Tarun Mathur, Co-founder & CBO of Policybazaar.com talks about what Indian consumers really look for when buying an insurance, and how he has helped grow the business
Watch ASUS India Regional Director Vinay Shetty talk about the secret of his success and how he deals with Monday blues
UC Browser along with short video app VMate has introduced customized in-app games around ‘Housefull 4’ and Diwali
Monthly active users expected to cross 10 million by FY20
Karan Bedi, CEO of MX Player, talks about strategies for competition in the OTT sector
Since millennials account for 70% of the total household income in India, it is worth the effort to understand them as the main consumer force
India's retail market is expected to reach USD 1.1 trillion by 2020. Competitions in T1 markets get even more fierce, costs increase and growth slows. The battle field is extending to T2 and T3 cities
UC Browser, world's no. 1 third-party mobile browser and content platform, has announced a mega engagement campaign comprising multiple in-app activities during ICC Cricket World Cup 2019
Morden Chen, General Manager of Alibaba UC Ads Marketing, speaks on trends in content on Mobile, the ROI of creativity, influencer marketing and the growth of programmatic buying in India
Frequent release of new products somehow baffles and confuses consumers. The New Product Quartet is designed to help brands communicate with consumers in a more fun and interactive way
Using the power of the internet to deliver products and services and connecting with customers
With broadband penetration crossing a hundred million, there are early adopters of the online travel category
The positioning for a product is decided keeping in mind a number of factors, including strength of the brand
While we are present on all media vehicles, ad campaigns strongly depend on each product
Our marketing strategy is based on ‘Strategy of Proof’, a global Axa framework. Proof is nothing but tangible evidence of answering customers’ queries about expectations in a manner that nobody else has.
The Indian pizza market is worth approximately Rs 1,300-1,400 crore out of the Rs 8,000 crore organised food sector of India, as per Euromonitor data last year. Domino’s enjoys 54 per cent share of the pizza market, and 70 per cent share if you look at the organised home delivery space.
“A statement made by a consumer – ‘A treadmill is a dreadmill’ – has always stayed with me. This line sparked off the entire thought process for the CrossFit campaign. We don’t have any treadmills in Reebok CrossFit gyms.”
“Introducing Fiery Grilled is another milestone on the journey to providing new flavours and formats to our consumers. Taking inspiration from the Indian consumers’ love for spicy and flavourful food, this product is spicy, juicy and truly irresistible.”
“We entered 10 cities in 2011, including tier II cities such as Raipur, Ranchi, Indore, etc.,” said Sandeep Kataria, CMO, Yum! Restaurants India
‘Differentiate or Die’ is the mantra that drives the marketing team at ABD. All our brands have their foundation on a very strong consumer insight
Every brand must communicate what it stands for, its promise, its relevance in the audiences’ life and times
“We have seen very strong support and trends for social branding, participative advertising and digital innovations,” says Dharini Mishra, Suzlon Group
We are operating at the premium level of the market, while Teacher’s Highland Cream is actually at the top end of the pecking order. We are playing up the inspirational value. We believe in offering the best and not necessarily at the least price, and that has been our effort; we have been very true to our quality. The consistent quality in the spirits, especially the Scotch, is the key to our success. Yes, Teacher’s has had its share of challenges, but has never compromised on its quality.
If you look at examples from the world, it’s the Walmarts who call the shots for stock markets in those countries. If they can do it, we can do it as well. We can do wonders if we have patience and the confidence in us. Indian retail is contributing 22 per cent to the GDP, 6 per cent from the employment front. Retail is set to create more employment opportunities than any other. International brands are also looking forward to come into India, so it is the right time to be in this space.
The remittance market globally is driven by migration. Migration is broadly segregated into two types – one is that of knowledge workers and the other is the unskilled labour force. The key segment drivers are migration and skilled/ unskilled labour force demand globally. The migration story is pretty strong and India is a strong base for both these categories. Also, India is the largest receiver of remittances globally, with more than $55 billion coming in annually from Indians overseas.
The hair and beauty market is quite fragmented in India with presence of unorganised players.
“The hair and beauty market is quite fragmented in India with presence of unorganised players. Though there is no accurate data available, overall salon business is estimated to be around Rs 2,000-3,000 crore, out of which international brands have a very low share,” remarks Burzin M Daver, CEO, Livewel Group and Saks Hair & Beauty.
In the financial services category, trustworthiness is the price of entry. Expertise, knowledge and service are key augmented attributes people seek.
“In the financial services category, trustworthiness is the price of entry. Expertise, knowledge and service are key augmented attributes people seek. Trust came to us naturally by dint of the actions this firm took time and again… Expertise is an attribute people do associate with the Kotak brand,” says Karthi Marshan, Executive Vice President & Head – Group Marketing, Kotak Mahindra Group.
It is crucial for any technology product to be acknowledged as a brand that is relevant to the consumers
“It is crucial for any technology product to be acknowledged as a brand that is relevant to the consumers. Further, to build a consumer brand it’s important to be relevant to the youth market. One key target we are reaching out to is the youth who are the people with the ‘DO’ mindset to achieve something,” says Shailendra Katyal, Director - Marketing, Lenovo India.
