Colgate Pain Out : Crafting a New Segment

Indian oral hygiene market is huge with a market size of Rs 7000 crore. Colgate dominates the market with a share of over 55%. The market is witnessing a new wave of competition with the entry of Patanjali brand.

Although the market is live with competition, not much action is happening with respect to product innovation. Except for  some incremental innovations like new flavors/variants, nothing much has happened in terms of new product development.

In this context, the launch of Pain Out stands out. Colgate Pain Out is a new product that aims at express pain relief from sudden tooth pain. The product is a gel form which has ingredients like camphor, Eugenol, and menthol. The product gives a symptomatic relief from tooth pain. 

The brand is interesting because it aims to satisfy an unfulfilled need in the market. Tooth pain comes unexpected and often the fear of going to a dentist forces people to suffer the pain till it becomes unbearable. Then they try using home remedies, then paracetamol and if everything fails , then they go to a dentist. 

So it makes sense to have a product that gives instant relief to pain. The challenge for the brand is to create brand salience where consumers remember the brand when there is a need. It would be optimistic to believe that consumers would stock this product in anticipation of a toothache. So the natural communication choice would be to have top of mind recall which is a costly proposition. 

The brand is currently running the launch ad which focuses on its USP of express relief . Watch the ad here : Colgate Pain Out , The silver line is that the incidence of a toothache is very high and a powerful relief would be welcomed by the consumers. 

Kwid : Live for More

Brand : Kwid
Company : Renault

Brand Analysis Count : #567

Kwid is a good example of a successful strategy to challenge a well-established market leader. We have seen many so called flagship killers in the market but also have seen these celebrated launches biting the dust soon. In the highly competitive car industry in India, many firms have been timid to challenge the monopoly of Maruti Suzuki in the small car segment. Maruti holds around 45% share in the car market.

Alto has been a bestseller for Maruti all along. The  brand had a strong equity in the market and unmatched value proposition. No competitors dared to compete with the brand because of the low-cost base of Maruti. Since the small car market is driven by price ( value), unless the challenger can match the cost of Maruti Suzuki, it is unviable to take on a volume brand like Alto. 

It is in this context that Kwid becomes an interesting brand. The brand which was launched during September 2015 has really shocked the market with the huge interest generated among the customers. Since its launch, the brand was able to garner around 1,50,000 orders and has managed to clock a sale of over 9000 units per month. According to company reports, the brand has grabbed a share of around 15% within 10 months of the launch.

The most affected brand with the launch of Kwid is Alto. So what made Kwid generate positive consumer interest ? 

• Differentiation - Renault changed the game of small car market by launching Kwid with a very bold design derived from its successful SUV - Duster. Kwid doesn't look like a small car but looks like a micro-SUV. This has appealed to many buyers who get the feel of an SUV at the price of a small car. This (IMHO) is the single major factor that aided such a positive response to Kwid. Many small car buyers are the first-time car buyers and Kwid never looks like a compromise at least in terms of design, 
• Localization : According to reports, Renault has ensured that  Kwid has 98% localization in terms of the parts. This ensured low-cost base for the Kwid. So the high volume of Kwid is not going to bleed the company and the low cost is a deterrent against a price war by the market leader- Alto.

Besides these factors, Alto as a brand has been around for a while. So customers are pretty bored with the product. While the value proposition is still unmatched, Kwid brought in a lot of freshness to the design of the car. 

At the branding front, Renault roped in the star Ranbir Kapoor as the brand ambassador. The brand is not positioned as a cheap car but as a city car. The ad focuses on the accessories and the easy maneuverability of the car. The smart positioning  along with the brand ambassador ensures that the customer perceives the brand as a quality brand rather than a cheap brand ( lessons from Tata Nano).The brand has the tagline " Live for More" which talks about the value proposition of the brand. 

Watch the ad here : Renault Kwid

One of the complaints that many auto reviews highlight was the lack of power of the Kwid. Kwid was launched with an 800 cc engine that was not meeting the expectations many opinion leaders. This month, the brand launched 1000cc version of Kwid which the company feels would address the issue of lack of power. 

So far Kwid has been doing everything right in its challenge against the market leader. The brand has been able to check the right boxes and is rightly rewarded by the consumers. 

Honda Navi : Whatever it is, It is Fun

Brand : Honda Navi
Company : Honda
Brand Analysis Count : # 566

Marketing enthusiasts like me get thrills when we come across brands which take the road less travelled. We get thrilled when marketers take the unconventional routes to create new product and customer segments.

