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<ul><li>From a sacrificing mother to a man being the bread-earner, the portrayal of women in ads has remained very shallow, stereotypical and limiting for years.</li><li>Industry body ASCI is now trying to expand its horizon by launching a gender report to understand the evolution of women representation in advertisements and offer a forward-looking perspective to help brands embrace positive narratives for women in advertising.</li><li>We also speak to a few women from the advertising industry to understand what are some of the concerns that they are expecting ASCI to address.</li></ul>Airbrushed faces, petite figures and fair skinned models in advertisements across the world have made women like me feel uncomfortable in our own skin. We look in the mirror only to notice our flaws and turn to beauty products to fix ourselves because they’ve been feeding on our insecurities and profiting on our vulnerabilities. The portrayal of women has remained very shallow for years. Until early 2020, fairness creams were used as a yardstick to determine a woman’s worth, personally or professionally. The man is usually portrayed as the breadwinner who buys an expensive gift for his wife -- he is smart and successful and the woman is depicted as someone’s wife or mother whose only life purpose is to take care of her kids and husband. While many beauty brands have finally woken up to realise that selling ‘fair skin’ is problematic, even today, we only see thin models, upper-caste and rich women in advertisements and minorities like muslim women, North East Indian women and transwomen aren’t included in mainstream campaigns. They are only given a little attention on Eid or during pride month. The <keyword id="382559" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Advertising-Standard-Council-of-India">Advertising Standard Council of India</keyword> is conducting a research study to understand the damage advertising has done over the years by perpetuating gender stereotypes. Titled ‘GenderNext,’ the report will look back at the representation of women and help Indian brands and advertising agencies shape gender narratives in advertising positively as we move forward. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="81701552" title="ASCI to launch a report to provide actionable insights to shape positive depiction of women in advertising" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div> Telling us why ASCI decided to plan a report on gender discourse now, Manisha Kapoor, Secretary General of ASCI, said, “Women have been a matter of debate for many years. From time to time, these are issues which are of interest to both advertisers and society because advertising impacts the gender discourse, and gender discourse impacts advertising. They contribute to how the other develops but advertisers definitely have the responsibility through their brands of making sure that their own depictions are responsible, that they are fair, that they are progressive, and they're very positive.” She told us how it is easy to spot an advertisement that overtly crosses a line. However, there are ads which subtly perpetuate stereotypes and ASCI will concentrate on that. “In the spectrum of what is acceptable, there's so much and there are such subtle kinds of narratives, which are part of advertising. The effort is really to uncover those and create many new starting points for advertisers on how we can even within the broad spectrum of what is acceptable to understand what is better, what is more positive, what is accepted by consumers better, what is seen as less problematic. What is seen as aspirational, what is seen as relatable. If we're able to kind of identify those narratives, we believe this is going to be a study which has many actionable insights for advertisers. It may be useful for them in the long run in their brand messaging. Not to kind of find fault with what is happening or anything of that sort. But it is to create a platform for better with more engaging, more responsible, more positive depictions of gender in the future,” she explained. The study will be mainly divided into five parts: decoding of advertising, consumer immersion, ad agencies/people who create ads, gender policy makers and draw insights from Bharat Darshan, a proprietary study done by Futurebrands over a decade, and across more than 200 towns. Elaborating on the study's methodology, Kapoor said, “Firstly, we're looking at a cultural and semiotic decoding of advertising. We would look at how women are shown in ads, said and unsaid equation in that depiction, what are they wearing, are they a decision maker for that category? Is that a role that is expected of them in a more traditional way? We’ll do that across several regional and national ads across a period of time. Secondly, we are doing a consumer immersion study, where we will be talking to consumers about how their own lived reality of gender is. One is what they see on TV and how they respond to it and we'd compare that with their actual lived experience of gender.” She added, “Third is about people who are creating advertising: What is their framework? What are they getting influenced by? What are their reference points? What do they think when they start to create an ad? The fourth is looking at policymakers, gender specialists, experts who have been in the domain for many, many years and who work with real women across different strata of the population. How do they look at advertising and impact of advertising? How would they see life differently because they have decades of experience. They have worked closely with the legal process, with the legal framework of this country as it relates with depiction of women. Fifth part is Bharat Darshan.” The study will cover multiple categories like personal care, fashion and beauty; hearth, home and health; gadgets and wheels; and money and education. On whether ASCI is planning to include minorities like Muslim women, Dalit women or transwomen, Kapoor said, “We will definitely look at advertising of all sorts. While the focus is on women but I think gender dynamics become a part of the query even if you were to look at just women. So where on the gender spectrum you will fall when we look at advertising which may have shown those kinds of depictions, those are certainly the points that we’ll pick up and analyse. We will try and understand how that contributes and how that moves the narrative ahead. So, those kinds of ads will also be on our radar.” As per ASCI’s press statement, it will provide insights to navigate and embrace positive narratives for women in advertising content. Excitedly, we asked if that would include talking about body positivity and encourage advertisers to show real women in ads and much to our relief, Kapoor agreed that it would be a part of the study. She said, “We are looking at health and fitness as one of the sectors that we will study. What you mentioned (body positivity), that gets covered in the whole decoding of advertising: what are the kind of women we are showing in advertising. And when we show different kinds of women, whether be body shape, skin color, age -- we'll do research on what are they falling back on stereotypes: are older women shown in different ways than younger women and all of those dynamics. This is why it's such a complex, but very fascinating study. But yes, absolutely. We will cover health, fitness and women and their bodies.” We reached out to women in advertising agencies to find out what are some of the concerns that they are hoping this report would address. They seem very excited to know that an industry body has taken upon itself to change the gender narrative and make strides towards inclusivity and have high hopes. <keyword id="652941" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ashwini-Deshpande">Ashwini Deshpande</keyword>, Co-founder &amp; Director, Elephant Design is also a Co-founder of the initiative ‘The Collective’ that started after #MeToo. Deshpande and her team has been helping women in the advertising fraternity feel safer at their workplace, talking about equal pay and rights for women. Sharing a list of concerns she expects ASCI to address, she mentioned, “Narrations or humour based on gender, caste, racial features, regional accents: any stereotyping that leads to trivializing or offending specific sections of society - Sexualization/ objectification in a completely unrelated or unnecessary context: products or services that have no connection with display of seduction or women in revealing attires - Stereotyping relationships: especially women being shown as people who "serve" others - What is being directed towards children and whether it is being done responsibly - What is being pushed in the name of festivals - Clarity of message while offering discounts or schemes - Claims being made by remedial/ medicinal products” Ronita Mitra, Founder and Chief Strategist, Brand Eagle Consulting said, "Women are already visible achievers in many fields today be it academics, professional/ career achievements, art and culture and many more. In fact, mindset across generations is evolving among all genders towards the traditional classification of roles and expectations. This includes all stereotypical lenses which create divisive and archaic boundaries, be it caste, gender, colourism, etc. If brands and advertisements are to truly reflect consumer trends, this evolving consumer psyche should in any case be reflected in the narratives and storytelling. While some categories and brands have begun the process of reflecting the evolving realities, certain categories continue to be steeped in the stereotypical role definitions and boundaries. Brands, through their advertisements and storytelling are a powerful influencer in engendering shifts in consumer attitudes and thereby, behaviour at societal level." She added, "ASCI's move to develop a report focusing on the depiction of women in advertising, ought to be lauded as it will provide momentum to the need to shift the archaic and stereotypical depiction of women's role in communication in the yesteryears and in fact, showcase women's roles as is already experienced in many facets of our lives today and in the years to come. In fact, many consumers are already living lives guided by gender neutrality rather than traditional gender-based lives. The Guidelines based on consumer insights from a self-regulated, robust institution such as ASCI will lend a lot of credibility and support to the discussions that marketers will have within their organisations to accomplish organisation-wide buy into progressive brand and creative ideas. However, it would be important to ensure that the guidelines are future-ready and not confined to merely reflect the realities of changes in women's role as of today. In a fast-evolving world, the pace of change of role definitions will also keep changing and the guidelines need to be mindful of the same. To that end, while the first report is a great beginning, hopefully, the insights and the resultant guidelines should ideally be refreshed every few years to ensure that it's continuing relevance for the environment that would take shape in the future as well." Nisha Singhania, Founding Partner, Infectious Advertising said, “There definitely has been a gender stereotyping when it comes to the portrayal of women in advertising. I’m hoping this study will identify some of these biases and help project women in a more progressive and equal manner. Guidelines on depiction which are offensive or regressive will definitely help advertisers have a more responsible portrayal of genders in ads.” Rajni Daswani, Director at SoCheers said, “Social stigmas like skin colour, size of a woman, her rights and roles in a household or at a workplace should be some of the things the guidelines should definitely cover. We’ve seen a lot of stereotypical ads whenever there are any women protagonists promoting a product/service. What we portray about women through these ads are what future women are going to see and grow into and it's crucial that we get it right and move towards being a more gender-agnostic progressive society who is ready for the world of tomorrow.”

All about ASCI’s latest Gender Next report and what women of the ad world are expecting the industry body to address