Since India is an important market for us and it has huge potential for growth, we have increased the marketing budgets to over 50 per cent from last year. We have developed new marketing and advertising strategies to increase our presence in the market and are positive about the response to the same... Print medium works best for our brands as it has maximum reach amongst our target audience. We plan to allocate 65 per cent of our marketing budget to the same.
“Since India is an important market for us, we have increased the marketing budgets to over 50 per cent from last year. We have developed new marketing and advertising strategies to increase our presence in the market and are positive about the response to the same,” says Mayank Sharma, General Manager, Luminarc, Arc International.
Challenges are always there, not only because of competitors in the market, but also because the taste of consumers changes every day. So you need to understand this market phenomenon and be prepared to take this on. The objective of the rebranding was basically to relate it to the younger consumer without sacrificing the key values which our brand has in terms of reliability, trust and superior quality.
“Challenges are always there, not only because of competitors in the market, but also because the taste of consumers changes every day. So you need to understand this market phenomenon and be prepared to take this on,” advises V Krishnamurthy, GM – Marketing, HSIL Ltd.
Max and Bupa have developed products and service models, where we own our customers through their entire life-cycle and manage all their services and claims requests in-house. We also follow very transparent processes, ensuring that our customers are aware of what they are covered for and how they can avail of their health insurance benefits. This in turn has helped us in building trust in our customers and we hope to build on this and develop long term partnership with our customers.
“Our biggest form of advertising is the café itself. As we keep saying, each of our 1070 stores is a marketing tool. By being present in all the high streets and the significant malls, the visibility we have is not easily measurable. While this may not account for advertising in the traditional sense of the word, it is surely one of the best ways to reach out to our prospects.”
“Our biggest form of advertising is the café itself. By being present in all the high streets and the significant malls, the visibility we have is not easily measurable… it is surely one of the best ways to reach out to our prospects,” says K Ramakrishnan, President, Marketing, Café Coffee Day.
The company’s focus is very clearly set on globalisation. Jaquar aims to establish itself firmly in the world’s top markets, to be acclaimed as an international brand. Jaquar has its presence today from the United Kingdom and the Middle East to Africa and the Far East besides Asia. Its products have been very well received in international markets, where they have successfully competed with major international brands.
“Jaquar aims to establish itself firmly in the world’s top markets, to be acclaimed as an international brand. Its products have been very well received in international markets,” points out Rajesh Mehra, Director & Promoter, Jaquar.
For 125 Years, Avon has worked towards improving the lives of women around the world. Avon pioneered the concept of the unique earning opportunity through revolutionary direct selling business model. This has resulted in financial independence and personal empowerment of women. Over the decades, ‘Avon Lady’ has created an identity for herself and for other women.
“‘Every bottle counts’ is what Carlsberg believes in and that is what I personally tell my team. We have to have that kind of passion for our brands because every bottle that we sell leads to increase in our market share, profitability and mind share. In next five years, we should be amongst the top players for sure and enjoying a healthy market share.”
“‘Every bottle counts’ is what Carlsberg believes in and that is what I personally tell my team. In the next five years, we should be amongst the top players for sure and enjoy a healthy market share,” says Devapriya Khanna, Director, Marketing, Carlsberg India.
“If you want people to notice what you say, it has to be done slightly on the edge. Our whole perspective, is not that he is ruined or he is destroyed; it’s a mental trauma and not physical. I think we have been sensitive to that and I think we are talking to a much more mature and media savvy audience, than we were 5 years back. The fact that it is edgy implies the fact that people are noticing it. In fact, we are getting calls at our call center asking about the life ‘Insurance Week’, we have never got that kind of a response for our campaigns.”
“We have always been an outdoor brand and very much in tune with nature. Whatever we do, it will never be against the environment but rather in consonance with it...Woodland plans to leverage this association more strongly to further strengthen the brand by changing over its entire range of shoes and apparel to quality eco-friendly products — made with materials and chemicals that don’t harm the nature; by making the manufacturing process less harmful to the environment...The intent is to make eco-friendliness the brand recall.”
“Life Insurance is a long term business and thus long term sustainable profitability is the key. The industry is already very competitive with 23 players and in the new challenging scenario; I would expect consolidation and productivity being far more important than break-neck growth. In the coming years, companies that can strike the balance between creating value for the customers and the shareholder capital will sustain and achieve the break even mark.”
“Life insurance is a long term business and thus long term sustainable profitability is the key. The industry is already very competitive with 23 players... In the coming years, companies that can strike a the balance between creating value for customers and the shareholder capital will sustain and achieve the breakeven mark,” says Nageswara Rao, MD and CEO, IDBI Federal Life Insurance.
“The motorcycle market in India is like no other with millions of young riders craving relevant global experiences, and with vast highways and variations in terrain, the potential for leisure riding is endless. Whether one looks to the north to ride into the mountain ranges, south on the endless coastal roads, to the west in to the deserts or even East through the greenery – we have a bike for every terrain.”
We are more ‘sitting at home’ people than ‘actively pursuing a sport’ type. We are a community that likes to watch sport, rather than play it. However, market associated with whatever can be used as a ‘lifestyle’ product is large.
India is the fastest growing market within the group and we are investing a lot in India. We want to establish ourselves as firmly in our core areas of strength in our chosen markets and industries. We are also looking at India as a centre for excellence. In the near terms, we are also looking at developing our consulting offerings further and also in establishing a core group that focuses on project financing and public private partnerships.
