Nikhil Narayanan

𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗽 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀

During my first job interview in Bangalore, the Creative Head of the place looked at my CV and muttered, “Oh, God! Not another Mallu.“ While the remark made me uncomfortable, I had no idea it was just a sign of things to come.

From day one, the bullying started. The lady hounded me and scrutinised everything I did. My clothes, my smoking and even the people I hung out with - everything pissed her off.

The work wasn't the most exciting over there. So when a colleague in account management approached me to pitch for an interesting client, I jumped at it. We went. We pitched. We won the business.

Upon returning to office, I told her about our accomplishment. I expected a pat on my back. Instead, I got fired for insubordination. I was shocked, because we just got business for an agency that wasn't swimming in money. But without creating a fuss, I picked up my bag and left the building.

On my way home, the Founder of the place called me. He'd heard about the incident and wanted me back. Not because of my supreme talent, but because they were short of writers. After a short patch-up with my boss, I went to my seat. Then I opened my mail, sent out my resignation and walked out.

I felt like Superman that day.

#advertising #agencylife #themoraltroll

This is, so far, my favourite Christmas commercial from this year. Such beautiful storytelling, quite reminiscent of 'Love Actually' - the quintessential Christmas classic.

#advertising #storytelling #christmas #themoraltroll

Dear OTT Platforms,

Big fan of your “skip intro“ feature. Much appreciated. Now if you could also introduce a “skip song“ function, watching our Desi films will become a much seamless experience for some of us. Yes, let those who want to sit through the songs, sit through them. But to have a choice to go from the beginning of an out-of-place item number in a thriller to the very end is a choice every viewer should ideally have.

Thanks,
Viewer who is eagerly waiting for the climax


#ott #netflix #amazonprime #sonyliv #hotstar #themoraltroll

Forget high performers being treated at par with average performers, Rajesh Srinivasan. I've been in organisations where I've witnessed mediocrity being rewarded and excellence being ignored. And watched on helplessly as some of the best talent left despite my futile efforts to convince the management to correct their course.

One might think it is just common sense to adequately reward performance. But alas...

#workculture #performanceappraisal #thegreatresignation #themoraltroll

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝗮 Netflix 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗲𝗳?

Such a lovely campaign from Jellyfish to promote the 3rd season of Lupin, a show about the fictional French thief.

I don't want to explain it and play spoiler. Because it's a clever campaign and the real joy is in that delightful moment where you get the ad and go, “Aah.“

#advertising #copywriting #themoraltroll

Nobody weaves a product benefit seamlessly into a storyline like Apple. This is yet another lovely example.

#storytelling #copywriting #advertising #themoraltroll

Clients always insist on speaking to the most senior person at the agency.

Maybe agencies should also demand to speak only to the CXOs. The actual decision-makers.

#advertising #agencylife #themoraltroll

During the lockdown, a colleague of mine decided to pursue a hobby of hers.

She started making scented candles.

To offer support and because I am something of a fraghead, I ordered a couple.

Today, she pinged me for my address so that she could courier the candles.

I shared my address and informed her that I would make the payment via Gpay.

She responded, “Wait till you receive them. What if you don't like them?“

I replied, “This is not Advertising. I will pay you. You have put in the effort after all.“

Advertising is an industry where subjectivity plays a huge role in the decision-making process.

When such is the case, it is only natural for effort to get trashed - sometimes unreasonably.

Work getting rejected due to poor quality is one thing.

But it getting refused because someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed is just cruel.

I know that pain and have known it for years.

So whenever I get a chance to right those wrongs, I do it without second thoughts.

In short, I am paying for those candles.

#advertising #agencylife #themoraltroll #wfhlife

Dear Instagram,

Could you please stop refreshing my feed every time I toggle between apps? Thanks.

Yours,
The guy who was in the middle of reading a joke, left to check a notification, and returned to find a totally unrelated post.



#instagram #uiux #socialmedia #themoraltroll

Another day. Another great Thai ad. The storytelling on this one is lovely by Ogilvy Bangkok.

#storytelling #copywriting #advertising #themoraltroll

As opposed to other mouthwash brands that remove germs only from the bottom-left corner of the mouth.

