Soft pitch, hard sell

DIRECT MARKETING: Undaunted by slow growth, Amway unleashes a TVC and a slew of new products.

The direct selling industry in India has seen sporadic growth over the last few years. A number of players have entered and exited, while some have made their base even stronger.

Amway, one of the first entrants in the market, is looking to consolidate its position and enter more product categories. Also on the agenda is its first television campaign, going on air this July.

According to William Pinckney, managing director and CEO, Amway India, the idea of the campaign is to tell buyers about the superior Amway products and create more awareness about the brand. So far, the company has been advertising in the print media alone.

“We have seen that a lot of people have misconceptions about buying Amway products. We want to address that problem and there is no better way than to go on TV and reach out to the maximum number of people.” The company will spend around Rs 12-14 crore on promotional activities in this financial year.

It has been almost eight years since Amway came into India. The Rs 700-crore company has gradually diversed into a slew of product categories, but now wants to focus on its health and beauty products.

Pinckney claims that health and nutritional products contribute close to 50 per cent of product sales. There are plans to launch six to eight products by the end of this year.

The direct-selling industry in India is currently pegged at around Rs 3,500 crore. However, Pinckney feels that this is just the tip of the iceberg and that the industry has the potential to grow far larger.

“The biggest factor in the slow growth has been the lack of awareness about how the industry functions.”

Amway plans to open more training centres and conduct more sessions for its existing and potential business owners. As of now, Amway has about 4.5 lakh business owners and, while the company is looking to add more of these, it’s not too worried about the somewhat negative impact that some might create.

“It might look easy from the outside but direct selling is a lot of hard work and, just like in any other business, you have got to earn your bucks!”

Applying a visual edge

A job portal scores a first by introducing video resumes on its site. How far will it help streamline the recruitment process?

Hyderabad-based online job search company Monster India has introduced a new facility through which job seekers can upload their ‘video résumés’.

How it works
Video résumés can be uploaded by registered users at www.monsterindia.com in the same way as text résumés. The search mechanism for employers, too, remains the same. “Multiple video formats generated through mobile cameras, handycams or webcams can be viewed on any Web browser.” says Vikas Agarwal, vice-president, product & technology, Monster India. A visual representation lends personality to text résumés and gives candidates a competitive advantage.
For instance, a text résumé may not be able to provide details about a person’s communications skills. Video résumés could also help speed up the recruitment process and cut down costs by reducing the number of screening rounds.
“Recruiters can evaluate how candidates present their skills without preliminary interviews,” says Agarwal.

The target
The e-recruitment space is getting busier as more traditional sectors such as manufacturing, fast moving consumer goods and shipping are joining IT and BPO companies in recruiting through online job portals.
Companies which use these services include telecom company Reliance Communications Ltd, hospitality major The Oberoi Group, drug company Cadila Pharmaceuticals Ltd, consumer durables company Samsung India Electronics Pvt. Ltd, ITES entities such as HCL Technologies Ltd and Wipro Ltd. The new service is expected to draw in a new set of customers as well.

Critics’ view
It is an innovation that adds value to the recruitment process, and the novelty factor—job portals, both in India and abroad, are yet to latch on to video résumés—is likely to give Monster India a clear edge. But some senior executives foresee certain limitations. This service will be more useful for entry-level recruitments. “This can only help in lateral hiring and not for jobs in senior positions or specialist roles,” says Dilip Kumar Shrivastava, head, corporate HR, HCL Technologies Ltd. Even for positions in sales and marketing, the usefulness of video résumés is doubtful. Says Sumeet Yadav, head, retail, VF Arvind Brands Pvt Ltd: “You can’t gauge a candidate’s intelligence and data crunching abilities by viewing a video.”
Also, there’s the question of logistics.
“Their success will depend on searchability. A lot will depend on the usage and distribution of video,” says Sanjeev Bikhchandani, founder and CEO, Info Edge India Ltd, parent company of job portal naukri.com.
Bikhchandani says he has been looking at video résumés for a while, but “we are not getting into this immediately”.

Positive proof
Video résumés, however, have the advantage of credibility. Says Subhash Rao, director, human resources, Cisco Systems India Pvt. Ltd: “Puffed-up résumés are the bane of today’s recruitment managers. A video resume lowers that risk considerably.”
Visual samples of work, observe retailers, give a far more accurate picture of the abilities of visual merchandisers, store managers and designers. “This service would greatly help outstation candidates and hiring managers who are at remote sites,” K.K. Swamy, deputy managing director, Toyota Kirloskar Motors Ltd.
Every little cog in the management wheel is critical, and new ones even more so. In this space, we will look at events that impact strategy and management.

Source: Mint

Top of the mind

A survey of the best commercials on television in May 2007


There’s no formula for an advertisement’s success. It could be the star factor or just a good idea. Whether it is De Beer’s Nakshatra flick, starring actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, or a play on an old Bollywood number in the Fiat Palio Stile’s promo, the success of a campaign depends on how effectively it captures the attention of the consumer.
To measure this, Mint’s monthly survey evalutes advertisements on brand recall and awareness, besides parameters of credibility. Responses are then collated on all these criteria to arrive at the top rankings. Conducted by Synovate, a global market research agency, supported by TV Ad Indx, an ad monitoring firm, the survey covered 750 respondents in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, in the 18-40 age group.

Brand:Mentos Candy Agency: Ogilvy & Mather/WPP Group Another in the ‘Dimaag ki batti jala de’ series, it shows a boy walking in late at a concert with squelching shoes and drawing public ire. In the Mentos replay, he decides to walk next to another guest, thus deflecting the audience’s disapproval.