“The competitive advantage emanating from the trust and strength of the brand insulates brands like SBI Life from a slow down. On the contrary, customers find greater comfort and reliability with such brands... Primarily due to leveraging of SBI’ strong brand equity, our branding initiatives have the best capital-efficiency in the industry. The ratio of our awareness scores v/s advertising investment; and business performance v/s ad spends- is the best, not only in the life insurance and but also perhaps in entire financial services industry.”
<p align=justify>Sugato Banerji Profile: Mr. Sugato Banerji, Chief Marketing Officer of DTH at Bharti Airtel Limited, holds the pivotal position of setting the strategic direction, marketing positioning and customer relationships of its DTH Services. He comes with 20 years of experience in sales, advertising and marketing across several product categories. Previously, he held the position of Director, Debit, Prepaid and Money Transfer and Business Development, South Asia at Visa’ prior to that he worked in Standard Chartered Bank.<br><br> <p align=justify>Airtel digital TV – the DTH service from Bharti Airtel – is one of the leading national level DTH service in the country which offers its customers MPEG 4 with DVBS 2 – currently the most advanced digital broadcasting technologies available in the world after HD broadcasting.
<p align=justify>Our marketing strategy is all about understanding Indian consumer needs and offering them the best value for their money. We will expand our product lines based on this in the future. We also periodically launch exciting campaigns to connect with our consumers… The consumers also interact with our brand through some innovative and exciting tools like the Mary Kay Kissologist and the Mary Kay Virtual Makeover on our website… So, a good mix of below the line initiatives and word of mouth is what we focus on. This is further enhanced with some advertising and PR.
“Our marketing strategy is all about understanding Indian consumer needs and offering them the best value for their money. We will expand our product lines based on this in the future. We also periodically launch exciting campaigns to connect with our consumers. So, a good mix of below the line initiatives and word of mouth is what we focus on. This is further enhanced with some advertising and PR,” says Hina Nagarajan, Country Manager, Mary Kay Cosmetics.
<p align=justify>Our approach to health insurance lies in our positioning -‘Let’s Uncomplicate’. It is our belief and our journey. Health insurance is not yet seen as the ideal vehicle to finance healthcare expenditure. We want to showcase Apollo Munich as a straight-forward, user-friendly and hassle-free health insurance company that will consistently tackle the general concerns faced by people when it comes to healthcare and health insurance.
“Our approach to health insurance lies in our positioning -‘Let’s Uncomplicate’. It is our belief and our journey. Health insurance is not yet seen as the ideal vehicle to finance healthcare expenditure. We want to showcase Apollo Munich as a straight-forward, user-friendly and hassle-free health insurance company that will consistently tackle the general concerns faced by people when it comes to healthcare and health insurance,” says Antony Jacob, CEO, Apollo Munich Health Insurance.
<p align=justify>Brand Del Monte has 118 years of heritage and is a globally renowned food and beverage brand. Del Monte is synonymous with taste and quality. Being devoted to consumer needs, we create products that are in accordance with consumer taste and preferences. To differentiate ourselves from the competitors, we make sure that we offer innovative products and a ‘never before’ product experience in each of the four product categories that we operate in.
“Brand Del Monte has 118 years of heritage and is a globally renowned food and beverage brand. We create products that are in accordance with consumer taste and preferences. To differentiate ourselves from the competitors, we make sure that we offer innovative products and a 'never before' product experience in each of the four product categories that we operate in,” says Yogesh Bellani, Business Head, Del Monte Foods Business, FieldFresh Foods Pvt Ltd.
<p align=justify>Our brand mantra is to be the best airline with great services, always conscious of the needs of our customers. This philosophy is reflected in the bouquet of services that we offer in addition to affordable pricing. Our new tagline – ‘Get more when you fly’ – very effectively highlights our service objective. Our goal is to induce top of mind recall and ensure that our brand communications underline differentiators beyond just the price-points.
“Our brand mantra is to be the best airline with great services, always conscious of the needs of our customers. This philosophy is reflected in the bouquet of services that we offer in addition to affordable pricing. Our new tagline – ‘Get more when you fly’ – very effectively highlights our service objective. Our goal is to induce top of mind recall and ensure that our brand communications underline differentiators beyond just the price-points,” asserts Anish Srikrishna, Senior VP – Marketing, SpiceJet Ltd.
In an industry characterised by a low level of differentiation, it is imperative that the major players strive to create perceptual brand differentiation among the potential target group. To create a higher involvement among the consumers while purchasing a pen, it is essential for pen companies to advertise the PODs (USP) of the product and the brand overall.
“In an industry characterised by a low level of differentiation, it is imperative that the major players strive to create perceptual brand differentiation among the potential target group. To create a higher involvement among the consumers while purchasing a pen, it is essential for pen companies to advertise the PODs (USP) of the product and the brand overall,” stresses Deepak Jalan, Managing Director, Linc Pen & Plastics Ltd.
International brands having the fire power are going with high decibel advertising – largely product or promo centric. We view the competition’s communication as an effort that will grow the market in India for the Quick Service Restaurant category.
