The Undying Mass Media

Arjun Mohan Jan 04, 2022

As famously quoted by Jacques Ellul, “Mass Media provides the essential link between the individual and the demands of the technological society.”

In today’s information age or as we all call it the digital age, the role of digital media has changed drastically. Consumers largely depend on the now ‘breaking’ news through social media and other new-age digital sites. The proliferation of social media across India has enabled one-on-one communication as opposed to the traditional structure of one-to-many through mediums such as newspapers, television and OOH. The significant explosion of digital platforms is driving convergence for brands. The new age media allow brands to communicate to a specific set of audiences with specific interests at the time that they want to.

Pandemic Induced Boost For Digital Media

Take EdTech sector as an example for reaching out to a specific set of audience who is looking for only courses in Data Science. All of this is definitely not possible to convey through traditional media or mass media. This was proven during the pandemic, where professionals took to upskilling or either spent time over OTT platforms. Consumers were reached out to through online mediums to communicate the importance of upskilling while they had the time at hand. All of this was fuelled by innovative and new technological advancements. However, the role of mass media can never be forgotten! Unlike any other digital age, the mass media age of TV, Print, and Outdoor still owns its narrative and continues to hold credibility and trust for consumers. This form of media is highly recognisable and is also essential for long–term brand building, credibility, and awareness. In fact, even with newspapers seeing a drastic fall in circulation and readership during the pandemic, OOH saw a dip in sales but after the unlock 2.0 or at the stage of endemic, these mediums are coveted more than ever. For any brand to build up a plateau and to hold a successful campaign, it is necessary to have an integrated approach.

Mass Media Efficacy For Marketing

While digital is imperative to remain relevant in the current times and engage with the audience in real-time, nothing replaces the long-lasting brand-building efficiency that mass media muscle offers. The frequency, reach, authenticity, and trust of mass media in many ways is the bedrock for all major brands in India, or brand properties that gained value over a period of time.

The propagation of mass media continues to hold its presence across vast swaths in the country. Leading establishments, as well as new-age e-commerce sites even in today’s digital age, include mass media at the core of its strategic planning to manage brand image and to convey its message to reach a wide audience. They focus largely on mass media as it offers an unrivalled edge with its unprecedented reach which even your digital and social media platforms can’t still offer. Mass media has its own strengths and has not only helped brands to navigate and reach their Indian consumers but has also helped brands resurrect their images.

If we look at the opulence of Bollywood or even the large Premier leagues like IPL, they never solely depend on social media for their reach. They always move with an integrated approach to reach the audience at large.

The Future Of Media

As digital advances will continue for entertainment, news, businesses there will be a rise of audiences on social platforms more than traditional media formats. However, in a diverse market like that of ours, mass media cannot be extracted out of the lives of many especially those where digital is still far-fetched. So, the way I see it, both mass media as well as the new age media feed into the other and help create an upward spiral. With cutting-edge technology such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality

(VR) being created to interact with consumers; Mass Media still communicates the emotional brand connect. On the flip side, mass media in the digital age makes consumers spoilt for choice!