Fair and Handsome : Be Fair , Be Handsome

Brand : Fair & Handsome

Company : Emami
Agency : Situations

Brand Count : 256

Fair and Handsome is a brand that created the Men's fairness cream segment in India. Launched in 2005, the brand became the creater and the market leader of this segment. Emami was looking for ways to challenge the Fair and Lovely brand from HUL. Emami had a brand Naturally Fair which was small compared to FAL.

Emami went for serious customer research which showed that 25-30% of customers of Fairness creams were men. That customer insight paved way for a specialized brand for men. Fair and Handsome is targeted at young urban men aged 15- 35. The brand was launched with much promotion across visual media.

Watch the TVC here : Fair and Handsome

The campaign for Fair and Handsome is one of the lousiest campaign I have ever seen. Here the main character is depicted as a fool who gets into a ladies hostel to steal a fairness cream ( or has he got in for some other purpose !) . I still couldn't understand why couldn't he just go to a supermarket and buy it.

The brand is being positioned as the fairness cream that can make men handsome and also attractive to girls. The brand uses the tagline : Be fair Be Handsome . Whether the campaign is lousy or not , after two years of launch , Fair and Handsome is worth Rs 45 Crore now commanding a market share of over 30-40% in the segment.

The brand has to be appreciated for creating a category. It is true that men uses creams meant for women. Hence there is a logic in creating a brand for men in this category. The total fairness market is estimated to be around Rs 900 crore and men's segment is around Rs 160 crore. Although Fair and Handsome has gained the first mover advantage, already competition is hotting up. HUL has extended FAL into men's category with a variant Menz Active. Nivea and Lo'real also have moved into this segment. Unlike Fair and Handsome ( FAH), other brands are little subtle in positioning their brands as a fairness cream.

Nivea uses the term Whitening while Lo'real positions the men's range Men Expert has a range of skin solutions for men. However HUL directly positions its Menz Active as a fairness cream but the target market are older men aged 25-35 . These brands faces the issue of the reluctance of men to be seen using a cream because cosmetics traditionally is viewed as a category meant for females. Situations are changing and the Metrosexuals are least bothered about openly caring about their looks. The changing face of modern man is definitely indicating a big opportunity to these brands.

In the face of emerging competition Emami has moved aggressively to promote Fair & Handsome by roping in Bollywood icon ShahRukh Khan as its brand ambassador. The TVC featuring SRK is already on air.
According to a report in agencyfaqs, SRK was initially skeptical about endorsing a fairness brand for PR reasons, However Emami was able to convince SRK into endorsing this brand. Fair& Handsome is the first brand to target men. It was followed by Fair and Lovely extending itself to men's variant Men's Active. Now this segment is seeing lot of activity .
Fair and Handsome is banking on its 5 power Fairness System :
1.Double Strength Peptide complex which was developed in collaboration with Activor Corp. USA.

2.Sunguard: Prevent sunburn
3.Stress Busters: prevent wrinkles
4.Anti Bacplus : anti bacterial
5.Herbo Cool : herbal ingredients.

The brand website also gives an interesting chart that explains why fairness is important.
This chart in a way explains the Brand's thought process.
Fair and Handsome retains the original tagline : Be Fair, Be Handsome" in the new campaign also.
The brand gives an impression that the users are having a lack of confidence and feels insecure and have less self esteem. Again the brand assumes that Fairness gets women attracted towards men. I feel that the brand still lives in the stone age.
I feel that FAH has got its assumptions wrong. By depicting the main hero of the ad as a person with low self esteem, the brand is repelling lot of self assured men who wants to take care of their skin rather than attracting chicks. Gone are the days where Indian men had a complex about the skin color influenced by the long oppression by the British. Now the urban male is a more evolved one . ( I am not denying the fact that there are people who have complex about being not fair) . Men are more exposed to sun and dust and the traditional creams may not be effective for men. Hence such brands should address the host of issues faced by men rather than talking about being attractive to girls. I feel that FAH by default is restricting itself to the Fairness proposition ( which is not a bad idea ).

Even when you are addressing the issue of fairness, the brand have to project itself as an aspirational brand rather than as one for losers. Even the new campaign fails terribly in execution.

The new campaign and the brand ambassador in SRK may spike the sale of this brand for a while, but in order to move up the ladder, FAH have to project itself as a winner rather than a brand for losers.

What do you think ?

source : agencyfaqs,business standard,fairand handsome.net

Fair &Lovely Menz Active : Change Your Story

Brand : FAL Menz Active
Company: HLL
Agency: Lowe

Brand Count : 120

2006 saw the launch of Fair And Lovely’s brand extension Menz Active in the Indian market. Menz Active is HLL’s reply to the much hyped and much discussed launch of Fair And Handsome by Emami Limited.

In 2005 when Emami launched India’s first fairness cream for men, I thought it was a joke on the famous Fair and Lovely brand. Later I found out that it is a serious affair and a not bad idea at all. As I discussed before in one of my blogs, Indian fairness cream market is worth around Rs 1000 crores. But why fairness cream for men? Research suggests that 28 % of all fairness cream users are men. That makes sense for a serious brand in that segment isn’t it?

