Colgate: Now that is called an Aggressive Strategy!

I was reading the news and views of Corporate Industry to keep myself updated on the strategies and policies. I came across an article about the launch of Oral-B toothpaste by P&G in India. P&G already has Oral-B brand tooth brush in India and with this launch they are entering the toothpaste industry. Now what was surprising and caught my attention was the article talked more about Colgate revamping its marketing expenditures and less about launch by P&G.

Prabha Parameswaran, the MD of rival Colgate was the one watching it most closely. As soon as the launch was announced by P&G, Colgate was quick to respond in the market to ensure entry for Oral-B isn't as smooth as they expected. Colgate is market leader in Indian Oral care market. They could have waited to see the response Oral-B gets in the market. But Colgate doesn't believe in wait and watch philosophy. I also believe a lost ground is more painful to gain back than protecting and going aggressive especisally when we are talking about sensitive consumer industry like this one.

Madhuri Dixit is roped in as brand ambassador for Oral-B toothpaste.

Colgate has hiked its advertising and promotion spends considerably during the first half of this calendar year. Company is roping in more and more Bollywood stars to promote their product because they know that is one of the best way to capture Indian mind space and influence their buying. It has bought more shelf space in retail outlets and giving better margins to shopkeepers. For consumers, buy one-get one free or money saver packs are introduced. The company is truly going aggressive and sending out the message that it is not a sleeping elephant in this market. In short run, this may possibly hurt margins for a quarter or two but that should be alright in the long run till the time company doesn't loose market share and give space to competitors.

The company has done well when it faced competitions from Pepsodent and low cost Anchor brands. It faced similar situation in Brazil market where Colgate held around 80% of market share and Oral-B toothpaste was getting launched. The company adopted same policy and went aggressive to keep the new competitor at bay.

For Oral-B, I think they should not take Colgate head on to start with. Colgate has around 55% market share in India but there is a good 45% with other players. It should slowly edge out the second and the third players and win space in  large number of Indian bathrooms. It should then challenge the market leader having understood the market and people enough.

fOoD fOr ThOuGhT: While P&G has all the resources, startegy and good brand in place - they are challenging the market leader. Colgate has been successful in maintaining its dominance in all the markets wherever it got challeneged by competitors but Indian market is always special and different to watch out for. This could an interseting contest.

Sources: Online News

Did you shop from Coca Cola Footware or Mercedes Benz book store?

Apple Inc. A word enough to keep the techno savvy world on its toes. Innovation is what you look for after hearing the brand name. McDonalds’: I M Loving it – first thought in mind, a burger with cheese slice peeping out from the circumference, Coco cola – comfort, lifestyle, enjoyment! Nokia, Google, IBM, Toyota, Disney, Intel, Mercedes Benz, Jaguar, Cisco, BMW, Honda, Nike, Sony, Citi and I can go on and on! Yes, these are world’s best of the brands and the brand name reminds sweet memories associated with the products. It is about lifestyle. Happiness. Comfort.

Would you like to buy clothes from Tata clothes Limited or Tata Apparel Unlimited? How about Maruti Book store? Microsoft Shoes? Did you try new Bata Laptops? You must have tried Philips Jewellery? Oh, how can you miss Accenture watches? Haven’t tried yet! How about Colgate coconut Oil? Amul Dantmanjal? Very effective manjan and keeps your teeth utter butterly deliciously white! I bet you must have tried Birla Milky Bar? I know you are planning to give your girlfriend an Audi diamond ring! I suggest you rather don’t even think of doing that. Neither would you get the girl nor would you get your diamond ring back. So what exactly do I want to say? Why I am trying to tarnish some of the world’s biggest and bestest brands! The case in point is Reliance Industries (Mukesh Ambani) and its brand extension strategy. Out of place to say the least!

Brand extension is a marketing strategy in which a firm marketing a product with a well-developed image uses the same brand name in a different product category. A company tries to do this to leverage the already created brand image. For example, LG – Television, Refrigerator, Mobile phone. The company has an image of high quality electronic durables. So brand extension helps it in establishing products in different product categories. Another example could be Park Avenue: Shirts, After Shave, Belts, Soaps and Razor. Consumers associate the image of a new product with an existing product under same brand.

