Brand Update : Bajaj Kristal RIP ( 2007-2010)

Bajaj recently announced its exit from the scooter market. This announcement also marked the death of the last scooter brand from Bajaj -- Bajaj Kristal. Kristal was launched in 2007 was aimed at capturing the scooterette market dominated by TVS Scooty.

The failure of Kristal was a marketing failure. The firm failed to launch a product that was well differentiated and offered value to the customer. I had written about the stiff pricing of Kristal which may have caused the pathetic response from the customers. Kristal was a half-hearted attempt which was visible in the way this brand was promoted. After the initial promotions, there was no voice for the brand. It was a brand crafted for failure.

Interestingly ,the announcement of Bajaj's exit from scooter market evoked lot of media attention. Channels devoted lot of prime-time discussing the Hamara Bajaj campaign and the death of icons. There was a lot of emotional brouhaha which was totally unnecessary because the exit from the market is a pure business decision. Although the top management of Bajaj was finding it difficult to explain the reasons for the exit, one should understand that Bajaj feels that scooters does not fit into their business model and decided to exit. Nothing more , Nothing less.

The fact remains that Bajaj was not able to either understand the consumer expectations in the scooter segment and develop appropriate product which is a setback to the company's image. The fact that new players like Mahindra scooters are entering the scooter segment adds to the insult and injury to the Bajaj brand.

Even in the case of motorcycles, Bajaj is not having a wonderful time. It had shown a spark of brilliance when Pulsar was introduced, but even after 9 years, Bajaj could not come out with another brand like Pulsar. What it is doing is to milk Pulsar to death.

Related Brand
Kristal

Marketing Strategy : Celebrate Your Big Ideas

So you have got a big idea... then what ?

Getting a big idea in this tough competitive market place is a lottery and when consumers love that big idea, it is nothing but a jackpot. We are living in a world where there is intense competition even for taglines and positioning. Even in this scenario, it is surprising to see how marketers fall short of taking advantage of that Rare Big Idea.

Take the case of the ZooZoo. The ZooZoo had an unprecedented success in India. This was one of those rare occasions where consumers get emotionally attached to a campaign. Viewers loved the character and celebrated it through blogs and social media.

But what did Vodafone do ?

Nothing...

Off late there has been reports that Vodafone is planning ZooZoo merchandise. But nothing has happened in this regard ( atleast in the place where I live).

It is time that marketers wake up to the idea of celebrating their big ideas. Most of the marketers are still hooked on to spreadsheets and media plans. Brand Promotion ismuch much more than putting 30 seconds ads and then looking at the results.

Ideally Vodafone should have milked ZooZoo to the maximum. It could have developed merchandise like dolls, t-shirts, keychains, collectibles etc on these lovely characters which could have given the brand ways to get into the heart of millions of youngsters. There were countless opportunity for the brand to build a community around ZooZoo.

But so far nothing happened. What a waste of opportunity for the brand. The one and only one reason for this wastage is that one may not be able to project the ROI for such a celebration atleast for the short-term.

Take the example of Disney. When they have hit upon a wonderful cartoon character, they will explore all the marketing opportunities around it. But Indian marketers are not yet open to such celebrations. When Nike hit upon " Just do it " slogan , it created a huge celebration of it. Accenture celebrated its association with Tiger Woods to the maximum ( yes yes.. I know what happened later..), MRF celebrated Sachin and his MRF bat to the maximum and even launched MRF cricket bats.

Take the case of Idea cellular brand. The brand hit upon a wonderful tagline " An Idea can Change Your Life " and the brand celebrated the big idea wonderfully well. It innovated upon this big idea, used the entire promotional mix around this idea and no wonder, the brand has excellent top of the mind recall. But still the opportunities for Idea lies beyond mere advertising and hoardings. It could have done many things to take the ownership of this big Idea. Compared to Vodafone, Idea is much ahead in capitalizing on its big ideas.

When your company hits upon something big whether be it a tagline, a character, a logo , don't hesitate to celebrate it. Create games , create dolls, give away keychains, market collectibles, use social media to build community around your big idea . Put your resource behind that big idea. Own it , celebrate it and enjoy the rewards.

MamyPoko Pants : Pant Style Diapers

Brand : MamyPoko
Company : Unicharm


Brand Analysis Count : 434

Mamypoko is another global brand to hit Indian market. Mamypoko is a Japanese brand of baby diapers. The brand belongs to Unicharm which has its interests in Baby care products, Health Care and Female hygiene categories. The company has launched its premium brand of baby diapers into the Indian market.