Fair and Handsome made noise in the market for two reasons First it was a shock Secondly the ads were lousy. Lousy and ridiculous: I must say. But it served the purpose. It became the talk of the town. This year’s launch of FAL Menz Active proves that Emami ‘s brand made business sense.

HLL is using its most famous brand to endorse the new brand. FAL is being used as an endorser to create a positive impression on the potential users. I foresee that once the volume is achieved, the FAL endorsement will go.

But in both these product, the execution of the message is some thing that is not FAIR.
It is true that men like to look good, fair and handsome. I feel that contrary to popular belief modern (or otherwise) men are not shy about trying to look good. It is a fact that marketers seldom looked into men’s shaving kit. Marketing myopia made them believe that it contained and will contain only shaving products. Hence no products for men and it became a self fulfilled prophecy.

Since there are no face creams for men, we started using products meant for ladies. My argument is that since men uses soap, shampoo, powder, deo, perfumes, moisturizers, shaving cream, hair gel, after-shave, paste etc, how can one think that he cannot and will not use face creams?

Now with the launch of Menz Active, this market for men’s face creams is going to witness lot of activity. But the sad part is that both these products failed to grasp the essence of men’s psychology. Men’s product cannot be marketed using lousy marketing campaigns. It had to be Macho (Pulsar) or emotional (Raymond) or Sexy (Axe). But a successful marketer like HLL has messed with Menz Active by putting it in the same league as Fair and Handsome.

It would have created more impact if Menz Active used subtle message to promote this product. Given a choice, men prefer a macho and sexy product. If Gillette extends it to face creams, Menz Active will have tough time. Competition is already in the form of Garnier. Menz Active is positioned along the same line as FAL when it was launched. Menz uses the Statement “ Change Your Story”. The ad features a stuntman succeeding to become the model after using the brand. It is a typical “Before & After” kind of stuff. Rather than the message of “ using and then becoming successful” “successful and using the product” appeals more to men.

This is a segment that is worth watching. Will Menz Active Change the story?

Source : agencyfaqs,businessline,bbc website,estrategicmarketing,stylestation.typepad.com

Fair & Lovely : Chand ka Tukda

Brand : Fair & Lovely
Company : HLL
Agency: Lowe


Fair & Lovely ( FAL) is the brand that revolutionized the Indian Skin care industry. This brand is World's first and largest Fairness cream brand with a presence in 40 countries and a value of around Rs. 6 billion

Indian skin care market was dominated by conventional beauty care products like Bezan,Multani Mitti etc. FAL changed all that. Launched in 1975, FAL is the product born in the Unilever research center. In 1988 the brand went international. FAL commands a market share of over 70% in the Rs 1000 crore fairness market in India.

FAL virtually created and owned this category for long. In the fairness market, FAL enjoyed monopoly till Cavin Kare entered this lucrative segment with Fairever. The success of Fairever prompted many players like Godrej to tap the market.

FAL sustained the pressure from the competitor by careful branding and new product launches. The brand never failed to emulate and learn from the competitor .When Fairever launched the ayurvedic variant, FAL launched a much better variant. Then came the competition from Ozone Ayurvedics with their brand No Marks trying to carve a niche. HLL countered with FAL Antimarks and launched a controversial comparative ad that took the steam out of No Marks.

When Fair ever launched the soap, FAL also responded with soap. FAL never allowed the competitors to gain an upper hand in the market which it created.

FAL achieved such tremendous success because of careful branding and ad campaigns. Initially HLL to do some ugly talking about fairness. Some of the ads were controversial because of gender inequality and stuff like that. It was necessary at that period because the category was new and the brand should first talk about the need to be fairer.

Now the brand has laddered up to more aspirational values like "Transformation of Women" The insight is that the transformation will be more than skin deep. The ads showing a girl achieving the ambition of being a cricket commentator ( a male bastion) were very much effective in connecting with the TG.

HLL has also extended the brand to more aspirational values by launching Fair& Lovely foundation that works for Women Empowerment achievement and Transformation which are the qualities for which FAL stands for.

FAL have also launched a premium subbrand Perfect Radiance to tap the premium segment of the market.

Fair & Lovely was able to dominate the fairness market because of careful marketing and is a showcase of the marketing genius of HLL.

Fairever : Natural Fairness

Brand : Fairever
Company : Cavinkare
Agency : Fountainhead/Orchard


Brand Analysis Count : 283

Fairever is a challenger brand. It was the first brand to challenge the market leader Fair & Lovely. This brand was once touted by the media as the DAVID who fights against the Goliath.
Fairever was launched in 1998. Initially launched in South India, this brand went national a year after. It was the time when Fair & Lovely ( FAL) was ruling the Indian fairness cream market. The phenomenal success of FAL and the marketing might of HLL scared off many potential rivals. It was interesting to note that ever since its launch FAL never faced any competition from any players till Cavinkare decided to take on the behemoth.
Unlike many challenger brands from small companies, Fairever was never a price warrior. At one point of time Fairever was expensive than FAL. The courage of this small brand to standup and challenge a market leader with clear non price positioning makes Fairever a special brand.

