Walk into any ‘Art of Living’ centre (an NGO started by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar that claims to uplift humanity by bringing peace at the level of the individual, society and the world as a whole) and what startles you is the number of youngsters gathered there for spiritual healing, shattering preconceived notions that it was a place for ‘senior citizens’ who want to make the best of their retired life by enhancing their spiritual self. “Why don’t you opt for the YES+ course?” was the question that was thrown at us no sooner we walked into one such centre in South Delhi. Straight from a marketing text book, eh?
In fact, not only Art of Living, even institutions like International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKON), OSHO World, Patanjali Yogpeeth (Baba Ramdev), et al, are all places where gurus claim to offer peace of mind for battered souls. Girish Bhardwaj, a new entrant to the Art of Living course who has already undergone two stages – the Basic and Advanced Courses – avers that “his perception towards life has changed” after attending these sessions. And if you thought that spirituality comes free, welcome to the world of materialistic spiritualism - the course fee ranges anything from Rs.1,500 to Rs.3,000 (for a week long session).
So, what is it that prompts a Gen-X youngster to be a part of such centres. And more importantly how do centres attract such huge crowd?
Well, if you market your courses with tags like ‘Self Development’, ‘Stress Management’, et al, any person in the present scenario would be sure to lap it up. Don’t mistake us. We don’t disagree with the basic premise of such courses, which have almost become food for many souls in today’s stress filled society. What we are only bringing out is the manner in which modern marketing techniques are now being applied to this otherwise spiritual journey! Despite being low on ads in mainstream media, these centres have a huge presence on the Internet and that is one way they manage to attract tech savvy people like Girish. “Having read some books I got all the more confused. Thanks to the Internet, I chanced upon Art of Living,” points out Girish. Moreover, word-of-mouth certainly seems to be one of their key marketing strategies. “You become happy and you would like your near and dear ones to become happy too and that is how it’s marketed” he adds. There’s even a fair bit of showbiz involved in the business because many gurus spend big bucks to buy TV time that allows them to reach out to masses, organise mass jagrans in well-off neighbourhoods and even hire PR agencies to spread their enlightened word to the stressed out world!
For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Follow Arindam Chaudhuri on Twitter
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In fact, not only Art of Living, even institutions like International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKON), OSHO World, Patanjali Yogpeeth (Baba Ramdev), et al, are all places where gurus claim to offer peace of mind for battered souls. Girish Bhardwaj, a new entrant to the Art of Living course who has already undergone two stages – the Basic and Advanced Courses – avers that “his perception towards life has changed” after attending these sessions. And if you thought that spirituality comes free, welcome to the world of materialistic spiritualism - the course fee ranges anything from Rs.1,500 to Rs.3,000 (for a week long session).
So, what is it that prompts a Gen-X youngster to be a part of such centres. And more importantly how do centres attract such huge crowd?
Well, if you market your courses with tags like ‘Self Development’, ‘Stress Management’, et al, any person in the present scenario would be sure to lap it up. Don’t mistake us. We don’t disagree with the basic premise of such courses, which have almost become food for many souls in today’s stress filled society. What we are only bringing out is the manner in which modern marketing techniques are now being applied to this otherwise spiritual journey! Despite being low on ads in mainstream media, these centres have a huge presence on the Internet and that is one way they manage to attract tech savvy people like Girish. “Having read some books I got all the more confused. Thanks to the Internet, I chanced upon Art of Living,” points out Girish. Moreover, word-of-mouth certainly seems to be one of their key marketing strategies. “You become happy and you would like your near and dear ones to become happy too and that is how it’s marketed” he adds. There’s even a fair bit of showbiz involved in the business because many gurus spend big bucks to buy TV time that allows them to reach out to masses, organise mass jagrans in well-off neighbourhoods and even hire PR agencies to spread their enlightened word to the stressed out world!
For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Follow Arindam Chaudhuri on Twitter
1 lakh copies sold in less than 10 days of Arindam Chaudhuri’s “Discover The Diamond In you”
IIPM fights meltdown, places 2300 students By Education Mail Bureau
Delhi/ NCR B- Schools get better By Swati Sharma
Events at IIPM
Detail of all IIPM branches
IIPM set to beat economic slowdown
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
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