Now, Reliance Industries, which requires no introduction, is usually associated with Petroleum, oil and refinery. The solid brand associated with execution, efficiency, propelling high growth for the economy. The brand extension of Reliance to ‘Reliance Fresh’ is in itself diluting the value of Reliance Industries. Reliance Digital – doesn’t connect with electronics. The dot on the letter ‘i’ in Reliance symbolises a drop of oil. How would Reliance digital appeal to techno savvy youth of the nation? It is difficult to associate same brand with as diverse businesses as oil, books, clothes and jewellery. Each product has different emotional appeal which a same brand cannot address. When we say Airtel, the fantastic Airtel music composed by AR Raheman, rings in our ear.

Products name should have emotional connect. Emotions drive us to buy more. No matter how many Levis Jeans somebody has, he would go for one more. A Nike shoe gives satisfaction to my legs. Apple iPhone gives a style statement to the users. Would you ever leave your home to shop from ‘Reliance Footprint’, a footwear concept, ‘Reliance Jewels’, a jewellery concept, ‘Reliance TimeOut’, a books, music & entertainment concept? There are the Cross Words, Westsides, Pantaloons, and Mobile Stores! Why would you want to indulge in shopping that won’t give you ‘that’ satisfaction! And Reliance offerings dosen't end here. ‘Reliance Living’, a homeware, furniture, modular kitchens, furnishings concept, ‘Trends’, an apparel & accessories concept, ‘Reliance Wellness’, a health, wellness & beauty concept, ‘iStore by Reliance Digital’, an exclusive Apple products concept!

I respect Mr Senior Ambani for pure vision, planning and execution. If he wants it, he does it! The big thinking! But sometimes you need to put emotions into product apart from money, reach and power. The brand extension ‘Reliance’ to clothes and book store won’t ever allow them to emotionally connect with people.

fOoD fOr ThOuGhT: The process of creation of a brand image sometimes takes decades. Possession of successful brands give people confidence. They see their projections in the brands they hold or possess. If the brand extensions have no advantage over competitive brands in the new category, then it will fail. Hope somebody from Reliance Industries is reading this!

Strategy: Why Videocon wont “pakad life ka any signal”!

Glued to swanky Videocon ads aired on television these days? The advertisements depict various stories trying to connect emotionally with the viewers. Be it “naye kharche ka signal”, “naye job ka signal” or “naye dosti ka signal”, the company scores well when it comes to creativity. They have also managed to showoff India’s biggest brand Sachin Tendulkar every now and then. 100 cities in 100 days look aggressive from outside. But advertisement can only create awareness about a product; strategically the company seems to be lost out, before the battle really begun!

There are many reasons than one. First of all, “Pakdo Life Ka Har Signal" message given in the ads with the company’s reasoning that it underlines Videocon’s commitment to deliver an efficient service through a strong network. When you launch a new product, customer looks at the novelty. What is the value add if I switch from the existing one. And when it comes to changing service provider and number, the reason should be really out of the box. Videocon has emphasized on good signal or connectivity. But when you compare the level of competition, Videocon seems to be in a totally different space. Each service provider is focusing on value added services, promising customers better utilization of money. Good connectivity is not a ground to compete anymore. It is assumed that it has to be good.

Vodafone is trying to empower customer with its Power to you campaigns. DoCoMo is going for caller tunes and low calling charges. Aircel is focusing on connecting with social networking sites with its Pocket Internet add-on. Airtel is again promising on lower call rates and higher value added services. Videocon seems to be boarding the bus when everyone else seems to have taken the flight!

Industry is burgeoning with new entrants. The leaders, the likes of Airtel and RCom are facing problem retaining customer. The prices are falling, profits are hurting, and outlook seems to be bleak. Analysts are shrugging off telecom companies. 3G spectrum is only going to add to the worries of these companies by increasing the capital investments, not promising quick returns.

fOoD fOr ThOuGhT: Videocon doesn’t seem to be in the right industry at the right time. The strategy also isn’t promising. The brand value isn’t so high that people go gaga about the product. Hope somebody is listening and taking corrective steps before it is too late!

What an IDEA Sirjee!!!

After long and unfruitful debates between the developed and developing nations, to save the Earth, here come a very different advertising strategy by IDEA cellular. The campaign extends its concern over the issue at the same time successfully manages to make an impression on the audiences. It isnt a rocket science! Save paper - Save tree, simple known fact, but the way advertisements has depicted the concept is really appreciable.

In first advertisement, Abhishek Bachchan, the brand ambassador of IDEA, plays the role of an agonized 'Tree'. He strikes the idea of using mobile phone to save paper, and therefore, the greenery around him. More and more people switch to their mobile screens rather using paper. The tree regains life and leaves the audience with a simple message - 'Use Mobile, Save Paper'.