The Indian consumer is increasingly more affluent, discerning and aware of high-quality personal care products. Given all these strong fundamentals, the Indian body odor market is likely to continue growing at a pace far faster than most other markets. Despite the global economic downturn, India remains one of the fastest growing personal care markets globally, growing at 13 per cent per annum and valued at $6.3 billion. The market offers extensive opportunities for domestic and international players.
The success of a communication campaign is gauged by its accessibility, viewership, relevance, and understanding by the target audience. In designing a communication, an accurate media vehicle not only helps us connect to a specific group of audience, but also helps us in identifying the gap between the present lifestyle and the aspirational life space of the target audience, while an impressive creative helps us bridge this gap.
“The success of a communication campaign is gauged by its accessibility, viewership, relevance, and understanding by the target audience. In designing a communication, an accurate media vehicle not only helps us connect to a specific group of audience, but also helps us in identifying the gap between the present lifestyle and the aspirational life space of the target audience, while an impressive creative helps us bridge this gap,” says Sanjay Tripathy, Executive VP & Head – Marketing, HDFC Standard Life Insurance.
The challenge for any new brand is to establish itself in a cluttered environment and amongst brands that are well entrenched in the consumer’s mind. While one can look at rationalising spends, one should not switch off the engine as it will become more difficult to revive it when the economy picks up. Also, a key point to note is that in the current scenario, a brand can demand a greater bang for its buck. A brand can get good deals from most media houses, which helps them reach the same audience, but at a lesser cost.
“While one can look at rationalising spends, one should not switch off the engine as it will become more difficult to revive it when the economy picks up. Also, a key point to note is that in the current scenario, a brand can demand a greater bang for its buck. A brand can get good deals from most media houses,” says Pradeep Pandey, Director - Branding & Communication, Aegon Religare Life Insurance.
There will be more players in future and the share of organised retail will go up. My personal view is that there will be consolidation in the industry and only strong players with good international experience and financial clout will survive. Retailing is a high cost business, because apart from high rentals, there is monies involved in advertising and to engage consumer 36 weeks a year. This could be in any form, be it promotions, consumer convenience, loyalty programmes, etc. Hence, a strategic approach to marketing is required rather than a calendar led marketing.
Advertising was hit by recession badly. We have cut down our advertising budget from Rs 100 crore last year to Rs 50 crore. We are not compromising on our below-the-line (BTL) activities, it remains the same as last year but our above-the-line (ATL) activities have been impacted. We have spent almost Rs 1 crore in the online medium; print and outdoor there is some activity but we have completely cut down television.
Advertising was hit by recession badly. We have cut down our advertising budget from Rs 100 crore last year to Rs 50 crore. We are not compromising on our below-the-line (BTL) activities, it remains the same as last year but our above-the-line (ATL) activities have been impacted. We have spent almost Rs 1 crore in the online medium; print and outdoor there is some activity but we have completely cut down television.
Gaming is one of the stickiest mediums available today for users. Websites have to build social interaction among its users, which helps them to make friends and thus forces them to come back and consume its content. Loyalty can’t be forced, but an environment has to be built for users where they feel attached to the system, so features like virtual gratification, gifting under loyalty programme, team building, avatars, challenges and tournaments are important.
“Gaming is one of the stickiest mediums available today for users. Websites have to build social interaction among its users, which helps them to make friends and thus forces them to come back and consume its content. Loyalty can’t be forced, but an environment has to be built for users where they feel attached to the system,” says Arun Mehra, Chief Marketing Officer, Zapak Digital Entertainment Ltd.
It’s very difficult to create and maintain loyalty as loyalty in our target audience is a very different construct. There is absolutely no reason for them to come back to Fastrack tomorrow if they have bought a watch today, and if something else has caught their fancy. There is so much of pressure on that pocket money – be it tech product or fashion accessory – as the market is flooded with those. Unless each brand is reinventing product or communication constantly, there is no reason for youth to come back to the brand. So, the challenge is much higher as compared to the older age groups.
“It’s very difficult to create and maintain loyalty as loyalty in our target audience is a very different construct. There is absolutely no reason for them to come back to Fastrack tomorrow if they have bought a watch today, and if something else has caught their fancy. Unless each brand is reinventing product or communication constantly, there is no reason for youth to come back to the brand,” says Simeran Bhasin, Marketing Head, Fastrack & New Brands.
The difference between our India operations and operations abroad is that in India it is largely led by exclusive stores, while internationally we do it through distributors who understand the local market. It is difficult to manage international stores sitting here in India. The Indian leather goods market is still hugely unorganised. There are a number of individual shops selling products made by individual craftsmen. There is regional competition, but no national competitors.
The 21st century Indian woman is one who is radically different from the generation that preceded her. She stands for innate confidence, style and taste, and is extremely aware of all beauty products available to her today. She stops at nothing to look and feel good. Today, the ever discerning consumer has very specific product requirements. We aim to offer products that satisfy all these needs.
To be a brand, one has to focus on a clearly defined target consumer and be loyal to her. The merchandise offer and the brand experience are then tailored to suite the specific aspirational needs of this TG. This makes it unique and relevant to the TG in focus and relevant for the ones outside. It is true that the while many foreign brands are entering Indian, their merchandise and concept is not tailored to the needs of the Indian market, be it from the product or pricing point of view.
