Anzac Day Commemoration in Australia

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Introduction

Anzac day is a memorial day that is very significant amongst the Australians. There are mixed perception regarding this day amongst different individuals. A number of individuals regard Anzac Day as a moment of homage making it to be characterized by respect. To others it is a moment of happiness through activities such as parties. The initials ANZAC stand for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. The objective of instituting this day was to commemorate the Australians and New Zealanders who died in 1915 during war. Most of the people who died were residents of Gallipoli Peninsula or what is commonly known as the Anzac Cove. Numerous numbers of individuals died amongst them being soldiers of different nationality. It is estimated that 21,200 British, 2700 New Zealanders, 10, 000 French, 87,000 Turkish, 8,700 Australians and 1350 Indians died during the war. This makes Anzac day to be very important to the Australian and New Zealand government and the citizens with regard to national identity. In 1914, the government that came into power in Australia aimed at establishing a good reputation with the other countries. The Australian soldiers formed and alliance with those of New Zealand with the intention of capturing Gallipoli peninsula. According to Anzac Day tradition, the objective was to open Dardanelles to other allied navies in order to capture Istanbul the capital of Turkey (Anon., 2009). The servicemen met intense resistance from Ottoman defenders leading into a massive death of Australians and New Zealanders.

Appropriateness of the event taking place on this particular public holiday

25^th April is a very important national holiday for the Australians. The celebration of this event in this day is appropriate since it is the particular day when the attacks began, that is 25^th April 1915. This date also marks the original date that the Australian soldiers landed at Gallipoli. Anzac Day commemorations begin at dawn annually on 25^th April. This is the exact time that of the original landing of the soldiers. As the war continued, more Australian soldiers joined the forces at Gallipoli but the initial date when the soldiers landed had a great impact amongst the Australian. This is due to the fact that the Australians perceived with passion the sacrifice of the soldiers for the benefit of the country. Australia’s Anzac Day celebrations are beyond commemorating an anniversary when the military landed at Gallipoli. Through the event, it becomes possible for the Australians to commemorate all the Australians who perished during different wars and other peace keeping operations. For example, through the day’s commemoration the Australians recognize the first military action of Australian forces in the First World War (Greg, 2009, p.2).On the other hand, commemoration of Anzac day makes it possible for the Anzac spirit to be effectively propagated amongst various generations in Australia.

Features of Anzac Day Commemoration

In marketing, consistency of product quality is very important. This enables the firm to maintain or otherwise increase the level of satisfaction amongst the consumers. Over the years the Australian government has ensured that Anzac Day celebrations are conducted in a similar pattern. This ensures that there is consistency amongst the various generations. The objective of the Australian government integrating consistency in the celebration of Anzac day is to create the correct meaning of the celebrations to the youths and the different cultures. The following features characterize the Anzac Day commemorations;

Laying of wreath

During the memorials, flowers are laid on the graves of those who died in the war. Rosemary flowers are very popular during Anzac Day ceremonies. This is due to the fact that the flower symbolizes remembrance. Other commemorative symbols that are used as wreath include Laurel. The laurel leaves were used by the ancient Romans as a symbol of victory. Currently, the poppy is commonly used by the Australians during Anzac day celebrations.

Recitations

It has become a tradition for specific recitations to be done during Anzac day commemoration in Australia. The most common recitation comes from the poem titled ‘For the fallen’ that was written by Laurence Binyon.

Sounding of the last post

It is a tradition in military to sound the Last Post signifying the end of the various days’ activities for the service men and women. The Last Post is also sounded during funeral services of the service men and women as a sign that the soldier has gone to his or her final rest. During Anzac Day Commemoration, sounding of the Last Post signifies that the task of the soldier is over hence he or she can rest in peace.

There is also a short moment of silence during Anzac Day commemoration. This enables the citizens to reflect on the events of the war at Anzac Cove. It also a sign of paying respect to the soldiers who died. The short moment of silence is followed by sounding of the rouse while the flag is raised half mast.