I liked the second advertisement more. A lady is shown bargaining for vegetables, she takes mobile number of the vendor and instantly transfers the amount to his account via mobile. I wonder if this trend actually picks up, the stuggling telecom industry can actually appear smiling again.
The new campaign from IDEA abides by the essential brand promise of providing a simple, fresh and imaginative solution to a complex problem of the society. The new campaign has been developed by IDEA's creative agency, Lowe.

Some food for thought: Idea cellular can actually stop printing manuals and unnecessary papers for new connections, stop using paper in recharge coupons. Heard they are going to use news-PAPER i.e print medium to spread the message!!! I hope they set an example by following what they are preaching rather than just creating a buzz!

Hamara Bajaj: An iconic indian brand that caught eveyone's imaginations!

"Hamara Bajaj, Hamara Bajaj"...two generations grew up humming the jingle...It portrayed the Bulannd Bharat, strong and united India. It caught the imaginations of the aspiring middle class...joint families. I, as a kid really enjoyed the jingle but never realise the importance untill the announcement to stop the production of scooters by Bajaj. Oh! you mean to say the priyas and chetaks are all history now! Has the time changed so much...I have travelled almost every corner of my city, nagpur, with my dad on scooter, as a kid! The adv reminds me of those days.

Launched in 1972, people use to wait for upto 15 years to become proud owners of a scooter. My dad got his first scooter after waiting for almost 4 years and yes, we were looked upon as a very cherished family. Owning a scooter in those days was among the sort after thing. People use to ask for Bajaj scooter as dowry, or if a bride's family is offering a scooter, they were highly regarded. The this generation kids would never understand the sentiments of Rahul Bajaj, when Rajiv Bajaj, the MD of Bajaj Auto announced to discontinue the production.

Renowned Indian ad guru Alyque Padamsee came up with the slogan "Hamara Bajaj". It was like a nationalist movement. The words were on everyones mind. Everyone could relate to it. It was truely the style statement and youth of that time use to boast scooter with great pride. I wonder if there could be any vehicle or even any product worth waiting for 15 years!!!

Aman Ki Asha - Not so Asha from it!

The advertisement is fantastic with "Dilwale Dhulaniya..." being guessed correctly in a game of dumb-charades, bringing joy all over. Its a nice initiative. But is it going to help even a bit? Do we wait for 1st Januarys of every year to start something like this? Another resolution...? The motive? Does making Amitabh Bachchan appear in an initiative help? Connecting people-to-people basis and bypassing politicains, going to help? Lot of queries...
TOI and Jang group makes another initiative on 1st January 2010, this time to spread harmony between the two ever fighting nations. The first thing that comes into my mind is, do we really wait for January 1st and make new begining! Nothing changes in a day, we can start things any day and make a difference. Anyways, why is it not supported by other news channels and politicians of both the countries. When its the matter of two nations, it should be atleast supported whole-heartedly.

Music surely has no boundries...
"Sangeet mein hai aisi fuhaar
Pathjhad mein bhi jo laaye bahaar
Sangeet ko naa roke deewar
Sangeet jaaye sarhad ke paar

Sangeet maane naa dharm jaat
Sangeet se judi kaayanaat
Sangeet ki naa koi zubaan
Sangeet mein hai geeta quraan
Sangeet mein hai allah aur raam
Sangeet mein hai duniya tamaam

Toofanon ka bhi rukh modta hai
Sangeet toote dil ko jodtaa hai"
Agreed. Lines from Mission Kashmir movie, written by Sameer and Sung by Shankar.

The adv is trying to connect common people from two nation, bypassing the politicians. I doubt if it is going to be appreciated by any political party. Its also good branding exercise by TOI... trying to make a statement, otherwise limited role played by the nation newpapers as a whole. I see few awards for the initiative for sure.

I am not among the pessimist bunch, but if we look at it practically, the impact is going to be really insignificant. Such initiatives should be carried out. It is not going to make any difference in either of the side, nor its going to move our politians a bit. But, it just keep the hopes alive. It keep us reminding that afterall hatered is not the only solution and we can be considerate at some point of time. It also ensures that movie and music business is not hurted because of the stubborn stance at the highest level. My take, nice initiative, "the first step" seems alright, atleast somebody is thinking on these lines, but we need more actions rather than just words!

The sweet, romantic Beetle is here!