From the launch , Fairever was clear about its positioning and differentiation. The brand was positioned on the basis of its main ingredients Saffron and Milk. Saffron is traditionally considered to be a fairness enhancing ingredient. So a product with the unique blend of Saffron and Milk was appealing to the target segment. With in six months of the launch, Fairever garnered a neat six percent of the fairness market. Fairness market in India is huge with a market size of Rs 800-900 crore. FAL holds more than 70% of the total market.
The saffron based positioned worked well with the brand. The packaging and the excellent use of brand elements like the Color gave this brand an upmarket look.But the ads of Fairever was predictable and was revolving around Girl becoming fair and then attractive to men. But it was Fairever who broke this cliche ads and turned that attention to Achievement rather than Fairness. But in the ad war that ensued, FAL took over the concept of Women Empowerment and owned the positioning. Fairever also faced some legal issues with FAL. HLL challenged that Fairever has violated the Patent formulation of FAL. But later the matter was amicably settled out of court.
Fairever was a brand that has worked hard to survive in the market. The success of Fairever prompted many players to enter the market. This made differentiation difficult for the brand. Fairever then chose the Green Path. In 2005, Fairever went Natural. The brand was relaunched with Natural tag. The brand also launched a premium Fairness cream subbranded Manthra aimed at the Upmarket customers.
These moves along with heavy ad spends have ensured that Fairever carved a 12 % market share Nationally and 17% share in the South India. Fairever uses the popular South Indian actress Asin as its brand ambassador.
Another interesting fact about Cavinkare is that the company is not in favour of Brand extensions. Cavinkare feels that new brands works better than extending a successful brand. The company is also keeping the positioning consistent for Fairever. This careful nurturing has made this brand , the second largest brand in the companies portfolio.

Santoor : For a Younger Skin

Brand :Santoor
Company: Wipro
Agency: FCB Ulka

Brand Count : 189

Santoor is the second largest soap brand in the Popular segment in India. This Rs 500 crore brand comes from the Software giant Wipro. The brand was launched in 1985 as an ordinary soap with sandalwood and turmeric as its main ingredients.

The brand was initially test marketed in Bangalore and encouraged by the positive response, the brand became national a year after.The brand was positioned as the beauty + skin care at a reasonable price and the brand derived strength from the efficacy of the ingredients. At that time the brands which had sandal as the main ingredient was Moti and Mysore Sandal Soap.

The brand derived the name from combining Sandal + Turmeric and it is not from the musical instrument that it got the name Santoor.
Although the brand became popular, the company was not satisfied with the results. The customers was not buying the ingredient story : says MG Parameswaran in his book on Brands: FCB Ulka case studies. The research suggested that customers are not correlating the brand with skin care and beauty.

Thus started the brain storming on getting the " WOW " factor to build the brand. The wow factor came in the form of the new positioning " For Younger Looking Skin". The positioning come from the consumer insight that ultimately the customers look for a younger skin which is another smart way of defining beauty. The focus on " Younger Skin" also act as a powerful differentiator because other brands were focusing on "beautiful skin" or "looking beautiful".
The next big idea came in the form of communicating the " Younger Skin " concept using "Mistaken Identity " theme ( source : MG Parameswaran's Book). The brand has consistently developed this theme over these two decades of its existence.

Santoor is a brand has consistently understood the consumers and was not complacent to change. The brand was the first one to use a Mother and her five year old daughter to endorse the brand. Most of the ads showed spinsters in their campaigns while for Santoor, the protagonist were Mothers. But showing Mother as the protagonist had its share of issues also. The customers felt that since this brand is meant for adults, it will not be soft on skin. This made the company to change the size texture and the shape of the product.

In Brand Management , I used to teach that changing consumer values were one of the major forces that affect a brand. The case was true for Santoor also. Indian women's mindset were evolvingand breaking free from the traditional mindset. The Mother-daughter equation and the campaigns set in the supermarkets, wedding and bangle shop did not do well with the achievement oriented customers. That was a message to the marketers that the product communication has to change. The achiever protagonist was introduced in 2004. The campaign showed the mother as a successful fashion designer with the same positioning and theme.The brand also extended itself to a range of beauty products and to talc. Now Santoor have face wash, talc , soap and fairness cream.
2006 saw a big change in the marketing strategy for Santoor. The campaigns showed Saif Ali Khan ( in North ) and Madhavan ( south ) in the TVCs. The TVC's shows these celebrities along with the Mother and child in the usual mistaken identity theme. Many were asking whether the brand is going to appeal to males also. I was also taken by surprise seeing Male celebrities endorsing ( acting ) in the Santoor ad. The following questions remain unanswered:
a. Whether this brand needs celebrity endorsement?
b. Is bringing in a male celebrity going to make this brand less appealing ?
c. Has the equity of the protagonist getting diluted with the introduction of celebrity?

For the first two questions, my personal opinion is that using a celebrity without a change in the overall positioning will have a positive impact to the brand. The use of celebrity will make the ad sticky thus making the campaign more effective. For the question C, I believe that with the celebrity, the power of protagonist will get diluted because she is plays a second role in the campaign( debatable point). But as long as the positioning remains consistent, there are no issues isn't it?
Santoor is a super brand that has build itself to a Rs 500 crore brand with its own strength and not piggy banking on any celebrity. The brand is facing tough competition from heavy weights and is now seeking support from outside to stay as a leading FMCG brand.

