Baba Ramdeva- the marketer

Baba Ramdev can be considered as one of the biggest marketing minds in India. He has built Rs. 2000 crore FMCG umpire in few years and has given tough competition to the big Indian FMCGs. Some factors which we can attribute to his success are:

1.     Great understanding of consumers

Ramdev knows his customer well. He acquired a huge fan following and loyal customer base by offering a service which was free of cost- the Yoga. Once the consumer trust was obtained, extension was only half difficult. He understood that consumers do not trust their current products (in FMCG space) and are somewhat unsure of their benefits. This gap was where Ramdev placed his Patanjali offerings. He started a range of ‘made in India’ ayurvedic products which could be trusted.

2.     Focus & consistency

The brand Patanjali forayed into ayurvedic medicine, food and personal care space as consumer scepticism is highest in these categories. Patanjali occupied this vacant space and positioned themselves as value for money natural products. Ramdev did not let the brand lose its essence- the greed which most other FMCG companies fall a prey to, i.e. trying to be everything to consumers.

3.     Value for Money

Ramdev knew Indians are value conscious and his marketing strategy was based on this- good quality natural products at lower price points. This was appealing because most of the natural, ayurvedic and organic products come at premium price points in India.

4.     Distribution strategy

He used his follower base and multi level marketing skills to ensure that his products are available in every city and town. Though he is still building distribution arm for Patanjali products and is having serious demand supply issues; the hybrid channel would be an advantage for Patanjali over time .

5.     Word of Mouth

Ramdev never hard sell his products or talk about them. He only points out deficiency in other available products and let the consumer explore their options. This subtle communication does not project bias, hence minimize scepticism in consumer mind. Ramdev leverages his huge follower base to spread positive WOM, and I believe that there is no other tool as powerful as WOM because it gets you consumers without you chasing them. And isn’t all communication tools also geared up to create strong and positive WOM? He has built the brand around very strong yet simple idea- “Product you can trust”. This beautifully bridges the consumer insight and the brand philosophy.

6.     Product portfolio

I feel that the product portfolio and phase out plan for his offerings has been well thought of. He started the brand with ayurvedic medicines and offered services and consultation on the dosage for critical ailments. The products were good and this built a positive WOM and trust among consumers. He is slowly leveraging this trust across categories and moving from low risk (oil, balms etc) to greater risk offerings (juices etc.).

I would say that he has a well thought of and focused marketing plan. He knows his segment well. (people who practice Yoga; are committed to well being of the self and believe that natural methods are the best way to heal and solve any problem). Ramdev follows the mass customization strategy. His positioning is simple and resonating and hence he is able to strike a chord with consumer’s inner feelings and fears. And obviously, he delivers to his promise as discussed above. Baba Ramdev’s story teaches us a great lesson that consumer is not necessarily looking for fancy and glamour. They seek benefit and want to feel assured after buying something. Also, Ramdev’s brand equity was build on ‘yoga’, the space which is considered as proactive wellness space. The products in his FMCG portfolio only complements this space and hence help the brand leverage on Ramdev’s equity.

Responsible Storytelling

Storytelling is becoming more and more important for brand building and is being used to stroke consumer’s emotions for deeper relationship building. Who doesn’t like a story? We have all grown up listening to one and hence we can easily relate to them.

Recently, Nestle used a stammering stand-up comedian as a main protagonist for this storytelling, focusing on the idea that you can overcome all hurdles if you have a passion to win and succeed. 

The brave coffee brand took the risk of using ‘physical disability -‘stammering’ as a context for the advertisement. It if not handled well; this could have alienated the consumers from their old trusted brand. But the brand true to its nature handled this very sensitively and rather than using stammering as a negative attribute brought about the humour and emotion beautifully in the brand story. The film was made in a way that consumers did not feel alienated at any point but was empathic to protagonist all through. They were not sympathetic but displayed empathy, and that was the winning proposition for Nescafe. Nescafe has served its coffee strong to audience while embedding a social message without being too preachy. The brand was just playing a role in the story without being ‘on the face’. They were careful not to make fun of ‘stammering’ because such treatment would have created more negative emotions around the brand. People don’t want to be laughed at their disability. If nothing else, they wish to be left alone. But brand was brave enough to take up the issue and say that ‘we can fight every disability if we have the will to do so’.