#advertising #copywriting #themoraltroll

Recently, I was checking out the profile of someone who sent me a connection request. While going through the profile, I came to know that she'd been following me since 2020. 4 years of checking out my content before deciding on sending a connection request! For a moment there, I got the feeling of being on the longest probationary period of my career.


#probation #networking #linkedin #themoraltroll

Two tomato sellers meet up at the end of the day for some comparative analysis and chit chat. Let's call them Sailesh and Digvijay.

Digvijay: “So, how was your day?“

Sailesh: “Good. I sold a little over 15 kgs. How about you?“

Digvijay: “Well, I didn't sell any. But I made some headway.“

Sailesh: “How?“

Digvijay: “I pushed my cart hard and ensured that it reached every corner within a 3km radius. People in over 70% of the households saw my cart pass by. A few people told me how they really enjoyed the way I'd piled up my tomatoes. “Creative“, they called it. Also, that popular girl in the village? She took a few kgs of tomatoes from me.“

Sailesh: “So you did sell some.“

Digvijay: “No, no, no. She didn't pay for it. Even better. She will talk about my tomatoes to her large group of friends. Exposure, my friend.“

#copywriting #advertising #storytelling #themoraltroll

Dear advertising writers,

Learn to write good briefs. Nope. I am not asking you to consider a switch to Account Management. But going forward, your job might involve writing clear instructions for AI copywriting tools like CopyAI and the latest buzz on the block - ChatGPT. Brief writing skills will come quite handy then. Not the kind of briefs you are used to receiving, but the kind you would like to receive. Just much, much better and more precise. With sharper keywords, polished arguments and compelling creative hooks.

So get on board the AI train. Because while the machines might not replace everyone, they will surely replace those who don't understand how to use them to their advantage. Slowly, but surely.

Thanks,
Your future self

#aigeneratedcontent #writingtips #contentwriting #copywriting #themoraltroll

𝗔𝗻 𝗘𝘅𝗶𝘁 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 - 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱

HR: “So, last day huh?“
Employee: “Yep.“

HR: “How was your experience working with us? Did you enjoy it?“
Employee: “To an extent.“

HR: “Meaning?“
Employee: “I quit, right?“

HR: “Lol. Anyway. Would you mind sharing a few things candidly?
Employee: “Sure.“

HR: “Please don't mind. It's just the process.“
Employee: “I don't mind.“

HR: “Could you list three things you would want to see improved at this organisation? Be honest.“
Employee: “No.1. The HR department needs to...“

HR: “That will be all. Thanks.“
Employee: “But you wanted 3.“

*HR has left the chat.

#corporatelife #advertising #agencylife #themoraltroll

As many people prepare to return to their physical workplaces, here is a fun thing to do in office. 😈

via Whatsapp

#returntooffice #funatwork #themoraltroll

If you are an organisation that prints company t-shirts and gets the HR to send a mail to every employee making it mandatory for them to wear it - YOU ARE DOING IT WRONG.

Instead, make your culture so cool that the employees feel proud enough to be part of it. And when they do, you won't have to coerce them into sporting your merchandise. They will do it themselves. They won't just wear your badge. They will take selfies wearing it. They will flaunt it.

#workculture #corporatelife #themoraltroll

If you think that not marketing every moment will make customers forget your brand and make it irrelevant, you have bigger problems to worry about.

#momentmarketing #advertising #themoraltroll

Here's an interesting fact: Apparently, advertising has existed since 3000 BC.

And below is a random picture of me, engaged in a process I seem to have mastered over the years, in some shack on a beach in Unawatuna, Sri Lanka.

Because 'a post along with a totally unrelated pic' seems to be the new LinkedIn trend.

𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘳: 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘩𝘰𝘭 𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘫𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩. 𝘈𝘭𝘴𝘰, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 '𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵' 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘶𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥.

#contentstrategy #linkedinforcreators #contentcreation #themoraltroll

Sharing your Spotify Wrapped is cool alright. But are you ready to share your 'Google Chrome Incognito Mode Search History' Wrapped?

#spotifywrapped #trends #googlechrome #themoraltroll