We feel that today the middle class has truly emerged in India. The Indian woman is ready to take on challenges and be independent. We are sure that we will achieve our targets by growing at a pace far more accelerated than ever before. We have seen double digit growth and we expect this trend to continue this year as well. We have invested substantially in India and view the country as one of the strongest emerging markets in Asia.
Cricket will always remain at the top because in India, we are exposed to the game from childhood. There is mass interest in cricket, and it is a reflection of the changing demographics of the country… (however) We have realised that there is a niche community of people who like to watch certain sports that are not common likings for everybody… Our attempt is to broaden our sports offering vis-à-vis other channels.
The challenging economy has compelled more Indians to seek sources for alternate incomes. Direct marketing thus continues to make a strong progress. Oriflame considers its consultants its assets and constantly invests in their training. Positive word of mouth also plays a key role in building the Oriflame brand image and in increasing the user base in India, says Fredrik Widell, MD, Oriflame India.
We do not sell our products through the catalogue; we first let our consumers use the product and then let them decide to do the purchasing. At Mary Kay, we completely refrain from forced selling. As consultants, we might not make the money today, but due to their trust in us and by not being pushy in selling, we believe that the customer would return to us one day.
Nirupama Rao, Sr. Marketing Manager, Mary Kay Cosmetic India, says the company first lets its consumers use the product and then let them decide to do the purchasing. As consultants, its principle is that they may not make money today, but due to their trust the customer would return to the brand one day.
Mary Kay has been able to carve a niche for itself in the highly competitive direct selling space in India. Nirupama Rao, Senior Marketing Manager, Mary Kay Cosmetics India, shares with exchange4media how the company has been faring in India so far, as well as the basic mantras of direct selling.
The consumer mindset is evolving, they want a good quality product, with good pre-sale service as they want to understand how the product would fit and what it would do. They also want a product with minimum requirement of after sales service, but want to be sure that should they have a problem, the company is there to support and guide them.
With the proliferation of opportunity, the industry is also witnessing a specialisation and fragmentation of the marketing functions. Media and creative functions are no longer managed by the same people. Internet advertising is managed separately from mass media advertising… If you measure in fragments, you manage in fragments. This is where MCA or Market Contact Audit comes in.
“I would not say that our ice cream is more expensive than other brands. We are definitely premium but the quality, taste and service which one gets from Baskin Robbins makes it an extremely value proposition. This is something that is borne out by the feedback we get from practically anyone who experiences the magic of Baskin Robbins.”
<p align=justify>“HDFC Bank is possibly the only bank in India, and one of the very few in Asia, to have embarked on a data-led marketing analytics campaigns initiative, using marketing automation technology provided by Unica. Through this tool, we have been able to intelligently use the 4-5 terabytes of customer data available in its warehouse. We have set up a team to conduct marketing campaigns in a scientific manner using customer data, usage patterns, preferences, lifecycle, etc, the bank also conducts event-based marketing.”
Pankajj Chaturvedi, Executive Director-South Asia, Baskin Robbins, informs that internationally, Baskin Robbins has introduced a new look which is more youthful and exciting. The new stores in India are created according to the new branding. Baskin Robbins is known for its wide variety of quality flavours, and the communication focus is to reinforce this among its audience, he adds.
“We are constantly talking to our customers to understand their emerging needs and evolving lifestyles. Our customers’ lifestyles have changed; today’s customer has an active lifestyle. He is looking to spend quality time with his family, explore new territories, visit new places, and is looking for a car that can meet all his needs.”
“In order to have a loyal customer base we have to make our brands relevant to our consumers in their lives. Where, when, how, with whom they drink – all of these aspects matter. We communicate our brands in the right way and make our products available at an arm’s reach. We aim at creating desire in the consumer’s mind.”
I do not think we have competition. We are not competition driven, we are journalistically driven while being viewer-centric. We live and operate in a highly competitive environment, we keep cognizance of what is happening around us and we continue to do what we are supposed to do. We continue to develop content that is close to our viewers. Our mantra is creating engaging interactive content that is of relevance to the viewers.
“The entire offering is fashion-oriented and can be termed radical at times. The single line to sum it up is ‘Spykar: 18 till I die’. Spykar aims to sustain itself as a premium fashion wear brand, providing total casual dressing for the individual’s complete fashion needs.”
The entire Spykar offering is fashion-oriented and can be termed radical at times, explains Sanjay Vakharia, Director-Marketing. Spykar aims to sustain itself as a premium fashion wear brand, providing total casual dressing. The communication that the brand undertakes makes sure that values ‘bold, brash and irreverent’ are always carried forward.
N. Dilip Venkatraman, Director-Marketing & Online Projects, CNN-IBN and IBN 7, says IBN as a brand today stands for something that has been experienced by everyone -- automatically there is a brand personality created. Similarly, the tagline ‘Whatever it takes’ has clearly helped differentiate IBN from the rest because it shows “our passion for news”.
Domino’s brand is built around the emotional benefit of “satisfies your craving for tasty food at the time of need”. The main focus is on owning the taste platform as a means to satisfy the craving for good food through innovative and indulgent pizzas, and the 30 minutes delivery promise is a credible reason for the “at the time of need positioning”.
