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Hi All,
As more and more cars come on the road, one of the interesting point has been the increase in the number of women drivers. Not only in Mumbai, i have seen it across other metros like Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai and it's not just the small passenger cars, but even SUVs that have women at the steering (minus the family). Started thinking as to what could be the reason behind this? Sure, affluence, better life styles are all there, but my guess is it's more got to do with freedom. So, even if one takes an upwardly mobile woman professional managing both work and home, it's possible that she's not in complete control in these two environment for a variety of reasons. However, driving a car gives her the complete freedom that she possibly yearns for in her normal life. Inside the vehicle, there's no one to tell her what to do, what not to do and she is free to accelerate or decelerate. Now, if that's the case, wouldn't be an interesting insight for a car maker to focus upon and communicate? In the world of segmentation, slicing the pie and creating a new segment riding on the sensibilities can help car brands break the clutter. Your thoughts on this please...
regards
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Pepsi-Coke commercials
Hi All,
Saw the new commercials from Coca Cola and Pepsi involving Imran Khan and Ranbir Kapoor respectively. While getting the two youth bollywood stars does project a young contemporary feel to the brand, somehow, I seem to be missing the zing that was usually associated with cola ads. The smart ambush of Pepsi, Sprite and Thums Up taking sublte potshots at each other gave it an edginess and something to look forward to. The Paanch from Coke provided the rustic and tangy flavour to a MNC beverage brand. All that seems to have dissappeared. Internationally though, Coca Cola has some interesting commercials even now, but somehow the hatke pure Indian creative element is missing. Is it because that the goal post now has changed, from beverages to more action oriented categories like telecom and insurance which are more high decibel today? Or is it case of creative bankruptcy? Please share your thoughts.
regards
Rajiv
Saw the new commercials from Coca Cola and Pepsi involving Imran Khan and Ranbir Kapoor respectively. While getting the two youth bollywood stars does project a young contemporary feel to the brand, somehow, I seem to be missing the zing that was usually associated with cola ads. The smart ambush of Pepsi, Sprite and Thums Up taking sublte potshots at each other gave it an edginess and something to look forward to. The Paanch from Coke provided the rustic and tangy flavour to a MNC beverage brand. All that seems to have dissappeared. Internationally though, Coca Cola has some interesting commercials even now, but somehow the hatke pure Indian creative element is missing. Is it because that the goal post now has changed, from beverages to more action oriented categories like telecom and insurance which are more high decibel today? Or is it case of creative bankruptcy? Please share your thoughts.
regards
Rajiv
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Rin-Tide Face Off
Hi All,
By now, everyone must have seen the Rin ad taking on P&G's Tide openly. I am sure there's more to come in the days ahead on this but wanted to check if there are any instances nationally or international of comparative advertising, where rivals brands have openly sparred? Do let me know and also do let me know what you think of the Rin ad running on TV?
thanks
By now, everyone must have seen the Rin ad taking on P&G's Tide openly. I am sure there's more to come in the days ahead on this but wanted to check if there are any instances nationally or international of comparative advertising, where rivals brands have openly sparred? Do let me know and also do let me know what you think of the Rin ad running on TV?
thanks
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Horn OK Please
Horn OK Please
Finally the broad contours of Brand Rahul is taking shape. In the last general elections which the Congress won a majority mandate, the scion of Nehru dynasty and touted to be the future PM was credited with providing crucial ideas, albeit remaining in the back ground. In the past few months however, Rahul Gandhi seems to have shed the tentativeness about coming to the fore. To begin with Rahul Gandhi has legacy behind him; an illustrious background which gives him the leverage against other youth leaders in India. But merely having the umbrella of the mother brand is only half the job done. And it has its flip side too, as expectations tend to be a notch higher when it comes to names with famous backgrounds. So make the brand accessible to create a mass appeal — jumping the security cordon to meet the common man, eating with them, mingle with the youth and of course, ride on the transport which takes millions back and forth. And as is evident, there’s nothing better than a dash of controversy or debate to create high recall — be it reality shows, IPL or even Rahul’s visit to Mumbai. Buzz marketing always works.
GO LONG , GO SHORT
MARKETERS have long faced this dilemma of should it be short term goals or long term strategic objectives? Meeting the short term quarterly numbers are as important as keeping long term marketing objectives of innovation, distribution which ensure sustainable performance of a brand in the long run. The solution to this conundrum is an interesting line of thought which is slowly emerging — separate teams for the short term and long term marketing objectives . Not necessarily working in silos, two teams however allow the brands to dedicate resources who purely look at innovation across the spectrum, while the other set is focussed on meeting the numbers every quarter.
Source: The Economic Times
Finally the broad contours of Brand Rahul is taking shape. In the last general elections which the Congress won a majority mandate, the scion of Nehru dynasty and touted to be the future PM was credited with providing crucial ideas, albeit remaining in the back ground. In the past few months however, Rahul Gandhi seems to have shed the tentativeness about coming to the fore. To begin with Rahul Gandhi has legacy behind him; an illustrious background which gives him the leverage against other youth leaders in India. But merely having the umbrella of the mother brand is only half the job done. And it has its flip side too, as expectations tend to be a notch higher when it comes to names with famous backgrounds. So make the brand accessible to create a mass appeal — jumping the security cordon to meet the common man, eating with them, mingle with the youth and of course, ride on the transport which takes millions back and forth. And as is evident, there’s nothing better than a dash of controversy or debate to create high recall — be it reality shows, IPL or even Rahul’s visit to Mumbai. Buzz marketing always works.