Indian diaper market is small with a rough market size of Rs 110 crore but growing very fast due to the economic growth and rapid urbanization. The market still faces the issue of 'penetration ' and the tough task of changing consumer behavior. The market is dominated by brands like Pampers, Snuggy and Huggies.

Baby diapers are still not heavily used in Indian households. Diapers are used only on occasions and is considered not good for regular daily use since it causes skin rashes. The price of this product also acts as a deterrent for regular daily use and a Rs 1 difference on a pack can make consumers shift to another brand.


Mamypoko, as a new brand, faces the task of differentiating itself from the established players. Brands like Huggies and Pampers are already established and has tried every feature/benefits like softness , comfort, dry, light etc as their USPs.

Mamypoko but entered the market with a powerful differentiator. It launched Mamypoko Pant diapers as the brand builder. Mamypoko pants is a pant-type baby diaper - in the sense that instead of the stickers(tape- style) that conventional diapers have, Mamypoko Pants is a " pull up" type of diapers. There is no need to stick the two ends of the diapers together.

Actually Mamypoko is not the brand which has innovated pant-style diapers. Another brand from Unicharm - Moonyman was world's first brand to launch such a innovative product.

Pant-type diapers is indeed a powerful differentiator because it offers a convenient solution to the consumers. Parents especially fathers often find the task of putting diapers to their child a difficult task . If the child is very active, the task becomes even more difficult. Having a pant-style diaper is something that makes parent's life a little more easier.

The brand is currently running a campaign highlighting its main USP.

Watch the ad here : Mamypoko

The brand is also making use of its brand mascot/ character which is named Pokochan.

Mamypoko has done the right thing by launching itself with a powerful message. There is a greater chance that consumers will remember this brand for its USP. But the vital question is whether Mamypoko can sustain its differentiation . It will not be difficult for other brands to launch similar products. Mamypoko can breath easy because it has a pipeline of such innovative features within their global portfolio.

The launch of Mamypoko will open up another set of marketing war in the Indian diaper market.The Indian market is highly price conscious and it has to be seen whether consumers will be willing to pay more for Mamypoko.

Brand Update : Maggi

Maggi has launched its product in the growing Pasta market recently. The variant called Maggi Nutri-licious Paazta is Maggi's major new brand extension in recent times. The Indian pasta market is still in nascent stage with a market size or around Rs 50 crore ( source) but growing very fast.

Maggi pioneered the noodles market in India 25 years back but was not the brand which created the pasta category. The credit goes to Sunfeast which first launched a National brand in this category.

Maggi decided to jump into this Pasta bandwagon for obvious reasons. There is a lot of customer interest in this category. Indian consumers are now more adventurous in their food habits. The Gen Y is mesmerized with the exposure to various cuisines thanks to the media. So there is no dearth of innovators in this segment. Once you get into the good books of these foodies, the flock follow.

Maggi's move was further endorsed when Domino's forayed into the Pasta market with their offerings . So this market is going to see lot of action.

Maggi is currently running a TVC for their Pasta variant : Watch it here

The ad is very similar to the Noodles positioning and both pasta and noodles are sharing a common tagline(with a slight variation) . Paazta uses the tagline " Health bhi, taste bhi, happiness bhi"

One marketing practice reader observed the risk of Maggi moving into a different product category ( brand extension) . He opined that the equity of Maggi will be lost because of this extension . Personally , I differ because Nestle had slowly but surely developed Maggi as an umbrella brand for their food products. They have launched the soups and sauces under this brand. And the brand is doing well in these extensions.


Maggi is currently addressing a category competition. The brand feels that pasta can have a negative impact on its noodles business. For consumers, they view these products as snacks. For such customers, Maggi needed to offer pasta choice otherwise they will move to a competing brand. The current brand extension will have all the disadvantages of brand dilution and cannibalization . But on a broader perspective, it is a matter of survival and category leadership.

Related Brand

Maggi
Sunfeast

Marketing Strategy : Celebrity Endorsement

The recent Tiger Woods 'confessions' opened a whole lot of debate on the role of celebrity endorsement as a marketing strategy. The issue of celebrity endorsements and its 'side effects' is one of the most widely discussed topic in the branding world. Every time there is a controversy involving the celebrity, these chatter arise and dies down soon .