Ajay Kaul, CEO, Domino’s Pizza India, explains that the essence of the brand is built around the emotional benefit of “satisfies your craving for tasty food at the time of need”. The 30-minute delivery promise is a credible reason for the “at the time of need positioning”. Domino’s target customer is the urban SEC-A family in the age group of 18-35 years, where both husband and wife are working and are short of time.
“There is a retail revolution that is taking place in the country. Consumers are well travelled, aware and quality-conscious. We thought that our only competition was from the unorganised market. With India getting so much organised retail space, we are sure that the growth phenomenon is here to stay. We have booked space in every possible mall that is coming up and hope to touch a figure of 230 stores by 2010.”
“Having been present in the Indian kitchen for over half a century, we have an unmatched understanding of the Indian woman and have seen her develop from a housewife to a world-beater today. This insight, which gets translated when we transact with her, is what makes us different. The trust and legacy that the brand carries is legendary…The salience of the brand is proved by its effortless extension into the entire kitchen space.”
Chandru Kalro, Executive VP-Marketing, TTK Prestige, explains that having been present in the Indian kitchen for over half a century, the company has an unmatched understanding of the Indian woman who has developed from a housewife to a world-beater. The trust and legacy that the brand carries is based on this insight, and has helped in TTK Prestige’s effortless extension into the entire kitchen space.
We are uniquely positioned as a brand. I personally think nobody has this kind of technology to offer, we have a heritage where the consumers see us as sporty.<br> One of the hallmarks of Timex worldwide as a brand is that they bring in really good technology to make it accessible. There is no other brand in the market that can offer that combination of design, technology and pricing.
India is a very important market for us with huge potential and we expect it to become an Asian powerhouse. In fact, last year, we were 11th or 12th among Adidas’ global business, this year, we are No. 6. We expect to be in fourth place by the end of next year.
Hartwin Feddersen, Director-Marketing, sees adidas India being in fourth place in Asia by the end of next year. Explaining the positioning and premium pricing of adidas products, Hartwin says that adidas believes that what the consumer really wants is an authentic, stylish and innovative sports brand.
<p align=justify>The challenge facing the tea industry is how do we make tea a relevant beverage for the rapidly going-out-of-home segment. Tea as a beverage continues to dominate the in-home consumption, with a penetration of nearly 90 per cent. However, due to lifestyle changes more and more people are spending time out of home and tea is not exactly seen as a beverage on the move. This is the main area that we want to address by developing both superior formats and value.
Sangeeta Talwar, Executive Director-Marketing, who heads the branded business of Tata Tea, says that due to lifestyle changes more and more people are spending time out of home and tea is not exactly seen as a beverage on the move. This is the main area that Tata Tea wants to address by developing superior formats and value.
<p align=justify>Our global vision is ‘seamless mobility’. Eventually, the mobile handset will be an all emcompassing device – you will be able to pay your bills, unlock your car, your home, buy tickets, and even use your mobile phone as a personal ID. It is going to be an integral part of people’s lives. The more you personalise mobile phones and provide consumers with additional options, the more consumers value it.
Lloyd Mathias, Marketing Director, Motorola India, says eventually the mobile handset will be an all-emcompassing device: it will help to pay bills, unlock the car and home, buy tickets and even serve as a personal ID. In India, the three most important marketing activities are to build an Indian face to the brand, reinforce the cool technology and have a strong retail presence.
<p align=justify>In addition to clutter breaking creatives, media is the key to driving marketing efficiencies. With escalating media cost, growing fragmentation and increasing noise levels in the media, the communication challenge is to break the media clutter to reach the consumer effectively. We constantly focus on maximising ROI through cost efficient touch points.
<p align=justify>India is a key market for Yamaha. From a manufacturing and production perspective, the cost efficiencies available in India is extremely competitive when compared with other markets. Keeping this in mind, we will be launching at least one new model every year for young urban customers and provide them with a true Yamaha riding experience. The products will be at least three years ahead of competition in terms of styling, performance and features. We aim to triple our market share by 2010
Atul Gupta, AVP, Sales & Marketing, Yamaha Motor India, says Gladiator was the first product in a series of exciting new launches for the youth. The bike major aims to create a new biking lifestyle that will make Yamaha a cool brand among youngsters in India.
<p align=justify>We have constantly upgraded our approach. From a production driven organisation, we have become a marketing driven company. Also, our focus is on customers. Customer is the god. We believe in customer services. Secondly, for any brand, we have always identified a target market and categorising a particular brand has always helped. We offer good after-sales service and maintain feedbacks. Also, we stress on rural marketing as 50 per cent of the potential car market is in rural India.
Mayank Pareek, Head of Marketing, Maruti Udyog, says the company's focus is on customers and customer services. Secondly, MUL has always identified a target market and categorized a particular brand has always helped. Maruti's stress on rural marketing has also helped the country's largest automaker maintain its leadership position, he says.
<p align=justify>“We began with the ‘tall boy’ image for the Santro. We used SRK very well. He gave good awareness to the company and to Santro. Today, the Santro is increasingly being considered as a first-timer car. Earlier, people were buying the Maruti 800 as their first car. Today, 35-40 per cent people are buying the Santro as their first car. Not just that, more and more people are upgrading to the Santro.”
