Trends in Advertising & Brand Communication Education for 2024

Advertising and communications enthusiasts must have heard of the Bengal Gazette. If you have not, it was the first newspaper to be published in Asia and one of the first forms of advertisement was seen in the Bengal Gazette, in India. Advertisements and communications date back to the 1700’s. Today, means of communication and advertising has evolved, it has reached greater heights offering greater opportunities.

Advertising used to be a way of mere ‘informing’, in today’s context it has grown beyond that. In this article, let us discuss the trends in advertising & brand communication education for 2024.

Strategy Management in Advertising

Every task requires a plan of action to ensure smooth functioning. In advertisement, strategic management would involve understanding a brand’s requirement, setting a specific objective, coming up with the concept for a campaign, setting the campaign in action, performance marketing techniques are to be implemented, assessing and analyzing the progress of the campaign and ensuring more market research. Leading institutes now offer classes and Course in advertising and brand communication.

Brand Value Reflection and Digital Literacy

According to a survey conducted by Hubspot, “45% of marketers will increase their investment in creating content that shows their brand’s values” as of 2023. This shows that there is space for potential growth if advertising is channeled towards the right direction. In order to ensure this, digital literacy is the way to go. Digital literacy is knowing about integrating digital skill sets such as social media marketing, online content creation, search engine optimization etc. to achieve a specific goal. Courses in advertising and marketing equip you to know and learn the right techniques that can help you excel in your career.

Artificial Intelligence for Content and Marketing

Artificial Intelligence and virtual reality is, what people would say, ‘the next big thing’. The use of AI and VR transcends across industries. In advertising, Ai can help you with performance analytics, marketing analytics, coming up with content (which is also known as GenAI – Generative Artificial Intelligence), identifying new trends, predicting user behaviour that helps with producing more UGC based deliverables and assessing all kinds of data. Though all of this may sound too sophisticated and maybe a little complex, with practice and the right guidance you get to become proficient in the field of advertising using AI technologies. Advertising courses such as Bachelors in advertising and marketing, BA in Mass communication with specialization in Advertising, Diploma in Marketing, Diploma in Advertising and various other certifications offer curricula that promise you a better career in the field.

UGC – Both Online and Offline

User Generated Content or also known as consumer generated content is images, texts, videos, audio etc. created by people other than the brand. This, on the social media spectrum, can be both organic and paid. There are two ways one can approach this: Offline and Online. Offline would include interacting with people in real time and gathering feedback and testimonials which can later be used to talk about the brand’s credibility and even promote campaigns. Online, would be sharing content that people have created, addressing your brand. This can be reviews, testimonials, opinions, recommendations etc. Although marketing offline is more considered to be conventional and less-approached, the method is still relevant. In your advertising course, you learn not just to use technical skills but also how to communicate, interact and form networks.

Take a look at the percentages in the image below to understand better:

Professional Development and Entrepreneurial Opportunities

Internships and workshops offered by institutes as part of course work, cna help you get the exposure and experience required for you to excel in the industry. The skills and lessons you learn during your course can open doors to entrepreneurial opportunities. In today’s context, brands have been constantly seeking help from marketing and advertising specialists to help them with advertising and promoting their brand. This proves the scope for advertising agencies and project management. You get to learn strategic communication, skills to analyze the market and its scope, understanding media laws and other organizational skills. It is important to make sure that you participate in spaces that help you form networks and build connections. This helps you with learning new techniques, keeping up with industry trends and maintaining good work relationships.

Interdisciplinary Learning

The industry of advertising and marketing in itself is very dynamic and multidisciplinary. The art of effective advertising also involves learning human behaviour to understand consumer language, preferences and to cater to the brand’s algorithm accordingly. Educational institutes promote the learning of psychology, business and even computer-science to make marketing more efficient. For instance, a brand intends to launch a new product, adjacent to their existing line of products. This requires understanding the market and predicting preferences. Advertising experts are to think from different perspectives and understand how different people would have different reactions. This is then channeled towards marketing and promoting the product with a target audience in mind. Advertising, marketing and communication are all beyond the spectrum of just letting people know about products and services. For it to be successful, the whole approach must be holistic.

Implementing Ethical Advertising Practices

Mass media, communication and advertising are ever-evolving spectrums. While practicing the profession it is important to be mindful and implement ethical practices. An advertising specialist must respect user privacy, must not involve propaganda in campaigns, must be transparent with channels of communication and conveying of messages and must not promote anything that may mislead the public. Educational institutes offer advertising classes that teach students the importance of the aforementioned ethics and also being aware of the laws concerned. They also teach students about the impact of social awareness and how it can be incorporated to be part of change and social justice. Data privacy is also an important factor that must be considered, it requires building trust with your audience and assuring integrity in your work. Concepts for advertisements and promotional channels must adhere to respecting culture and communities.

Conclusion

The industry of advertising and marketing offers lucrative career options and a lot of scope for professional development. The dynamic nature of the line of work gives way for newer innovations and creative growth. Institutes in Noida, Delhi NCR, such as AAFT, offer exemplary programs to learn advertising. At AAFT you can opt for the following courses:

• Diploma in Advertising & Brand Communication
• Diploma in PR & Events
• Diploma in Event Management
• BA in Event Management
• MA in Advertising & Brand Communication
• MA in PR & Events

Read more about AAFT’s School of Advertising, PR & Events here.