<ul><li>In our latest series, we look at different industries to understand what was 2020 like for them and to crystal gaze into the upcoming year, and identify some of the trends that will set the tone for 2021.</li><li>We speak to experts to find out design trends that 2021 has in store for us.</li></ul>It is often said that your brand is something people talk about after you've left the room. It's all about perception. Product and packaging design plays a pivotal role in building a likeable perception that leaves a lasting impression on consumers in a highly-cluttered market. It also shapes a brand’s identity and can lead to increased sales. However, with the outbreak of Coronavirus and the resulting lockdown, many consumers turned to e-commerce platforms to order from the comfort of their homes and it became a key part of everyday life. Consumers lost the experience of walking in a supermarket or a store that offered an immersive brand experience. COVID-19 also made ‘hygiene’ one of the top buzzwords amongst consumers. Design experts had to up their ante by coming up with packaging design that was appealing enough to be delivered to consumers’ doors directly as it was seen as a bridge between consumers and brands. It was also required to communicate the hygiene practices that the brand followed, precautions that were taken to maintain consumer safety and how slapdash delivery didn’t affect the core product for consumers. So, food delivery brands added another layer of sleeve so that the actual food pack remained untouched or placed a health card on the packs with temperature of the restaurant representative, or in some cases, attached sanitizer sachets to their packs. At the same time, experts had to make sure that the pandemic doesn’t put the environment on the back burner. As a result, many brands altered their product offerings, marketing strategies, and packaging design completely to meet ever-changing consumer demands in 2020. The brandverse is also moving towards personalisation and simultaneously, as consumers become more environmentally-conscious, designers are constantly in search of materials that provide long-term hygiene efficacy, materials or processesThe brandverse is also moving towards personalisation and simultaneously, as consumers become more environmentally-consciousthat do least harm to the ecology. As the year draws to a close, we reached out to experts to find out how the <keyword id="2728733" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="design-industry">design industry</keyword> will navigate these challenges and a few trends that would monopolize the marketing world in 2021. Here is what experts had to say: <keyword id="346168" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lulu-Raghavan">Lulu Raghavan</keyword>, Managing Director, Landor &amp; Fitch India: <div type="image" title="Lulu Raghavan" msid="80021337" hostid="261"></div> Workspace Design As businesses seek to return to some form of pre-Covid buoyancy and start to think about the right mix of #WFH and #WFO, I believe that Workspace Design will be one of the most important design considerations in 2021. This is a huge opportunity for companies to connect better with their employees. Businesses can't just return to their former workplaces without reimagining the experience in its entirety for employees. I am not talking about office design which is just about layout, headcount, resources and utilities. Workspace design is a deeper discipline and mindset that connects office design to brand. It dictates the journey, the overall experience and ensures that the brand’s values and function are reflected in the physical, human and digital space, much like retail. The most progressive businesses will be thinking about the six imperatives of Workspace Design: culture, interaction, function, sustainability, architecture and technology. A well thought-through strategy on Workspace Design could help businesses to forge stronger relationships with their employees who in turn will become great brand ambassadors. <keyword id="652941" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ashwini-Deshpande">Ashwini Deshpande</keyword>, Co-founder and Director, Elephant Design: <div type="image" title="Ashwini Deshpande." msid="80021339" hostid="261"></div> I, me, myself: The time of accepting DIY is upon us due to the pandemic. Ways to achieve self-sustenance would be the big focus as far as individuals are concerned. This is true for physical as well as mental well-being. Though #weareinthistogether has been trending, what it really means is we are actually apart at the same time. Each of us has a different story, different challenges, and diverse ways to tackle them. We have discovered our limitations this year. Next year will be to push those boundaries &amp; surprise ourselves with new discoveries about ourselves. Products, services, experiences &amp; entertainment that help achieve self-sustenance will flourish even further. Kiran Khadke, Co-founder &amp; Creative Head - Hyper Connect Asia: <div type="image" title="Kiran, Hyper Connect" msid="80021389" hostid="261"></div> Minimalism and inclusivity Last few years, the design trends in the industry were defined with minimalism, muted elegance, and flat iconography with bold flavours of inclusiveness and equality. In 2021, these trends will continue to push the boundaries further, however, with heightened impact of COVID, the trend will add elements of Optimism &amp; Local Community Flavours to the design trend and as designers play more with bright positive designs across communication, packaging, and other large facets of design such as architecture... The wave of positive vibe only will dominate the design trends along with rich flavours from local sub-cultures in the coming year. Shashwat Das, Founder, Almond Branding: <div type="image" title="Shashwat" msid="80021351" hostid="261"></div> Shift to muted-colour range After the most unpredictable and uncertain year in the history of mankind, when you think of predicting a trend for the upcoming year, it soubrands like a daunting task. I think one of the common elements between both of my favorite subjects - Marketing and Design, is that they both start with understanding the consumer’s need. And after such a chaotic year, where there is no going back to the “normal” as we knew it, I think the year 2021 should be dedicated to understanding the consumer all over again. There is so much that has changed in her life amid this pandemic. Her outlook towards health and wellness has evolved as the year has pushed her into re-evaluating her diets and lifestyle. She has become increasingly aware about the environment and is willing to take a far more active approach in doing something for it. So, in the upcoming year, it's time to step back and align ourselves with these changing priorities and needs. The environment around us is reacting to the events from the unique year that has gone by. And Brand Design is no different. I am envisioning brands moving towards more muted colour schemes as opposed to the neon rage that had taken on the digital world. The muted colour schemes are more natural, safe and soothing, something that reflects the mood of the consumer in the post-covid world. I am looking at more motion logos (likes of Google revamped logo) that engages the consumer better. I can also see more and more digital platforms and apps offering the dark mode in the coming year. It enhances visual ergonomics that can help us stay more focused on our work and reduce eye-strain. Ashutosh Karkhanis, Creative Head and Managing Partner, Open Strategy and Design: <div type="image" title="Image 2_Ashutosh Karkhanis, Creative Head and Managing Partner, Open Strategy and Design.jpeg (1)" msid="80044744" hostid="261"></div> Humanizing of digital experiences Major events help hasten all sorts of changes. The pandemic forced mass adoption of ideas and concepts which existed on fringes. Remote working, digital tools, e-commerce etc. all became mainstream and the default way of doing things. When usage scales up, is when the next phase of evolution starts. Zoom was well-designed for occasional use, but the moment it became the default mode of communication, it led to ‘Zoom fatigue’. I believe that we will increasingly see design stepping in to help look at these experiences from a more human and social lens, thereby pushing the quality of experience. Zoom and the likes will evolve beyond productivity and design keeping the social dynamics of work in mind. E-commerce will need to design for discovery and excitement of shopping, not just ease and convenience." Any time of great change is an opportunity for design to step in and guide the way. This is one of those times. I am personally very excited.

Design: The trends to watch out for in 2021

<ul><li>Experts tell us how due to the pandemic, brands are trying to make changes in their packaging and design, in an attempt to make it safer. </li><li>The adage that ‘health is wealth’ seems to be truer like never before as experts said the focus is more on health and hygiene. </li><li>However, as the importance for immunity, safety and one-time-use packaging grows stronger, concern for sustainability seems to be getting thrown out the window for now. </li></ul>After the outbreak of Coronavirus, many brands have tweaked their products, marketing strategy and what they offer to their consumers to cater to their evolving needs due to the ever-changing macro factors. Just yesterday, KFC decided to press pause on its iconic tagline ‘Finger Lickin’ Good’ in a few markets because it doesn’t quite fit in with the current environment. Similarly, brands have also tweaked their <keyword id="413897" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="product-packaging">product packaging</keyword> and designs to highlight what matters the most today -- building immunity, hygiene and safety. Post lockdown, consumers realised the importance of always being prepared and putting health first so they started stocking products. As a result, demand for packaged products such as Maggi, Parle-G, etc went up. Swiggy also introduced double-layered packaging that keeps the food fresh and safe. Packaging, therefore, is now being seen as a vital bridge between consumers and brands to effectively communicate that <keyword id="503925" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="hygiene-practices">hygiene practices</keyword> are maintained, consumer safety is prioritised and slapdash delivery doesn’t affect the core product for consumers. <keyword id="9822538" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="ronita-mukerjee">Ronita Mukerjee</keyword> – Executive Director, Client Services, Landor, said, “Health, Hygiene and Immunity are key drivers of modern day consumer needs. Brands are taking lots of proactive measures to convince consumers of utmost safety. Double layered packaging by restaurants who deliver via Swiggy is a great example of “innovating on the move.” On the other hand, modern grocers like Nature’s Basket are switching from cloth bags to single use paper bags that can be disposed of immediately after use. Sanitizers with goods delivered are thoughtful and effective. On pack communication around appropriate sanitization methods, immunity and health claims have become very popular. From dairy brands, staples to even cleaning agents; the emphasis has been on immunity building as well.” As the pandemic spread, people’s focus on immunity grew. Search in volumes for recipes of immunity-boosting foods and benefits of natural products like turmeric, ashwagandha, etc., has surged manyfolds. <keyword id="9324569" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shashwat-Das">Shashwat Das</keyword>, Founder, Almond Branding said consumers are also paying more attention to what they are eating and how it affects their health so, brands have tweaked their packaging to convey the same. Das said, “Due to the extended period of lockdown, consumers have been preferring to stockpile convenient packaged food products and hence brands are focussing on packaging that supports longer shelf-life. This is a big shift from earlier consumer trends for fresh produce and minimum preservatives. The adage that “Health is Wealth” seems to be truer like never before. Consumers are more concerned about their health and are now more involved in what they are eating. This has given brands the opportunity to relook at their portfolio in newer light. Some are just tweaking their packaging communication to include Immunity while others are bringing some changes in the actual product formulations or entirely new products that can boost immunity.” To ensure that consumers avoid physical contact as much as possible, brands have added options on their packaging to payment gateways. <keyword id="652941" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ashwini-Deshpande">Ashwini Deshpande</keyword>, Co-founder and Director, Elephant Design said, “Many brands are introducing various ways to facilitate e-payment by either introducing QR codes or partnering with payment gateways. Some have boosted their own ecommerce home deliveries. They have even created specific packaging for e-commerce.” How to win consumer trust with new, safe packaging? Given the current apprehensive scenario around safety and hygiene, brands are going the extra mile in communicating the practices they follow to make their products. However, is that enough to gain consumer trust? Das said brands can come up with more innovative solutions to convey how hygienic and safe their products are. “While it’s a good step to update your <keyword id="1255903" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Packaging-Design">packaging design</keyword> to include those health and safety benefits that you offer, please ensure to stay within the government guidelines for the claims that you can make. Do not stamp every product of yours as an Immunity Booster,” said Das. Giving an example of an innovative solution, Das added, “Just like the Hot Dot sticker can assure if your Pizza is delivered hot, in coming days there will be packaging seals that will tell you if your parcel has been opened during delivery, to reassure consumers that their food is untouched and safe to consume. There is an increasing need for such innovation.” Deshpande also advised keeping it real. She said, “Real solutions that work hard to deliver peace of mind to the consumers is the only way forward. I would never advise anything that is superficial because that will not last and will do no good.” Arnab Ray, Creative Director, Landor said that there is a lot more that brands can do to establish trust. He said, “Brands can invest on on-pack interventions which call out precautions taken across the supply chain level, seal of trust to call out hygiene at manufacturing levels, responsible pack disposal callouts, with physical absence of sales persons packs can have DIY instructions on usage etc to name a few. Another important intervention is Brand Voice during these times. Brands can adopt a more empathetic tone to ease the minds of the consumers. For most brands, packaging has been designed keeping a brick and mortar experience in mind, but brands should do well to modify or develop secondary packaging that caters well to ecommerce and other online delivery models.” Have brands forgotten about the environment? For the last few years, we have seen many brands become more environment-friendly. There has been an increasing focus on sustainability. Globally, brands like Diageo, Unilever Limited have started reevaluating their packaging to put the environment first. However, the pandemic has forced many brands to prioritise consumer’s safety and keep their concerns for the environment and plans to launch green packaging on hold. From using gloves while cleaning surfaces to one-time packaging and even PPE kits, everything is made of plastic now. However, Das says that this is just a temporary phase and brands will go back to following sustainable practices post-COVID. “While the focus on sustainable, recyclable and reusable packaging has been growing over the past few years, the priorities have clearly been shifting during these uncertain times, though I believe temporarily. While we shunned single-use packaging due to its wastefulness, now consumers are more comfortable with it as it seems more hygienic because of lesser/limited human-handling involved and the potential risk of virus transmission is minimised,” said Das. Adding on how lack of infrastructure is the main reason behind this neglect towards the environment, Das said, “This only proves that the current infrastructure is unable to supply <keyword id="6660763" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sustainable-packaging">sustainable packaging</keyword> options to meet the increased demand. That doesn’t mean we should stop advocating sustainable and recyclable packaging. Covid has only reminded us that there is a long way to go on sustainability. With the lockdown in place and increased in-home consumption, there is also a possibility that consumers become more environmentally conscious as they see higher than normal packaging in their own home trash that cannot be reused or recycled.” Landor’s Ray opines that the pandemic has put sustainability on the back burner. “While everyone does talk about sustainable packaging, the increase in plastic due to double packing, home delivery in plastic containers etc is setting the efforts on sustainable packs a few years back. Brands focussing on sustainable products and their packaging are far and few in between. The world has other, more immediate and pressing issues at the moment,” said Ray. Deshpande said that the need for hygiene and sustainability is here to stay but India lacks infrastructure. “We have no choice but to migrate to sustainable solutions and circular economy. As designers, we are constantly in search of materials that provide long-term hygiene efficacy, materials or processes that do least harm to the ecology and propose them to our client partners. The key is in not just finding materials or developing solutions. The challenge lies in finding suppliers of sustainable alternative materials and convertors who can process large scale efficient print &amp; packaging output. This part is not aligned in India yet. So it becomes impossible for a large brand that requires very high output to align completely with sustainable solutions,” said she.