GO LONG , GO SHORT
MARKETERS have long faced this dilemma of should it be short term goals or long term strategic objectives? Meeting the short term quarterly numbers are as important as keeping long term marketing objectives of innovation, distribution which ensure sustainable performance of a brand in the long run. The solution to this conundrum is an interesting line of thought which is slowly emerging — separate teams for the short term and long term marketing objectives . Not necessarily working in silos, two teams however allow the brands to dedicate resources who purely look at innovation across the spectrum, while the other set is focussed on meeting the numbers every quarter.
Source: The Economic Times
Back In Action
After a long hiatus, am back to look at the world of marketing, branding and advertising. My views, views written as articles in publications is there for everyone to read and comment. I believe the only way i can learn is by actively engaging and sharing thoughts with like minded people. So please keep your comments and feedback coming
Friday, March 27, 2009
Congress 'Jai Ho' campaign
It made a millionaire out of the slumdogs and the song ‘Jai Ho’ became an anthem of sorts in a country that thrives on supporting underdogs. As the pitch builds up for the Lok Sabha 2009 elections, the Congress party is hoping it will be able to rake in a rich haul in India’s political Oscars, by acquiring the rights of the song. This month, the political version of ‘Jai Ho’ complete with adapted lyrics and the Congress message dominated the airwaves for four consecutive days, to announce the beginning of the campaign. Amitava Mitra, director - Delhi, Percept/H, the agency which made the films says that ‘Jai Ho’ is a curtain raiser for the Congress poll campaign and will play again before the close of the campaigning. “Jai Ho is like a war cry, but has a positive association,” he says.
Using the ‘Jai Ho’ soundtrack, three 60-seconder films have been made. The Congress slogan ‘Aam Aadmi Ke Badta Kadam, Har Kadam Par Bharat Buland’ was also woven into the song. To re-write the lyrics, renowned poet Ashok Chakradhar was roped in. Chakradhar says that the idea was to communicate the Congress message through the lyrics. “Here it’s not poetry, but a message to woo the voters. Therefore, even the words have been kept to bare minimum for impact,” says Chakradhar, who previously had produced a film in 1985 for the centenary celebrations of Congress. On the lyrics, Chakradhar says lines like ‘Kadam Hum Badathe Chale’ in the song was to encapsulate the work done so far. “It’s not India Shining because the films and lyrics talk about moving towards the objective,” he says referring to a campaign by rivals NDA in the 2004 general elections.
The three films focus on themes like heritage of the party and talking about the past leaders, achievements like the nuclear deal, Chandrayaan project and on schemes like the NREGS and education. In the Chandrayaan 60-second spot, the film is a report card of Congress achievements with visuals of Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh interspersed with images of rural employment, education, urban development and even a mention of the nuclear deal. The film made by Percept/H uses footage from the Bharat Nirman campaign which was handled by the agency for the past two years. Interestingly ‘Jai Ho’ song was one of the ideas mooted by Percept/H among other filmy ideas which found favour with the Congress.
Using the ‘Jai Ho’ soundtrack, three 60-seconder films have been made. The Congress slogan ‘Aam Aadmi Ke Badta Kadam, Har Kadam Par Bharat Buland’ was also woven into the song. To re-write the lyrics, renowned poet Ashok Chakradhar was roped in. Chakradhar says that the idea was to communicate the Congress message through the lyrics. “Here it’s not poetry, but a message to woo the voters. Therefore, even the words have been kept to bare minimum for impact,” says Chakradhar, who previously had produced a film in 1985 for the centenary celebrations of Congress. On the lyrics, Chakradhar says lines like ‘Kadam Hum Badathe Chale’ in the song was to encapsulate the work done so far. “It’s not India Shining because the films and lyrics talk about moving towards the objective,” he says referring to a campaign by rivals NDA in the 2004 general elections.
The three films focus on themes like heritage of the party and talking about the past leaders, achievements like the nuclear deal, Chandrayaan project and on schemes like the NREGS and education. In the Chandrayaan 60-second spot, the film is a report card of Congress achievements with visuals of Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh interspersed with images of rural employment, education, urban development and even a mention of the nuclear deal. The film made by Percept/H uses footage from the Bharat Nirman campaign which was handled by the agency for the past two years. Interestingly ‘Jai Ho’ song was one of the ideas mooted by Percept/H among other filmy ideas which found favour with the Congress.