Brand:Fiat Palio Stile
Agency: Orchard Advertising/Leo Burnett/BCOM3
The ad plays on the popularity of an old Bollywood number, Mere sapno ki rani, which had been set in a scene where a car runs parallel to a train. The new twist is that the girl listens to the song on an iPod. The catchline: Fun time reloaded.
Brand:Nokia N95
Agency: Bates India/Cordiant Communications/WPP Group
To highlight the plethora of features of these handsets, the promo shows the odds and ends that come out of pockets, including a pin, rings, a paper bird and a stone. The tagline: There’s a thing in my pocket. But it’s not one thing, it’s many.
Brand:Sony Ericsson Walkman Phone
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi
The ad showcases the dancing skills of actor Hrithik Roshan. Spun around its catchy line, “I love the thump”, the advertisement shows Roshan dancing with people from across the world, to music played on the Walkman phone.

Brand:Logan
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi
A slick action flick shows a female agent drop from a helicopter onto a trailer carrying a Logan, to spy on the features that make India’s first wide body car so special. Her work done, the Logan proves irresistible, and she decides to drive the car away.
Brand:ABN AmroOne
Agency: Publicis India
This ad takes the brand’s catchline, “Cashback for a lifetime”, a step further. Dacoits, finding only a brand’s credit card on a train passenger, decide to give him some money instead. The tagline: Cash back everywhere, every time.

Brand:Dabur Real/Orange
Agency: Lowe Lintas/Interpublic Group/IPG
Shot at a fort, the ad film shows various people plying a child with orange juice in an attempt to keep him occupied and out of their hair. “Want more, slurp more,” says the ad. It plays on the exotic locale and strikes a chord in the tourist season.
Brand:Mother Dairy Chillz
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi
The ad shows a basketball game between physically challenged and able-bodied players. After the match, two men in wheelchairs enjoy ice cream cones. One of them then gets up and walks alongside the other. It’s the goodness inside, says the voice-over.

Brand:Mentos Candy
Agency: Ogilvy & Mather/WPP Group
Another in the ‘Dimaag ki batti jala de’ series, it shows a boy walking in late at a concert with squelching shoes and drawing public ire. In the Mentos replay, he decides to walk next to another guest, thus deflecting the audience’s disapproval.
Brand:MRF Zapper
Agency: Lowe Lintas/Interpublic Group/IPG
A man at a road repair site watches horrified as a couple on a bike speed towards a crumbling patch on the road. The bike, however, manages to negotiate the cracks with inches to spare. A nice play on the tyre’s grip with the line, “Get a grip”.
Brand:Titan Fastrack Eye Gear
Agency: Lowe Lintas/Interpublic Group /IPG
The ad works on the idea that the product turns the wearer into a hero. Actor John Abraham walks into a market and puts on his sunshades. Girls cling to him, screaming for help, but stop and walk away when he removes his eyewear.

Source: Mint

Maruti hikes discounts on select models

Competition from Renault Logan, Tata Indigo

Maruti Udyog has substantially increased discounts on models such as the 800, Alto, Zen Estilo and the Esteem.
The move comes even as the company has apologised to customers for the long delay in deliveries of the Swift and the newly launched SX4.
The company has advertised in leading dailies last week about the discount offer open till June 15 on the four models named above.
While it has increased discounts on Esteem to Rs 35,000 from Rs 25,000 last month, that on the Zen Estilo has been hiked from Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 this month.
The discount on the popular Alto, with sales of nearly 20,000 units per month, has been doubled to Rs 10,000.
Senior Maruti officials could not be reached for comment.Market sources said that there has been a demand for new models like the Zen Estilo, Wagon-R and Swift Diesel, even as demand for older models such as the Esteem and the 800 is waning.
Customer preference for the Alto over the 800 in the entry-level segment and new competition from the Renault Logan and Tata Indigo in the sedan segment could also be possible reasons behind Maruti increasing discounts on its own models.
The company is also possibly offering discounts to try and ease pressure on its models from recent launches such as the Chevrolet Spark and the Hyundai Getz Prime, the sources added.
"The doubling of discount on the Zen Estilo this month, as compared to April and May, could be related to the launch of Spark," said a dealer.
Two months ago, the Managing Director, Mr Jagdish Khattar, had said that Maruti would be changing over to the latest M-series engine for all models, but did not mention a timeframe.
The Suzuki SX4 has been launched with the M-series engine, which is supposed to be more refined and helps Maruti vehicles meet Euro IV emission norms, which will come into force in 2008.
Over the last couple of days, the company has issued advertisements in the form of a letter from Mr Khattar, apologising for the delay in deliveries of the Swift and the SX4.
"It is possible that the delay has been worsened by a mix of unanticipated demand and a possible changeover to the new engine," said an analyst.
Meanwhile, the company is understood to be gearing up for the launch of the Suzuki Grand Vitara next month.

Source: The Hindu Business Line

Cricket loses out: Ford says no, LG decides to back golf instead

Cricket in the country is passing through a bad phase following the national team’s disastrous showing at the recent World Cup