On the other hand I am surprised at the way Intex mobile has handled the same disability. They have made a blatant spoof of it. For the purpose of adding some humour to the story, they have handled the context arrogantly. How could they even imagine that consumers would like the brand which makes ‘fun’ of them? And it’s not that all their consumers stammer consumers show solidarity when being talked by the brands and hence such treatment would only attract negative emotions. Was it tactical polarized communication to draw some attention and generate content on social media? Then it was all the more a failed attempt as it would only spread negative comments. Consumers do not appreciate spoof which rather than making them feel ‘good’ makes them feel ‘shameful’.

Media and communication influence the story and I feel that it’s very important for brands to behave responsibly while dealing with such issues. Brands should ‘communicate for a purpose of engaging with the consumers and not alienating the consumers’.

Focus in Positioning- Case of HFDs in India

Focused positioning is the essence of well planned and though through marketing strategy. If a brand finds a strong, resonating and a well differentiating platform, it should ‘sit’ firmly on it rather than letting others snatch the throne. Maggi understood it quite well in the early stages of its brand life cycle. They occupied the ‘2 minute’ proposition and focused on it, so much so that 2 minutes is now synonymous with Maggi.  

In HFD category, recently Boost took over Complan for the first time in its lifespan. Complan was a very strong brand which had been losing the market share. Complan fell into the trap of ‘doing too many things’ for its consumers. It had a single minded and relevant proposition of ‘gaining height; which appealed to both genders. The tagline ‘I am a Complan boy and I am a Complan girl’ became quite famous among the TG and brand enjoyed high salience and preference. As the market evolved, Complan designed a ‘complicated plan’ instead. The brand kept changing the value proposition, losing brand salience and also a place in consumer’s mind. 

Amitabh Bacchan may work for many other brands but he as an ambassador was simply a misfit with this category. Though he may qualifies on all parameters like credibility, appeal etc but could not resonate with either core or the support TG of Complan. Brand also changed its positioning to nutrition, thus competing with Bournvita and Horlicks. This made the brand lose its differentiation in the market. 

Complan again re-positioned itself on ‘height’ platform but by then Bournvita had started focusing on this proposition as a part of child’s overall development. Complan left its territory in search for larger market share. Getting back their lost throne is not going to be easy for Complan. I feel that brand lacks direction and focus.

Boost on the other hand focused on kids. It was infact the only brand in HFD category that spoke to kids instead of mothers. Boost had been under the shadow of its elder sibling Horlicks, which is a very strong brand of GSK portfolio. However, lately one could see GSK investing in Boost and hence the efforts seemed to be paying off. Changing their positioning and TG would have diluted the brand salience for Boost.

The basic premise lies in the divergence between what is relevant to the mother and the child. Mothers feel that they know the best for their children whereas children feel that they know what they should have. Due to this, it becomes difficult for any brand to find a value proposition that is relevant to both the mother and the child. Therefore the challenge for Boost was to implement its ‘energy and stamina’ positioning in a way that is relevant to both the stakeholders.

Also, focusing on children instead of mothers gave Boost a differential advantage over competition. Children play a role of influencers in decision making and hence with a brand proposition that is relevant to mothers, they can actually change the decision in their favour. Speaking to mothers would make Boost compete head on with Bournvita and Horlicks which may not be a good strategy considering the latter are strong national brands and also lead to cannibalization with their own portfolio brand.

Positioning requires sacrifice. Do not try to be everything to the consumers. You cannot be a mother, a friend, a partner and a sibling all at the same time. Choose one relationship and live that with all honesty.