Related Brands
Pears, Mysore Sandal Soap, Margo, Lifebuoy,Rexona,Dyna, Johnsons,Fair and lovely, Cinthol,Dove, Ponds

Source: Businessline,wiprowebsite,FCB Ulka on brands.

Brand Update : Vivel Extending to Fairness Cream

ITC's soap brand Vivel has launched its fairness cream extension in the Indian market. The brand has been launched in Kerala and is expected to offer stiff competition to the market leader Fair & Lovely.

Vivel's fairness variant is branded as Vivel Active Fair and comes in three SKUs - the 50 gm pack is launched at a price of Rs 70, 25 gm at Rs 38 and 9 gm sachet at Rs 5. The brand is running its launch

campaign with big splash in major newspapers . Vivel Active Fair is banking on its ingredients like vitamins, minerals and moisturizers along with SPF 15 sun protection rating.

In a direct challenge to Fair & Lovely, Vivel is selling its sachet at Rs 5 ( introductory offer) compared to FAL's Rs 7. Indian personal care market is driven by sachets and the Rs 5 price point will help Vivel to achieve the important customer trials. Rs 5 price point is also beneficial

to both customers and retailers because of the coinage factor. This pricing may force HUL to lower the price of FAL's sachet.The Indian Fairness Cream market is worth around Rs 1700 and growing at 15% .

ITC is making lot of headway in its personal care business. The brands like Fiama and Vivel has successfully made their mark in terms of brand visibility. Although the company may not be making money in the personal care business because of the heavy promotional investments, these brands have built a strong foundation that can fuel further growth.It is common for brands in the personal care business to go for brand extensions. Vivel is trying to transform itself to a personal care brand rather than just a soap brand.

It is interesting to see that the brand refrained from using celebrity to endorse the fairness cream. I wonder why ?

Related Brand

Vivel

TVS Scooty : Playful + Powerful

Brand : Scooty
Company: TVS
Agency: McCann Erickson

Brand Count:162

TVS Scooty launched in 1994 is one of the super brands in India. The brand has created and ruled the Scooterette market in India. Scooterettes are sub 100 cc variomatic scooters targeted specifically at the fairer sex.

The brand was an instant hit in the market because of its low price and smart positioning.The brand effectively identified the need for the TG and the product was lapped up in the market. The segment for this brand are

a. College going teenagers
b. Working ladies
c. Even Men

The market can be divided broadly into two based on the customer preference. One set of customers prefer Functionality and another segment prefers style. Scooty has been able to maintain the balance between both.
The entire market for scooters (75-125cc) is dominated by Honda with its Activa and Deo range. Scooty has a market share of about 30% in the segment. The scooterette market is hotting up with lot of competitors eyeing for the share . The latest in the block is the Hero Honda Pleasure which is positioned as a stylish brand exclusively for ladies. The competition also have prompted the players to enhance the power of the scooters.
Scooty has been consistently successful because the brand was quick to change with times.The brand never failed to emulate the competitors when they come up with added features. The brand always had two set of campaigns: one stressing style and the other stressing the functionality.

Scooty has now launched a more peppier Scooty Pep+ with more power. The engine has been upgraded to 90 cc from 75cc. The change was warranted because of the following reason:

a.There is an assumption that ladies/girls prefer less powerful vehicles. Although it is a fact that the segment prefer lighter vehicles, the " powerlessness" is just an assumption. The success of Honda is an ample proof that ladies too prefer powerful vehicle . There is also a distant possibility that the segment preference for more powerful vehicle will increase in days to come. The reason is that those who use these vehicles often need to carry either their kids or their friends along with them. Also the road conditions and the traffic calls for a powerful vehicle.Scooty aims to be the lighter powerful vehicle for them

b. Another factor is the segmentation issue. Scooty is more appealing to the college going girls because of the style. While in the case of working ladies, the segment is targeted by scooters rather than scooterettes. So unless Scooty take this segment seriously, it will be an opportunity lost for the brand. It has to be recalled that their scooter brand Spectra has failed in this market.

Scooty Pep+ is promoted heavily by TVS. The brand is positioned on the basis of Power and Style. The brand got a big boost with Priety Zinta as its brand ambassador. Priety and Scooty gels so well that I call it a perfect example of Successful celebrity endorsement ( my opinion). TVS has been lucky or smart enough in identifying right celebrities to endorse their products like Sachin and Dhoni for Victor and Star respectively.

Scooty also launched another campaign taking the brand to the next level talking about women empowerment and success. The brand is trying to ladder up to a higher state of connectedness with ladies. I think the brand has taken some lessons from Dove and Fair & Lovely which has been successful in laddering up. According to Professor Keller Laddering is the progression from attributes to benefits to more abstract values of motivations.Failure to do so will reduce the strategic alternatives to the brand. ( strategic brand management: Kevin.L. Keller).

