Kangaro : Organizing Documents World Over

Brand : Kangaro
Company : Kanin ( Kangaro Industries Ltd)

Brand Count : 299

This is a short post about an offbeat brand. I have neither seen an ad nor any promotions of this brand but for over a decade I have been using this brand. If you work in an office ( in India) you may have definitely used Kangaro staplers.
Kangaro is a major player in the office stationery market especially in staplers and paper punches. The brand is from Janki Dass Jain group from Ludhiana. The company was established in 1958-59 and has been a leading player both in domestic and international markets.

The only reason why one may have never seen an ad of Kangaro is that it operates in the B2B market where more than ad, the stress is on personal sales. Having been a user of Kangaro products, there are certain factors that makes this brand stand out.

The first factor is the quality of both the staplers and the stapler pins. Kangaro has offered exceptional and consistent quality because I have personal experience in using local staplers which either rusted very fast or caused problems while stapling. According to the brand website Kangaro has won some international awards in quality which has enabled it to build its reputation worldwide.

Another factor was the attention the company has given to packaging. Kangaro staplers and pins comes in packages which looks truly international. The use of white and green ( usual color of Kangaro stapler box) gives it an elegant look.There has been some trademark lawsuits when Kangaro challenged some players who copied some of the design elements.
Third factor is the support that the retailer gives for this brand. Ask for a stapler or a punch , more often, the retailer choice is Kangaro.

The brand since it operates in the B2B segment faces the issue of competition from local players aswellas cheap products from china. That is where the issue of branding comes into prominence. When the product faces competition from similar low priced manufacturers, brand makes the difference. Kangaro have already made its reputation across the business segments worldwide and the quality has been the prime differentiator.
Starting from staplers, the brand has extended itself to clips, gun takers, lever arch mechanisms etc. The company has also added a slew of staplers for various uses both business and houses. From the ordinary looking staplers, the product has evolved to become more stylish and elegant.
Kangaro is an example of branding without advertising. But with the market becoming cluttered with price competition and a segment of home-office growing, there is a good reason for this brand to start campaigning.

Mintrox : Life eej Hard

Brand : Mintrox
Company : Parle
Agency : Creative Land

Brand Analysis Count : 298

Mintrox is a new product launch from Parle Agro. After selling off some of its brands, Parle is making a comeback into the Rs 3500 crore confectionery market in India. Usually the mint based confectionery market faces competition from chewing gums especially in the platform of mouth freshness.
Mintrox is not a gum but a hard boiled sugar confectionery. As usual Mintrox is promoted using fun and absurdism which has proved to be an effective formula in the confectionery category. Mintrox is a hard mint with rock like shape. The brand has used this product characteristic as the big idea. Mintrox is using the cliche " Life is hard " as the basic platform for its campaign. The idea is that since life is hard , you need a hard mint candy.
Mintrox is now launched with four flavors - peppermint, spearmint, cinnamon mint and menthol mint. The brand is targeting urban 18-30 segment.
The brand is now promoting its two variants using visual media.
Watch the Tvc here : Mintrox cinnamon
The entire promotions of Mintrox evolves around the theme " Life is hard ". The tvc also executes this old idea in a refreshing manner. The second campaign involves a convict who escapes from the jail only to land up in a mental hospital. The brand uses the tagline ' Life eej hard' which I think has the potential to become a hit tagline in campuses.
What is interesting is that the brand has also started taking the OOH media also to promote the positioning. According to agencyfaqs, Mintrox is planning to brand the first two front rows of cinema theaters with the concept 'life is hard ' to sympathize with the viewers since these two rows are the most uncomfortable ones.
'Life eej hard' is a big idea that has lot of potential. The idea is also perennial . Agencyfaqs say that the brand has identified more than 40 situations which reflects the theme. I also feel that the concept of ' life is hard' can be used to capture the campuses. The potential is enormous.Most of the time confectionery marketers are struggling to keep the brand in the top of mind of consumers. Brands often run out of ideas for promotions which adversely affect the sales. Mintrox's has been fortunate to find out a concept that has lot of fuel to keep running.
That is the power of a good idea.

