‘TV is a highly effective & efficient medium for brands aiming for mass reach’

Ritu Mittal, Head – Marketing and Digital, Bayer Consumer Health India talks about Bayer Health’s journey over the years, its innovative marketing strategies for reaching out to the masses and the media mix used to increase the brand’s visibility.

Can you shed some light on your brand journey and how it has shaped over the years? Also, what innovative marketing strategies do you use to reach out to the masses?

In May 2021, Bayer launched its consumer health division with the aim of democratizing access to healthcare for 1.4 billion Indian consumers. The division began by restaging flagship brands Saridon and Supradyn, making them more relevant to young Indians through contemporary packaging and insight-led campaigns. Using a digital-first approach to marketing, we leveraged cohort-based targeting and AI-based gamified solutions to drive brand awareness and trial. This has resulted in numerous awards and positive consumer feedback. The restaging of Saridon with the campaign 'Sar Dard Chupao Nahi, Mitao’ has led to consistent brand growth for almost two years. The brand's first-ever line extension, Saridon Advance, launched almost a year ago, has also shown promising results.

A 2021 Nutrition Survey commissioned by Bayer revealed that daily diets can only provide up to 70% of key nutrients. In response, we encouraged consumers to complement their diets with Supradyn Daily. This led to consistent share growth for us. We also received feedback from our consumers that they want Supradyn with natural ingredients. And so, we developed a unique nature + science proposition and launched Supradyn Immuno+ containing Tulsi + Haldi to give 100% immunity confidence.

A 2022 skin survey commissioned by Bayer showed that 50% of young women suffering from skin fungal infections still chose to use ineffective solutions like talcum powder. In response, we relaunched the world's number one antifungal brand, Canesten, in India with a fresh, quirky campaign targeting young Indian women and encouraging them to use the right solution for treating rashes instead of using talcum powder. The brand's encouraging start last summer is poised to continue into the upcoming summer season.

Across all campaigns, our approach has been to use innovative ways to connect with consumers. These include, AI-based smile detection, gamification for Saridon, and partnership with Terribly Tiny Tales for connecting via storytelling formats with young Indians suffering from stress and pain. We also ran weather-based targeting for Canesten, and influencer-led campaigns for Supradyn.

Which mediums do you use to increase your brand visibility and why? Can you elaborate on how you allocate your marketing budget across various platforms?

At Bayer Health, we have a digital-first mind-set which recognises the importance of using digital channels to reach and engage with our consumers. By adopting an omnichannel approach, we are able to provide a seamless experience for our consumers across all touchpoints, whether online or offline. While traditional channels like TV enable mass reach, digital channels have provided us with more targeted and efficient ways to engage with our consumers. By leveraging data analytics we have been able to tailor our messaging and sampling to specific audiences, driving greater engagement and conversion rates as a result. Talking of social media in particular, it was proven to be a powerful tool in driving engagement and business for us. We created compelling content to engage with our consumers directly, which has kind of fostered deeper connections with our audience. It has also helped us in building a community around our brands.

In addition to creating a seamless customer experience with a mix of TV, digital and other mediums, it's very important to also recognize the importance of physical stores as a key touch point for consumers. To this end, we have transformed the way our brands are presented in stores, ensuring that they are prominently displayed and easy to find.

TV news is a very popular medium of communication due to its reach and loyal viewers. Do you think brands should advertise more on TV as compared to other media platforms?

Despite the progression of digital media channels, television remains a highly effective and efficient medium for brands to reach their target consumers, especially when aiming for a large-scale audience. With its wide availability and popularity, television advertising can provide significant mass reach, enabling brands to connect with a diverse range of viewers across various demographics and geographic locations.

I think brands do not have a choice to isolate themselves. And it's not a very simple answer because there is no one universal solution. The media choices that a brand makes will depend on the objective and the kind of consumer, which is different for each brand. Hence, there is no single, universal response for brands. We have a highly effective mechanism in place for everything related to TV and it is designed to ensure efficient reach and engagement with target consumers. As far as news channels are concerned, they are an important component of our strategy at Bayer. However, a specific mix of channels will obviously vary over time, based on a variety of factors including external events like elections, etc. We continuously strive to optimize our strategy to achieve maximum efficiency and effectiveness. The idea is to keep optimising our reach and effectiveness as a brand. And by remaining flexible in our approach to news and other channels, we’re able to stay ahead of the curve.

What is the marketing mix of your brand campaigns? Do you think that post the pandemic, brand messaging and propositions have changed in India?

The pandemic has forced many brands to rethink their messaging and proposition to better align with consumers' changing needs and priorities. By prioritizing health and safety, empathy, flexibility, and purpose-driven messaging, brands can build stronger connections with consumers in a post-pandemic world.

Our brand messaging and propositions were developed during the pandemic based on consumer learnings that are rooted in experiences and insights from their life. Most of these insights are as true today as they were during the pandemic. For instance, our campaign on Saridon ‘Sardard Chupao nahi mitao’ continues to be relevant. While the triggers for stress may change, the insight that resilient Indians hide headaches from their loved ones and the aspect that Saridon is the best go-to-solution for fast relief from a headache remains unchanged.

The nutrition category is one that saw the most ups and downs with Covid waves. Many consumers took to nutrition supplements for the first time in the last 2 years, as they realized the importance of complementing a healthy diet with good quality supplements. The demand for nutritionals that support the immune system and boost strength will stabilize and continue to grow further. We will continue to encourage our consumers to use good health supplements like Supradyn so that they can give their 100% every day. We will continue to stay closely connected with them so that our messaging stays relevant and meaningful to them.

Do you still advertise on news channels? Can you share some insights on how you market your brand on TV?

Yes, of course. We have a highly effective channel mix and strategy that are designed to efficiently reach and engage our target consumers. News channels are an important component of this strategy. While the specific mix of channels may vary over time based on a variety of factors, including external events, we are always focused on optimizing our reach and effectiveness.

Overall, our approach to channel mix is highly data-driven, allowing us to continuously evaluate and optimize our strategy to achieve maximum efficiency and effectiveness. By remaining flexible and adaptable in our approach to news and other channels, we are able to stay ahead of the curve and get the most value for our marketing investments.

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