The product category of scooterettes are showing more potential in the urban markets in coming days. This category is non existant in the semi urban and rural markets which will be a tough call and in the current conditions, it may not be possible also. The possible competition is from electric scooters and second hand Maruthi cars . Another issue for the brand is to sustain the value proposition for Scooty. Scooty is priced around Rs 32000 which is a premium. It is walking on the thin red line between benefit and cost. The price -value proposition will be biggest challenge for this brand. Having a no frill low cost Scooty has to be there to keep away the treat from the price warriors.

source: businessline,indicar, tvsscooty.com,economictimes,strategicmarketing

Brand Update : Fair & Lovely extends to soap again !

It was to happen and it happened (again). Fair & Lovely extended itself to the soap category. The creator and the market leader of fairness cream category have put a brave new front into the highly competitive and cluttered soap market. Although F&L created the fairness cream category, it was Godrej Fair &Glow who first created a fairness soap product. It is often seen in the marketing world, that pioneers often find themselves missing opportunities in related categories. 

It is not the first time that F&L is launching a soap. The first launch was in 2015 and then somehow nothing happened with the product in the market. 

In late 2019, the brand relaunched the soap extension as if nothing happened in 2015.

In a marketing perspective, the soap variant takes a dig on the competitor Fair & Glow by creating parity on the 'glow" proposition. The soap is promising glowing skin and the fairness promise is there from the parent brand. The launch ad is in line with the overall F&L positioning.

The soap is priced in line with market and this can be considered a masstige brand which is a strategy where the product is aspirational but priced reasonably so that a larger segment of customers can afford to purchase. 

Through extending the F&L, brand HUL is trying two outcomes. Firstly it wants to leverage the existing equity of F&L in the soap category. Secondly, HUL wants to reinforce its supremacy in the soap category by covering the entire category and not leaving any gap for the competition to take advantage. 

Brand Update :Surf Excel

Surf Excel has come out with a new campaign 10/10 ( pronounced 10 on 10). The campaign is aimed at raising fund for the educationally challenged poor kids. Every Surf Excel will have a piece of stained cloth. When washed, this cloth will reveal a number out of 10. SMS this number to 455 and that amount goes to a NGO that works in the field of education for poor. The campaign is set to collect Rs 25 lakh for the underprivileged..

These type of campaigns are aimed at making the brand more humane. The brand gains from the positive attitude created by such campaigns. Some theorist calls this Corporate Social Responsibility. But as Drucker said “ The main purpose of business is to make profit” and as we say to create wealth for stakeholders. The problem is that only a management student understands such concept. An ordinary person will view business as some thing that makes profit for a select few. Hence corporate are forced to display some actions to justify that they mean good to the society.

The latest Surf campaign also intends to do that. The brand is trying to ladder up to a higher level than just the Cleaning ability. Lifebuoy also has successfully taken up the cause of preventing diarrhea thorough its Swasth Chetana campaign. The brands like Surf and Lifebuoy uses children in the advertisements. There are some people who consider themselves as “ Moral Policemen” whose main job is to make the life of marketers difficult. These campaigns act as a Preemptive measure to silence those critics.

It is a laudable effort from HLL to take such initiatives for the brand. The brands benefits immensely by associating with such activities through the positive vibes created by such campaigns. Another brand from HLL , Fair and Lovely also has taken up such initiatives to contribute to the cause of women empowerment.

Image Source : agencyfaqs.com

Related Brands

Surf Excel
Lifebuoy
Rin
Fair & Lovely

Brand Update : Neutrogena drops its fairness range

In an interesting move, Johnson&Johnson decided to drop the fairness product range from the Neutrogena brand line. Launched in 2005, Neutrogena wanted its share in the $450 mn fairness market in India but failed to catch up to the market leader HUL. The brand relied heavily on celebrity endorsements to gain traction in the market. 

According to news reports, J&J's decision to drop the fairness range is due to the growing pressure from the activist groups which consider fairness products as unethical products trying to exploit colour-based discrimination. The fairness product category has always been on the wrong side of marketing ethics. Activists feel that these products embed the seeds of colour-based discrimination and thus be banned. However, marketers feel that they are fulfilling a need of the consumers to look fairer and there is nothing unethical in that. This debate has become more prominent among the mainstream media with the recent racial discrimination issues that happened in the USA. The debate forced many marketers to relook their personal care portfolio through the lens of discrimination. 

Recently HUL also decided to remove the mention of fairness on their flagship brand Fair and Lovely. 

Marketers cannot be fully believed in what they say. The current actions can be another marketing move aimed to project the ethical side of these brands and owners. However, it is good to know that marketers are responding positively to the ethical issues raised by activists and reinforces the fact that the impact of society and activists group have a greater impact on marketing than ever before. 