LG Electronics India Pvt. Ltd formally severed its decade-old backing of cricket, saying the sport had lost relevance in its marketing strategy, and announced that it would support four niche sports—starting with golf.
The announcement came on a day when Graham Ford, coach of the English county side Kent, turned down a formal offer to coach the Indian cricket team, and as the European Tour unveiled a controversial plan to stage a $2.5 million (Rs10.25 crore) tournament in 2008 in India, dubbed the Indian Masters, a move the company said would herald a new era for golf in the world’s second most-populous country.
Cricket in the country is passing through a bad phase following the national team’s disastrous showing at the recent World Cup, rapidly losing both fans and sponsors over the past few months.
“Cricket has always been a game of the masses; golf is a game of the classes,” said LG India’s head of marketing Sandeep Tiwari, explaining why his company opted for golf as a strategy to market its new range of high-end products that include LCD television sets, laptops and cellular phone handsets, all aimed at high-spending consumers. “Our target audience will be found on the golf courses.”
Tiwari said LG was little known in India when it started off 10 years ago and cricket was the ideal vehicle to create brand awareness.
The company has new objectives now: this includes sponsoring golf and three other niche sports, which would be announced later, to reach LG’s target group among the more affluent.
The golf link, through the 13-leg LG Indian Amateur Golf Tour that kicks off in Bangalore on 12 June, is the company’s maiden association with the sport at a competitive level. Its one-off association with golf a few years ago was a corporate event solely for clients.
The golf tour is also the first financial commitment the company has made to any sport since March after the expiry of its eight-year contract with the International Cricket Council (ICC), the game’s apex administrative body, for all ICC-organized tournaments, including the World Cup.
LG India’s entire marketing strategy over the last decade revolved round cricket. It had several cricketers as brand ambassadors, and in 1999, it had paid ICC between $25-30 million for securing the official ICC sponsor contract along with Hero Honda Motors Ltd, Samsung Electronics Ltd and Philips.
Tiwari emphasized that LG had not completely cut off from cricket, and would sponsor series and tournaments if these coincided with festivals such as Diwali, when consumer spending traditionally rises. On the other hand, support to golf reflected its wish to “pick up an early trend”—the sport’s growing popularity.
The LG Indian Amateur Golf Tour, organized under the aegis of the Indian Golf Union, will be played across 12 venues and includes 2006 Asian Games silver medallists Anirban Lahiri and Joseph Chakola, British Open 2006 (Junior) winner Amanjyot Singh and India Junior number one Rahul Bakshi.
Meanwhile, the inaugural Indian Masters has been scheduled for 7-10 February at a still-to-be-confirmed venue. It will be promoted and organized by golf in DUBAI, the company behind the Dubai Desert Classic.
Gen. J.J. Singh, the president of the Indian Golf Union, described the announcement as a “historic” milestone in the development of the sport in India. But it immediately sparked a row with organizers of the Asian tour, who are furious at not being consulted over the new tournament.
In a statement, the Asian tour’s executive chairman, Kyi Hla Han, accused his European counterparts of “unethical” conduct.
He said: “The Asian Tour disagrees with the unethical actions of the European Tour, which has avoided contact with the Asian Tour whilst announcing this new event in India. This action reflects on the European Tour’s aggressive direction without any concern for the protocol of the International Federation of PGA Tours and highlights an invasion position on Asia.”

Source: Anik Basu, Mint

For advertisers, happy days are here again and again...

Several ads in print and television are using the word ’happy’ to pitch their wares

Indian advertisers and their agencies are in a happy state of mind and the feeling is spilling into their work.
Several ads in print and television are using the word “happy” to pitch their wares. And more ads, even products, are being built around the H-word.
The happy brigade includes telco Bharti Airtel Ltd, job site Clickjobs.com (promoted by Bharatmatrimony.com Pvt. Ltd), fast food chain McDonald’s India Pvt. Ltd, household products firm Godrej Sara Lee Ltd, and pen maker Luxor Writing Instruments Pvt. Ltd. “It’s not a new phenomenon,” says Ravi Kiran, chief executive of Starcom Worldwide, a media buying firm, “but the word is making a comeback”.
The Bharti Airtel commercial has a group of shoppers and the shopkeeper himself singing “Happy recharge to you” to a man who is recharging or topping up his prepaid card at the outlet. Almost 90% of India’s 175 million mobile-phone subscriber base uses prepaid cards where people pay money upfront in return for a fixed amount of talktime.
Clickjobs.com has given its state of mind a persona, creating a character called Happy Kumar. Godrej Sara Lee’s new tagline for the firm’s Good Knight brand of mosquito repellant suggests that consumers use the product to “protect happy moments” with their families. And Luxor Writing Instruments will soon launch an entire stationery line called Planet Happy, and is planning a commercial to advertise the range, according to Pooja Jain, executive director, Luxor Writing Instruments.
There are other ads that use the proposition of happiness, but these have used them for some time. The new ad for Mahindra Holidays & Resorts Ltd (the company offers its services under the brand Club Mahindra), which has employed the word happy in its ads for the past two years, mentions it several times and, just to make sure no one missed it, sports a tagline that says “Happy family holidays”. Luggage maker VIP Industries Ltd has had a tagline that says “VIP happy journey” for a few years now. But the word is more commonly seen in ads today, says Pranesh Mishra, president and chief operating officer, Lowe India, the agency that handles the VIP account. “It is a reflection of the times we are going through; the optimism in the market and India’s overall (economic) performance are contributing to the happiness,” he adds.
Clearly, there is a lot to feel happy about.
According to data released last week by the government, India’s economy grew at 9.4% in 2006-07, the fastest in two decades. And data from human resources consulting firm Hewitt shows that salaries in the country grew the fastest in the world, by 14.4% in 2006, and are set to grow by a further 14.5% in 2007. The advertising industry, whose performance is related to the overall economy’s, grew by 23% in 2006, to Rs16,300 crore in size by capitalized billings (the size of the industry isn’t calculated on the basis of how much income it earns, but the total value of the advertisements it places).
If you are an advertiser, you can’t go wrong with happy, says a language expert.
“The word happy has a lot of positive emotions attached to it. When advertisers use the word happy, it easily and naturally makes consumers feel good about them and their products,” says Meena Sodhi, a linguist and English professor at Banaras Hindu University. Bharti Airtel’s spokesperson says the theme for the company’s advertising this year is connecting people to their families and friends, which, “in the end, is a happy feeling”.
Ramesh Srivath, executive vice-president, Rediffusion DY&R Pvt. Ltd, the agency that handles the Bharti Airtel account, says that the focus of the brand’s communication efforts has moved from “innovative advertising to emotional advertising”.
Hindustan Lever Ltd’s Bru coffee was an early convert to the merits of happy advertising. Four years ago, it started using the word in its advertisements. Last year, its ad used the tagline “Happy moments with Bru”. This year, its ad uses the tagline “Treasure of happiness”. Bru is also running a contest around the word by asking consumers to send in their happy stories to the company. The best stories win small prizes.
The happy formula works, says Mishra. “It is a simple word. It is easy to connect with. Added to the overall positive environment, any message (that uses the word) can work wonders for the brand,” adds Mishra.

