Business case for eschewing ageism in ads

IF STEREOTYPICAL ELDERS IN ADS ARE REMOVED, THE INDUSTRY CAN BOOST SALES BY LEVERAGING THE ECONOMIC POTENTIAL OF GRANDPARENTS FROM GEN S

- Suchi Bansal

Trust advertising industry veteran Meenakshi Menon to relentlessly pursue what she sets her sight on. Having launched an online marketplace Gen S Life that offers products and services for the 60+ community, she's turned her attention to redefining how the older adults are portrayed in advertising as perpetuating any negative stereotypes has consequences.

Advertising shapes attitudes and it can be a tool to change the narrative around older adults. “Onscreen stereotypes can change real-world behaviour,” says Menon, founder, Gen S Life.

To understand ageism in brand marketing, Gen S Life scanned 50 ads earlier this year and found them under-representing the older age groups. It’s now asked Leapfrog Strategy Consulting for a wider study to prepare a charter that can help sensitize ad agencies and marketers on the subject.

Ad industry regulator, the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) already has a code in place for depicting the elderly in advertising. It states that no advertisement shall be permitted which derides any individual or groups on the basis of age. If an ad does so, it can be processed for a violation of the code.