Staying in tune with the times

Is it time to resurrect the jingle in a new format?

- ALOKANANDA CHAKRABORTY

HERE'S A QUICK test for our readers. Try filling in the blanks quickly:

Tandurusti ki raksha karta hai...

Bhool na jaana...lana

Karram kurram, kurram karram...

Ten out of 10 times one would get the rights answer, thanks to the hook.

So why do we not see many more jingle-based ads pick up the gauntlet for brands? Neville Shah, CCO, FCB Kinnect & FCB/SIX India, offers an explanation: "Ads became shorter for various reasons. And a jingle needs a little bit of length."

Also, while TV and radio offered a captive audience and lent themselves to jingles, mobile consumers refuse to be sold to and more often than not seek information from the communication they receive.

In any case, a large majority of campaigns today are too short-term focused, and building up jingle-recall might not align well with the brand's plans.

The thing is, when media wasn't as fragmented as it is today, jingles performed the task of grabbing attention and sustaining audience interest with alacrity. They are easy to pick up and difficult to forget. The marketer could run a significant number of spots on the few TV or radio stations that operated and in a reasonable time that jingle would stick. Job done.