Pediasure: Making mothers a face of the brand

Reference: 

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-07-09/news/51248201_1_abbott-india-pediasure-brand-equity

Mothers play different roles in the lives of the brand. Junior Horlicks, Bournvita LiL Champs..and all other brands are cosely associated with mothers to connect with customers. But for pediasure, what matters more is not the brand but a mother herself. "Winning the hearts and minds of moms is what we do," says the India head of the US pharma major Abbott, which makes PediaSure.

Backed by Abbott, Pediasure has overtaken GSK's Junior Horlicks to become the largest brand in urban India in the Rs 600 crore toddler health food drink segment. It's a lead that's been maintained since August 2013. Its strategy was simple: directing its communication at young mothers and have a sharp focus on the fussy eating habits of children.

"Great product, relevant positioning and a marketing strategy that engages young mothers  are the reasons why PediaSure is consistently leading the category," says Kelshika, general manager of Abbott Nutrition International. The Nielsen figures obtained by Brand Equity from market sources showed that while PediaSure had been increasing its share in urban India, Junior Horlicks held its numero uno position pan India primarily due to its presence in the rural market. However, it's slipping in urban India, which still made up over 2/3rd of its sales. While Junior Horlicks' value share in urban India was Rs 16.34 crore in May 2014, PediaSure stood at Rs 18.59 crore.The brand's almost negligible presence in rural India gives GSK an edge.

However there's plenty of elbow room considering there was an estimated 17.3 million urban toddler households. Penetration at present was just over 10%. The toddler segment had been growing at approximately twice the size of the Rs 5,000 crore health food drink category, registering an expansion rate of over 8% to 9%.

Brand focus is a relatively recent development starting around 2006-2007 when Abbott Nutrition was hived off as a separate business. While a dedicated sales force promoted the brand and consolidated the initial base, prescriptions from doctors helped it get a firm foothold in the urban markets.

What makes PediaSure remark-able is its youth as a brand, relatively modest marketing spend on TV and the fact that it is pricier than Junior Horlicks and Bournvita Li'l Champs combined. The trick has been sharp positioning and a strong on-ground connect with mothers. SureMoms was the property created by the brand to educate and counsel parents and identify signs of fussy eating to guide parents on how to make mealtimes more interesting through a 6-step process. In 2013, it reached over 2 lakh mothers across the country. No place was left unexplored — schools, malls, residential societies, army and navy canteens, offices and nutrition camps set up at clinics. A toll-free helpline continues to offer free nutritional counselling, apart from engaging moms on social media and via the SureMoms website. 

Through 'SureMoms', the brand spoke the language a mother does. The brand understood mothers as the decision maker for toddlers need to be convinced first. Two things have worked for PediaSure. 80% of Indian mothers worry about their child's eating habits and want something to shore up the nutritional requirement. The brand has gone after smart mothers who invest in their kids and view pediatricians as parenting partners. Hence, the brand thought "I am not just a pediatrician, but a mother too" was born. This gave it high credibility and also insulated mothers against price premium. 

Besides positioning and communication, the brand also invested in boosting its distribution network by adding modern trade, department stores, online channels besides chemists to its portfolio. The packaging was made more premium and convenient and smaller SKUs were introduced to generate trials. 

However the brand still operates in a niche. The market is small and with 'one' child norm becoming popular in urban India, it may get smaller. Besides, the brand needs to enhance point-of-sale visibility and interest as it is transitioning to an over the counter space.

McDonalds vs Dominos

McDonald’s brand which defines itself around magic and happiness is losing that magic in India. I feel that the brand is not walking with the times and the changing Indian consumer. The brand primarily has a hamburger portfolio. Within this, they experiment and innovate but have not done anything outside the hamburgers. The young Indian consumer, who constitutes the biggest target for QSRs, have small interest span. They get bored with the same and hence brand rejuvenation becomes critical. McDonald’s has not rejuvenated brand over all these years, the look& the feel; the portfolio; the communication or the experience. The consumer is bored of the sameness.

Though young people still go to McDonalds as it is a value for money and cheaper option but even to them it is a substitute to meal and not a meal itself. Same is with families who do not prefer McDonalds as it does not offer solutions for everyone in the family.