<p align=justify>We have constantly upgraded our approach. From a production driven organisation, we have become a marketing driven company. Also, our focus is on customers. Customer is the god. We believe in customer services. Secondly, for any brand, we have always identified a target market and categorising a particular brand has always helped. We offer good after-sales service and maintain feedbacks. Also, we stress on rural marketing as 50 per cent of the potential car market is in rural India.
Arvind Saxena, VP, Marketing & Sales, Hyundai Motor India, talks about the how the Hyundai car brand was built in India, the positioning strategy, and the value for money proposition. Saxena takes us through on how Hyundai has grown to be the No. 2 automaker in India and the No. 1 exporter on its sheer brand strength.
<p align=justify>“The uneven state laws are one of the major challenges. State laws differ from state to state. Secondly, as I said, every area has its own requirement, unique requirement so you need to understand that and adapt to that. You can’t actually run your own story and expect people to come and watch the film so that is a biggest challenge.”
Saurabh Varma, VP, Cinema Marketing, PVR Ltd, says the brand stands for two things -- the facility that it provides, which anybody can match, and the service standard and experiential marketing. The difference in terms of service quality and the passion behind it is the key to PVR’s strategy.
<p align=justify>“The need for introducing the new logo is that it is our way of celebrating 10 years of leadership of the company. Our success is due to the true Indianisation of McDonald’s. It clearly signifies the shift that has been made for the Indian consumers. The new logo has the well-known double arch stylised as a marigold garland with the Indian flag at the top. It shows the spirit of Indianisation and celebrating 10 years of leadership.”
As McDonald’s celebrates ten years of its operations in India, Vikram Bakshi, JV Partner & Managing Director, McDonald’s India, says that the journey wasn’t easy at all. It was a challenge understanding the Indian consumer and his needs.
We are constantly on the lookout for finding new ways and means to improve the current state of affairs. Thus, innovation is a very important aspect of our working strategy. The other very important philosophy is that of Indianness. All our concepts and formats as well as the way we go about things are very Indian. The way Big Bazaar is designed and the way the whole concept has developed reflects a sense of Indianness.
The way Big Bazaar is designed reflects a sense of Indianness. The focus is on providing very high value for money to customers by providing exciting offers throughout the year, explains Sanjeev Agrawal, President-Marketing, Pantaloon Retail India.
<p align=justify>The absence of focused brand building, low focus on consumer, and relying on incentivising trade have resulted in this market being ‘under-consumerised’. Now there is an emerging focus on consumer-focused branding and marketing across parameters like pricing, promotions, positioning and other factors. Only recently has consumer centric branding come into play in the Indian beer industry.
Our marketing strategy is to do intelligent spending. We are targeting netizens and credit card holders. We offer guaranteed low airfare. This apart, we are targeting TV channels, outdoors and print mediums for our campaigns. Terror warnings do affect inbound and outbound traffic. That’s why we are focusing on the NRI market. An NRI has to return home. Moreover, we have found that the travel industry bounces back the fastest despite the terror warnings.
Vinod Giri, Director-Marketing, SABMiller India, says the absence of focused brand building and reliance on incentivising trade have resulted in the Indian beer maarket being ‘under-consumerised’. SABMiller’s brands account for a third of the Indian beer market.
<p align=justify>“When we were part of GE, we were known as GE International services or Gecis. When the ownership structure of our company changed last year when GE sold 60 per cent of the equity to two private equity forms – General Atlantic and Oak Hill – it made sense to create a new name that reflects our independent status and better communicates our value proposition.
<p align=justify>“When we were part of GE, we were known as GE International services or Gecis. When the ownership structure of our company changed last year when GE sold 60 per cent of the equity to two private equity forms – General Atlantic and Oak Hill – it made sense to create a new name that reflects our independent status and better communicates our value proposition.
HDFC Bank is possibly the only bank in India, and one of the very few in Asia, to have embarked on a data-led marketing analytics campaigns initiative, using marketing automation technology provided by Unica, says Ajay Kelkar, VP & Head-Marketing.
<p align=justify>Eveready has a simple philosophy, of providing the best portable power suitable for consumer needs. With this as the guiding principle, we have focused on innovation, keeping pace with offerings as power needs evolved… Our logo is forward-looking, contemporary and dynamic. The tag-line, the ‘Next Century of Power’, says it all. The Eveready story is not about past glories but continued innovation and domination for at least another 100 years.
<p align=justify>“Frankly, it’s (the cola wars) not about attacking each other but just about keeping the cola industry alive. And consumers really wait for the battle. It’s not like they swing their choices, but they do enjoy the colas slug it out. And for sure, we haven’t become quiet, in fact, we are speaking more.”
Punita Lal, Executive Director, Marketing, PepsiCo India, claims Pepsi is clearly the choice of the youth. The company has worked hard to get there, speaking to the youth consistently, single-mindedly and innovatively, and that is “a position we have never vacated”.
<p align=justify>“Kotak is one of the few entities in the banking sector that has a complete range of financial products ranging from retail banking products to insurance to online share trading services to offer to all its customers. This makes our proposition superior and different to all other players in the market. We are focused on what the customer needs rather than what we have to sell.”