Brand Taglines : A - F

A

1. Amaron : Lasts Long, Really Long, Ting Tong
2. Alpenliebe : Lalach Aaha Laplap
3. A Star  : Stop @ Nothing
4. Alto : Lets Go
5. Allen Solly : My World, My Way
6. Aliva : Thodi Sharafat, Thodi Shararat
7. Arrow : USA 1851 / The League of Professionals
8. Acer : Life is busy, Acer makes it easy
9. All Out : Macharoan ka Yamraaj
10. Amway  : We are listening
11. Airwick : Its good to be home
12. Amul : The taste of India
13. Amul Macho : Ye toh bada toing hain
14. Accu-check : Live life the way you want
15. Apache : Racing DNA Unleashed
16. Amrutanjan : Its Gone /Pure Healthy Essence / Kick Out Pain
17. Ambipur : Fragrance Your Imagination
18. Appy Fizz : Cool Drink to Hang Out With
19. Allen Solly : Friday Dressing / Adios Stressing Hello friday dressing
20. Accenture : High performance delivered
21. Airtel : Express Yourself 

B

1. Binani Cement : Sadiyon Ke Liye
2. Breathe Right : Breathe Better, Sleep Better
3. Bournvita : Do you have Bournvita Confidence ? / Tan Ki Shakthi, Mann Ki Shakthi (2011)
4. Boost : Boost is the secret of our energy
5. Big Babool : Bade Kaam Ki Cheez
6. Boomer : Boom Boom Boomer
7. Bournville : You don't buy a Bournville, You earn it
8. Brio : It Loves You Back
9. Bosch : Invented for Life
10. Bru : Happiness Begins with Bru
11. Bingo : No Confusion,Great Combination
12. Belmonte : Suit Your Style
13. Blackberrys Suit : Go Sharp

C

1. Cif : Lets You Shine
2. Candyman : Kucch Bhi Karega For Candyman
3. Center Fresh : Zubaan Pe Lagaam
4. Chlormint : Dobaara Mat Poochna /Chaba Daba Ke
5. Complan : I am a Complan Boy
6. Clear Shampoo : No Dandruff
7. Clean & Clear : Clean Clear and Confident
8. Ceat : Born Tough /Be Idiot Safe
9. Coca Cola : Open Happiness
10. Canara Bank : Together we can
11. Close Up : Taazgi Jo Pas Laye
12. Coffy Bite : Coffee or Toffee /Bachchon Ki Coffee, Badhon ki Toffee

D

1. Dyna : Be a Lady
2. Dairy Milk : Kucch Meetha Ho Jaye
3. Dettol : Be 100 % Sure, 
4. Dabur : Celebrate Life
5. Dominoes : Hungry Kya /Khushiyon ki Home Delivery
6. Dinesh Suitings : Take the world in your stride
7. Doy soap : Clean Skin, Healthy skin
8. Daiken : Complete Silence
9. Domex : 100% Germ Killer
10. Dell  : Power to do more

E

1. Eclairs : Chocolate ka meetha bomb/Dooble Sara / Get Lost
2.  Enfield : Trip
3. Essilor : Seeing The World Better
4. Essenza Di Wills : Your Essence Your Soul
5. Eveready : Give Me Red 
6. Everyday Dairy Whitener : For great tasting tea
7. Eno : Gets to work in 60 seconds
8. Euro Innerwear : Prepare to get assaulted 
9. Eon ( Hyundai ) : India On
10. Economic Times : The Power of Knowledge

F

1. Fa  : Feel Good Freshness
2. Fiama Di Wills : Beautiful You , Today Tomorrow
3. Frooti : Fresh'N'Juicy , Grow Up
4. Fair and Lovely : Chaand Ka Tukda
5. Fastrack : How many you have ?
6. Fair & Handsome : Be fair ,Be Handsome
7. Fem : Beauty With Care
8. Fiesta : Go Fida 
9. Ford : Go Further
10. Fanta : Zyada Fanta Zyada Masti

Marketing Strategy : The Art of Brand Laddering

The Art of Brand Laddering

This article was Originally Published Here at Adclubbombay.com

Raymond makes you a Complete Man, Bournvita makes you Confident, Fiama Di Wills makes you Beautiful Today, Tomorrow, Nike asks you to Just Do It and Eating Parle-G makes you a Genius!!!

Welcome to the world of brand laddering. …

Brand laddering off late is the most sought after strategy in the Indian marketing space. Brand laddering involves positioning of a brand from common product attributes to more abstract values or concepts. Its moving from a focus from product attributes to brand benefits.

One of the Indian brands which have successfully undertook brand laddering is Raymond. Raymond’s is now positioned on a more abstract benefit ( Complete Man) rather than the product /functional attributes of clothing like fashion, texture, quality etc.

From product attributes to higher values involves a series of stages. Marketers have to be careful while trying to position their brands on higher abstract concepts.

The first stage of laddering is establishing the brand’s association with product attributes. Attributes are the physical properties of the product that in turn will deliver the desired benefits to the consumer.

When a brand is launched, the focus of the marketer will be to establish the product attributes. The task is to establish category membership and also to achieve parity with competitors on functional performance.

For example, textile brands will be trying to convince the customer about their product properties like texture, colours, quality etc. For a TV marketer, the focus will be on features like clarity, sound quality, technology etc. For example Sony Bravia is now focusing on its 2 million Bravia Pixels for establishing itself as a leader in the emerging LCD TV market. Automotive marketers concentrate on the product features and attributes while launching its brands into the market.

Once these attributes are firmly established in the mind of the consumer, the brand moves into the next step in the laddering process .This stage involves positioning the brand on product benefits. Here the brand moves from a functional focus to the benefit focus. Maggi Noodles had built its brand based on its product qualities like “easy to cook “and taste. Later the brand repositioned itself on the health platform.The latest tagline of Maggi – Taste Bhi, Health Bhi, takes the brand from attributes focus to benefit positioning.