Also, people are looking for more variety today. How often can you have a burger, especially now when you have so much more options? Also, as a family, I don’t have many options there. Not everybody likes a burger. Another important thing is huge vegetarian population who fear the same kitchen been used at McDonalds for both veg and the non-veg food. Also, with more health awareness, mothers are more sceptical of giving fries, burgers and aerated drinks to their kids as they are more classified as junk food.

McDonald’s have introduced some new products in its premium range but then the premium customer definitely will prefer some other option, why McDonalds then? The brand is about ‘Value for Money’ and ‘Economical’ meal to the consumer and is not associated with premium food experience.

Domino’s as a brand is the most experimenting and innovative in QSR category. Product Innovation and portfolio expansion remains their greatest strength. Domino’s has crafted a very special position among youngsters. They don’t find it ‘Value for Money’ but ‘aspirational’ in terms of its range. Young people do not go to Dominos because it’s the cheapest available option but because it has variety. Moreover, it’s a place where families can enjoy together. There is an option for everyone, including those who do not like pizza. Domino’s also launched the Joy Meal offer to attract the biggest influencer in the family- the kids, who many a times also initiate the need to ‘eat out’. To hit McDonald’s it does not include fries and aerated drinks as a part of box (which are classified as junk food) but the pizza and other healthier options according to mothers. Even the price was kept very low as compared to McDonalds. The distribution expansion coupled with local and customized communication made the brand more appealing to customers.

KFC which was more known for its non-vegetarian, especially chicken burgers and snack has now broken off those perceptions and established itself as a choice for everyone. I would say product innovation (including veg, non veg offers and even meal options like rice) has helped them expand their reach across. Though they currently focus on youngsters and have a very competitive pricing to appeal to them, they have a product portfolio which resonates with everyone in the family. Family can go together and have a meal at KFC and not just a snack. It is seen that women order of rice meals as the kids enjoy their chicken snacks. Clever localization helped KFC find its place in this competitive market. This is also coupled with consumer education. KFC clearly told and showed the consumers that they have a separate veg and a non-veg kitchen and neither the same utensil nor the oil is used to cook both. This instantly addressed some of the cultural issues the brand faced.

Domino’s expanded their targeted segment to the entire family but also made sure that they had something for each of them (in terms of product portfolio). McDonalds used focus strategy in their product portfolio and though they targeted the entire family, they asked them to love burgers. This may have worked initially when QSR formats were not facing a very tough competition and were relatively new options to Indians but today the consumer as a problem of plenty and have multiple options to choose from.  McDonald’s is trying to extend to premium segment with more expensive product options, but perhaps those people do not look at McDonalds for such products. Dominos on the other hand is innovating in the same price range that can appeal to its current target group and as per their willingness to spend. Same is KFC. They looked at ‘youth’ as their core TG and offered them all variety with a price range that made their offers more attractive. And family members who are ‘young at heart’ also like the place!!

The number of restaurants is also important in QSR format as this category is more convenience driven.  One would not drive down 5 Km to hunt for a restaurant but would look for closer home locations or availability in malls, marketplaces, cinema halls etc. (where they go for a larger experience/cause). The fact that Dominos has almost double the number of retail formats as compared to McDonalds or KFC also act to their advantage. They are at ‘arms length of consumer’s desire’.

Finally the business top lines and bottom lines are also a function of investment you make into your brand. KFC and Dominos have invested that money to keep their brand relevant to the evolving and changing TG. They have added freshness by playing with all the 4Ps whereas it looks as if McDonalds is a tortoise in this aspect. They have not invested in brand rejuvenation but leveraging the equity they have build in the past. However, it is to be seen if in this game the rabbits take on the tortoise or stop after few steps!!

The fight over 'broom': Brand symbols and their importance

Broom was the most differentiated weapon of AAP and also gave it a unique character. Has Modi's Swachh Bharat Abhiyan campaign has left AAP broomless?