Brand research shows that Kotak has an unaided TOM recall with 1/5th of its targeted audience. Shashi Arora, Senior VP, Marketing, Kotak Mahindra Bank, says the bank will stay with its proposition of “Think Investments. Think Kotak” to achieve a TOM recall for at least 50 per cent of customers who have an investment mindset.
<p align=justify>“Our brand stands for the same values across the world. The brand has had different taglines across the years. But the connect has always been to service. In the 70s and 80s, we said ‘We love to fly, and it shows’. Later in the US, we said, ‘Good. Goes Around.’ The brand has always communicated the service aspect. Delta stands for the common courtesy, the unexpected acts of kindness. The concept is universal, but the campaigns are adapted internationally to suit specific markets.”
According to Loren Neuenschwander, MD, Atlantic Region (Europe and India), Delta Air Lines, Chennai will act as a gateway to South India. The airline has recently started direct service from Chennai to NYC via Paris. He said, “Our Mumbai operation has been highly successful and Chennai will act as a gateway to South India. Since we fly via Paris, it serves as an ideal gateway to European destinations too. With a high degree of economic development happening here, we see travel going up a great deal in both the business and the leisure segments. The growth rate in terms of tourism is not proportionate to the economic development. There is a huge potential here.”
<p align="justify">“Branded pizza market stands at about Rs 275 to 325 crore. We have close to 60 per cent share of the delivery market. But if you look at the total market, that is delivery plus dining plus takeaway, we would have a 40 per cent market share.”
According to Rakshit Hargave, Chief of Marketing, Domino's Pizza India, the company grew 40 per cent over the last year. He said, "Branded pizza market stands at about Rs 275 to 325 crore. We have close to 60 per cent share of the delivery market. But if you look at the total market, that is delivery plus dining plus takeaway, we would have a 40 per cent market share."
<p align=justify>“All Pepe advertising campaigns portray the brand identity, represented by the youth who speak of an attitude that says ‘I am what I am.’ The visuals are strong and captivating, creating a deep impact on the target audience.”
Pepe Jeans London works on a 360-degree approach in its marketing communications strategy, involving both above-the-line and below-the-line activities. Billboards and print advertising constitute Pepe's ATL strategy. TV campaigns do not find much favour because of fragmented viewership, says Chetan Shah, Country Head, Pepe Jeans.
<p align=justify>“Our frontline sales force is our brand ambassador, and mammoth time and energy is spent on training them…As for advertising, it’s a tough task since the category is rather generic. You can’t get into specifications of an insurance policy on television in a matter of a few seconds; you can only convey the broader picture.”
<p align="justify">“Since the launch of Orra, we have consolidated our position as the serious diamond player with an exhaustive price range. The entry-level pricing starts at Rs. 5,000 onwards and goes up to Rs. 700,000-Rs 1000,000. ”
<p align=justify>“Seduction, creativity and femininity are the words that best describe the distinctive Dior style. Dior, the French fashion house established in 1947, sets the trend each season. In 1975, Dior instituted its watch collection as a crucial fashion accessory at the heart of the couture brand.”
<p align=justify>“I believe that marketing is beyond advertising and is beyond a 30-second ad. There are some companies which have a visibility issue, awareness issue, top-of-mind recall issue but when you reach a certain position, then your first priority is not visibility or awareness any more. I don’t think we need to run an advertising campaign saying that this is LG. People know LG the brand.”
“The conventional Party method of selling is the core of our business in India and Europe. What we have done worldwide is to support the method through a measure of brand building initiatives. We are trying to make the brand visible where the people are.”
Tupperware is a direct-selling company where both the dealer and manager demonstrate the products at parties. The company has supported this retailing method through initiatives to make the brand visible where people are. With retail becoming more advanced in India, Tupperware is also planning to be present in shopping malls, says Asha Gupta, GM, who heads Tupperware’s marketing in India.
“We are an Internet company that connects the progressive companies with most qualified individuals. And it is a self-service model. Job seekers go on to the site, post their resumes and apply for jobs. On the other hand, employers buy our services (offline); we train them to use the product and how to get the best profiles. We also train them on search technologies and once that’s done, they are on their own.”
“Being a fourth operator, our mindset is that of a challenger. We knew that the other three players were big, but so what? We are new and we are better. And we have to be better to counter the largeness of others. We have done well because of this approach. We had created a GSM record by getting one lakh subscribers win 30 days of our launch. Also, the first five lakh subscribers we acquired was also a record in the GSM segment because we did it in 17 months.”
Idea is a new brand in a highly cluttered telecom environment but has successfully created a niche in the consumer’s mind. What has worked for it is its unique logo, and the youthful, energy-driven look to the brand, says Rajendra Chourasia, Idea Cellular’s Circle Head for Delhi.
"We consciously vacated some of the entry-level non-value segments, which just played up the price and there was no differentiation. We lost some volume there but we moved up the value chain.I guess this is one of the factors that has made us a leaner and faster organization."
“We don’t tackle competition; we tackle consumers. We talk to them and tell them that we have a fresh and different offer...Our business is to actually offer an alternative to the consumer. If he has been shopping for various brands that he has seen, we continue to believe that there is scope for more.”
“General Motors is positioned as a mature and responsible car manufacturer, which offers great value-for-money products to its customers. The company leverages its global expertise to manufacture and market well engineered and safe products through its well-established retail network that provide an excellent ownership experience to its customers.”