The most critical stage of laddering process is to associate the brand to abstract benefits. Abstract benefits are conceptual benefits which focus on a deeper need of consumers much above the product benefits. Often these abstract benefits are aspirational in nature.

Brands over a period of time try to move from a basic benefit based positioning to a more abstract benefit. While comfort is a benefit, being a complete man is an abstract benefit. Airtel is about Expressing Yourself. This is an abstract benefit that the cellular service provider tries to position itself on. Fair & Lovely when launched concentrated on its functional benefit of “fairness” during its initial stage of brand building. Over a period of time, the brand has laddered up to the abstract concept of confidence and women empowerment.

Abstract benefits helps increase the aspirational value to the brand. It also helps the brand to extend itself into related categories since its positioning is no more conceptual and not limited by any functional attributes of a product.

The final stage in the laddering process is where the brand becomes synonymous with the abstract benefit. This is a level where the brand personifies abstract benefit. Johnson & Johnson is synonymous with mother – child relationship. Over these years, the brand has established itself by positioning on this abstract concept. In theory, this is referred to as Brand Essence.

Brand laddering helps a marketer in many ways. The most important benefit is that abstract attributes gives more flexibility to the brand. It takes the brand away from the most basic attributes so that marketers can experiment with various communication themes. Abstract benefits also give the brand to be more creative in its campaigns. Raymond’s was able to create highly popular campaigns because it focuses on an aspirational benefit of “Completeness”. Raymond’s can create new stories about a complete man which would not have been possible of a brand focusing on functional attributes.

The fundamental objective of brand laddering is to create icons. Iconic brands are that which truly represents or personifies aspirational values. Nike personifies authentic athleticism and Harley Davidson is synonymous with masculinity, free spirit and rebelliousness.

Although laddering is a sexy marketing strategy, it requires certain preparation for successful execution. The laddering will be successful only if the brand is able to establish its association with functional attributes. If a brand tries to ladder up without establishing its functional expertise, consumers may not believe in the brand’s claim. . The highly acclaimed “ Dirt is Good “ campaign of Surf is a successful brand laddering exercise because it was done after establishing its functional expertise. The brand should first establish its Points of Parity (POP) with its competitors in terms of performance. Only then, the laddering will be accepted by the consumers.

Another important condition is the abstract attribute should be relevant to the brand. For example, Nike and Athletics performance go hand in hand. Bournvita and confidence have obvious connection. Dove and Beauty are connected with each other.

Before venturing into a laddering exercise, the marketer has to decide on the brand essence. The abstract benefit should be carefully chosen because there is going to be a long term association often a permanent one.

Usually laddering is done on a benefit derived out if the core brand mantra. Brand mantra is the core DNA of the brand. It is what the brand stands for. And like DNA, brand’s mantra also remains constant. Choosing the right Brand Mantra enables the brand to ladder up effectively.

Even after a successful laddering exercise, a brand should not leave its focus on functional attributes. Sometimes, the brand should do a laddering down exercise to reinforce its association with functional attributes. This could be done by parallel campaigns focusing on functional attributes. This laddering down should be done if there is a change in consumer’s perception or if the competitors launch an innovative feature. In such a scenario, the brand should reinforce its functional expertise to the consumers.

WhiteTone: Everyday Glow

Brand: WhiteTone

Company: Vini Cosmetics

Brand Analysis Count: #611

WhiteTone is a brand of face powder and cream which competes in the fairness segment of the Indian market. The brand is from Vini Cosmetics which is famous for the Fogg brand of deodorant. WhiteTone was launched in 2010 initially as a face powder and later extended into a face cream.

Indian talcum powder market is estimated to be around INR 1300 crore and is shrinking owing to the shift in consumer behaviour towards creams and other cosmetics. WhiteTone tried to differentiate itself in the talcum powder market by positioning itself as a face powder that enhances skin tone. 

Despite the slowing popularity of powders, WhiteTone is banking on three benefits to lure the customers to the brand; oil-free look, even skin tone and fairness. The brand extension cream also follows the same promises.

What makes the brand interesting is the recent rebranding of the market leader in the fairness category- Fair & Lovely to Glow&Lovely. The rebranding was very well received by the media and consumer activists as a gesture endorsing skin colour neutrality. However, I feel that WhiteTone gains from such a move from the market leader. The fairness market is worth around INR 5000 crore and Fair&Lovely owns more than 42% share. While the basic positioning of the rebranded Glow&Lovely remains the same, WhiteTone may gain from the sheer brand name which talks about the brand's promise in a way Glow & Lovely may not be able to communicate. It is true that Glow &Lovely caters to a different segment than WhiteTone. 

WhiteTone has increased its media presence and in my State- Kerala, the brand is spending heavily on the face powder promotion. 

Vicco : Lost in the woods?

Brand : Vicco turmeric
Company: Vicco lab

Vicco Turmeric cream is India's first fairness cream although it is not positioned as a fairness cream. The product which is based on turmeric have a 54 year old history. The product was launched in 1956 missed the liberalisation era all together.