Recently I came across one such brand - Honda Navi. Honda which has the tradition of upsetting the established market parameters is going to do it again. Earlier when every market pundits wrote the epitaphs of Scooter segment in India, Honda revolutionized the Indian market with Activa. Now the scooter sales growth  is more than the motorcycle sales growth in India. Now Honda is attempting another experiment in the Indian market.

Honda introduced the Navi at the Auto Expo 2016 and generated a lot of buzz among the enthusiasts. The brand was launched in select cities in March 2016.

According to a report in India Today, Navi stands for New Additional Value for India ( link) . The product is essentially a crossover between a bike and a scooter. The company has created a bike out of its best-selling Activa. 

Targeted at the youngsters aged 18-25, Navi is a unique product which offers a lot of customization. The brand also is going to create a new segment of "gearless bikes" in the Indian market.

The brand is positioned as a fun bike which offers practicality. The company has also priced Navi at a very tempting price point around Rs 40,000.

Having said that, this brand is also an experiment. Not every youngster would be interested in buying a crossover bike ( read under-powered) and Navi cannot replace a powerful bike which is often the first choice of youngsters. 

However, this will appeal to youngsters who want a unique bike which is also customizable and fun to drive. According to another report, 25% of the current sales are from women customers which probably indicates the emergence of another segment of customers in the Indian market - women bikers. 

It is too early to predict the success of  an experiment like Honda Navi but surely this brand has the capability to generate a lot of curiosity among customers. I can honestly tell that the brand is really tempting. 

 Big applause for the marketers in Honda Motorcycles.

Brand Update : How Colgate is fighting Patanjali

Colgate holds around 54% market share in the Rs 6000 Crore Indian toothpaste market. Of late, the brand is facing tough competition from Patanjali Ayurveda. Patanjali which is a brand which is closely associated with Yoga guru Baba Ramdev is touted to be a disruptive force in the consumer products market.

Patanjali which recently got aggressive in the market has garnered around Rs 5000 crore within a short span of time. It has overtaken firms like Jyothi Lab, Emami etc in the turnover. 

According to business news reports, Colgate is expected to face the toughest challenge with Patanjali's Dant Kanti cornering a Rs 450 crore turnover in 15-16. 

Colgate is a very aggressive marketer and is not expected to take competition lightly. Even with a market share of 54%, the brand is not known to be complacent in the addressing of competition. This case also Colgate took pro-active steps in countering the onslaught of Patanjali Ayurveda.

Colgate chose to fight  Dant Kanti using the variant Colgate Active Salt Neem. It is interesting to see that Colgate Herbal was not aggressively promoted rather it chose the Active Salt variant. Secondly, Colgate chose to rope in Priyanka Chopra to endorse the variant.

Watch the ad here : Colgate Active Salt Neem

While the neem + salt combination brings the brand parity with Dant Kanti, the celebrity endorser enhances the strength of the counter attack. 

Since Dant Kanti's main positioning is the Natural Platform, Colgate now has three variants - Herbal,Active Salt , Active Salt Neem in its portfolio. 

With the aggressive counter attack, Colgate expects to arrest the growth of  Dant Kanti. Some damage will be done since Patanjali uses price as the major strategy for market growth. But with the natural attribute neutralised, Colgate expects to retain its current customer base  with the Colgate brand portfolio. 

Apsara Pencils : Extra Marks for Good Handwriting

Brand : Apsara
Company : Hindustan Pencils Ltd

Brand Analysis Count: # 565

Apsara is a brand of Hindustan Pencils Ltd, which also owns the Natraj brand. Natraj and Apsara together control 60-65% of the pencil market in India. According to The Business Line, Indian stationery market is worth around Rs 10,000 crores. With more than 250 million students and 10million schools, the market is huge and growing. 

Hindustan Pencils Ltd follows a dual-brand strategy in the market.The dual-brand strategy is using two independent brands ( or sub-brand)  to cover the market. 

[In some literature, dual-brand is interpreted as using two words in a brand name or combining two brands to form a new brand name]. 

There are advantages and disadvantages for dual-brand strategy. The strategy is good for covering the different segments of consumers. Since the two brands are independent, there are no issues of positioning conflicts. Another advantage is to build barriers to entry for the competition.  Further the company can use one brand as a flanker in the case of an aggressive competitor. The disadvantage is that of cannibalization and increased cost in servicing two brands. 

In the case of Natraj and Apsara, both the brands have the same range of products that include pencils, erasers, sharpeners, pens, etc. Apsara has a good range of professional and drawing pencils. Apsara Pencils are priced higher than Natraj and offer more options.