How COVID-19 has pushed brands to alter their product packaging and put their environmental concerns on hold for now

<ul><li>After the global pandemic, <keyword id="49089" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sustainability" source="Orion">sustainability</keyword> and health seem to have become important factors for consumers.</li><li>According to Capgemini’s recent report, consumers engage more readily with brands and retailers that they perceive to be sustainable and genuinely committed to green practices.</li><li>The report found that 48% of consumers share an emotional connection with products or organizations that demonstrate eco-friendly qualities.</li><li>As we move forward this year and health concerns and sustainability continue influencing consumer decisions, we speak to brands, research and design agencies about how brands can integrate sustainability into their core values and move beyond mere lip-service.</li></ul>It might be a new year but the world continues to grapple with familiar challenges and threats: we are on the verge of entering the third wave of COVID-19, the country’s capital, New Delhi is currently facing alarmingly high levels of indoor air pollution and Uttarakhand's forest fires emitted nearly 0.2 megatonnes of carbon in the past one month, a record since 2003 (CAMS report). So 2022 will clearly be a busy year for brands as consumers get more serious about climate change and expect brands to increase their focus on living sustainably in harmony with nature. While businesses exist to make money, Manish Chowdhary, Co-CEO, Body Cupid Pvt Limited says that there are two ways to do that. He explained, “One is sustainable, by keeping other living and non-living things in mind. The other one is inspired by greed. So no matter how small a brand’s effort may be, it has to be aligned with sustainability if the brand wants to continue in the long run. Brands exist for consumers and it is important that we listen to what they want.” From driving workforce diversity to taking a stand on climate change, there’s a definite change that has taken place in consumer expectations. In the last few years, sustainability has become one of the biggest decision-making factors for consumers, and more so after the pandemic. They have realised that mother earth has suffered enough. In this digital world, consumers are demanding more transparency and are quick to call out greenwashing. They are expecting to see concrete actions. And as Chowdhary said, it has become imperative for brands to listen to what consumers want because they exist to serve consumers. Today’s consumers are not only pivoting towards more sustainable products but are also willing to pay a premium for them. Gen Z and Millennials lead all other age groups in this respect. When shopping for groceries, 72% of Gen Z and 66% of Millennials say they are willing to pay more for organic foods and in fact, did so the last time they were grocery shopping, compared to 56% of Boomers, found Capgemini. Its recent report said that 80% of consumers want to contribute to the fight to save the planet for future generations. And it is not just a phase. 70% of consumers agreed that post-pandemic, they will be more careful in terms of maintaining and protecting their personal health. Covid has only reminded us that there is a long way to go on sustainability. On how the pandemic has altered consumer behaviour, Lulu Raghavan, Managing Director, Landor and Fitch said, “The pandemic has fundamentally shifted consumer behaviour. An IBM study shows that 93% of consumers have changed their views on sustainability after the pandemic. This is totally understandable. The horrid virus which came out of nowhere has ravaged lives, ruined livelihoods. The only silver lining is that it has woken us up to the paramount importance of our own health and wellbeing and that of our Mother Earth. Sustainability is now a definitive transformative force that will upend existing industries and create new ones. If digital transformation was the buzzword in corporate boardrooms, ECG will take centre stage in the coming decade.” But what exactly is a sustainable brand? Ashwini Deshpande, Co-Founder and Director, Elephant Design defines it as, “A brand that values ethical sourcing and supply chains, is inclusive, and follows environment-friendly processes and materials while staying viable for its stakeholders is qualified to be labelled as a sustainable brand.” Kartik Johari, VP, Marketing &amp; Commerce, Nobel Hygiene believes that in the coming months, people will start to question what is sustainable and what is not along with how we can continue to reduce our carbon footprint across all aspects of our lives. He said, “Consumers at the end of it are people and they expect what is good. The ‘brand promise’ is essential to them. Now, alongside they are also making space for the environment due to excellent work by activists and journalists around the world. You will remember, for example, that riveting photo of a straw stuck in a turtle's nose. How many millions of turtles have we lost to this? Yet it took just that one photo to break through the global psyche. Now straws are the Number One environmental enemy. But this does not mean the onus should be entirely on people to choose better! Companies have to improve their offering. And that is correct for consumers to expect. Moreover, important to note, there are some 50 or 60 companies in the world, which are responsible for majority of emissions. Strong regulations on them can solve what collectively 500 million people may have to do. But who’s going to bell the cat? As Mr Musk rightly has been saying that, give the solar industry the same amount of subsidies, for a year, that you give to oil and gas, and see the amount of transformative change it brings! The onus cannot be on that one little end consumer and their war to save their environment.” During the pandemic, brands like WOW Skin Science, Diageo and Dettol launched eco-friendly packaging to test the waters, indicating that more brands in India have started reevaluating their packaging strategy to put the environment first. Big FMCG companies such as Marico, HUL, Nestle India, Future Consumer, Coca-Cola, Pepsi-co, Parle Agro also announced in 2020 that they will move to 100% recyclable packaging by 2025 helping towards a sustainable future. Joining the bandwagon, the Indian Government has also started its efforts towards reducing our country’s carbon footprint. Currently, India is the world’s third-largest emitter of carbon dioxide, after the US and China. According to an Assocham and PwC report, landfills are brimming with so much urban waste that by 2050, India is reportedly going to need a landfill that's the size of its capital, New Delhi. And consumers aren’t ignoring these horrifying numbers anymore. Elysha Young, Trends Manager, Mintel APAC said, "India’s Prime Minister has pledged it will reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2070, backed by aggressive 2030 targets. By laying the groundwork in the form of policies, India is signaling that it is open and willing to support innovation around sustainability, and indeed that carbon-emitting industries will no longer be tolerated. This presents an opportunity for global companies looking to tap into India's vast population but also issues a challenge to foreign and domestic companies to ensure they are cutting emissions throughout their value chain. It's in India's self-interest to stem global warming, with the nation of 1.3 billion people being one of the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The nature of the short-term targets means that action will need to be taken immediately, which will see a strong focus on renewable energy sources like solar and wind power, as well as the batteries needed to store such energy. Companies would do well to look at the emissions within their own value chains and determine where cuts can be made. Communicating these to consumers will help them to make choices that align with the national strategy; the opportunity exists to ensure consumers feel like they're also doing their bit." In 2022, brands that snooze will definitely lose More and more consumers are becoming aware of their choices and realising that whether it is a worn-out piece of mask they decide to throw or a sanitary napkin or even as simple as a plain t-shirt, never really goes ‘away.’ It all ends up in a landfill. Human activities are clearly harming the global environment and brands have no choice but to migrate to sustainable solutions and work towards building a circular economy. So, in 2022, if brands don’t switch, they lose consumers, investors, and all stakeholders. Chowdhary said, “At the industry level, there is nothing without sustainability. The consumers of today are conscious and aware. They know the choices they are making. So if companies &amp; brands do not opt for sustainable practices, eventually the smart consumers are going to make a switch. We can only expect the awareness to grow and actions to increase, especially with the challenges that our planet is facing today.” Anjali Malthankar, National Strategy Director, Tonic Worldwide sees sustainability as one of the big topics in 2022 – right from fashion, green products, green living to electric vehicles, every category will be touched by sustainability filter. She said, “If the brands have already not made sustainability part of their commitment in any form yet, it’s high time they join the eco-wakening movement. Consumers are already looking for some form of reassurance or the other from brands in terms of conscious behaviour, as consumers are at different stages of adoption – it is a mix of curious, concerned, and advocates. At the very least, they are looking to not feel guilty about consuming the brand. Conscious living, mindful living, Green living, purposeful living are all the buzz words in communications today. For brands it is inevitable to have sustainability as a larger goal.” It is not just the environment and consumers who benefit from eco-friendly practices, businesses with low carbon footprints are more likely to have a better brand image and can easily woo consumers. Deep Bajaj, CEO &amp; Co-Founder, Sirona Hygiene said, “Companies are realizing that being conscious of their environmental impact can benefit them in every manner possible. Consumers desire sustainability owing to the ailing earth. Companies that work to become more environmentally responsible, not only contribute to a better future, but also establish a progressive brand image, happier employees, and a loyal client base. Consumers are real people who are affected by real environmental issues on a daily basis. They are aware that it is no longer limited to textbooks and that industrial activities have a direct impact on their daily lives. As a result, what goes into the making of a product and what goes inside it is extremely important to them. Other than environmental consciousness, they expect transparency from brands.” While brands in India have already started taking baby steps towards converting their business into a sustainable choice for consumers, we will get to witness more demonstrable actions in 2022. And those who fail to prioritise mother earth, will have to face consumers’ wrath. Deshpande said, “The emerging consumer base of millennials &amp; Gen Z is not a forgiving lot when it comes to ethics or ecology being compromised by a brand. But others are not quite as aware and may base their decision only on factors like price or convenience above sustainability. There is no choice. It is a survival mandate for a brand to become sustainable. Otherwise, we will see every resource being depleted in the next few decades.” Kantar BrandZ data shows that brands with weak purpose grow 70% but brands with strong purpose grow 175%. At the same time, India is still a price-sensitive country and consumers stick to the convenience of buying what you are used to. So, on how brands can move beyond mere lip-service and greenwashing this year, Raghvan suggested, “Use innovation to develop products developed against that purpose. Embrace design thinking across the board. Embed a new mindset deeply in the culture and transform from within. Communicate and evangelise with consumers." In 2022, experts are confident that brands will embrace sustainability that will benefit people, planet and profit.

Is 2022 the year when Indian brands will get more serious about sustainability?