In the case of BJP and AAP; AAP was a relatively new brand which with its differentiated marketing and values created an instant brand recall and positive associations. They had a strong and clutter breaking brand identity. However, the implementation of brand promise was poor and hence AAP suffered a quick set-up. The intended brand identity is very different from brand image. We live in a transparent world in which customers can easily expose unsatisfactory experiences with brands. This means that companies must absolutely deliver on the promises they make. Denise Lee Yohn in her book- ‘What Great Grand Do’ states that good communication and advertising alone cannot build your brand.  She exhorts that your brand is a verb: and not just the image. It is ‘what’ you do. A brand is more about action, and not about advertising.

That’s where AAP faltered and now BJP is trying to leverage on. They have made ‘broom’ their implementation weapon. BJP is not trying to change on the values of ‘lotus’ or giving broom any strategic place in BJP brand’s core philosophy but using it as a tactic of brand implementation. Yes I can see the strategy of robbing AAP of a strong brand property (read potential brand equity). Over time, people may associate broom more with Modi’s cleanliness drive rather than AAP’s political symbol. But this would depend on implementation efficiency and success of Modi’s Swatch Bharat campaign. Only time will tell whether citizens of India remember broom as a vehicle of ‘clean corruption’ or as a weapon to ‘clean streets of India’. In the context of AAP’s performance in the past, this step of BJP definitely can further dilute AAP brand by redefining the values its symbol stood for.

But there is a word of caution for BJP. They have recently worked on their brand and redefined ‘lotus’ values which worked for them. Leveraging too much on broom or any attempt to include it as strategic brand imagery may dilute its own brand image. It is good only as a tactics to support a campaign.

Another perspective to this entire debate is ‘if there is a reason at all to debate this’. Political parties have all kinds of symbols and so are these symbolic objects forbidden for use by other people. Broom is for cleaning and so had to be a part of cleanliness drive. Would people stop using bow/arrow during Dussehra, or can someone not promote bicycles for cleaner India, or stop using chilies just because they are certain party symbols. Is so much of media attention to this only helping BJP more to leverage on broom!!

The above phenomenon is a kind of indirect ambush marketing which involves the use of certain brand’s imagery or advertising themes by the other brand without making specific reference to the trademark/ symbol. The brand which ambushes other brand’s property either gets benefited from the use of this imagery or dilutes the equity of the latter. Some academicians also may want to term this ‘offline brand hijacking’, an activity whereby one brand acquires or assumes the identity of another brand for the purpose of acquiring/diluting latter’s brand equity. 

Brand symbols can definitely build brand recall and contribute to brand equity but what matters more is brand implementation or fulfillment of brand promise. People remember brand symbols only when implementation is strong not because symbols were different. McDonald arches are recalled and contribute to its brand equity because McDonald has created positive customer experiences over years and not because they write 'M' differently. 

So time will now tell if Modi's Swatch Bharat Campaign could rob and dilute the brand equity from AAP's political symbol. 

Bournvita: Managing brands by managing positioning

Bournvita is one of the major players in the Rs 4000 crore (2011) Indian Health Drink market. This market is expected to be Rs 8000 crores by 2016. The brand has a market share of around 16% according to Business Standard whereas Horlicks enjoys 51% share. The brand was favoured by kids who liked the chocolate flavoured drinks. It owns almost 40% share in brown malt health drinks. Cadbury has been nurturing the brand, focusing on kids and their affinity towards good taste. The brand got initial traction in the market by focusing on the chocolate taste. It further reinforced the taste factor. It was launched in 1948 and is one of the oldest brands in malted drink segment.

When the brand was launched, it focused on mother’s problem of providing the healthy and the tasty food. Its initial launch proposition was based on health and taste. In 1970s, the brand focused on upbringing and repositioned on functional benefit of ‘goodness’ with a tagline - “Goodness that grows with you”. In 1980s, the brand changed the focus from upbringing to intelligence and had the tagline “Brought up Right, Bournvita Bright”. 90s saw the brand talking about overall health and development with tagline “Tan ki shakti, Man ki shakti”.