In the promotion front, Apsara has been consistently focusing on the darkness of the pencil and the benefit of good handwriting. The ads showing 105/100 marks where five extra marks for handwriting is very clear in communicating the benefit that brand offers.

Watch the ad here: Apsara handwriting ad

Natraj maintains the focus on the long-lasting quality of the product. It recently launched an excellent advertisement highlighting the benefit. Watch the ad here

The dual-brand strategy works when the market is closed and with limited competition. Indian stationery market is witnessing huge competition which has intensified after ITC forayed into it with the Classmate brand. With a commanding market leadership, Hindustan Pencils Ltd had not rested on its laurels. The company invests in product development and promotions. The range of pencils that both the brand offers are a testimony to that. 

Bajaj V : The Invincible

Brand : V
Company : Bajaj Auto

Brand Analysis Count : # 564

Bajaj V is the company's latest foray into the commuter segment. For a long time, Bajaj Auto has been looking to get a foothold in the commuter segment. The company's brand in the segment - Discover is not doing well and the competitors are making merry of the market opportunity. 

The brand story of V is very interesting. This is one of the examples of client - agency synergy working wonders. As the report suggests, Leo Burnett suggested the idea of using the INS Vikrant's decommissioning to create a new product. 

INS Vikrant is India's first aircraft carrier and it has played a stellar role in the India- Pakistan war. The aircraft carrier was decommissioned in 1997 and the government decided to dismantle the carrier this year. The agency suggested that Bajaj use the INS Vikrant to launch a new bike. 

The brand V was born inspired by INS Vikrant. Bajaj Auto bought the metal of INS Vikrant and used it in the bike manufacturing. Thus V became a part of the story of Vikrant. 

Bajaj Auto went on an overdrive in connecting the Brand V with the Brand Vikrant. The campaign tried to enthuse the customers to get a piece of history with them when they buy Bajaj V. The variant was named V15. 

To emotionally stir the passion, the company used content marketing very effectively. The brand launched a documentary titled - The Sons of Vikrant , highlighting the contribution of the heroes who manned the carrier. 

Watch the video here : Sons of Vikrant

The  launch ad also tried to create a sense of patriotism and also history into the brand. More than the historical association, the use of INS Vikrant also helped create instant brand trust in the new brand launch.

Watch the ad here : Bajaj V launch ad

Behind all these stories, the company also have sound product strategy. The new brand is positioned as a premium commuter bike. Priced at Rs 60000-70000, the company aim to create a new category for itself. The Bajaj V is a 150 cc bike and is styled as a Cafe Racer. The target customer is one who looks for a stylish bike but cannot afford to buy a Pulsar. 

Since the entire brand is being built on the legacy of Vikrant, the question is what happens after the entire metal of Vikrant is exhausted. The company has launched the Bajaj V15 as a limited edition. So the V15 would be there till the metals last, then there will be another variant of V. 

The brand Bajaj V already have won lot of accolades for the marketing idea and will be a case study for aspiring marketers on using opportunities to get an edge. 

Brand Update : Appy Fizz repositions to lose its cool factor

This summer, Parle Agro has made a drastic repositioning of its unique  product - Appy Fizz. Launched in 2005, Appy Fizz had carved a unique place in the Indian market with its fizzy apple drink. The brand was built on a cool quotient exemplified by the strategy of anthropomorphism. The drink became  the cool character and the ads too supported the positioning. Appy Fizz had one of the good taglines  " A Cool Drink to Hang Out With"

Now Parle Agro decided to undo all those with the new campaign. A lot of things have changed in the new repositioning.

• The package was changed. The logo was tweaked and the design is in line with the Frooti logo design.
• The tagline was changed to " Feel the Fizz".
• The Appy Fizz  character has been discarded.
• New celebrity endorser in Priyanka Chopra.

watch the ad here : Appy Fizz Repositioning

The new repositioning came as a big dampener. The brand changed its personality completely. The tagline " Feel the Fizz" is also a poor replacement of " Cool drink to hang out with". This " Feel " thing is an overused tagline. For example, the scooter brand Hero Maestro has the tagline " Feel the Josh". Ford earlier had the tagline " Feel the difference ". So Appy Fizz really fizzled out in the tagline section. 

Secondly about the celebrity endorser part. Appy Fizz was personified as a male. Now suddenly when the brand is endorsed by a female celebrity, I really felt odd. Moreover, the new ad is too much Priyanka and very less Appy Fizz. In all the earlier campaigns, it was the brand which had the prominence.  In all sense, Appy Fizz lost its coolness.