Proctor's rural market foray using Sangeeta Bhabhi
In the cyberspace, Savita Bhabhi has successfully managed to attract eyeballs. Offline, it could soon be Sangeeta Bhabhi. To be sure, Sangeeta Bhabhi is no relation to her infamous online character, but an icon created by consumer goods major Procter and Gamble to hardsell its stuff in rural India. After a two year long push into the hinterland, PnG has come up with a new addition to its marketing strategy in the form of a character called Sangeeta Bhabhi, a dedicated housewife. The personality was conceived to push PnG’s leading brands, Tide and Head & Shoulders as a dual proposition called ‘kamyab jodi’ in rural areas of the country. After much deliberation over the eight to nine categories that P&G operates in, marketers picked the detergent brand Tide and shampoo Head & Shoulders as the focus in this particular rural initiative.
Last March, more than 100 villages in central UP were covered as part of the pilot stage of the ‘kamyab jodi’ initiative. The exercise involved teams narrating Sangeeta Bhabhi’s story, an educated married woman, who highlights the benefits of using the two brands. Sandeep Bansal, country head - Xpanse, the agency handling the particular rural activation, says the particular style was used to communicate the value add proposition of the brands. “Tide is a value added brand priced higher than the regular brands. The challenge was to communicate it to the target audience on the benefits of using a brand superior in quality,” explains Bansal.
Considering that the rural markets has been a battle field with national players like HUL, Dabur and even regional players like Ghari looking to penetrate further, PnG has its task cut out. When contacted, Sumeet Vohra, marketing director, P&G India says that the company’s endeavour has always been to not only improve lives but also continue to touch as many more lives as possible. “Ours is a consumption driven economy and we are cognisant of the importance of the growing rural segment in that context,” says Vohra, adding PnG is constantly evaluating growth opportunities not just in this segment, but across India and will use the right brand portfolio and marketing techniques to do so. The move underscores the point that rural market is important considering rural India comprises 12.2 % of the world population.
Through this initiative, PnG is attempting to generate user trials for both SKU pack size as well as satchets. While Vohra refused to comment on future plans citing company policy, it is understood that after studying the initial response to the pilot programme, the company is planning to roll the initiative further to cover nearly 5,000 villages across the state of UP. Also, to ride on the demand generated from this exercise, P&G is simultaneously beefing up its distribution network to ensure reach and availability of the products. But PnG’s rural march takes on established rivals like Hindustan Unilever that has over the years added to its rural distribution muscle through dedicated programmes like Project Shakti.
Similarly, cigarette major ITC through its echoupal network has been able to create a network to further its FMCG ambition by pushing brands like Superia soaps and shampoos in smaller SKU pack-sizes. Anand Shah, FMCG analyst from Angel Broking says PnG has been a late entrant in the Indian market and it’s only in the last two years that the company is looking to probe further. “The company is playing catch up given that rural markets for categories like shampoos has been a huge growth driver,” says Shah. Surely, PnG’s hoping Sangeeta Bhabhi will tide over the competition. And also keep her head firmly over her shoulders.
Source: Brand Equity, The Economic Times
Last March, more than 100 villages in central UP were covered as part of the pilot stage of the ‘kamyab jodi’ initiative. The exercise involved teams narrating Sangeeta Bhabhi’s story, an educated married woman, who highlights the benefits of using the two brands. Sandeep Bansal, country head - Xpanse, the agency handling the particular rural activation, says the particular style was used to communicate the value add proposition of the brands. “Tide is a value added brand priced higher than the regular brands. The challenge was to communicate it to the target audience on the benefits of using a brand superior in quality,” explains Bansal.
Considering that the rural markets has been a battle field with national players like HUL, Dabur and even regional players like Ghari looking to penetrate further, PnG has its task cut out. When contacted, Sumeet Vohra, marketing director, P&G India says that the company’s endeavour has always been to not only improve lives but also continue to touch as many more lives as possible. “Ours is a consumption driven economy and we are cognisant of the importance of the growing rural segment in that context,” says Vohra, adding PnG is constantly evaluating growth opportunities not just in this segment, but across India and will use the right brand portfolio and marketing techniques to do so. The move underscores the point that rural market is important considering rural India comprises 12.2 % of the world population.
Through this initiative, PnG is attempting to generate user trials for both SKU pack size as well as satchets. While Vohra refused to comment on future plans citing company policy, it is understood that after studying the initial response to the pilot programme, the company is planning to roll the initiative further to cover nearly 5,000 villages across the state of UP. Also, to ride on the demand generated from this exercise, P&G is simultaneously beefing up its distribution network to ensure reach and availability of the products. But PnG’s rural march takes on established rivals like Hindustan Unilever that has over the years added to its rural distribution muscle through dedicated programmes like Project Shakti.
Similarly, cigarette major ITC through its echoupal network has been able to create a network to further its FMCG ambition by pushing brands like Superia soaps and shampoos in smaller SKU pack-sizes. Anand Shah, FMCG analyst from Angel Broking says PnG has been a late entrant in the Indian market and it’s only in the last two years that the company is looking to probe further. “The company is playing catch up given that rural markets for categories like shampoos has been a huge growth driver,” says Shah. Surely, PnG’s hoping Sangeeta Bhabhi will tide over the competition. And also keep her head firmly over her shoulders.
Source: Brand Equity, The Economic Times
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