The VW Beetle... it does look cute... sweet yet strong and kind of very romantic car... I find it romantic car, I dont know why!... :)

The beginnings of the Beetle stretch way back to 1931, when a young Austro-Hungarian engineer by name of Ferdinand Porsche, when he developed a 'car for everybody'. Impressed by his treatment and understanding of real-world expectations from a daily transport vehicle, Adolf Hitler commissioned Porsche to make a 'Volks-wagen' - a people's car for Germany - a basic four-wheeler with a roof that would carry two adults and three children at contemporary freeway speeds - then pegged at about 100 km/h. And then there was the key rider - the car had to be sold at around the same price as that of a motorcycle.

The car brought the concept of an economy car to the United States in 1949. Within a decade, General Motors, Ford, Chrysler and Studebaker attempted to emulate the fuel-efficient compact car. More than 21 million Beetles were produced by 1992, breaking the Model T's 15 million production record. Japanese automakers Toyota, Honda and Datsun, later Nissan, followed VW's lead, with even better results.

Advertising Strategy:

(Adv of the 60s.)
The 1960s ad campaign for the Volkswagen Beetle changed the very nature of advertising--from the way it's created to what you see as a consumer today.

It was in this environment that DDB introduced the Beetle with a radical ad campaign that perfectly positioned the product and won the hearts and minds of the masses. What made the VW Beetle ad campaign so radical? Ads before it were either information-based and lacking in persuasion, more fantasy than reality, or relied on the medium's ability to deliver repeated exposure.
Beetle ads, though, connected with consumers on an emotional level, yet also conveyed a product benefit in a way consumers could relate to. Plus, the ads were breathtakingly simple.

Two famous print ads illustrate this. One featured a small picture of the car with the headline "Think small." Text highlighted the advantages of driving the small Beetle versus a big car.

The other presented just the car with "Lemon" in bold type. Ad copy explained that the chrome strip on the glove compartment was blemished and had to be replaced. The take-away was obvious. If this was Volkswagen's idea of a lemon, the Beetle must be a well-built car.

My Take on its entry into India: The car has already grabbed all the limelight. It comes with a price tag of Rs.20L something. Surely, it would appeal to bollywood industry more for simple reasons like... stars generally travel nucleus and not with complete family together, the style statement it provides... Cant ignore the parking and congestion issue in mumbai/ Delhi. Among the owners would be bollywood actresses, high class college going girls would get as Bday gift and sweet romantic couples may be in the age of 60s... :)

Videocon: New Avtar!

Few day back, I saw some new add of Videocon on television. It is running over all the channels. The last significant re-branding advertisement that I could recall is that of Godrej Properties. So, another brand trying to shave off its "Old" image.

Videocon had that typical giant "V" type symbol which stood for strength and robustness of the brand. But the electronic market is so dynamic that brands needs to re-image itself with changing demand. Gone are the days were those SRK - Dhoni adv of beechade bhai bhai impresses audience. What caught me of the new advertisement is two sweet animations, green coloured trying to make little flower happy by changing the environment, or rather providing what the flower was waiting for. The adv is also good at ears. I guess the re-branded Videocon is trying to convey brand's energy, change, eco friendly products targetted for the youth.

Prior to this, the brand has banked on other propositions, such as 'Technology for health and pleasure', 'Bring Home the Leader', 'New Improved Life', 'The Indian Multinational', 'Whatever role life gives you, play it big', as well as the most recent one, 'Eco Logic for sustainable life'.

The 'V' in the new Videocon logo is composed of two animated green, lava-like shapes – called Chouw and Mouw, which are 'live' characters and will be used to tell simple stories through a series of short videos. Both have certain personality traits, based on their physical attributes. Chouw and Mouw come to the rescue and spread happiness and joy through their charm, kindness and efforts. KR Kim, vice-chairman and chief executive officer, Videocon India, says, "The rationale behind Videocon's brand evolution comes from our constant endeavour to listen and respond to changing market dynamics in India and overseas. Our new tag line - Experience Change - will mark the beginning of a sea change for customers of consumer durable goods."

Speaking about the two mascots, Prasoon Joshi, executive chairman, McCann Worldgroup India, and regional creative director, McCann Asia, says, "Chouw is the kind-hearted one and Mouw the more mischievous one. And together, they send out the message that if you put your heart and mind together, anything can be achieved."But why did the brand feel the need for change? Prasoon adds, "The logo needed more energy. So, we energised it by giving it a more modern look. Green is the colour of the future. The logo also has a liquefied, fluid-like feel to it. It gives the feeling that the company is on the move and can take any shape and form."

Fingures crossed for the success of re-branded "India's Multinational"!

AIRCEL: Another "Big Boy" in the making!