Although the product is successfully exported, the potential of Vicco Turmeric is not fully utilized in the Indian market. Vicco was marketed as a skin care cream . Over the years this product is stereotyped as a brand for " would be brides" . The ads which was aired for a long time had this theme.

In olden times this theme perfectly works since marriage is the most important occasion in a woman's life. But Vicco failed to understand the changing consumer trends which Fair & Lovely correctly sensed. Women have changed and their attitude towards life have also changed. Instead of marriage, now there are many occasions where women celebrate . Infact the stereotype of marriage now don't work. In simple terms the TG changed.

Vicco never was aggressive. It continued with its conventional traditional strategies while HLL marched away with the market.

Vicco Turmeric ayurvedic cream is in the naturals segment of Indian skin care segment which is estimated to be around 1300 crore. Except for Vicco there are no pure naturals brands in this segment . All major brands have a naturals extension some of them have failed miserably.

Vicco had huge potential because of its excellent quality , brand recall and more importantly the ingredient "Turmeric". It should have owned "Turmeric" factor. Now we see lot of local manufacturers selling turmeric powder to women to be used as a cosmetic. That was a market that Vicco should have concentrated. Fairever succeeded because of the ingredient saffron. Vicco could have made a killing with turmeric which is one of the best ingredient you can ever have. But alas....

Although there is lot of concentration on fairness market, there is a market for pure beauty creams which can give a wholesome solution to the consumers, Vicco turmeric had all that to be a leader.

A brand is built only if there is a clear strategy and support . Vicco failed to understand the changing value system of the customers. What it needs is a repositioning strategy based on the wholesome properties of turmeric and lot of noise in the market.

What a potential to be wasted.......

Celebrity Endorsements of Indian Brands- 2013

1. Frooti : Shah Rukh Khan
2. Thums Up : Salman Khan
3. Pepsi Atom : Sushant Singh Rajput
4. Luminous : Sachin Tendulkar
5. Godrej Group : Aamir Khan
6. Olay : Kajol
7. Britannia Tiger : Salman Khan
8. Wheel : Salman Khan
9. Maggi : Amitabh Bachchan
10. Yathra : Salman Khan
11. Shaadi. com : Chetan Bhagat
12. Lux : SRK, Katrina Kaif
13. Revital : Salman Khan
14. Nerolac : SRK
15. Berger : Katrina 
16. Slice : Katrina
17. Kalyan Jewellers : Amitabh Bachchan
18. Parle Goldstar Cookies : Amitabh Bachchan
19. Toshiba : Sachin
20. Panasonic : Katrina Kaif
21. Kent RO : Hema Malini
22. JK Cement : OM Puri
23. Binani cement : Big B
24. Sony Xperia : Katrina Kaif
25. Nokia : Priyanka Chopra
26. Nikon Coolpix : Priyanka Chopra
27. Garnier men :  John Abraham
28. Maaza : Parineeti Chouhan and Imran Khan
29. Tata Tea : SRK
30. Sparx Shoes : Akshay Kumar
31. Hyundai i10 : SRK
32. Dabur Glucoplus C: Ajay Devgn
33. Coca Cola : Sachin
34. Amul Macho : Saif Ali Khan
35. Onn Innerwears : SRK
36. Dollar Innerwear : Akshay Kumar , Prabhudeva
37. Dixcy Scott innerwear : Salman Khan
38. Orient Fans : MS Dhoni
39. Limca : Kareena Kapoor
40. Macroman Innerwears : Hrithik Roshan
41. Mountain Dew : Hrithik Roshan
42. Rado : Hrithik Roshan
43. Titan Raaga : Katrina Kaif
44. Honda Dream Yuga : Akshay Kumar
45. Appy Fizz : Saif Ali Khan
46. Berger Paints : Katrina Kaif
47. Nerolac Paints : SRK
48. Rasna : Virendra Sewag
49. Revital : Salman Khan
50. Cinthol : Virat Kohli
51. Xylys Watch : Farhan Akthar
52. Nescafe : Deepika Padukone, Karan Johar, Purab
53. Gujarat Tourism : Big B
54. Luxor Nano Clean : Big B
55. Colgate : Sonam Kapoor
56. BrookeBond Taj Mahal : Madhuri Dixit
57. Lakme : Kareena Kapoor
58. Bru Coffee : Imran Khan, Anushka Sharma
59. Lo'real : Aishwaria Rai Bachchan
60. Mirinda : Asin
61. Tanishq : Sridevi
62. Danone Milk : Karishma Kapoor
63. General A/C : Sania Mirza
64. 7 UP : Puneeth Rajkumar
65. Parachute Advansed : Deepika Padukone
66. Dabur Babool : Irfan Khan
67. Nutrogena : Prachi Desai
68. Toyota Etios Liva : Virat Kohli
69. Kellogg's : Juhi Chawla
70. Nestle Munch : Virat Kohli, Vijender 
71. Appolo Munich Health Insurance : Sourav Ganguly
72. Wild Stone : Dia Mirza
73. Fair & Lovely : Virat Kohli
74. Snickers : Rekha, Urmila
75. Sugar Free : Akshay Kumar

..... To be continued

Missed out many , please contribute to this list