Source: Priyanka Mehra, Mint

Dissatisfaction guaranteed

The sales associate shifts her gaze off to the side just as the customer approaches. Suddenly she is intent on restocking merchandise or discussing when she will take her next break, anything to avoid actual contact with a shopper. It’s the type of behavior that galls customers and dominates the list of complaints cited in the second annual Retail Customer Dissatisfaction Study conducted by Wharton’s Jay H Baker Retail Initiative with the Verde Group, a Canadian consulting firm. The study found that disinterested, ill-prepared and unwelcoming salespeople lead to more lost business and bad word-of-mouth than any other management challenge in retailing. “There are a variety of different triggers for having a bad shopping experience, including things like parking or how well the store is organised. Some of those things retailers can do something about and some of them they can’t. But frankly, a very important part of the retail experience is the interaction with the sales associate,” says Wharton marketing professor Stephen J Hoch, director of the Baker Initiative. In a telephone survey of 1,000 shoppers who were asked about their most recent retail experience, 33% reported they had been unable to find a salesperson to help them. Many of these shoppers were so annoyed by this one problem that they said they would not return to the store. According to the Wharton analysis, sales associates who are missing in action cost American retailers 6% of their customers. Add to that the 25% of consumers reporting they were ignored outright by sales associates — no greeting, no smile, not even eye contact. This lack of engagement turned off 3% of customers to the point where they said they would permanently stay way from the store in which they encountered this behaviour. Hoch remains puzzled by sales associates who retreat from potential customers. “You would think that if these sales associates are spending the whole day interacting with people, they would be a lot happier in their own life if they were friendly. Instead, they pull into their shell. What’s wrong with saying, ‘Hi, how are you doing?’” According to Paula Courtney, president of the Verde Group, survey respondents were not frustrated by sales associates who seemed overworked or outmanned by shoppers. It’s the “conscious ignoring” that irritates them, she says. “Customers would walk into a store and the store representative would see them and continue to put items on the shelf or watch the cash register or do administrative work — absolutely ignoring the fact that an actual person was in the store.”
brand equity eco times

It`s a mad, bad, sad, glad ad world!

It was never too difficult to sell to us, was it?

Sud’s up: Sunday mornings. The moment you heard the Nirma jingle blare from hundreds of TV sets in your neighbourhood, you knew it was time for Mahabharat to begin. The Nirma commercial may have been crude, but it was as effective as a sledgehammer. Listen to it, it’s playing in your brain right now!

At the other cerebral extreme was Surf’s Lalitaji, who could sell you a not-so-cheap detergent while buying tomatoes. To paraphrase David Ogilvy, the consumer is not a moron, she’s Lalitaji.

At the other end was the Ariel commercial. After observing 14,000 bathrooms across the country, Procter & Gamble came to the conclusion that to sell an expensive, high-tech detergent, you had to go through the mindset of the daughter-in-law who could tell her doubting mother-in-law that you need not beat the life out of clothes any more.

Starry, starry types: A rough-and-ready Kapil Dev saying “Palmolive da jawaab nahin” accompanied by a toothy grin, a rugged Dharmendra’s laconic announcement for the equally rugged Rajdoot motorcycles, a youthful Jeetendra jumping out of an aircraft for 30+ capsules, a dignified Shekhar Kapur marching ahead with Digjam suiting and a cheeky Sunil Gavaskar “taking the world in his stride” with Dinesh suiting.

Unlike today’s personalities who peddle stuff they wouldn’t be seen dead with and vice versa, it was memorable and effective. Quiz time: Which brand of office equipment does Tendulkar endorse? And Big B peddles hair oil from Emami or Baidyanath or Dabur? Psst! We don’t know either.

Soap operas: On the other hand, you have Lux — still starry after all these years. While the stars were in their bathtubs, one bold TV commercial took an effervescent Karen Lunel out in the open. From the bathroom to the waterfall, from coy neck shots to an itsy-bitsy bikini, from a gentle voice-over to a racy jingle, the Liril commercial went where no soap ad had gone before.

Jingle bells: Going back a bit, you had a device called the radio. People religiously tuned to Vividh Bharati and Radio Ceylon. Binaca had its Geetmala, while Bournvita concentrated on “Man ki Shakti” by sponsoring a superb quiz contest.

When we moved from radio to TV, some part of the previous medium stuck — the jingle. In old TV ads, they were really strong on soundtracks: Bajaj Lighting, Maggi 2-Minute Noodles, Glucon-D, Limca, Vicco Vajradanti, Thums Up...the list is endless.

Patriot games: Sometime in the 1990s, it was great to be an Indian. Well, the idiot box told you so. The exquisitely shot “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara” may not have been a commercial but it did sell the concept of One India.