<ul><li>In the last few years, we have seen many brands become more environment-friendly. There has been an increasing focus on sustainability. </li><li>Globally, brands like Diageo, Unilever Limited have started reevaluating their packaging to put the environment first. </li><li>However, so far, even limited-edition packaging from big brands this Diwali is all either plastic-based or made for one-time-use. </li><li>We speak to experts to find out if brands are making sustainability a priority in their business plans, infrastructure gap that India needs to fill in to become sustainable and when can we expect to see big Indian brands becoming 100% environment-friendly.</li></ul>For Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies and beauty brands, packaging is the final point of contact with customers. Having an unforgettable packaging design and <keyword id="10254633" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="eco-friendly-packaging">eco-friendly packaging</keyword> in today’s environment can help in communicating a disruptive image and stand out in the cluttered, competitive shelves. In the last few years, we have seen many brands become more environment-friendly and increase their focus on sustainability. Due to the lockdown and increased in-home consumption, consumers became more environmentally-conscious as they saw a higher than normal packaging in their own home trash that cannot be reused or recycled. Consumers, especially Millennials and GenZ, want companies to take sustainability and greater purpose more seriously and take action towards the betterment of our country. They are even willing to shell out more money or switch to a smaller brand. According to Capgemini’s latest research study on sustainability and changing consumer behaviour, 79% of consumers are changing their purchase preferences based on social responsibility, inclusiveness, or environmental impact. 53% of consumers and 57% in the 18-24 age group have switched to lesser known brands because they were sustainable. More than half of the consumers (52%) say that they share an emotional connection with products or organisations that they perceive as sustainable. Moreover, COVID-19 has increased consumer awareness and commitment to buying sustainably: 67% of consumers said that they will be more cautious about the scarcity of natural resources due to the COVID-19 crisis, and 65% said that they will be more mindful about the impact of their overall consumption in the “new normal”. This reinforces the need for big companies to increase their commitments towards responsible business practices and migrate to sustainable solutions to contribute to a circular economy. As a result, during the pandemic, brands like Diageo and Dettol launched limited edition eco-friendly packaging to test the waters indicating that more brands in India have started reevaluating their packaging strategy to put the environment first. HUL also brought Unilever’s ‘Love Beauty and Planet’ range of skincare products to India after observing an increasing demand for <keyword id="6955069" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sustainable-products">sustainable products</keyword>. According to media reports, companies such as Marico, Bacardi, ASICS, HUL, Nestle India, Future Consumer, Coca-Cola, Pepsi-co, Parle Agro will move to 100% recyclable packaging by 2025 helping towards a sustainable future. On the other hand, Diwali is also that time of the year when brands pour in extra money to launch limited-edition festive packaging. From Kurkure to Mondelez, all packaging from big companies is either plastic-based or one-time-use this year. So we reached out to experts to find out if companies are investing in launching eco-friendly packaging on a larger scale, what are some of the hurdles that are stopping brands from launching permanent eco-friendly packaging today and when can we expect to see India a plastic-free country. Infrastructure aid Talking about resources the country needs to inch closer towards circular economy, Arnab Ray, Creative Director, Landor said, “I think resources can be created if the mindset is there. Our thinking for plastic-free/recyclable products is normally limited to a small range of products, sometimes boutique and not something associated with mass brands. India is a large country, so it also means the Government playing a large role along with corporates. According to reports, FMCG companies are aiming to go for 100% recyclable plastic packaging by 2025 in accordance to the Government’s initiatives on plastic waste management. Also, in my view, change in perspective and innovation can be answers to creating more resources on a large scale basis. One of the largest sources of plastic waste, Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles used for beverage products, are being re-purposed to make apparels, footwear, and furniture by many companies. Intelligent use of recyclable material can ensure a more sustained effort towards creating products that are good for the planet.” Radha Ghai, Creative Director &amp; Senior Partner, Alok Nanda &amp; Company, said that India has enough resources for small-scale production but not for large-scale yet. She said, “We do have the resources and lots of new materials, which are environment friendly, that are being explored but not at a large scale level yet. Plastic free/recyclable solutions are being explored at smaller scale levels especially in cities where people are becoming more aware of being sensitive to the environment and are willing to pay extra for these solutions. We have the technology to produce recyclable packaging, but again not at a large-scale level yet, as in India we don’t have the infrastructure to produce for large-scale products. Cost of materials and technology is expensive unlike China, which has been the biggest market till now. The government has to support the manufacturers big time to create these solutions.” Ashwini Deshpande, Co-founder and Director, Elephant Design pointed out that we need to take a holistic view here and look at the entire packaging process. Deshpande said, “Going plastic-free is a significant and high-impact step, but we must look at all the emerging concerns like packaging materials, printing inks, distribution logistics, consumption, and recycling. Each of these decisions impacts the planet. Going plastic-free is not the end of responsibility. Nor is believing the packaging will be recycled if we put a logo on it. Sustainability is a mindset. Any change needs to start with the intent that can then convert to policy. So, this is not about having enough resources or appropriate technology. The question is whether companies selling products in plastic packaging in India (whether MNCs or Indian) have enough genuineness to move towards replacing existing practices, processes &amp; materials with sustainable ones.” Speaking about how change will only come if clients change their mindset, Deshpande added, “If there is a strong intent, they will be able to spend resources on research, innovation, and integration to meet the objectives. If replacing materials seems like a long shot, smaller measures like reducing packaging sizes to appropriate dimensions, reducing number of inks or area of ink coverage to reduce negative impact can also prove effective first steps. Recovering solvents from ink usage, greener fuels for transporting goods, incentivizing consumers for recycling would be some of the other ways to become more sustainable.” Becoming a part of usual packaging process Designers are constantly in search of materials that provide long-term hygiene efficacy, materials or processes that do least harm to the ecology. The topic of sustainability has also become a part of boardroom conversations between agency and client. “Interestingly, this subject is becoming a large part of the many conversations we have with our existing and prospective clients. From a leading Art and Stationery brand to big FMCG clients to even our clients in the Alcohol industry, environment-friendly packaging is definitely a topic of discussion, and we constantly see opportunities collaboratively with our client partners to see where discussions can turn to reality. Globally, Landor &amp; Fitch have launched a joint initiative called The Good Squad, which is a collaborative effort of all the offices in the area of sustainability, where we research, share knowledge and also map out future prospects for all categories over and above our sharp focus on FMCG. So, in my view, the topic is no longer in the back burner but very much need of the hour. The pandemic did put the subject to the background a bit but also made us realise how important protecting the earth and its environment is for a better and more sustainable future,” said Ray. Deshpande, on the other hand, shared with us that conversation on eco-friendly packaging is still not a priority. She said, “Conversations about environment-friendly materials are increasing. Most MNCs also have sustainability experts involved in the packaging design process. But honestly, it is far from becoming a priority. Marketers, designers, print converters, logistics partners, retailers, consumers, and recycling agencies must come together to form the policy and develop practices to reach the common goals. It is a challenge now because all these stakeholders are not on the same platform yet. But I see that as the only way forward.” While clients do consider environmental-friendly options, they are still not willing to loosen their purse strings. Ghai said, “When we do get packaging briefs and when we start giving packaging solutions eco-friendly options are appreciated for sure. The environmental concern is there for sure but costs become a big hurdle for clients to produce materials that are eco friendly. Hence, limited edition products do get launched for a small set of audience, but for a larger scale demand the clients are forced to continue with more cost effective options.” Can India become a 100% eco-friendly country anytime soon? According to Bain &amp; Company, 65% of global consumers are ready to shell out more for brands which use sustainable products and nine in every ten customers are also ready to switch to eco-friendly brands if price and quality were equal. While consumers are willing to shell out more money for eco-friendly products, the audience is still very small and sustainable market is still at its nascent stage in India. Speaking about some of the hurdles that are stopping India from becoming eco-friendly at a larger scale, Ghai said, “Unfortunately, there’s still a large audience that doesn’t really pay much attention to these issues. Sensitivity to the environment is there but still not very active in their head. General perception is that if it is plastic free it will not be durable or if it's organic it must be expensive. Also, other products are readily available at shops nearby or at a supermarket, so ease of picking up takes preference over specially going to a shop or to look out for eco friendly products online. Though a few brands are moving towards recyclable materials that are still not 100% eco friendly, it is going to take time.” Ray thinks it is challenging but possible. He said, “India is a large country, hence the sheer volume of products can make moving to a 100% environment-friendly market a daunting task, but not really an impossible one. Unilever, globally has reduced one-third of its packaging waste. If the government and the big companies work hand-in-glove to mobilise and fast-track the initiative, then change is certainly possible. Consumers are becoming more and more aware of the problem and are switching to eco-friendly alternatives. But again, these numbers are small, so it becomes imperative for the large companies along with the government, to raise awareness and help sustainable living become more achievable and a reality.” Deshpande opines it is a far-fetched idea but right support from the government and brands can make it happen. “While 100% is too idealistic, it will happen sooner than we all imagine if the government proactively makes it mandatory. On their own, very few Indian brands would take the steps. Also, why should the consumers bear the costs alone? The onus is also on the corporates. They cannot hope to maintain their bottom-line and recover the entire expense of saving the planet out of their consumers,” said she.

How ready is India to launch permanent eco-friendly packaging and become a plastic free country?