My hypothesis is that Parle Agro wants the brand to come into the mainstream. Appy Fizz by nature is a niche product. Because it is apple drink, the salience will also be low. Trying to change that would be a risky affair. At the same time, the brand can work to strengthen salience and build preference. The current route taken by Appy Fizz is too risky and unnecessary.

Cool Quotient is something that is very difficult to attain. Appy Fizz was fortunate to successfully position itself as a Cool brand. In one stroke,  the company has undone all the investment it has made in the brand. My forecast is that at some point in time, the brand will be forced to be a " Cool drink to hang out with ".

Khadi : Is the potential realized ?

Brand : Khadi
Company : Khadi and Village Industries ( KVIC)


Brand Analysis Count : # 563

Last day I visited a Khadi Outlet looking for some Khadi cloth to beat the scorching heat wave sweeping across God's Own Country. The interest in Khadi was a result of a miserly search for an alternative to the much expensive linen. The visit had inspired this post because I saw both opportunity and disappointment.

Khadi ( as mentioned in Wikipedia) is an iconic symbol of the independent struggle. The cloth became a movement when Mahatma Gandhi exhorted the nation to boycott British Cotton and embrace the homemade Khadi. 

Khadi again came into limelight when our Prime Minister urged the Indians to support Khadi. As per the reports, there was a surge in the sale of Khadi after the appeal by our PM.

As a marketer, I saw a huge opportunity for Khadi because of the very nature of the product. As per the reports, the cloth has a  unique property of being cool in summer and warm in winter. Further, the product is very rugged and durable. 

The disappointment was the lack of branding and product development for this product. I visited the largest Khadi outlet in Cochin and the lack of product choice and variety was appalling. The colors and choice were limited which shows the lack of investment in product development. This product had the alternative to the expensive linen had it come out with better product choice. 

Regarding the branding front, Khadi was not a trademark or no one thought of protecting Khadi as a brand. It was a generic term for handwoven cotton cloth. This changed in 2014 when a German firm Khadi Naturprodukte registered it as trademark in European Union. 

The Government of India had since challenged this and asked Khadi and Village Industries to register Khadi as a trademark. 

In India too, there is no clear ownership for Khadi. You can buy different types of Khadi products from different vendors. This creates many problems in terms of product quality and consistency.

What the Government needs to do is to take ownership of the Khadi brand and try to encourage more product development in terms of color, clothes etc. KVIC. Khadi can be positioned as an ingredient brand. The firms can be encouraged to develop Khadi based products . At the brand level, KVIC should take ownership of the brand and promote Khadi's image. The unique selling proposition of " Cool in Summer and Warm in Winter " should be exploited.

Khadi is a heritage brand with great potential. Only if the ownership is clearly defined and a concerted effort in branding is done, the potential will not be met. 

Brand Update : Cinthol wants to re-invent deo

In an interesting move, Cinthol is trying to change the deodorant game by focusing on the form factor. In the latest campaign, the brand is trying to bring back the focus on the stick form of deodorant. 

During the formative years of the deo market, the deo stick was the popular form of the product. But later the spray form took over the market and the stick faded away.  Although the stick product form was less priced, the spray was perceived to be convenient. The spray did not have that soapy feeling which the stick had. And the deo marketers prompted the consumers to trade up to the spray form.

Cinthol wants to change that game. The new campaign which focuses purely on the form-factor highlights 3 advantages of the stick form -  less priced, skin friendly and 3 times long lasting. 

Watch the ad here : Deo Reborn

The new campaign has used the slogan - Deo Reborn for the new initiative. The brand has taken a risk in pushing for the form-based differentiation since it has the spray form factor in the portfolio. 

The Indian deo market is crowded and confusing with a lot of brands and promises. So the Cinthol's stick form factor push stands out from the crowd at least for a while. Another advantage is that the stick form factor effectively negates the " gas vs perfume " war that is currently going on in the Indian deo market. After Fogg stormed the market with No Gas proposition, every deo brand has joined the bandwagon. In this move, Cinthol has taken the gas out of the spray form-factor. 

It has to be seen how the consumer behaviorally reacts to the new initiative. Marketers had taught the consumers to use the spray and bringing back to the stick form is not easy. 

Marketing Practice :Why fooling customers is a bad idea !

Google's April Fool joke -Mic Drop's epic failure throw some lessons for marketers. The most obvious lesson is " Think hard before fooling customers". If Google which had been doing this April Fool joke for a while can land up in trouble, you can see the risk involved in pranking customers. 

