HT Media limited announced the shutting down of Fever FM, a radio station under Fever Network. This was a marketing ploy. HT Media created a scenario where people were led to believe that Fever FM was actually shutting down. It’s not. They are simply preparing for a relaunch, giving the station a new home on digital.
Ramesh Menon, CEO of audio business, HT Media Group, took to Fever FM’s LinkedIn to announce the cease of operations of Fever FM.
But, is announcing the demise of a brand a good marketing tactic? Branding guru Harish Bijoor believes that one should never kill off their brand, even if it is for marketing and publicity purposes.
“Death of a brand (even a feigned one) is a headline. If 100 read the headline, possibly 5 read the body (where the prank) is revealed. Therefore, doing this is a bad strategic move. It’s tempting. But don’t call the demise of your brand. Ever,” Bijoor said.
Read More: Why HT Media ‘shutting down’ Fever FM as a marketing stunt is a bad idea
Misleading as a tactic has long been used. Most of the times, resulting in a successful outcome. However, when does one draw the line? How much misleading is too much misleading?
There are possible legal repercussions to HT Media’s announcement. Two things to consider here. One, HT Media is a listed company. Two, all news of sale has to be informed to stock exchanges by the company. While this was a misleading campaign, there is a possibility that it many mislead investors, giving grounds to SEBI to take action.
Read More: HT Media gimmick: Not shutting down Fever FM
There’s an embargo on fraudulent or misleading advertisements, Section 18 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 announces the powers and functions of the central consumer protection authority and in the exercise of such power “guidelines for the prevention of misleading advertisement and endorsement for misleading advertisement” were issued.
Prateek Lakra, managing partner, Clergy & Wisemen said, “We have to understand that such an alleged misleading advertisement probably was issued with the consent of the director(s) and it might be a case that investors were not notified about such an advertisement as it’s a miscellaneous matter. Further, if such an alleged advertisement is published to affect the securities of the company then it would be deemed to be an unfair and fraudulent trade practice.”
Brands are meant to make a positive impact on society. However, sometimes in the process of hopping onto what seems like a trend or gaining publicity, can easily backfire, causing a negative ripple effect.