Why did Swiggy make this ad?

Brand’s make advertisements to get consumers to buy their products. Now, that’s a fact. But, what if that wasn’t the case? What if a brand released a campaign not designed to promote any product, new offering or discount offers? Would that be a waste of precious marketing money? Many would agree. However, one such campaign did wonders in the A&M world, going on to even win big at Cannes Lions. Surprised and confused?

Well, Sanket Audhi, Kartik Srinivasan and Lloyd Mathias cleared everything during the pilot episode of Storyboard18’s Brand Blitz Quiz hosted by Sai Ganesh. A few months ago, Swiggy released an ad titled, “Why is this a Swiggy ad?” It was absolutely confusing. No context, no information, no product placement. Just some random objects and people in space. It made no sense, whatsoever. But, it did do one thing right. It got people talking. Everyone who saw the ad started analysing the advert and began theorising and deciphering. The one with the best theory would win a sum of Rs. 1 lakh. Everyone was talking about Swiggy and all of a sudden, the ad was a hit.

Read more: Why did Swiggy make a cryptic ad inviting whacky user-generated theories?

The ad was ingenious. Just think about it. In a world where people thrive on 30 second content, the conceptualizers at Talented had the audacity to be confident that millennials and Gen Z would stare at a post for more than 10 seconds and take the time to come up with theories.

Sanket Audhi, one of the minds behind the ad at agency Talented, said that they decided to flip the general premise of an ad with this one. It spoke more to the tune of each consumer’s memory experience that they associate with brand Swiggy. He further added how brands and agencies look forward to Karthik Srinivasan sharing his two cents on their ad campaigns and featuring them in his LinkedIn and podcast. Mathias was quick to laugh and second it.

So, why is it a Swiggy ad? Is Swiggy going to Mars? Metaverse? Is the brand going to accept crypto? Delivering samosa to Elon Musk or to outer space? Will the gulab jamun uncle get a new avatar? All the answers could be right. It’s open-ended. It is a Swiggy ad because it made you think about the brand all along. Clever, cryptic, engaging and digital-first.