Significance of Anzac day to Australia

Australia was colonized by the British in the early 1700’s. It can be regarded as a new nation since it became a federal state in 2001. The Australian government is committed to develop a sense of nationalism amongst the citizens. In order to promote nationalism, the government had to ensure that it transforms the nation’s cultural diversity to form a homogeneous nation (Greg, 2003,p.3). This would enable the citizens to focus more on aspects that are of national interest. According to Niarn, there are various benefits that a country attains by developing a culture of nationalism amongst the citizens such as increased rate of industrialization (1977, p.4). Anzac day commemoration effectively results into establishment of a sense of nationalism. This is due to the fact that it brings together the different societies annually. According to Greg, a large number of pilgrims especially Australians and New Zealanders visit the region annually (2009, p.2). Greg asserts that the Australians and New Zealanders may have a perception that they are visiting a battle field but in the real sense they are visiting a ‘region where their countries began’ (2009, p.2). This means that through commemoration of Anzac day, a large number of people become more concerned with issues related to nationhood. This results into development of sense of Australian identity.

On the other hand, through commemoration of Anzac day, the Australian government has been able to eliminate numerous social-cultural and structural setbacks such as tribalism. Through Anzac day celebrations, social-cultural coherence is greatly promoted. This is due to the fact that the message that is communicated is aimed that promoting a sense of sharing, respect, and unconditional acceptance of individuals. This results into increased interdependence amongst the citizens. The commemoration also enables the Australians to reflect on loyalty and other difficult issues such as loss. This resulted from emergence of what is commonly known as the ‘the Anzac legend, which is characterized by devastating loss.

Marketing strategy behind Anzac day

Social marketing

Anzac day commemoration has been greatly promoted by the government over the years which have made the day to be greatly embraced by the citizens. Social marketing strategy is used promoting Anzac day. The concept of social marketing was established in the 1970’s by Phillip Kotler and Gerald Zaltman. This was upon realization of the fact that the strategies that were incorporated in promotion and selling of the different consumers products could also be used to for the benefit of the society. Carl and Ziethaml assert that social marketing involves the designing and implementing of various programs aimed at influencing acceptable ideas within the society (2002, p.4). Through Social marketing, it became possible to use marketing concepts, knowledge and other marketing related techniques to attain definite social ends. According to Nedra (2006, p.2), social marketing has made it possible to change behaviors and attitude within the society. This is due to the fact that it becomes easy to ‘sell’ ideas to the society. According to Kotler and Andreasean, the objective of social marketing is to impact various social behaviors. Through social marketing, the benefits accrue to the society and not the marketer (2002).

Marketing mix

Various marketing mix elements can be identified in relation to Anzac day commemoration. According to Kottler and Andreasan, marketing mix refers to the different primary elements that must be considered in the process of marketing a product or a service (2002, p.1). The four primary marketing elements include price, promotion, place, and product. With regard to social marketing, the product is represented by the desired behavior.

In relation to Anzac day, the commemorations are aimed at entrenching a culture of nationalism amongst the Australians. This means that the Australian society would be committed to matters of national interest. In this case, the spirit of nationalism is the intended ‘product’. In social marketing price refers to the cost. The cost can either be financial, emotional or psychological. Anzac Day celebrations are intended to commemorate the loss of life that occurred during Gallipoli war. On the other hand, place in social marketing refers to the designated location where the desired behavior will be performed. According to basics of marketing, place refers to the location where the audience will access the program of the product or service (Anon., 2009). During Anzac Day celebrations, a large number of people visit Anzac Cove to commemorate the soldiers and other individuals who lost their life.

Elements of marketing in relation to Anzac day

Marketing variables

To effectively undertake marketing of a particular product or service, the marketing department must consider various variables. This ensures that there are no gaps left in the marketing process. In order to effectively undertake marketing, a comprehensive generational research is undertaken. This involves conduction of a demographic analysis with specific reference to a particular generation. This enables the management to identify the influence that the identified generation has on consumers’ decision. In instituting Anzac day as a strategy to promote nationalism, the Australian government considered two main variables. These include generation and the cultural profile.