<ul><li>The pandemic has completely changed how and where we work, forcing companies to be more flexible and to imbibe contemporary ways of working. </li><li>As businesses seek to return to some form of pre-Covid buoyancy and start to think about the right mix of work-from-home and work-from-office, they can't just return to their former workplaces without reimagining the experience in its entirety for employees.</li><li>At some point, companies will have to go back to their office and collaborate physically.</li><li>So, as companies rethink workspace design for a post-COVID world, we reached out to a few design experts to understand how the concept of workspaces has changed after COVID-19 and what the future offices would look like once we resume normalcy. </li></ul>It was in this month last year that India found its first few patients of Coronavirus and who knew the world would never be the same again. What followed was a bunch of emails from our HR teams announcing cancellations of conferences, there was a ban on international flights and uncertainty started lurking around. A few days later, on March 24, 2020, PM Narendra Modi ordered a nation-wide lockdown. With it, offices and public transport was shut down and all Indian companies had to shift their operations onto a cloud and start working from home. A year later, we are used to working from home in our pajamas and jumping from one Zoom call to another has become our daily routine. We will soon have to bid adieu to many privileges that work-from-home has offered us and a recent rant by Instagram user Harjas Sethi highlighted these advantages of working remotely. Her video quickly went viral for its highly relatable content. Even organisations have realised that the lockdown was a boon in a way of demonstrating that remote working can be a success as it reduces capital and operational costs. However, with the roll-out of the COVID vaccine and a dip in infection rate than before, many organisations have started slowly returning to offices and some have started planning to make their environment more comfortable and safe for their employees when they do return to work at full occupancy. Businesses are trying to figure out the right balance between work from home and office. The traditional approach of everyone having their own desk is now gone, perhaps forever. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="How organisations and agencies are preparing for this new world order" text="How organisations and agencies are preparing for this new world order">How organisations and agencies are preparing for this new world order</cmsannotation> With vaccines being rolled out later this year, companies are planning to combine work-from-home and work-from-office to make the future of the workplace hybrid. Kiran Khadke, Co-Founder &amp; Creative Head of Hyper Connect Asia has made up his mind about adopting a hybrid-model post-pandemic. He said, “We are actually rethinking the way we would conduct our office. The whole WFH situation made us realize that a lot of things can be managed over a video call. So in the times to come, we plan to work on a hybrid model, where not everyone has to come to the office every day. Teams will have to plan their office meets, to align crucial projects and then they can WFH Considering this, we will have a flexible office structure with more conference rooms, spaces for collaboration and no fixed workstations. With that, we are also getting our tech upgraded to be able to work from anywhere.” Shashwat Das of Almond Branding helped us look at the brighter side of 2020. He had always dreamt of running a location-independent business, where his employees can work remotely from anywhere in the world as long as they are connected virtually, and his dream seems more achievable now. He said, “Earlier, one of the purposes of an office was access to shared infrastructure like computers, printers, xerox machines, etc. Now with documents moving to cloud with secured access, the focus shifts to building social bonds, foster corporate culture and host clients. While the trend of paperless offices was just picking up, the pandemic has fast tracked the transformation by leaps and bounds. Some of our traditional style working clients, who would otherwise insist on an invoice hardcopy citing audit reasons, have now become comfortable with e-invoices. That’s such a good news for us and mother earth. I think work from anywhere rather than WFH will be the future.” <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Rethinking design for open space offices and co-working spaces" text="Rethinking design for open space offices and co-working spaces">Rethinking design for <keyword id="10851343" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="open-space-offices">open space offices</keyword> and co-working spaces </cmsannotation> Even if employees do go to the office for 3 days a week, businesses can't just return to their former workplaces without reimagining the experience in its entirety for employees. Co-working spaces have already taken a hit as employees don’t feel safe sharing desks and common areas with unknown people as they used to do earlier. Before COVID, the advertising industry had the culture of working out of open spaces. There are many Indian agencies like Leo Burnett, 82.5 Communications who didn't believe in having glasses and closed spaces in their offices. However, to facilitate social distancing, it is now important to rethink interiors of our offices and add more walls. So, how should they go about redesigning their offices? Ashwini Deshpande, Co-founder &amp; Director, Elephant Design, answered,“It is very difficult for me to visualize how people work in cubicles or glass spaces inside tall towers. We chose to work out of Pune for better quality of life and air. Our studios are spread across two bungalows and an open space in-between. We have a casual outdoor cafe and many other outdoor nooks. No matter where you are working, an open outdoor space with greenery and wifi is always a few steps away. Agencies should move to open spaces outside Mumbai. This may sound radical, but going back to my earlier point, companies need to create spaces just for those activities that need to be done together and not for anything that is perfectly done remote.” <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="What should the offices of future look like" text="What should the offices of future look like">What should the offices of future look like</cmsannotation> Following the pandemic, new considerations have come to light. The future of work will be new: environment-friendly, technologically-advanced and inclusive. Telling us what the <keyword id="10851341" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="future-of-offices">future of offices</keyword> should look like, Deshpande said, “We need to begin by rethinking the role of a fixed office/ workspace post pandemic. Work from home seems to have served well for most creative agencies besides many others. Every organization has had to rethink the workspace design. But only few would be able to change things significantly. I know of smaller studios, media teams, animation &amp; editing set-ups, publication houses, restaurants, coaching classes completely switching to remote working having given up their workspaces. Hybrid ways of working are being devised and spaces are being reimagined around activities that need people to come to office." Businesses are being advised to transfer physical records that dominate the workspace onto a digital cloud and rethink furniture that can prevent safe social distancing. Apart from altering physical social-gathering spaces like buffet sections and conference rooms, designing is also about developing a future-ready organisation that isn’t just about the physical space. Businesses need to apply design thinking into their daily operations to build a great working environment and connect office design to brand. After COVID, according to Lulu Raghavan, Managing Director, Landor &amp; Fitch India, the most progressive businesses will be thinking about the six imperatives of Workspace Design: culture, interaction, function, sustainability, architecture and technology. Raghavan said, “Workspace design is a deeper discipline and mindset that connects office design to brand. It dictates the journey, the overall experience and ensures that the brand’s values and function are reflected in the physical, human and digital space, much like retail. A well thought-through strategy on Workspace Design could help businesses to forge stronger relationships with their employees who in turn will become great brand ambassadors.” As uncertainty still continues to haunt our office corridors and our open-desks, it will be a challenge for companies to continue to foster their corporate culture and practices like employee training and development. Puneet Pandey, Strategy Head and Managing Partner, Open Strategy and Design said the element of uncertainty has been the biggest challenge that the pandemic imposed on our deeply inter-connected worlds. Pandey said, “Creating ‘physically distanced cohesion’ is going to be the trickiest problem to solve for business leaders in their organisations. Especially now that we are already a year into the post-pandemic world. There will be newer teams and newer expected behaviours and a whole lot of social tentativeness to punctuate an otherwise seamless flow of interactions inside our work-cultures. A sharply defined and well-designed internal culture acts as the internal compass and a vital behaviour guide, that make us hive-creatures continue to create and build even in the face of tentativeness Going forward, while organisations rethink their physical/virtual workspaces, leaders will place a lot more emphasis on communicating sharply defined cultural values within their organisation. This ‘cultural software’ will be key in ensuring predictable and productive outcomes possible in the coming times. " There will still be room for Zoom calls and virtual brainstorming sessions. Khadke said, “The future of offices should purely be a place to collaborate, to overcome the challenges that we face while working online. It may no longer be an everyday thing. Every aspect of the office (Design, Furniture, Tech, Facilities etc.) will be defined around this.” Using new technologies to facilitate social-distancing will be one of the key goals for organisations rethinking their workspace design. Das said, “Post the pandemic, hygiene considerations reign high and touch-free technology is going to become increasingly important in workspaces. Companies are re-imagining elevator designs and security access. They may also adopt a health screening process at the security gates. As more companies adopt the concept of remote working, decentralisation is an eventuality. Instead of asking everyone to travel to a single headquarter building, companies will have satellite offices or hubs that allow employees greater flexibility and choice. Simple practices like more frequent and visible cleaning schedules might contribute to a feeling of safety. Air-filters are getting installed in offices and regular air-quality assessments will become more important.” Experts said that the future-workspace design needs to be flexible enough to quickly adopt to meet tenant needs. Modularised designs will help in managing fluctuations in employee strength and technology will play an increasingly critical role in offices of tomorrow.

How are Indian organisations and agencies redesigning their office spaces for a post-COVID world

<ul><li>In our latest series, we look at different industries to understand what 2021 was like for them and crystal gaze into the upcoming year, identifying some of the trends that will set the tone for 2022.</li><li>We speak to Design Gurus to find out trends that 2022 has in store for us.</li></ul>Each year brings along shifts in trends and the year 2021, in particular, brought a faster pace of changes in marketing strategies, product design and execution -- opening up a huge window for innovation and experimentation. It pushed all brands and agencies to think on their feet. Everyone had to go back to the drawing board to think of new ways to communicate with consumers as they started demanding products that are designed in comforting and sustainable ways with smart features that offer convenience and personalisation. Consumers’ outlook towards their health and wellness also evolved as the pandemic pushed them to re-evaluate their lifestyle. They have become increasingly aware of climate change and are willing to take an active approach to do something about it. They are also expecting brands to act as agents of change, be more transparent about the raw material they use and act sustainably. So, in 2021, brands like Colgate, Diageo, WOW launched paper-based packaging and started keeping sustainability at the center of their products. With this trend, it is no doubt that all purchase decisions in the future will be completely driven by a product’s packaging material. Apart from a product’s ingredients, brands will be required to explain their recycling process too to attract consumers. As per a recent study conducted across Asia, <a href="https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/2821-consumers-relationships-brands.html">consumers</a> are paying attention to a product's environmental impact, and affordability and quality were still the main driving factors behind a vast majority of purchases. As a result, product designs have changed in the last two years. Brands have increased their focus on the ‘safety’ aspect of product packaging and design. And as consumers looked for ways to escape from reality, elements of optimism and local community flavours took center stage in the product design industry. Brands played more with bright, positive designs across communication, packaging, and other large facets of brand architecture. With the arrival of Meta, the growth of artificial intelligence will also accelerate across the globe and brands will integrate AI into their product design. As the year draws to a close, we speak to design gurus to find out what challenges lie ahead and a few trends that would monopolize the marketing world in 2022. Here is what experts had to say: Lulu Raghavan, Managing Director, Landor &amp; Fitch India: The design trend that has accelerated sharply in the past few years and that will explode and firmly take hold in 2022 is sustainable design. This is because of the perfect storm of environmental consciousness coupled with a desire for meaning that most of us as designers and creatives are experiencing. The pandemic sharply exposed the horrors of climate change to us. It made us sit up and think hard about humanity’s collective actions that have contributed to the unprecedented global warming that has been creeping up slowly but surely in the past several decades. Whether it was the forest fires in Australia, the Winter storms in Texas, the devastating flooding in Maharashtra or the many other extreme weather events that popped up around the world with alarming regularity, we were choked beyond words and stirred up to think about how we got here in the first place. The pandemic also created existential angst as we were stuck at home, attending to our daily routines, wondering about the purpose of our lives. This search for meaning has made us question everything from mindless consumption to what success means. As a result, as designers, we will be consciously re-examining every problem we are given to solve. We will more fervently be looking through the lens of sustainability for better answers towards the greater good. Whether we will be designing new products, new spaces, new packs or creating new brands, we will be thinking hard about sustainable design solutions that can do their small but important bit for our planet. A Appadurai, Country Manager for the HP Indigo: The labels and packaging industry in India is on an upward growth trajectory bolstered by the rapid expansion of organized retail, the growth of exports, and India’s rising e-commerce sector and start-ups. Furthermore, consumer behaviour has massively transformed post the pandemic. Consumers are demanding brands to be more secure, culturally and environmentally responsible and provide consumer experiences that are in sync with the brand purpose. In the future, offerings will be tailored not just to stated preferences, but also behaviour. This has made packaging a critical touchpoint to base purchase decisions on, and the industry must adapt how they can optimize their packaging to meet the upcoming trends to meet customer expectations. In the years to come starting 2022, personalized and innovative packaging will help keep customers highly engaged with the brand thereby establishing greater brand affinity. Therefore, ‘packvertising’ is an effective tool that marketers can use to strike a chord with their end consumers. Moreover, with increase in online shopping, the threat of counterfeit products is growing. By 2022, counterfeiting is projected to cost the global economy US$4.2 trillion^ This will require vigilance and continued investment in new solutions - like serialization, invisible inks, track &amp; trance, and origination software to protect them from counterfeit packaging vulnerabilities. Brands are discovering massive cost benefits of On Demand Packaging / Printing against the traditional Scale of Economy Print &amp; store model because of the rapid changes that happens in the market. Agility and time to market have become super important for brands today and On demand printing / packaging exactly helps in the cause. Most importantly, consumers today are more aware of the kind of products that they use and the brands they are associated with. They are environmentally more conscious which has driven up the demand for holistically sustainable goods. Marketers must therefore increase their focus on sustainable printing &amp; green packaging. To claim sustainability proof points, brands must examine the entire lifecycle of the packaging, including its use in supply chain, basic function, marketing, usefulness to the consumer and recyclability. This should also involve examining the packaging’s credentials under the three common pillars of sustainability: people, planet, and profit. One approach which can help incorporate all these elements into an integrated strategy for sustainable packaging is carbon-footprint labelling. A carbon-footprint label shows the product’s carbon footprint from manufacturing, through use right up to eventual disposal. Ashwini Deshpande, Co-Founder &amp; Director, Elephant Design: Connected for better: That would be my key prediction for the coming year. Mobility, retail, gadgets, personal/ home care, and foods - everything will see a surge in use of technology to understand users/ consumers better. Every product, service and brand will try to understand usage patterns by embedding codes or chips to gather data more than ever. Products will also be built to communicate with each other to gather data indirectly. Such products will also help consumers understand supply source, fair practices, carbon footprint etc. Increased awareness towards sustainability, well-being of self and the environment would largely be the drivers. There are many parallel developments happening across material sciences, manufacturing technology and embedded electronics happening across the world. All these come together to create better products for the connected world. Kiran Khadke, Co-founder and Creative Head, Hyper Connect: While most of 2020 &amp; 2021 went blah! It continued to keep the creative &amp; digital studios on their toes to keep UX at the core and keep products minimal, clean, user-focussed and simple. While AR/VR was still finding their footing and voice led product experiences was still nascent and un-integrated with the overall product. In 2022, there will be a quantum leap, creative &amp; digital studios will have to integrate deeper with tech developers and analysts to create experiences for the new digital paradigm like Metaverse, Serl.io, Uhive and likes… The new paradigm of product design would need to consider 3D, multi-dimension, Voice, AR, VR integrated together seamlessly to create a real-like experience in the growing virtual world. The next wave for advertising agencies is to bring all these aspects together in cohesion and we at Hyper Connect are working on similar projects set to launch in 2022. Shashwat Das, Founder, Almond Branding: After a chaotic year, 2021 was the year for brands to understand their consumers all over again as a lot had changed in her life amid this pandemic. A lot of it is still evolving while brands are trying to align themselves and Design is bound to reflect such changes in our society and environment. Motion Design We are going to witness more and more motion in brand design as an engaging approach to storytelling. Just having static graphics as part of your visual assets is not good enough anymore. As consumer touchpoints get more digitised, brand design language will be incorporating more of motion graphics, gifs and animations. Going forward most logos will have an animated version. And motion is not limited to websites or apps, we are seeing the advent of AR fused with design. Coming year, we are going to see more Packaging where you scan a QR code and you have elements from the static design springing to action to narrate the brand story in a more engaging manner. Humanisation of Brand Design The years gone by have redefined our priorities. With several months of social distancing, we all have been missing the personal touch. Brands are going to humanise more in their attempt to build stronger relationships and engage better. At Almond Branding, we are happy to notice that our clients are preferring the proposed conversational style of messaging more, be it Packaging or Communication Design. Going forward consumers will be expecting a more personalised experience while connecting with brands. And Brand Design will make them feel that they are buying from a human and not a company. Environment-Friendly Design The pandemic has made consumers more conscious about their environment. While several brands have taken on the mission of being planet-friendly, it’s now time to walk the talk. Consumers are clever and can now easily spot greenwashing. What it means for us in the business of design, is that we have to do much more than just use the colour green to signify that we are planet-friendly. Going forward, brand designers will have to actually choose substrates and packaging formats that are truly sustainable, recyclable and low on carbon impact. 2022 is going to be year of Design for Sustainability. The last 2 years have taught us that the future is uncertain so be prepared to change drastically. The same old ways of thinking and approach are no longer going to work. The way the past 2 years have been, it can only go bigger and better from here. We all have immense hope from the Big year that is upcoming. Embracing the newer trends will be the best way for brands to dominate the market and outshine their competition. Adil Singh, Co-founder, Lights Out Studio: <div type="image" title="Adil" msid="88320263" hostid="261"></div> Two trends that will gain momentum in the coming months: Web3: Everything about block chain and its benefits has been spoken enough. Right from brands dropping NFT’s to allowing customers to buy products in crypto, would start peaking highlight of the more progressive brands. Owning a piece of the brand through the block chain network not only allows you to build a deeper connect with the brand, but also a loyal network of customers who are tech-savy and can contribute back to the brand in multiple ways. Community Building: Harped enough in the past few months, a solid community can help you with product feedback, primary research, uder generated content and also word of mouth evangelism. Communities will go beyond the ‘social media influencers’ to HXC’s (high expectation customers) that the brand targets. These are people who not only can become ideal users / adopters of the product, but also solid leaders / community builders within their personal &amp; professional networks.