Then you had the brilliant “Hamara Bajaj” campaign with its slice-of-Indian-life — that it couldn’t stop the downhill ride of the scooter category is another thing. In the same vein was Tisco’s “We Also Make Steel”, VIP luggage’s tear-jerking “Kal Bhi, Aaj Bhi, Kal Bhi”, and of course, the monster hit Cadbury’s Dairy Milk ad, “Kya Swaad Hai Zindagi”.

Whose line is it anyway?: Made For Each Other. Whenever You See Colour, Think Of Us. Happy Days Are Here Again. Utterly, Butterly Delicious. The Complete Man. Give Me Red.

Iconoclastic: Some of them are still around: the Onida Devil, the Air India Maharaja, the Parle-G girl, Fido Dido. But most of them have sadly gone: Asian Paints’ Gattu, the bearded Zodiac Man, the Elpar cowboy, the Promise “Off-Oh” housewife, the Kelvinator penguin, the Murphy baby, the “I Love You Rasna” girl, the left-handed Vicks “khich-khich” girl... The memories remain.

Source: Strategist (Srinivas Krishnan,Mumbai) June 06, 2007

Think national, act regional

ADVERTISING: Do separate ads for separate regions pay dividends?

Not too long ago, Aamir Khan donned various avatars — from a Bihari babu to a Bengali bhadralok to a Punjabi villager — in a television commercial for Coke. And now Amitabh Bachchan will be doing something similar for Himani Navratna Tel.

There’s already one TVC up on various channels which shows the Big B as a UP bhaiyya, and two more are to follow, apparently, depicting him as a Tamilian and a Bengali. Clearly, “go local” seems to be the mantra here.

But does regionalisation in advertising work? “Oh, yes,” says Harish Bijoor, CEO, Harish Bijoor Consults, “India is a hetrogenous country and having a regional flavour in your ads goes down extremely well with audiences.”

But, of course, it has to be done with a lot of care. “If you are targetting people in Karnataka, then you to have see what appeals to the various sub-sects in that state.” And it has to be authentic as well, he adds. The setting, the clothes, the dialect — everything has to be in sync with the region or else the ad might fall flat on the face.

Bijoor, who used the tactic for a Bru campaign 15 years ago, says that separate regional ads work better for products which have wider appeal.

Sagar Mahabaleswar, group creative head, Ogilvy, has a different take on the issue: “It depends on the kind of audience you want to connect with. A commercial for Tata Safari wouldn’t work too well if regionalised.” But yes, overall, it is a great idea to go regional, he feels.

But in this case, Mahabaleshwar feels, “It is because celebrity endorsers have been used that it is getting highlighted, else regionalisation has been done in the past as well.”

Josy Paul, national creative director, JWT, feels that more often than not, regionalising an ad is an attempt to address the north-south divide.

“When you talk about regionalisation, the only area where you can have a major impact is down south. All the rest are Hindi dominated states, where it’s actually not regionalisation but just tinkering with the jingle or the language.”

Paul makes another valid point. “When you use Mumbaiya lingo, is it regional? No, it’s not.” But Paul too agrees that regionalisation can do wonders for a brand, if handled properly.

Well, the strategy did work wonders for Coke. But it remains to be seen how things unfold for Himani and the rest which might follow suit.

Source: Strategist (Aabhas Sharma,New Delhi) June 07, 2007

Old wine, new packaging?

MARKETING: When it comes to creating a buzz in F&B products, a change of design helps.

The next time you visit your neighbourhood supermart, make sure you pay a visit to the beverage aisle. Increasingly, that section of the store has started resembling more of a fashion ramp than a drinks retail segment. And the same might be said for the ice cream and packaged foods aisles.

Brand dressing and packaging innovation is fast becoming the food and beverage industry’s favourite indulgence. But sitting pretty atop the retail showcase is not the sole function of the new, improved products.

Within the last two months, Amul has re-designed the packaging of three of its products — ice creams, cheese and shrikhand. While making the product more attractive and eye-catching is the primary reason, for Amul the innovation in packaging also carries another message — widening its target audience and being a crowd puller at the retail outlets.

“We wanted to broaden our target audience to include the youth. So, we decided to change the look of our brands to attract this segment. Plus, in the competitive market and with organised retail coming in, our products need to look attractive in order to stand out from the rest on the shelf,” says R S Sodhi, chief general manager, GCMMF (Amul).

When Dabur Foods introduced the tetra pack for its juice range Real, the company made an investment of Rs 3-5 crore. Thereafter, every time the company innovates on its packaging design, it spends a minimum of Rs 15 lakh. Take this time, for instance.

The Real range has been re-designed once again, with more colour, more activity and more appeal at a cost of almost Rs 18 lakh. It’s an investment that others like Coca-Cola, Frito Lay, Britannia and Nestle enjoy making.

This April, Coca-Cola launched the new look Limca, curvy and seductive. Called the Limca Splash bottle, the company affirms that the decision behind the new bottle was to give it a better grip, for the consumers... and over the market.

“The curvy bottles in Limca and Fanta have been re-designed so that anyone drinking from them can hold the bottle better,” says a Coca-Cola spokesperson and adds, “but it also builds excitement around the brand and any kind of excitement is bound to increase sales of the product.”

Good looks always sell, as do unique ones. Probably the mantra for Britannia when the company completely changed the look, design and packaging of its mass market biscuits — Milk Bikies. Frito Lay too drove its packaging towards a more international look when Lays chips were filled into cardboard containers...armed to fight it out with its close competitor, Pringles.

“Any product in the market, from mobiles to computers is constantly evolving as a design. So, our products also have to evolve from having a functional to an emotional connect with the consumer and this is possible only by design innovation,” asserts Sanjay Sharma, general manager, sales and marketing, Dabur Foods.