Generation

According to Garry and Diana, the work force in an organization is composed of four main generations that emerged during the 20^th century. The four main generational segments include the traditionalists, baby boomers, millennials and generation X (2008). The Australian generation can be categorized using the four segments. The traditionalist’s generation emerged during the early 20^th century to 1944. Currently, there is a reduction in the number of traditionalists within Australia. This is due to the fact that population is becoming aged. On the other hand, the baby boomers consist of the population that was born during the period ranging from 1945 to 1964. This was a period when there was increased prosperity. This category of generation usually seeks authority to make decisions. On the other hand, they have a drive towards changing the society. Garry and Diana asserts that this generation was more concerned with raising their own families during the 1960’s. With regard to generation X, Garry and Diana describes it as a generation that is composed of individuals who were born during 1960 to 1970 (2008, p.5). This means that the current age of this generation is between 30 to 40 years. This generation is characterized by being self centered. This makes it to be termed as the ‘me generation’. On the other hand the millennial generation was born from 1982 onwards.

Culture

With the increased rate of globalization, Australian culture is changing at a rapid rate due to the high rate of immigration into Australia. This has resulted into the process of acculturation. According to Boonlua, acculturation process refers to the process through which members of a different cultural background adopt the culture of a different group (1970, p.82). Acculturation has an impact on immigrants’ perception of their own ethnic identities. Through acculturation, the immigrants are able to positively embrace the foreign culture.

Product life cycle

Product life cycle is an important element in marketing. This is due to the fact that it illustrates the various phases that a product undergoes within the market. These include the introduction, growth, maturity and decline. This makes it possible for the management to assess the life cycle of the product or service. With regard to the product life cycle theory, all products and services undergo the four stages. According to Carl and Zeithaml , analysis of the product life cycle enables the management to formulate effective strategies related to the stage of the product (2002,p.5).The product life cycle is used to explain the activities of Anzac day commemorations.

Introduction phase

During the period ranging from 1916 to 1920’s, Anzac day was not widely commemorated in Australia. The only individuals who acknowledged the day were exclusively the veterans and the ceremony was usually held at dawn. According to Garry and Diana, the veterans put more emphasis on being recognized by individuals who are around them (2008, p.7).By 1927, change began to occur in that more people began to commemorate the day. This made the Australian government institutionalize various commemorative services. In this phase, cultural diversity was not given more concern. This is due to the fact that the societies in Australia were Anglo-Saxon. With time, the Australian population increased due to a high birth rate. The result was that the Australian population was composed of a large number of young people. The decision capacity of this population category on whether to attend Anzac day commemoration was minimal.

With time, the commemoration of Anzac day began to gain momentum with the traditionalists acknowledging the day. This made more people to positively embrace the commemoration of the day resulting into a large number of Australians attending the commemoration service.

The growth stage

As time went by, more people began to appreciate Anzac day. In the 1930’s, most of the families of the ex-service men and women began to appreciate the commemoration of the day. To this end, the Australian government changed the time when the ceremony was conducted to day time. This means that there was increased desire amongst the Australian to celebrate the development of their country. The increased growth in celebration of Anzac day occurred mainly during 1930’s and 1940’s.

The decline stage

This period occurred during 1950’s across to 1970’s when the baby boomers comprised the largest proportion of Australian population (Megan, 2007, p.3). During this period Anzac day was not being commemorated for the real reason that it was instituted. According to Megan (2007, p.4), this resulted into a perception that Anzac celebrations were similar to the ordinary national holidays. According to Greg, the perception of Anzac Day celebrations amongst the Australian was that it was aimed at paying tribute to soldiers who returned from war ( 2009,p.2). This means that the commemorations did not put emphasis on those who died during the war. In 1970’s, Anzac day was characterized by an increase in the number of Australians youths who were protesting against Vietnam War. During this time, there was mixed perception towards war amongst the various generations in Australia. The generation that had witness the war at Gallipoli had a positive attitude towards war whereas there was a negative attitude amongst those who had not.