Design: The trends to watch out for in 2022

<ul><li><keyword id="2568448" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="DSM-India">DSM India</keyword> has launched its second <keyword id="9950872" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="project-streedhan">Project Streedhan</keyword> campaign, underlining the need to build immunity in women through proper nutrition. </li><li>However, it lacks representation as it features women of one body size, type, shape and age. </li><li>It aims to empower women to embrace, prioritise and take care of themselves by filling up their vault of health with proper nourishing food. </li><li>However, does it fall into the same trap it is trying to escape? We speak to experts to find out. </li></ul>Advertising in India has come a long way when it comes to representation of women. From a time when women were only portrayed as home-makers taking care of everybody, today ads talk about a larger role that they play in the world. However, we realised something. Very few ads show women eating, which as an activity is such a normal, everyday thing. But we've rarely seen women do that in ads. It is usually they who cook, feed others or wait until after dinner to feed themselves from what is left. Women are shown as caretakers, nourishers or givers, very rarely do they prioritize themselves in real life or pop culture. Dutch State Mines’ CSR initiative Project Streedhan has exhorted women to give their nutrition and themselves equal importance by investing in iron-rich food. The first phase of advertisement released in 2019 aimed at raising awareness about iron deficiency in women's bodies that causes. It portrayed uninhibited women consuming food -- with no filters or worrying about ‘what will people think.’ It encouraged women to celebrate their femininity and eat like nobody's watching, becoming the revolutionary campaign women needed that urged them not to neglect their health behind their husband, kids or desk. The project by DSM India also reminded people that women need to be healthy to be financially independent, it changed the definition of what Streedhan meant. This time, the Streedhan campaign seeks to drive home a similar message -- that our health is our real wealth at all times, and that we need to nurture our immunity by feeding it, building it, and protecting it. The ad tells them to be their own bodyguard by filling up the vault of their health. Three out of four women in India are deficient in vitamins and being deficient in vitamins is known to lower immunity, and therefore lower resistance to infections. <div type="Youtube" id="a-v6I_HAl6g" title="Project Streedhan | #InvestInYourImmunity" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/a-v6I_HAl6g/mqdefault.jpg"></div> Titled ‘<keyword id="9927435" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="sehat-ki-tijori">Sehat Ki Tijori</keyword>,’ the advertisement has been crafted by <keyword id="2804902" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="FCB-Ulka-Advertising">FCB Ulka Advertising</keyword> to emphasise the importance of stocking nutritious food. The advertisement is aesthetically pleasing and the catchy song stays with you. Every frame seems like painting. However, for an advertisement that aims to raise awareness about anemic women or celebrate women at leisure and empower them, it first comes across as an ad for a clothing, beauty or juice brand. It features women of one kind, with one body type, shape and age, which are otherwise seen as ‘ideal’ bodies of ‘desirable’ age. It aims to be rustic but ends up painting a picture that is flawlessly beautiful. It lacks representation of different kinds of women. While the message is about women empowerment and finding the right nourishment, it uses beauty standards to send it across. Women seem to eat in an erotic way perched up on a branch but it is sexualised, appears pleasurable and not about feeding or taking care of themselves. Since its aim is to celebrate femininity, women’s health and reach out to women in every nook of our country, be it urban or rural, will women resonate with it? Or does it feel like an advertisement made from the male gaze? Does it fall into the trap it is trying to escape from? We reached out to a few experts from our industry to see what they feel. “I am appalled by the sexual overtones. I have no idea what this communication piece is trying to say and to whom,” said Ashwini Deshpande, Co-founder and Director, Elephant Design. Disha Daswani, Creative Director, Schbang, said, "They have achieved cinematic brilliance and even composed a song that one can’t get out of their heads, I mean who wouldn’t want to hear Sona Mohapatra’s voice on repeat? The concept of showing real women, with real problems is completely lost. Yes, we all wished we looked as gorgeous as that, wrapped in a silk saree and glowing amidst vast fields, sucking on a fruit. But sadly no. People with low immunity and anemia (speaking from experience) wake up pale, have noticeable dark circles that prompt questions like ‘hey you look tired today.’ Also, what’s up with casting only slim women who fit the wardrobe well and the excessive lip biting? The concept of Anaemia and low immunity has been romanticized, and not nearly as accurate of how women with this sickness look/feel. You could call it creative liberty or just sheer ignorance?" Alpa Dedhia, Business Director, VMLY&amp;R INDIA felt that the visuals divert attention away from the core message. She said, “Titillating tone of the ad loses the message of women's health for me. There is more to women than just being objectified. The issue about lack of vitamins is an important one and nowhere in the ad is there any serious attempt to address it. A woman is the one who cares for everyone and in the process of doing so; she neglects herself… This is a sacrifice that needs to be addressed and not just girls swinging and dancing around trees.” Pallavi Chakravarti, Executive Creative Director, <keyword id="212000" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Taproot">Taproot</keyword> Dentsu, found the ad ineffective. She said, "The depiction of women was unnecessarily sensual for a subject like immunity building – the execution didn’t connect to the problem at hand at all – at least for me. I mean, when I watched it, the last thing on my mind was whether I might have vitamin deficiencies and what I should do to bolster my immunity." Upasana Naithani- Business Head, Digital, Infectious Advertising also said that the video has sexualised women because it ignores the cause it is made for. She explained, "Especially for the cause it represents, promoting, health and well-being should have been prioritized over the sexual overtone, the video has sexualised women for sure. The fact that immunity is a need for underprivileged, and malnourished is completely overlooked. We also see a certain kind of women being chosen for the ad which is disappointing as this was a great platform to be inclusive of different kinds of women who struggle with immunity." FCB Ulka’s idea behind this advertisement was to celebrate women’s lust for life. Explaining the thought process behind selecting professional models and following beauty standards, FCB Ulka Advertising’s spokesperson said, “There are many narratives that have restricted the idea of womanhood and women’s empowerment – so it is but natural that we may see things at times from different perspectives. With project Streedhan, we wanted to break a fundamental narrative that has restricted women’s empowerment. The idea that women are the nourisher, and therefore de-prioritise their own nourishment. They are expected to eat least and last. Prioritizing their own health and enjoyment is seen as selfish and taboo. With project Streedhan, we celebrate a woman’s lust for life. It is not about sexualizing them as objects of desire, but acknowledging them as whole beings, sexual, woman and above all human. The project gives women ‘permission’ without preaching to them, to enjoy unabashedly their food, to unleash their lust for life. This struck a deep chord with women everywhere as the virality of the first project showed.” “Having different body sizes would indeed be inclusive – however as we were creating a new narrative where women are free to enjoy their food without guilt, we didn’t want body sizes to hijack the messages with more misogynistic “greedy/ selfish’’ narrative. In the future, we will explore how we can drive inclusivity while keeping the narrative intact," said the agency spokesperson. Karthik Srinivasan, Brand Communications and Social Media Expert, had reviewed Streedhan’s first advertisement and appreciated it for its timing, technique, aesthetics and narrative device. However, he posed a few questions that advertisement did not answer the last time and hasn’t this time as well. He wrote, “The film showcases glamorous looking women eating a lot of colourful food and fruits, including corn, watermelon, pomegranate and so on. The text—and the song—exhorts women to eat more iron. Is the implication that they should eat more of what is being shown in the film (those foods that contain iron, presumably)? Wouldn’t it be more useful to showcase a list of kinds of food women should consume instead of just making it seem like the way Katrina Kaif consumes mangoes in the Slice ad? But it doesn’t seem to be doing justice to the problem (and its gravity) it is trying to address.”

Project Streedhan's latest ad wants to prove an important point, but has its over-beautified, sensual storytelling made it lose the plot?

