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There are many similar products available in the market today. Be it chocolate, salt, soap or car, in every category the customer has the option of many brands. In such a situation, it is not easy to attract the customer just by telling about the features of the product. This is the reason why many brands are now making the story and emotion along with the product a part of their marketing. Companies don't just tell the customer what their product does but connect it to a relationship, happiness, family, festival or everyday life. This also adds an emotion to the product and can differentiate the brand in the mind of the customer. This is a method of genius marketing, where along with selling the product, companies also sell the story behind it.

This approach has also been seen in Kantar's 2026 Creative Effectiveness Awards India report. Kantar tested more than 13,000 creatives from across the world, including more than 1,500 creatives from India. More than 250 ads were evaluated in India. According to Kanter, effective advertising requires a good story, cultural connection, and proper integration of the brand into the story. It is not enough to just create a story that makes people emotional. The customer should also understand which brand the story is about. According to Kantar, creator influence has also increased by 77% but only 27% of creator content is properly connected to the sponsoring brand.

Tata Salt added brand to farewell

Tata Salt's 'Vidaai' campaign is a good example of this. It was praised in Kantar's 2026 Creative Effectiveness Awards. In this, the emotional moments of Indian wedding and farewell were made a part of the story. Here, not only were the benefits of salt explained, but the brand was also associated with a moment to family and relationships that people could easily connect with. Its business angle is also clear. Salt is a product in which the customer has many options. In such a situation, the brand tries to create its own identity by being associated with a particular emotion or memory.

Cadbury associates chocolate with relationships

Cadbury Dairy Milk's 'New Neighbour' campaign is also among Kantar's acclaimed 2026 campaigns. It showed the story of the arrival of a new neighbor and the relationships that develop between people. Instead of telling the price or features of the chocolate, the brand made human relationships a part of the story. In this way, Cadbury associates chocolate not just as a food item but with happiness and connection between people. This can associate a memory or emotion with the product for the customer.

KitKat made break an identity

KitKat's 'Only KitKat Break on Break' campaign is also one of Kantar's most appreciated campaigns in 2026. In this, the brand linked its product to the habit of taking breaks. That is, the break in KitKat's marketing itself became part of the brand's identity. This creates an easy connection in the customer's mind to remember KitKat with the break. Here the company is not just talking about the sale of chocolate but is linking a common everyday habit with its brand.

Dettol made marriage a part of the campaign

Dettol's 'Shaadi Ka Ghar' campaign is also among Kantar's appreciated campaigns in 2026. In this, a familiar Indian environment like a wedding was made a part of the story and the product was shown as a necessity in that situation. Instead of directly listing the features of the product, the brand showed a situation that the customer already knows. This allows the product to easily find a place within the story and the brand gets associated with that entire environment.

Advertising market is growing in India

This entire marketing can also be understood from the increasing size of India's advertising market. According to WPP Media's 'This Year Next Year 2026' report, India's advertising market is expected to grow by 9.7 percent to reach Rs 2,01,891 crore in 2026. This means that companies are spending large amounts of money on advertising to reach customers. In such a situation, just showing advertisements is not enough. It is also important for the brand that the customer can see it, remember it and distinguish it from other brands at the time of purchase. This is the reason why companies are using stories and emotions in advertisements.