The change in cultural profile, due to increased immigration into Australia resulted into a decline in the number of individuals who commemorated Anzac day. This is due to the fact that Australian culture was rapidly changing due to foreign cultures. Most of the traditionalists were now more concerned with raising their families and did not concentrate on memories of the events of the war (Megan, 2007, p.5).

The re-growth stage

Currently, a large number of Australians especially the young celebrate Anzac Day. According to Greg, there was an increase in the number of individuals who attended the 2005 Anzac day commemoration at Anzac cove in Turkey. Approximately a total of 20,000 individuals attended the ceremony (2009, p.2). Linda asserts that this was the highest attendance since Anzac day was instituted as a national holiday in 1923. The current attendance of Anzac day commemoration is characterized by individuals of different generations. These include the traditionalists, baby boomers, millenials and generation X.

Communication of Anzac’s day image

Legislations/ policies

The Australian government has formulated various policies in relation to Anzac day. According to the basics of social marketing, policy refers to a set of various rules and regulations used to influence the outcome of a desired behavior (Anon., 2009). In line with this, the Australian government has formulated a legislation allowing the various entertainment businesses to conduct their business in the evening hours during Anzac Day. According to Anzac Day annual trust report 2005-2006, Anzac Day was initially considered to be a ‘closed day’ for the business people (Anon., 2009). This is due to the fact that business activities were restricted during this day. This legislation has led to a change in the perception of Anzac day within the business society. Through the added trading hours, the business people are able to make additional profits. The government would also benefit in that the business people would increase their contribution to the Anzac Day Trust Fund. The fund was established by the Australian government in an effort to financially support the ex -service men and women and their families. The money from the fund is distributed annually to various non-governmental organizations that support the ex-service men and women.

On the other hand, Australian government ensures that the image of Anzac Day is not damaged by the business society through profit motive. For example, the government banned the use of the word ‘Anzac’ in branding products. The ban resulted from the fact that some business people perceived potential profit from using the word ‘Anzac’ in marketing their products. Through the policy, the government has been able to retain the actual meaning of Anzac Day amongst the business society (Greg, 2009, p.4).

Education

In an effort to promote the significance of Anzac Day amongst the youth, the Australian government has incorporated Anzac Day education to the school curriculum (Anzac Day commemoration committee, 2009, p.4). Through provision of different educational resources, the government is able to instill a sense of heritage amongst the youth. Through Anzac day education, the youths are able to understand the magnitude of sacrifice by the young soldiers towards national interest.

The Australian government has also incorporated Anzac day into early childhood education. This enables children to understand the different life of Australians. According to Anzac Day Commemoration Committee, Anzac day education enables the Australian children to understand the responsibilities of different people in relation to peace keeping (2009, p.5).Role playing is amongst the methods that early childhood education curriculum integrates. For example, role playing includes the use of hospitals tents, models of submarines and plane hangar. Children also cook meals that are typical to that consumed by the soldiers during wartime.

The media

The media has played a significant role in promoting the image of Anzac day amongst the Australians. For instance, the film industry has produced films aimed at educating people on the importance of commemorating Anzac day. The films are produced in a way that effectively communicates the desired message. For example, some of the films such as ‘Anzac day promotional’ have no sound and the pictures are black and white. Some of the scenes in this film show the hard conditions that the soldiers met in the battlefield such as harmful gases. This film also carries deep messages related to Anzac day. The film ends with the message ‘A nation’s manhood is straining at its task of carving Anzac Day deep-cut in the calendar of time’ (Elizabeth, 2009, p.1). This means that the film industry has become an important public campaign element in promoting the image of Anzac day.

The television and radio broadcasting industries in Australia have also greatly promoted the image of Anzac day (Greg, 2009, p.5). According to Greg, there has been an increase in the number of Australians who watch various Television programmes related to Anzac day celebration (2009, p.6). This shows that the media has become an effective agent of social advertising. According to Carl and Zeithaml, social advertising refers to the concept of promoting the desired attitude, behavior or instill a certain idea for the benefit of the society (2002, p.6).