<ul><li>All shaving ads include a petite woman taking a bath in a tub full of bubbles, grabbing a razor in hand to shave her hairless legs and flawless hands.</li><li>We speak to women from the advertising and digital world to understand why brands hesitate from showing body hair in advertisements and what kind of ads they wish to see as we move forward.</li><li>We also discuss Veet’s latest ad starring Shraddha Kapoor and Ahsaas Channa that targets school girls and claims to offer a ‘skin whitening’ mechanism in its cream.</li></ul>“I vividly remember asking my mother after our send-off in high school, "Why am I so hairy?" ⁣I had draped a beautiful sari that day, as the tradition goes. I felt pretty and confident until I saw the other girls in my class had waxed their arms. It made me feel a little uncomfortable,” shared Yugandhara Shinde, a 24-year-old graphic designer, as she tried to recall the first time she felt uncomfortable with her natural body. While Shinde blames social conditioning, unsolicited judgements from people and societal beauty standards for making her uncomfortable about her body hair until today, these standards have been perpetuated through advertising and media that expect women to be hairless all the time. Thin and fair-skinned models in ads across the world have made women like me feel uncomfortable with my body. We look in the mirror only to notice our flaws, turn to beauty products to fix ourselves and hide our body hair. Advertisements have been profiting from these vulnerabilities and feeding on our insecurities. They portray women achieving happiness and success after hair removal. <div type="image" title="Shaving" msid="82165665" hostid="261"></div> All shaving ads include a petite woman taking a bath in a tub full of bubbles, running a razor through their already shaven and almost flawless hands and legs. For example, look at the petite, fair-skinned and hairless women in Gillette Venus’ ads over the years. <div type="image" title="venus collage" msid="82165673" hostid="261"></div> Chances are, you will need a microscope to find a single strand of unwanted hair on their bodies, forget a hint of stubble! While it is absolutely okay to shave your bodies, this article is about those who choose not to. You would feel a penetrating gaze, full of judgement, coming from people around if you decide to just sport your body hair one day. We have spent years hiding our body hair under long sleeves and jeans or shaving every strand off our armpits before anyone else catches a glance. "Hww, log kya kahenge," has haunted us for years. While half this blame goes to our biased society, the rest is on unreal ads and cinema that have made us feel like less of a woman if we choose not to shave. Last week, we happened to stumble upon Hair Removal brand Veet’s advertisement starring actor Shraddha Kapoor and Digital Creator Ahsaas Channa. It is about a young school girl, played by Channa, feeling anxious about going to a salon because well, we all know how uncomfortable that is. She is wearing a full-sleeved uniform to hide her body hair. Kapoor comes to ‘her rescue’ and offers her Veet’s shaving cream. Much to our surprise (but frankly, not so much), she shaves her already-shaved armpits and hands. As per the brand’s ad, the product also gives you smoother and visibly ‘brighter’ underarms. <div type="Youtube" id="p8AeyIGEuVo" title="Veet Hair Removal Cream- Mini Pack |Shraddha Kapoor | Hinglish : 30 sec" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/p8AeyIGEuVo/mqdefault.jpg"></div> Veet isn’t the first brand to sell us underarm lightening cream. There’s Dot &amp; Key, Sanfe, Nimaya and <a href="https://youtu.be/RP7SkFUCcLc">Venus</a> that help you ‘glow.’ According to ResearchAndMarkets, the Indian female grooming market stood at $152 million in 2018 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 26% to surpass $623 million by 2024. We reached out to Dr Tanaya Narendra, Doctor and Content Creator, aka Dr Cuterus to find out if hair removing creams can brighten your armpits. She said, “Unless the hair removal cream contains bleach, I wouldn't imagine it would be possible to actually lighten the skin. Even then, the effect would be temporary. Actually putting clinically effective skin lightening formulations in their OTC cream would not be permitted, so this is a blatant lie. It also feeds into the larger message of ‘lighter skin is better skin’, which, I do not need to point, is based on our colonial past and its associated hangups.” Elaborating on how having darker skin parts is completely normal, Dr Cuterus added, “We continue to idealise Eurocentric beauty standards, in people of non-European descent. It is perfectly normal for the skin of our genitals, underarms, and skin folds to be darker than the rest of our body. It's the result of hormones, constant friction, and our genetic skin type. Companies like Veet, Nimaya, Dot &amp; Key, Sanfe, etc capitalise on this insecurity and sell expensive skin lightening serums, which obviously don't work (as they don't contain any clinically effective ingredients), leading to more insecurity, and more sales for the companies.” While we are used to seeing hairless bodies on the big screen by now, Veet’s latest ad targets school girls this time. It is reaching out to young, impressionable minds, suggesting that you cannot go to a party unless you shave your body. Telling us how the ad made her feel, Akshara Vasavda, Creative Lead, Schbang, shared, “It makes me feel like we're devolving instead of evolving. It's like Indian advertising is still stuck in the past while the rest of the world is moving on. It's a bad ad, to begin with, even just creatively speaking, and on top of that, they've taken the most overused, mind-numbing route to showcase their product. 'Ghisa Pita' is the word we use in Hindi. That's this ad.” She also pointed out that we need more representation in our ads to help women accept their bodies, and even its darker areas. “In Veet's ad, we have a young student probably in high school who is more worried about waxing than whatever is going on in school? Because that's the only thing girls care about, of course. Then we have Shraddha Kapoor entering the picture, looking like she just stepped off a red carpet. Have SOME aspect of realism to your ads at least? And then there's the whole issue of colourism that these brands constanty reinforce. Most girls do not have smooth, even-toned underarms. Brown skins are bound to be pigmented and the entertainment industry is 100% responsible for making millions of girls conscious about their dark underarms. I think most of us spent our entire lives trying various methods to fight pigmentation and ingrown hair. We need more skin colours in these ads. We need pigmented underarms without the false promise of 'whitening' them because a) our skins simply do not work that way b) it's entirely unnecessary. These brands need to be held accountable for misinformation in my opinion,” added Vasavda. Sharing how DIY has become the need of the hour due the lockdown, Ashwini Deshpande, Co-founder &amp; Director, Elephant Design, said, “Selfcare &amp; DIY grooming products is absolutely the need of the hour. Hair removers, hair colours, pedicure kits, facial kits etc are here to stay. Grooming is also gaining popularity irrespective of gender. Boys seem equally concerned about their look as girls. I do not see all advertisements of grooming products as gender misappropriation issues. It is mostly about turning out well and feeling good/ confident about oneself. However, the didi giving a solution to the younger sibling in the latest VEET commercial is quite the beaten path. I don't believe GenZ is looking for advice from millennials. So the story just wasn't convincing for me.” Alpa Dedhia, Business Director, VMLY&amp;R India said, “The larger issue here is pushing younger girls to focus on these set beauty norms like she should look a certain way, act a certain way, dress a certain way. I also believe putting pressure on teens on how they should look or be a certain way impacts the overall confidence of young girls. No girl should have to worry about the way she looks. Brands should be taking the baton and training these minds to think beyond superficial beauty norms. Campaigns like #likeagirl have done a similar job in a great way.” <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="So, what should the brands do?" text="So, what should the brands do?">So, what should the brands do?</cmsannotation> While some people feel empowered by shaving or waxing their bodies, it is their choice to shave or not to shave. However, it is often considered that body hair is ‘unhygienic’, when it is in fact a natural gift and meant to protect us from bacteria. We also asked ad women and Content Creator Dr Cutreus about the kind of ads they wish to see now. “What I would like to be discussed more is how having body hair is not unhygienic, and this is a personal choice. I understand that this is difficult, as having such a disclaimer in ads would be weird. That said, it would be incredible to see more representation about body hair from more mainstream celebrities, rather than "radical" Instagram influencers. Another welcome change would be to see some actual body hair being removed in these ads. I mean, they're marketing a product whose efficacy has a giant question mark on it as we cannot see any body hair on these people anyway! They shave hairless legs! If we can have ads that show a man with a five o'clock shadow, and a fancy animation showing the blades slicing away his facial hair, why can't we see that with a woman's underarm hair,” asked Dr Tanaya. Dedhia said, “All hair removing brands have focused on the same messaging.. ‘Set yourself free from unwanted hair,’ ‘hairless arms will make you more attractive, beautiful and more feminine.' I want to see ads that are progressive in their thinking and approach. Instead of saying that you will miss out on all the fun if you don’t do this or that, maybe we could focus on hygiene?” Vasavda said, “When it comes to the target audience of these brands, the majority of women should not have an issue with slightly more realistic depiction of hair removal, even if we don't go all out like some international ads. And like I said earlier, there is zero excuse for these brands to continue propagating such harmful beauty standards. This is one issue that is completely in the hands of the media, and if they are still making such regressive content, it's because they want to. They want to maintain a certain aesthetic for their brand imagery because of personal biases, and that's it. Hair removal is a basic need. No one's going to stop buying their products. If I need to shave, I'm going to buy a razor and it's probably going to be Gillette because they own the market share and my chemist only stocks that up. They don't have the pressure of fighting for market share at this point, so what's stopping them? Nothing but the mindset of people running these brands on the client side.”

Leg hair, don’t care: Why showing women’s body hair in Indian ads is long overdue