One of the highlights though is the Nestle yoghurt, which has not only undergone a design makeover but even been re-christened from Nestle Fruit ‘n’ Dahi to Milkmaid Fruit Yoghurt. Packed into a charming new cup, the yog-hurt has also witnessed a price increase, much like the Real fruit juice from Dabur.

Explains Sharma, “The global commodity prices have witnessed an increase, which is why we had to increase prices too. But we only timed the price increase to coincide with the change in product package design.”

He, however, admits that companies may at times use design innovation to disguise price increases. The strategy seems to be helping companies and the consumers in making decisions on what brand suits their design sense best.

Ask Sodhi, who reveals that the demand for Amul’s shrikhand has seen a definitive improvement after its package design was changed and you know what you eat — or drink — is a function of aesthetics.

Source: Strategist (Radhieka Pandeya, New Delhi) June 07, 2007

Nokia jumps to No 4 as most trusted brand

Three years ago, one wouldn’t have seen a mention of a mobile phone in the listings of India’s Most Trusted Brands. While Brand Equity’s annual survey has included handset brands since 2004, they were relegated to the bottom of the rankings. But three years is a long time, especially in a country that’s played host to one of the world’s most successful telecom revolutions. And this year, Nokia enters the Top 10, indeed the Top 5, displacing a bunch of venerable brands to claim the No 4 position. From a rank of No 71 in 2004, Nokia moved to No 44 in 2005. The brand, which has become synonymous with the rise of mobile telephony in the country, is now reaping the rewards of investing over a long time horizon. In some sense, one could consider Nokia’s rise indicative of “FMCGisation” of the mobile handset market. From a pure technology play, cellphones have become a lifestyle statement with customers going beyond technology, looking at quality, convenience and value for money. Nokia has been able to tap not just the bottom of the pyramid, but the entire consumer universe in India to create a leadership position. “India is not one market, but many markets of different complexities and dynamics and we have deployed all our latest thinking and business acumen in addressing the sizeable opportunities,” says Keith Pardy, Nokia Worldwide’s senior vice-president , strategic marketing. Pardy believes that by building its understanding of Indian consumers, Nokia has been able to create products that meet the needs of consumers across the spectrum, “whether that is the demand for high tech products like Nokia Nseries or the importance of durability and affordability for people living in more remote areas,” he adds.

For Nokia, India is currently the third largest market in terms of volume and Pardy believes that there’s still bigger potential in areas like mobility and internet. To maintain its leadership position in India, it’ll need to retain its fierce focus on consumer need states, and those of retail partners. Some of those efforts take the form of experiential marketing — through Nokia concept stores, Nokia mobile vans for the rural markets, investing in a robust infrastructure that will respond to customer queries promptly, or even through product innovation that allows consumers to ‘do more’ with their handsets with ease. In the near future, consumers can look forward to multimedia and internet offerings. The emergence of organised retail particularly mobile retailing is both an opportunity and challenge, according to Devinder Kishore, director marketing, Nokia India: “While it’s an opportunity to showcase the brand experience , the rise of a new channel also brings issues like negotiations, customised promotions and marketing initiatives,” he says. A lot of these come out of global synergies. Pardy says Nokia’s local and the global marketing teams have worked to create cutting edge campaigns for India. “The teams have worked together to come up with innovative ideas that are being used across India and will also be rolled out to other countries as well,” he says. The results of consistent efforts in distribution are that the Nokia brand is present across 80,000 outlets in the country. Its excellent showing in both the volume and value games reflect in the survey findings. In the top four metros — Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai — Nokia figures in the Top 15 brands, with a No 2 position in Delhi and a No 6 position in Mumbai.

Source: Times News Network

India's growing luxury market

NEW DELHI: With consumers for luxury goods more in numbers than adult population of several countries, luxury brands are setting up shops in India to tap the growing market. So you have Fossil wrist watches, Dunhill menswear, Bang and Olufsen, Escada ..., the list is growing in the metros and they are now planning to spread. For 21 year old, Mukesh Kumar, his most prized possession is the Fossil watch that his feather got him for his birthday early this year. "I had always wanted to buy this watch but could not afford it with my pocket money. He gave me Rs 7,000 and I bought the watch," he says. For many like Mukesh looking for high-end premium branded clothes, accessories, perfumes, footwear and electronic goods, the growing recognition of India as a potential market by international luxury brands is a boon. "India is a huge market for us. We are looking at having eight more stores across the major cities here," says Mark Newman, Asia Pacific Managing Director, Dunhill, a premium men's-wear brand, which recently launched its first store in the capital. The company is looking at India contributing between 10-20 per cent to its international market, he adds. Of late, companies such as premium electronics-maker Bang & Olufsen and fashion designers like Escada and Brioni have opened shops in New Delhi and Mumbai, joining the likes of Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Versace, Fendi and Valentino
Source: PTI