In 1998, Bournvita changed the positioning on nutrition and focused on RDA formulae with proposition of 2 cups of Bournvita for balanced nutrition.  It also set up brand property titled Bournvita Nutritional Center where nutrition experts recommended the right RDA percentage to kids.

Later the brand went for a laddering exercise and brought in the concept of confidence. This was backed the laddering up with the creation of Bournvita Confidence Academy. The brand professed the concept of "Prepare to Win" proposition. The brand adopted the tagline "Tayari Jeet Ki " or Preparing to Win. The proposition focused on physical energy and endurance. Besides the change in positioning, the brand's primary target audience also changed. Rather than focusing on kids, the brand directly began addressing the Mother. Kids began to play the supporting role in the advertisement.

Bournvita is one of the major players in the Rs 4000 crore (2011) Indian Health Drink market. This market is expected to be Rs 8000 crores by 2016. The brand has a market share of around 16% according to Business Standard whereas Horlicks enjoys 51% share. The brand was favoured by kids who liked the chocolate flavoured drinks. It owns almost 40% share in brown malt health drinks. Cadbury has been nurturing the brand, focusing on kids and their affinity towards good taste. The brand got initial traction in the market by focusing on the chocolate taste. It further reinforced the taste factor. It was launched in 1948 and is one of the oldest brands in malted drink segment.

When the brand was launched, it focused on mother’s problem of providing the healthy and the tasty food. Its initial launch proposition was based on health and taste. In 1970s, the brand focused on upbringing and repositioned on functional benefit of ‘goodness’ with a tagline - “Goodness that grows with you”. In 1980s, the brand changed the focus from upbringing to intelligence and had the tagline “Brought up Right, Bournvita Bright”. 90s saw the brand talking about overall health and development with tagline “Tan ki shakti, Man ki shakti”.

In 1998, Bournvita changed the positioning on nutrition and focused on RDA formulae with proposition of 2 cups of Bournvita for balanced nutrition.  It also set up brand property titled Bournvita Nutritional Center where nutrition experts recommended the right RDA percentage to kids.

Later the brand went for a laddering exercise and brought in the concept of confidence. This was backed the laddering up with the creation of Bournvita Confidence Academy. The brand professed the concept of "Prepare to Win" proposition. The brand adopted the tagline "Tayari Jeet Ki " or Preparing to Win. The proposition focused on physical energy and endurance. Besides the change in positioning, the brand's primary target audience also changed. Rather than focusing on kids, the brand directly began addressing the Mother. Kids began to play the supporting role in the advertisement.

2011 saw a marked difference in the positioning of Bournvita. The brand began drifting away from confidence based positioning and laddered down again. The brand discarded everything it did in the past and began talking like Horlicks. In the campaign, the brand began talking about calcium with the tagline "Badhaye Doodh Ki Shakthi" which was strikingly the same as the latest Horlicks campaign. This platform did not find resonance with audience as the brand was totally out of synch with this platform. Bournvita suffered because it ditched its earlier positioning in favor of the Milk based positioning. For the first time, the communication did not have kids, the prime users of the brand. The absence of kids in the ads and focus on ingredients marked a major shift in the marketing strategy of Bournvita.

Again in March 2013 brand went back to the positioning of “Tayyari Jeet ki”, however there was a paradigm shift in the tonality of the advertisement. The communication showed a mother and son racing through the woods with the mom winning this race. This makes the child more determined to win and the mother challenges him by not giving him any leniency. The mother tells the story through the voice over. She says, “Mere bete ko jeet ki aadat tab lagegi jab woh mujhe harayega” The final scene shows the son winning the race against the mother while she looks satisfied. One sees the actual product only in the end which indicates they are selling the idea of the drink as much as the drink itself. The whole concept of progress rather than win was appealing. The distinctiveness of this communication lies with the manner in which the mother has been portrayed in the communication. She is modern and believes in leading by example. She is a woman who is involved in the upbringing of her child in every possible way. The current positioning has found greater acceptance among consumers and brand is yet again on the growth path.