Pureit : As Safe as Boiled Water

Brand : Pureit
Company : HUL


Brand Analysis Count : 297

Pureit is the first foray of the FMCG major into the consumer durable market. Pureit is the water purifier appliance from HUL. Pureit made its test marketing debut in 2005. The brand was initially launched in Chennai. During the test marketing, the result was pretty encouraging and the brand was launched nationally in 2007.
The domestic water purifier appliances market is estimated to be Rs 450 crore ( HBL may 03/07) and is dominated by Aquaguard from Eureka Forbes. As discussed elsewhere in the blog, this category was not growing very fast because of the high cost of the product. The entry level water purifier was costing anywhere between Rs 5000- Rs10,000 .

Pureit is a battery operated purifier . The company uses the following differentiation points against the main competitor Aquaguard by claiming that the product works without gas/electricity thus the cost per litre of pure water is very less. More over the brand is priced at a tempting Rs 1600 which makes it the lowest priced purifier compared to Aquaguard or Kent.

Pureit is being positioned on the basis of its performance. The brand claims that the water from the purifier is ' as safe as the boiled water ' . By claiming that it purifies water as safe as boiling water, Pureit is trying to achieve Points of Parity with Aquaguard and Kent which also claims the same feature. Along with this POP, the brand tries to differentiate on the following points :
a. no electricity/gas
b. Cost per litre low
c. Price of the product is also low

Pureit works on different cleaning layers to ensure purity. There is a fibre mesh layer which removes visible dirt. Then comes a unique carbon trap that filters harmful pesticides and dirt. Then comes the USP - Germkill processor which kills all the bacteria and virus. Then there is a polisher which gives clear odorless water and a battery life indicator which tells you when to replace the battery. The product has a capacity of 9 liters in the upper chamber and 9 liters in the transparent chamber. According to the product website, the battery lasts for 1500 liters and the replacement battery costs Rs 250.
Pureit is now being promoted through all media. There are ads in local print as well as TV. Being the FMCG major, HLL was able to place the product in most of the supermarkets and key consumer points. The brand uses the tagline " As Safe as Boiled water'. The brand is mainly targeting households (mothers ) which have small kids.

Apart these common above the line promotions, what has struck me was the below the line promotions that HUL has undertaken for Pureit. A visit to my doctor proved it. There was a product displayed prominently in his clinic with all necessary brochures and inquiry forms.The brand is using the influencing power of the medical fraternity to its advantage. For the doctor , it just means that his patient has access to pure water while waiting but for the brand this small gesture adds lot of authenticity. HUL has done pretty good homework on this product. The brand is available in shops and also sold through direct marketing associates.
Although the low price of this product will help it to penetrate many households , there are certain issues also.
Pureit is a consumer durable that requires after sales support. When even specialist consumer durable companies are blamed for offering poor after sales support, can an FMCG company deliver efficient customer service.
Another issue is the replacement battery. Will HUL be able to offer this spare without delay ?
At the consumer side, the problem is with the battery. It is crucial that the consumer replace the battery at the right time and use this product. A delay in the supply of battery can cause non-usage for Pureit at households thus causing bad word of mouth. May be it is because of this fear that HUL in its website tells the consumers to buy an additional spare battery.
The brand has more chance of longterm survival if it is promoted through the direct marketing venture ( Hindustan Lever Network) of HLL .

Pureit is a product that is a boon to Indian consumers. Its a boon because it has helped making a category more affordable. More than that, the quality of potable water in our country is deteriorating day by day creating health hazards especially for kids. By making a product at an affordable cost, HUL has made another positive impact in its consumer's quality of life.

Brand Update : Santoor

Santoor has launched a new variant : Santoor Glycerine. Through this variant, Santoor is entering the turf of Pears . Glycerin soap market size is estimated to be around Rs 280 crore ( BS dtd 21/11/07). Pears in a sense is owning the market for glycerin soaps.

Santoor Glycerin is being positioned as a moisturizing and nourishing soap. The launch is in line with the winter season when the skin needs moisturizing. The campaigns are already on air .