Positioned between mass & class

'Masstige' is the new buzzword on marketers lips. What's 'masstige' - it's mass plus prestige or premium brands without the premium pricing. Brands across categories like Ponds, Maruti SX4, Motoflip and even Kingfisher are busy doling out masstige offerings. So, while Motorola offers snazzy phones at a cheaper price, Nivea is launching a range of grooming products for the consumer who digs aspirational products but at an affordable price.
A cellphone company with a stable of high-end models, decides to dip into the middle class market with a new model. Priced at Rs 4,000, Motorola claims to have sold five lakh Motoflip phones in the last six months. On the other hand, HLL's cold cream and talc brand - Ponds - has moved up on premium imagery. In March, it launched its Age Miracle range for the consumer who is ready to splurge to look good. Both companies are looking for space on the masstige bandwagon - the sweet spot between mass and class.
Here brands stand out as a prestige product without the expensive tag. Driving this trend is the spend happy middle class. A recent McKinsey report defines them as seekers earning between Rs 2 and Rs 5 lakhs and strivers are people earning in the Rs 5 lakhs to Rs 1 crore income bracket. Put togther, they make for around 55 million households today and are expected to drive the consumption in India for the next 20 years. So, when a personal care company, Nivea lines up for launches in the Indian market, it's toeing the masstige or mass premium line.
Managing Director, Nivea India, Kal Boris Bendix told CNBC-TV18, "Today, the consumer who buys mass products might also go for premium products. We have a very hybrid consumer these days. We are talking about people who are travelling a lot and who buy products from abroad."
Brand Consultant, Anand Halve says, "Prestige products are becoming commonplace products or price points, which were earlier considered premium prices are now base prices."
Meanwhile, other sectors like automobiles have seen a similar trend. India's family car Maruti, recently launched SX4, another offering in the masstige segment, where the earlier model - Baleno - failed to deliver. Even though it continues to sell products at the lower end of the market, to get rid of its price warrior image, in the last two years, consumer durables major, LG has stuck to premium imagery in its advertising.
Besides advertising, malls are also helping companies to indulge in experiential marketing. However, marketers who take up the mass-premium plank, (which is right in the middle of the consumer pyramid) need to constantly innovate. Because if that doesn't happen, whats a 'masstige' brand today could easily turn mass market tomorrow.

Bingo: Shakeup in snacks segment

Colas, airlines, retailers - their rivalry has become legendary. Joining that list are those pure impulse buys - the snack brands. The battle is between Pepsico Frito Lay's Kurkure and Lays that dominate the Rs 2,000 crore branded snack market and challenger, Bingo from ITC Foods. Right now, they are slugging it out for a shelf near you.
ITC Foods was counting on Lays and Kurkure not being around, when it entered the Food Bazaar chain. While backend sourcing tie-ups between the two may have sweetened the relationship, the bottomline at this retailer is Bingo, which is what you see most when you look for salted snacks. It's not just here that Bingo has struck at the small shops, to whom it's offering a margin that's 4% to 5% higher than what Frito Lays is paying. Not just that, if the display is better, they get paid even more. ITC Food's largeses is largely to catch up with Frito Lay's national reach of 8 lakh outlets.
So, that's distribution but what about the product and pricing? Well, the current No.1, Frito Lays has been lauded for a round pricing strategy, slow but steady taste innovations and the big hit - the 'Made in and for India', Kurkure. After two-years of homework, ITC's offerings are priced at par with Frito's and the USP is as many as 16 variants in one go. The idea to get the consumer to take that first bite.
So, while Bingo is using a high-decibel launch campaign, Frito Lay's new strategy is to get personal with consumers. Through its just launched chaitime contest, it is inviting recipes that use Kurkure. 25 winners along with their families will make it across to 2.5 crore packs of Kukure. Supported by outdoor promotion, the promotion hopes to drive volumes and break the barrier of seasonal demand.
For now, this is how the players stack up in the branded snack narket. Pepsi's Frito Lays leads the pack, followed by Haldiram. ITC Foods hopes to capture a quarter of that within the next four years. But Lays will also have to take distributor margins to a new level, if it wants to maintain its 50% share of the market. It's in negotiations with Food Bazaar and Kurkure could make a comeback in the next 3 to 4 months.
Molshree Vaid

For Moneycontrol India

Microsoft acquires digital marketing firm for $6 billion

In a $6-billion deal that Microsoft believes would strengthen its internet business, the software giant has acquired digital marketing firm Aquantive in its biggest ever acquisition.
Aquantive advises agencies and website publishers on putting adverts online, connecting buyers and sellers. The media company, which has over 2,600 employees, will continue to operate from Seattle as part of Microsoft's online operations.
The all-cash takeover will allow Microsoft to expand into the highly lucrative internet advertising market, also being pursued by its archrival Google and Yahoo. The $66.50 per share offer is 85 per cent higher than Aquantive's closing price of $35.87 on Thursday.
Microsoft has justified paying the price, which represents 2 per cent of its market value, by arguing the complementary technology of Aquantive was worth the price and the deal would help it broaden the scope of services its MSN consumer internet unit can offer. Kevin Johnson, head of Microsoft's platforms and services division, said, "This deal takes our advertising business to a new level." Johnson also said that Microsoft was committed to earning a bigger slice of growing online advertising business, currently estimated at around $55 billion.
Analysts, however, suspect the price paid by the software giant reflects its anxiety to make a significant acquisition in the shrinking independent online advertising segment in which its rivals are seen to be strengthening their stake.
For instance, last month search engine giant Google agreed to buy DoubleClick for $3.1 billion, while Yahoo grabbed the 80 per cent of the equity of Right Media Exchange that it did not previously own for $680 million.
The deal is expected to be completed in the first half of 2008, subject to regulation.

Google dethrones Microsoft as top global brand

Silicon Valley: Silicon Valley-based search engine firm Google, Inc, with a brand value of $66.4 billion, has overtaken Microsoft as the most powerful global brand, says the UK market research firm, Millward Brown Optimor in its latest annual ranking survey.
Microsoft, with a brand value of $54.9 billion is ranked third behind General Electric, which had a brand value of $61.8 billion.
Coca-Cola, for years the most powerful global brand, ranked fourth with an estimated valued of $44.1 billion.
The study, Brandz Top 100, by Millward Brown said that the search engine's brand value had increased by 77 per cent since in the last one year.
Joanna Seddon, chief executive, Millward Brown, said that success stories from this year's Brandz Top 100 demonstrated that winning brands leverage major market trends effectively to create business value.
"Strong brands are capable of extending into areas of opportunity to access new revenue streams and to help businesses respond to market changes," Brown said.
The ranking attempts to put a dollar value on a brand based on current and expected future earnings. The figure is generated from hard economic data as well as softer variables such as intangible consumer loyalty and perceived growth potential.