<ul><li><keyword id="169284" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="ASCI">ASCI</keyword> released <keyword id="8325366" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="new-draft-guidelines">new draft guidelines</keyword> to help consumers identify promotional content from user-generated content. </li><li>We reached out to brand experts and <keyword id="2540701" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Influencer-marketing">influencer marketing</keyword> agencies to understand what it would mean for the industry.</li></ul>To help consumers understand social media a little better, and in an attempt to make sure they understand what content posted by an influencer is an ad, the <keyword id="120108" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Advertising-Standards-Council-of-India">Advertising Standards Council of India</keyword> (ASCI) has released draft guidelines for influencer advertising on digital media. Influencer marketing has been witnessing a steady growth in India in the past few years. Today, Indian audiences are watching more online videos than ever before. It was time to take a step forward towards building a transparent advertising ecosystem. <keyword id="6456080" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="nielsen">Nielsen</keyword> studies show that home-bound consumers have led to a 60% increase in the amount of video content watched globally. ASCI, in its statement said that the guidelines for influencers advertising on digital media will be available for all stakeholders, including industry, digital influencers as well as consumers for feedback till March 8, 2021. Based on the feedback and inputs, the final guidelines will be issued by ASCI by 31st March, 2021. This guideline will be applicable to all promotional posts published on or after 15th April 2021. We reached out to experts from the influencer ecosystem to understand the implications of the guidelines and how it will impact stakeholders, and here is what they had to say: <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Arjun Mohan, CEO – India, upGrad" text="Arjun Mohan, CEO – India, upGrad">Arjun Mohan, CEO – India, upGrad</cmsannotation> A much-welcomed move by the ASCI, which has the potential to create a profound long-term impact affecting consumers’ trust in the overall concept of advertising. We realise the influencer marketing sector has seen exponential growth over the past decade and has also become a core of our brand-building efforts at upGrad. We look forward to the newly drafted guidelines which I’m sure will further make influencer marketing more transparent and also bring-forth better opportunities for brands to create responsible advertising for their audience, at large. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Chaitanya Ramalingegowda, Co-founder &amp; Director" text="Chaitanya Ramalingegowda, Co-founder &amp; Director">Chaitanya Ramalingegowda, Co-founder &amp; Director</cmsannotation><cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Wakefit.co" text="Wakefit.co">Wakefit.co</cmsannotation> We believe the new draft guidelines for influencer advertising on digital media suggested by ASCI is an extremely encouraging move. As more and more Indians get connected to the internet, they discover and interact with a multitude of brands on a daily basis. While these new guidelines will promote transparency, it will also elevate the level of trust between customers, influencers and brands. Given that brands and influencers are required to do a thorough due diligence about aspects like using filters and technical or performance claims made by a brand, it is likely to instil a sense of accountability and provide clarity to customers. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Ashwini Deshpande, Co-founder &amp; Director, Elephant Design" text="Ashwini Deshpande, Co-founder &amp; Director, Elephant Design">Ashwini Deshpande, Co-founder &amp; Director, Elephant Design</cmsannotation> An influencer garners a large follower base because of consistent &amp; aligned content for the kind of audience he/ she is aiming for. If the influencers want to continue getting followed by their audience, it is necessary for them to stay interesting and honest. Influencer marketing has reached a critical mass in India and it is the right time to have these clear guidelines from ASCI that protect consumers from being misled. The draft guidelines by ASCI which are open for public discussion for the next few days, have transparency at its core and should be welcomed by the advertising industry. The most important guideline on prominent labelling has been rightfully specified for each social media channel – will help the consumer from getting misguided by influencer advertisements. The guidelines have ensured three prominent things: • Any content where the brand has paid the influencer and has had reasonable control over the content needs to be called out as 'advertisement'. • Influencer must make it obvious that the content is an 'advertisement'. This should be a clear indication to the follower that the content has bias. • If the influencer is making some specific claims, they should be diligently substantiated by the advertiser or brand owner. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Kunal Kishore Sinha, Co-founder, ClanConnect" text="Kunal Kishore Sinha, Co-founder, ClanConnect">Kunal Kishore Sinha, Co-founder, ClanConnect</cmsannotation> ASCI’s newly issued guidelines for influencer marketing will unlock a wealth of new opportunities for the fast-evolving segment that will result in positive outcomes for the sector in the long run. When a major industry body such as the ASCI deems that there is a need to introduce guidelines for influencers and the influencer marketing community, it shows how the market has evolved and has assumed a mainstream stature in the larger advertising space. These guidelines will not only streamline the space and offer a direction but also ensure that there is an added sense of social responsibility amongst the influencer community. Needless to say, we welcome this move by the ASCI for the segment as it will act as a guiding light for new and established content creators, who will now be more mindful of the kind of content that they are bringing to their target audiences. An extremely positive move from the ASCI, these guidelines will act as a catalyst for more organized and structured platforms such as ClanConnect to set new benchmarks for the industry as a whole. Platforms such as ours will play a major role in assisting content creators in navigating through the various regulations and conform to them without any inadvertent missteps. With ASCI introducing these guidelines, the influencer marketing segment also joins the league of recognized and celebrated domains of the advertising ecosystem and indicates further growth and evolution for this space. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Apaksh Gupta, Founder &amp; CEO, One Impression" text="Apaksh Gupta, Founder &amp; CEO, One Impression">Apaksh Gupta, Founder &amp; CEO, One Impression</cmsannotation> We're elated to have been partners with the entire ecosystem and the regulatory body that is fostering a holistic approach towards digital advertising. Observing the paradigm shift from traditional to digital, it only coherent to have a transparent &amp; clear ecosystem laid out via the proposed ASCI guidelines, that is beneficial to both digital influencers &amp; consumers. We trust this will regulate &amp; filter out the misleading content, which is suggestive of a much healthier digital world out there! <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Ankita Chauhan, Group Head Strategy, Tonic Worldwide" text="Ankita Chauhan, Group Head Strategy, Tonic Worldwide">Ankita Chauhan, Group Head Strategy, <keyword id="3671421" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tonic-Worldwide">Tonic Worldwide</keyword></cmsannotation> As the word opinion leader suggests, influencers are leading opinion and influencing purchase decisions, across categories. A lot of time the content is promoted as a part of the larger story and seeded in subtly, making the whole placement look rather organic. However, consumers have full right to know what is paid and what is organic. It’s quite basic. I’ve observed several influencers labelling sponsored content and I think industry bodies making it a mandate only benefits the consumers at large. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Aayush Tiwari - Head of Talent Acquisition, Monk Entertainment" text="Aayush Tiwari - Head of Talent Acquisition, Monk Entertainment">Aayush Tiwari - Head of Talent Acquisition, Monk Entertainment</cmsannotation> I believe that the latest issued ASCI guidelines is a good step to secure the future of now one of the most popular ways of brand promotions - influencer marketing. As the guidelines states, consumers, here disguised as a follower, should have all the rights to know what's being uploaded organically and what's a paid advertisement. This declaration also will motivate the influencer to study about the brand/product and investigate their claims before they go all out publicizing them. Post formulation we'll surely see less cases of misleading advertisements, safeguarding both the consumer spends and influencers getting caught off guard for their claims - <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Ankit Agarwal, Founder, Do Your Thng" text="Ankit Agarwal, Founder, Do Your Thng">Ankit Agarwal, Founder, Do Your Thng</cmsannotation> USA’s FTC and UK’S ASA both issued regulations years back outlining explicit do’s and don'ts for influencers. It was high time influencer marketing in India followed the same path. The lack of guidelines gave more oxygen to damaging content, and it chipped away the hard-earned trust in creators. When consumers know an ad is an ad or content just that – mere organic content, which is one of the rules in the draft: upfront labelling on ads; the confidence in a creator is not broken. When creators are authentic, including being straightforward about sponsored content, they make more impact and deliver deeper engagement. That’s why I have been vocal about the necessity for the entire niche to abide by advertising rules from day one. With this framework from ASCI, that hopefully comes into play in April, we finally move the needle on streamlining the sector that has been unorganised for far too long. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Ramya Ramachandran, Founder &amp; CEO, Whoppl" text="Ramya Ramachandran, Founder &amp; CEO, Whoppl">Ramya Ramachandran, Founder &amp; CEO, Whoppl</cmsannotation> In line with the latest regulation imposed by the ASCI, the need for total transparency in the realm of influencer marketing has been rightfully reaffirmed. In today’s time and age, when influencer marketing is growing at an unprecedented pace and almost everybody wants to become an influencer, it is the need of the hour to safeguard a consumer’s right to information and transparency. With major fiascos like the Fyre Festival, it has become urgently crucial to come up with influencer marketing strategies and content that are 100% credible and verified. Here at Whoppl, content is the hero for us and we have always ensured transparency by fully disclosing the influencer’s professional contract with us—by getting the sponsorship tag in place, for instance, wherever required. In fact, we always strive for a strategy wherein we ask the influencers to first try out the product/service, make their opinions and create authentic content as per their tonality, while also ensuring full disclosure of their partnership with the brand. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Jo Broner, WIBA Spokesperson (Paris)" text="Jo Broner, WIBA Spokesperson (Paris)">Jo Broner, WIBA Spokesperson (Paris)</cmsannotation> At the heart of it, ASCI is recognizing the digital influencer space as part of the mainstream industry now, which is very good news for the influencers. It is going to build more trust between the artists and their audience with increased transparency. It also means the marketers have to channelize verifiable information and not unverifiable marketing claims. Influencers connect with curated communities, who listen to them for the credibility they bring, so they have an inherent moral responsibility to not breach the trust of their audience, ASCI is bolstering it with new laws, and that is going to bring in due discipline in the environment, so it's a welcome move. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Divyanshu Damani, Co-founder of TagMango" text="Divyanshu Damani, Co-founder of TagMango">Divyanshu Damani, Co-founder of TagMango</cmsannotation> In this digital-age amid a plethora of marketing platforms, influencer marketing has carved its own niche. However, there was a need for guidelines that further enhances the trust of consumers in influencers. As the influencers also need to understand that when they partner with a brand, they share their own trust in the brand with their communities and audience. So, it becomes highly critical for them to only undertake the partnerships that they believe will positively impact their audience. Therefore, in my opinion, it is an extremely vital move. The guidelines issued will allow them to deeply evaluate the offering and the trust that they’re sharing. Furthermore, it would reduce the overall funnel of their brand partnerships and thus, push them to think about opting for sustainable monetary options which we are building at TagMango. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Pranav Panpalia, Founder, OpraahFx" text="Pranav Panpalia, Founder, OpraahFx">Pranav Panpalia, Founder, OpraahFx</cmsannotation> The ASCI guidelines are simple and easy to adhere to. The guidelines are more or less similar to the west. In the past couple of years, this has been thoroughly implemented by international influencers and I am happy to see India leading in the same direction. This will definitely make the digital ecosystem more responsible and streamlined. I am in complete agreement with all the points of the guidelines, especially with the fact that images and videos should not be altered or beautified by influencers while advertising on social media. Since digital media caters to a much more aware audience set, keeping it real is the only way to connect with them. Looking forward to a more transparent digital world. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Rajni Daswani, Director at SoCheers" text="Rajni Daswani, Director at SoCheers">Rajni Daswani, Director at SoCheers</cmsannotation> Influencer marketing is a $100 million industry in India now, and brands of all kinds - big or small - are benefiting from using influencers &amp; content creators to drive their business objectives. The fact that it’s been unregulated so far, we have seen some brands sneakily get away with things that would not be considered ethical if it were to be shown in a TVC or an OOH. The guidelines will serve as a good guardrail in these cases. However, on the flip side, the popularity of influencer marketing in a brand’s marketing budget is due to the flexibility of communication that allows them to showcase the benefits of their products &amp; services in different ways without it looking very promotional. Digital consumers today are smart enough to understand what is an Advert vs what is organic, and hence brands are willing to pay more to get their promotional material to look as organic as possible. With these guidelines kicking in, we might see the overall engagement and reach with influencers drop and might see it get the same status quo as a paid media ad on digital. I think while these guidelines are necessary, they should not be extremely stringent so as to avoid creating a dent in the overall influencer marketing industry that is growing at a faster pace than ever. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Ambika Sharma, Founder &amp; MD, Pulp Strategy" text="Ambika Sharma, Founder &amp; MD, Pulp Strategy">Ambika Sharma, Founder &amp; MD, Pulp Strategy</cmsannotation> The influencer industry is growing fast. According to digital marketing agency AdLift, India’s influencer market is estimated at $75-$150 million a year as compared to the global market of $1.75 billion. This is an industry that has become mainstream within the advertising space and is only expected to grow as more and more Indians are going online. It’s no wonder that brands across sectors are associating with influencers to get across their marketing messages. So, much of what influencers post is promotional and a lot of it is not identified as such. Such non-disclosure is a disservice to consumers and is misleading. With the guidelines, ASCI will assist consumers, brands and content creators to ensure all stakeholders’ interests are preserved through a self-regulatory approach. The digital space is huge and promotional content is often indistinguishable from regular posts. Consumers have the right to easily recognise promotional content. These guidelines will help the consumers to identify promotional content and also guide digital influencers. These guidelines will benefit the consumers and the digital influencers. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Gautam Madhavan, Founder &amp; CEO, MAD Influence" text="Gautam Madhavan, Founder &amp; CEO, MAD Influence">Gautam Madhavan, Founder &amp; CEO, MAD Influence</cmsannotation> I'm very happy with the new set of guidelines set by asci. It's good for business and shows Influencer Marketing in India is just going to grow more aggressively. This also helps consumers identify which content is commissioned and which is not , and accordingly their buying decisions is more rationale.

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