Watch the TVC here : Santoor Glycerin
The brand is following the same " Younger Skin " positioning. The new variant is trying to differentiate itself with the Sandal + Glycerin formula where as Pears is a pure glycerin soap. Santoor has also not used either Saif or Madhavan in the campaign for this variant.It is interesting to note that Pears is also using the mother- daughter equation.Santoor Glycerin may not hurt the position of Pears but may create a space for itself .

A normal doubt that arises is whether the launch of this variant will hurt the parent brand . Pears was not successful when it launched some variants ( mint blue) because it was strongly associated with glycerin and also the brand element ( color). But in the case of Santoor, the brand is closely associated with Sandal and turmeric. The new variant also has sandal which is in line with the parent brand. The new variant has all the brand elements of original Santoor. The protagonist is same and interestingly the Color is also the same. Hence there is a better chance of this variant adding value to the original Santoor. The variant gives a chance to the loyal customers to experiment new product within the brand portfolio and also encourage new consumers to the brand.

Related Brands
Santoor

Brand Update : Kingfisher Airlines

Kingfisher is right now running a print campaign in major business publications. To be frank , the campaign did not catch my eye because it is too ' Un-Kingfisher " ads. I expected the Kingfisher ads to be flashy, glamorous but these ads were totally against my perception.

The new series of campaigns are focused on the functional attributes of the airlines. Deviating from the usual flashy ads, Kingfisher is now appealing to the Left- brain of the consumers. The ads are targeting the three segments of users i.e Children, Ladies and Males but the ads are talking to Men who are the key decision makers .

The ad for the young travelers talks about special kids meal,wide seats and games. The ad ends with an appeal to the father that " Your little prince deserves to feel like a King ".

The ad for the lady travelers talks about the seats that bend all the way back, the footrest that will pop up , life valets when your lady lands at the airport at midnight and helping hands that lift her bag. The ad ends with the message " Queen of your heart deserves to fly like one ".

The third in the series aims at the decision maker itself. The ad aimed at male traveler as usual talks about the ' flying models ", the smile that tastes better than the icecream, spectacle cleaner and the air-boutique. The ad ends with the message ' Every man's seat feels like his throne'.

The new campaigns aims to reinforce the service differentiation of this airline. Kingfisher has humbled Jet Airways through its clever service differentiation. But to sustain the service differentiation is not easy because the competition can easily emulate or even make good on your service strategy. Also the brand should keep its costs under control when offering service differentiation. That requires a clear understanding on the consumer expectation regarding the service quality .
With regard to the quality of campaign, it may miss some eyeballs because of not being an eye catchy ad. But the message surely is smart. The basic premise in this ad campaign is that Men are the decision makers with regard to this service. May be a campaign aimed at lady executives may also come in the future.

One strategic reason behind this campaign is to broaden the user base for this brand. Kingfisher has been a hit with the young ( at heart) male fliers and the 'flying models ' , inflight service were well taken by this segment. May be the brand managers feel that Kingfisher is not perceived as a airline for " Family " . The campaigns, the positioning , the hostess all make the brand to be perceived as an airline for men. This can create certain issues in the future and there is a potential problem of the brand restricting itself to a specific gender. The new campaign tries to address this issue and is wooing the non-business travelers as well as the family members of the TG. By way of addressing the larger audience , Kingfisher is trying to take on the Jet Airways' main customers.

On the promotional front, Kingfisher has signed up the latest diva of bollywood Ms Deepika Padukone as the brand ambassador.


Related Brand
Kingfisher

Brand Update : Power Soaps

In one of my earlier posts I had severely criticized the positioning and differentiating strategy of Power brand from RKN group. 'Nature Power " is the company's brand in the bathing soap segment. The brand is now running its promotional campaign in the visual media. It is interesting to see the evolution of marketing strategy of such small brands. Like the brand Dyna ( from Anchor) 'Nature Power ' also has identified its core differentiation strategy. The differentiator is same as that of Dyna - the TFM content. ' Nature Power" soap boasts about 76% TFM content and is positioning itself as 'best soap' in the category.
The brand in its campaign has used Miss India Niharika Singh as the model.
Related Brand
Power Soaps