Recommendation

In order to effectively promote the image of Anzac Day amongst Australians, various strategies should be combined with social marketing. The government should integrate behavioral targeting with social marketing in promoting the image of Anzac Day. In marketing, behavioral targeting refers to a market communication strategy in which the intended message regarding a product or service is communicated to the desired generation. In behavioral targeting the message is devised according to the changes within the identified generation (Kottler& Andreasean, 2002, p.3). Through behavioral targeting, the Australian government will be able to effectively propagate the image of Anzac Day. This is due to the fact that globalization is resulting into a change in the cultural profile and generational changes. The number of traditionalist is reducing while it is not clear on the possible changes that the baby-boomers, generation X and the millenials might undertake. By integrating behavioral targeting with social marketing, the Australian government will be able to sustain the integrity of Anzac Day celebrations. This means that the future of Anzac Day will be guaranteed.

The Australian government should also incorporate the emerging technology such as the internet technology in communicating the importance of Anzac Day commemorations to the Australians. In relation to social marketing, the Australian government should integrate the use of face book in promoting Anzac Day. According to Carl and Zeithaml, it is only through effective communication that the desired outcome of social marketing is achieved (2002, p.8). In relation to Anzac Day commemoration, effective promotion of Anzac Day’s image will result into effective integration of the spirit of nationalism amongst the Australians.

Conclusion

Anzac day is a very important day in the history of Australians. The events that take place during Anzac Day commemoration help in entrenching nationalism amongst the Australians. This is through commemoration of the loss of life that occurred during the Gallipoli war. The celebration of this day on 25^th of April every year is very appropriate. This is due to the fact that it is the initial date when the Australians landed at war at Anzac Cove. The soldiers manifested high level of sacrifice towards the nation during the war. Through the annual commemoration of the soldiers who lost their lives at Anzac Cove, Anzac spirit which relates to loyalty, sacrifice and loss is propagated amongst the various generations. Through the spirit of nationalism, the government has been able to solve social problems that result from social diversity. Generation and cultural profile are used to segment the Australian population. The two are considered as marketing variables in analyzing Anzac Day. This is due to Social diversity arises from the fact that the Australian population is characterized by different ethnic groups as a result of increased rate of immigration. Social marketing strategy is used to analyze Anzac Day. The product life cycle concept of social marketing is used to explain the various stages through which Anzac Day has evolved. These phases include the introduction, growth, decline and re-growth which occurred from 1920’s. The various generations include the traditionalists, baby boomers, millienials and generation X (Elizabeth, 2005, p.6). The various generations had differing perception regarding Anzac Day commemorations. Various features characterize Anzac day commemoration. These include laying of wreath, recitations, sounding of the Last Post and a moment of silence. Over the years, there has been consistency in the observation of these events during Anzac Day celebrations. This has ensured that the meaning of Anzac Day is not lost through generational changes.

The marketing mix variables which include the price, place, product and promotion are also used to analyze Anzac Day. Entrenching the spirit of nationalism is the desired product in the commemoration of Anzac Day. Anzac Day commemoration is characterized by a large number of people who visit Anzac Cove where the soldiers died in war. The loss of life represents the cost that was incurred.

In promoting the image of Anzac Day, various communication strategies are used. Within the business society, the government has formulated legislations allowing various businesses to be opened in the evening of Anzac Day. This has resulted into a positive image of the day amongst the business society. Anzac day education has also been integrated within the school curriculum. This enables the image of Anzac Day to be effectively incorporated amongst the youth. Through Anzac Day education, the youths are able to understand the sacrifice of the service men and women. The media has also played a significant role in promoting the image of Anzac Day. Various films have been produced related to the events of war at Anzac Cove. The films have a message that effectively communicates the sacrifice of the soldiers. The television and radio broadcasting industries have also been used to promote the image of Anzac Day.

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