Advertisements and Webseries: A fling or a lifetime bond

The ad industry dynamics have always kept on changing since the beginning.There was a time when people enjoyed seeing the advertisements in between of the TV shows as they were limited in number but now it's just a mute button which is pressed as soon as the ad comes up on the TV. There is no denying to the fact that the quality of the content in advertisements has changed significantly and now it's more of a story telling in a minute or less. The industry is facing certain challenges to engage its viewer in watching the ad. Therefore , brands are now shifting from traditional means of advertising to advertising through influencers or digital content.

Brand integration on youtube or on instagram is the new runway for advertisers. Where the brand is placed within the content itself. These kinds of integrations look organic and interesting to the viewer, the brands collaborate with different channels depending upon their subscribers and viewers. In 2014 a series named Permanent Roommates was released by TVF on YouTube, it was for the first time when indian audiences were waiting for something that was not so common.The Web series involved Mikesh and Tanya who were first into long distance relationship for 3 years but things change when Mikesh arrives from foreign to Mumbai to get    

This series had a

brand integration

of a startup called

CommonFloor that

dealt in properties.

The whole

storyline of the

series revolves

around the brand

without directly

advertising it. 

This kind of branded content looks less of an advertisement and also excites the viewer who doesn't skip it anymore.After this the second season of Permanent Roommates also had a brand integration of Ola , where the ola driver becomes the friend of Mikesh and helps him at certain situations. Ola’s integration was very significant within the series and this also led to brand awareness amongst many people.

After Permanent Roommates there were many in the pipeline by TVF amongst them Pitchers and Tripling were very popular. Pitchers dialog “tu beer hai” gained popularity and this scene had the kingfisher beer on tables where the two friends were talking and one of them compares the other with a beer.

Tripling on the other hand was a series that had three siblings Chandan, Chanchal and

Chitvan. Together they start a hilarious journey to find themselves and their relations. This starts with a Road trip in a car, Tiago. The iconic colored orange Tata Tiago is shown in the series that is driven to different states on different roads.

But can every branded content serve the purpose of the collaboration is the real question. Therefore the brands make sure that they collaborate with the ones who match their brand’s image and philosophy. Similar to this is an example of a web series by Dice media, Please Find Attached. Please Find Attached was a sweet spot for closeup to collaborate with in scenes where the couple is in the bathroom and focus has been made on close up. The brand has not just got a good window in the series but also the brand’s image matches with the energy of the couple who feel fresh and come closer after brushing their teeth.