Global study reveals customer service remains critical to profitability

Mumbai: Is customer service getting better or worse? Despite the conventional wisdom of customer "no-service" as the norm, over 61 per cent of consumers see call centers as doing a better job than three years ago.
An international survey of more than 4,300 consumers found that, despite some continued pockets of frustration, 23 per cent of all consumers found their experience "significantly better," and an additional 38 per cent felt it was "somewhat better" while only 12 per cent thought it was worse.
In addition, the survey revealed that customer service is a critical driver of profitability and satisfaction, with more than 75 per cent of consumers saying they would give more business to a company based on a great contact center experience.
And, 50 per cent of consumers say the last time they stopped doing business with a company was partly or wholly due to a poor customer service experience.The survey, which measures consumers likes, dislikes and frustrations with contact centers and automated customer service systems, was commissioned by Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories, Inc., an Alcatel-Lucent company. Its findings indicate that, while investments in technology and self-service are starting to pay off, consumers increasingly want better multi-channel service, through SMS, e-mail and other new media.
The biggest causes of customer frustration:
In 2003, Genesys created the pioneer study in customer frustration and has followed in each of the past four years. Globally, the major sources of customer frustration are consistent with findings over the past four years:

• Long hold times - 67 per cent of consumers are frustrated by long hold times, and 88 per cent would prefer to receive a call-back in 10 minutes than to be on hold for that long.
• Poor automation - 57 per cent of consumers are frustrated by IVRs with too many or incorrect options and 76 per cent of consumers feel that companies are pushing them to use self-service systems instead of talking to live people.
• Customer Repetition - 52 per cent of consumers are frustrated by having to repeat information they've already provided.

"Given the direct impact of contact center performance on customer loyalty, successful companies must take every opportunity to connect with their customers to create a positive experience," said Wes Hayden, president and CEO of Genesys.
Hayden explains, "Customer service is improving, but the expectations of consumers are going up as well. As the world market becomes more competitive, the most successful companies are ones that make the best use of every channel and every interaction. Companies should engage their customers with a well-planned and executed contact center strategy."
Survey respondents indicated that a good way to create a positive experience is to address consumers' basic frustrations. For example, the survey results indicated that companies can eliminate long hold times by including a call-back option in their IVR systems. Rather than waiting on hold, 74 per cent of customers would like to have the option to ask for a call back when they feel the wait would be too long.
Emerging Trends - proactive contactThe hottest new emerging trends in customer service are the desire for proactive contact and the need for better support for a broader set of communication channels, such as SMS, web chat and e-mail.
When it comes to new channels, 86 per cent of consumers want e-mail communication and more than 45 per cent of consumers would like e-mail to become their primary communication vehicle.
Speed of communication is critical, however, with 21 per cent expecting a one hour response time - up from 6 per cent with that expectation in 2003. An additional 17 per cent of consumers expect an e-mail response within 4 hours, and 47 per cent within 24 hours. In addition, 19 per cent would like web chat (instant messaging) and 17 per cent want SMS text messages.
Surprisingly, over 89 per cent of consumers would like to receive proactive communications from companies, by phone or text, to keep them informed about service delivery and/or other products and services that may be of interest to them. Proactive communications offer a way of creating a positive image with customers. According to the survey, 87 per cent of customers would have a more positive opinion of a supplier after receiving a courtesy call to thank them for their business or to ask about their satisfaction; however, only 43 per cent have received such a call. Substantial regional differences:While consumers agreed on most core customer service issues, substantial, regional differences are emerging that offer some of the most striking findings from the survey. Europeans are 10 times more likely to want SMS text messages sent to their mobile phones than Americans (21 per cent for Europe versus 2 per cent for the US).
Similarly, 19 per cent of consumers from Asia Pacific and 7 per cent from Japan also want SMS messages sent to them. Meanwhile, more than 28 per cent of U.S. consumers want instant web chat capabilities, compared to 19 per cent in Europe, 18 per cent in APAC and 11 per cent in Japan.

Coke eyes market for fruit juices, energy drinks

Mumbai: Coca-Cola India plans to enter new beverage segments such as fruit juices in addition to sports and energy drinks in tune with its global strategy to promote healthy beverages.
Coke in India already has a presence in carbonated drinks, tea, coffee, mineral water and fruit-based drinks. The company's mango-flavoured drink, `Maza', is already well established in the market, while it launched its 100 per cent fruit-based drink,`Minute Maid' - an orange-flavoured drink - in February.
The soft drink major said it would put in place a supply-chain system before entering the 100 per cent juice segment.
The 100 per cent packaged juice segment in India, estimated to be worth around Rs500 crore, is currently dominated by brands such as Dabur Foods' Real, Activ and Coolers, PepsiCo's Tropicana and Ladakh Foods' Leh Berry.
Coca-Cola officials said the company was assessing the market potential of its energy drink, Burn, and sports drink, Powerade, in India. Burn and Powerade are already available in international markets such as the US.
Coke is also trying out the pulp-based drink which is not 100 per cent juice, Coca-Cola India's regional operations vice president Milind Sathe said.
Coca-Cola had earlier tried to enter the energy drinks segment with, Shock, brand.
At present, Red Bull and Gatorade are some of the energy and sports drinks available in India.