s Corporate Communication.

Prof Dilip Shah, the Dean of Student Affairs of the Bhawanipur Education Society College (BESC) felicitated the speakers and thanked them for sharing their insight with the students of the institution.

It will not be out of place to mention here that such talks from domain experts and industry leaders are not an exception, but the rule in BESC.

Such interactive sessions are held at regular rests as they provide the students with a kind of exposure that mere text books are not capable of providing.

Students are regularly exposed to some of the most celebrated minds from their respective fields of excellence, who not only talk to the students from experience, but also address their queries on the spot.

Such opportunities of meeting first-hand, the idols who will help shape the careers of the students is something that is unique to BESC and the model has been lauded by academicians and industry stalwarts alike.

As a matter of fact, this melting pot, if one may use the term, has been found to be of extreme importance in the shaping of the young minds whose employability is enhanced manifold by such exercises.

That BESC students, on an average, are industry ready owes much to this exercise of refurbishing academic learning with interaction with the key protagonists.