I have been pushed to ponder again and again of the company with long ads aired on television with Dhoni trying to sell the features of the service provider. The ad isnt impressive, though the desperation of the company to get accepted by masses is very much visible.

So, is another "Big Boy" in the telecom industry in the making???



Background:
The Aircel Group is a joint venture between Maxis Communications Berhad of Malaysia and Apollo Hospital Enterprise Ltd of India, with Maxis Communications holding a majority stake of 74%.

Aircel commenced operations in 1999 and became the leading mobile operator in Tamil Nadu within 18 months. In December 2003, it launched commercially in Chennai and quickly established itself as a market leader – a position it has held since.

The company has now stepped out of its comfort zone and into the big league by aiming to make itself a national player.

I think the company has got its initial foot right. It needs to be aggressive in marketing. It has to provide better connectivity and services in order to come anywhere close to the likes of Airtel, Reliance and Idea. If the company is able to add subscribers month on month at a health rate, it might attract lot of investors putting their confidence.

With Dhoni as brand ambassador, company has been able to make the brand heard. Now, what would be worth watching is does the brand get recognised and accepted by the masses.

Summer is here: Tata Tea forays in soft drinks.

Summer is here and all the Food and Beverages companies are gearing up to increase their product's visibility. Companies are ready to tap the huge huge potential market and the competition is all set to become stiffer between local and international players.

Tata Tea, a premiere Indian tea company, has made its foray into the branded cold drink market with the launch of T!ON. The launch took place in Chennai, targeting youth. T!ON is available in three exciting flavours, Mango Rush, Peach Punch and Apple Buzz, the 400 ml pet bottle is priced at Rs. 22.

Tata Tea Executive Director Sangeeta Talwar calls it a defining moment in her company’s history and something that is all about “disruptive innovation”.

The beverages market size is almost double that of branded tea, in which Tata Tea currently operates. Tea contributed close to 80 per cent of the Rs 4,366 crore company’s sales in the last financial year and the company is conscious of the warning signals.

While T!ON’s success is yet to be seen, Tata Tea has been firmly on course to being a brand-centric beverage company for some time now. It has in the past made acquisitions like Tetley, Good Earth (herbal, medicinal and traditional teas), Eight O’ Clock Coffee and Himalayan Water to diversify its range.

Vodafone - Can this bring a new revolution in the telecom industry?

Vodafone is offering unlimited internet access as a standard feature of its new monthly mobile price plans, driven by an increasing amount of people accessing social networking sites and e-mail from their phones.
The Newbury-based group is the first mobile phone operator in the UK to offer the unlimited deal with all its monthly tariffs, although O2 currently offers an unlimited deal for its iPhone customers.

Vodafone hopes the new flat rate policy will fuel use of the internet on mobiles, as operators search for additional ways to generate revenue in a saturated market.
Earlier this year the group announced it was cutting 450 middle management jobs and hiring nearly 500 sales and retail staff as it attempts to increase its share of the competitive mobile internet and broadband market.

Take up of internet on mobiles has been hampered by complicated pricing structures which limit the amount of data you can download. Because few people know what a megabyte actually means in terms of internet usage, customers have been nervous about wracking up hefty bills through browsing.

The launch of the iPhone towards the end of last year saw a surge in mobile data traffic, with Google confirming in February it had received 50 times more searches from the iPhone than from any other mobile handset. Apple’s new 3G version of the iPhone, which could be launched as soon as next month, is expected to boost mobile internet use further as it will provide access to the faster 3G network.

Al Russell, head of mobile internet and content services at Vodafone, said: “Many people already have phones that can browse the internet so they don’t need to buy new ones. A lot of people are worried about how to use the internet on their phones. Our staff will put the phones in their hands and show them how to do it in two minutes. And they don’t have to worry about the cost.”
Vodafone, the world's largest mobile phone company by revenue, said internet access would be automatically bundled in with all its new pay plans for no extra charge, with prices starting from £25 per month. Until now customers had to buy an additional internet bundle for £7.50, with a cap of 120 megabytes per month.

However, Vodafone’s “unlimited” package does in fact have a limit: it is subject to a “fair usage policy” of 500 megabytes per month. Users will not be penalised if they overstep the limit but the company said excessive abusers would be contacted.

The top three internet sites on Vodafone Mobile Internet are Facebook, Google and the BBC, while the top three searches by customers are Facebook, Bebo and eBay.

With this new offer, clearly Vodafone is sending signals to the industry that it is ready to take up the competiton aggressively. Can this change the face of telecom industry. Whatever may be the outcome, customers, surely, are going to smile the way.

Tata Nano - Launched.