In this context, it should be understood that celebrity endorsement is a powerful promotional tool . If used creatively, celebrity endorsement can propel a brand to a high growth trajectory. But like any strategy, this option too has its own share of disadvantages. The latest Tiger Woods episode again highlight the issues brands can face when their endorsers ran into trouble.

Will this episode refrain marketers from using celebrities any more ? Never. We will be seeing more of these endorsements in the future also. But there are lessons to be learned from this current developments.

The problems that brands face when their endorsers land up in trouble is more when brand depend heavily on the celebrity for equity ( common sense !). When brands use Celebrities as a pivot upon which the entire brand equity is generated, the risk is more and any adverse actions on the part of the celebrity will affect the brand's strategy.

In the case of Accenture, Tiger Woods was the axis for all their promotions. The brand was so closely associated with the celebrity that coming out of that association will cost both money , time and energy. But the silver lining for Accenture is that Tiger Woods was only a symbolization for the corporate brand. The current controversy is in no way going to affect Accenture's consulting business. Only issue is that the brand needs to find another powerful symbol to convey its message.

For other famous brands like Nike and Gillette too, there is only less impact of this controversy because Tiger Woods does not play a crucial role in their brand building strategy. Both these brands have other celebrities to bank upon.

Marketers should understand that using celebrities should only be a part of the big picture and not the picture itself. There are no short cuts to fame. If at all one is using celebrities as the main talking point, derisk by using more than one (if you can afford that). Otherwise run parallel theme based campaigns to help the brand stand on its own.

Indian brands tend to rely heavily on celebrities for equity. The brand owners should understand that this tendency is because of the focus on short-termism and lack of creative thinking. Celebrity endorsements should only be a part of the strategy not the strategy itself.

Related Brand
Accenture

Brand Update : Pulsar

Pulsar- the blockbuster brand from Bajaj has launched a new variant - Pulsar 135 LS. The new bike is a 135 CC 4 valve DTSI engine that delivers a power of 13.5 ps. The bike is being positioned as a light sport bike and the company aims to create a new category of ' light sport' bike in the Indian market. Pulsar 135LS is priced at around Rs 51,000.

Pulsar, when launched in the Indian market in 2001 changed the fortunes of Bajaj Auto. With its " Definitely Male " positioning and superior performance, the bike crafted a segment of ' performance bike' in the Indian market. Even after all these years, Pulsar has maintained significant leadership in the 150CC + market.

The launch of a less powered " light Pulsar" was a surprise to me. Why would a company stretch a performance bike downward into the executive segment ? Pulsar was having three models in the performance bike segment 150CC, 180cc and 220 cc. All these bikes were premium bikes and had similar chunky masculine look with exceptional performance.

There can be two reasons for the downward stretch for this brand. According to reports, Bajaj wants to create a new sports category in the executive segment. The company feels that there is a segment of consumers who want a commuter sports bike and Pulsar will fit the bill.

Another larger reason is the volume game. Bajaj so far has not been able to break the leadership position of Hero Honda either in the Executive segment or in the commuter segment. The experiments on Discover and XCD so far has not been successful in displacing Hero Honda. Since Pulsar have an excellent brand equity, it is easy to leverage it for the sake of volume.

Whether 135 LS will be successful or not depends heavily on the bike's performance. But I am sure that the premium positioning and equity of Pulsar will take a hit with the launch of this lighter version. The new 135 LS is not a Pulsar but something in between XCD and Pulsar 150.

In news reports, the company officials had commented that customers doesn't look at CCs while making purchase, they look at brands. But launching a lighter version of a performance bike is not going to boost the equity of the parent brand. On the contrary , if the lighter version fails in the performance, it will have an effect on the equity of the parent brand. Secondly if the lighter version works well, why should one go and buy the larger version ?

Pulsar 135 LS also cannibalizes the existing models of Bajaj Discover and XCD in the executive segment and there is a possibility of any of these brands being withdrawn from the market.

Pulsar 135 LS is a high risk brand from Bajaj. In the search for volumes, the company is risking one of its best brands in the line of fire. On one hand the brand is being stretched downwards and on the other hand, the parent brand is neglected. Except for occasional ads, Pulsar was never aggressively promoted these days. Taglines keep on changing and share of voice is very very minimal for Pulsar.
The only solace for Pulsar is that so far no brand has been able to match the standards set by this brand. But having no competition does not mean that one can mess up a brand.

Related Brand
Bajaj Pulsar