Many brands have hopped in the bandwagon of getting the cool quotient. Humor is the most obvious route to building the cool quotient. But often brands gets edgy and then burn its fingers. In the case of Google, surprisingly the brand failed to understand the risk of such a venture. Yesterday I also saw the mic-drop button on my gmail. As a fan of the brand,I trust anything that comes from Google and will not think much before trying it out. Luckily I was too lazy yesterday to click on the button. Things would have been embarrassing since my official mail is linked to gmail. 

I think brands should resist the temptation to look cool at all cost. When there's a matter of Brand Trust, coolness quotient should take the backseat. 

Having said that, it takes lots of courage for a brand to be humorous and mistakes do happen. The mantra I choose about brand humor would be-When in doubt, be serious. 

Brand Update : Good Bye Innova, Welcome Crysta

In a surprise move, Toyota decided to stop the production of its best seller MUV- Innova to pave the  way for the launch of the new generation Innova Crysta. The plot seems to be the repeat of the stoppage of Toyota Qualis for the introduction of Innova.

Toyota decided to replace Innova not because it is in the mature/decline stage of product-life-cycle. The first generation Innova is still the best selling segment leader. Replacing a best-selling model when the sales are at peak requires a lot of guts and visionary thinking. The new Innova Crysta will be running on the new product platform TNGA which enables multi-product  configurations.

Innova which was launched in 2005 has so far sold more than 5.75 lakh units. As per auto.ndtv, the brand Innova is selling approximately 5000 units per month - a task its low-priced competitors despite their aggressive pricing and marketing strategies could not achieve. 

The brand is practicing planned obsolescence where the brand deliberately makes its product obsolete by launching updated versions. 

According to reports, Innova has struck a chord with Indian consumers through its robust build quality and high quality. And despite being a large vehicle, the handling part of this vehicle is best in the class. 

First generation Innova had set a benchmark for the category it has helped create. Now true to Toyota tradition, the brand is redrawing the benchmark with the launch of Crysta. It is interesting to note that Toyota will not be selling the first generation Innova side-by-side Innova Crysta. It is foregoing that sales opportunity to sustain the brand equity of Innova 

Crisp and Shine : The fabric Enhancer

Brand: Ujala Crisp and Shine
Company: Jyothy Laboratories

Brand Analysis Count: 562

Ujala Crisp and Shine is the re-branded version of Ujala Stiff and Shine. Ujala launched its fabric conditioner Stiff and Shine in 2005. The brand was an addition to the post-wash fabric care product line of Jyothy Lab which was dominated by the liquid whitener Ujala. 

Although launched in 2005, Stiff and Shine was a regional brand. The brand did business around Rs 25 crore in Kerala where it is concentrated ( Source). The post-wash category of fabric care is now witnessing a lot of interest among FMCG companies and HUL is upping the ante with the high profile promotion of its global brand - Comfort.

When launched, Stiff and Shine was primarily viewed by consumers as a product that would offer the convenience of a fabric stiffener ( starch) like Revive. The brand name also reinforced the perception.

HUL launched Comfort not as a fabric stiffener but as a conditioner. Through sustained promotions, the brand has continuously grown in the market.
Probably this growth of the brand Comfort may have led to the re-branding of Stiff and Shine.
The new brand name Crisp and Shine is backed by a product - descriptor  - Fabric Enhancer. Through the product descriptor, the brand is trying to position itself as a complete fabric care product rather than a stiffener.
Jyothy Lab is trying to pitch Crisp and Shine nationally and the re-branding releases the brand from the constraint of " Stiff and Shine " proposition.

Britannia Good Day : Har Cookie Mein Kayi Smiles

Brand: Good Day
Company: Britannia

Brand Analysis Count: # 561

Good Day is an interesting brand. Launched in 1987, the brand had come a long way. The brand was launched by Britannia when it identified a gap between the glucose biscuit category and cream-biscuit category. According to a report in Business Line, the company felt that customers want an indulgence product which they can consume during tea-time. The company thus pioneered the "Cookie" category in India by positioning Good Day just above the glucose biscuits. The  new product was different from the glucose biscuits by the inclusion of berries and dry fruits. 

The Indian biscuit market is worth Rs 25,000 crore and the cookie is the fastest growing category in the industry. According to ET and Business Standard, the cookie category is worth around Rs 6000 crore. Good Day is leading the category with around 30% market share. Parle and Sunfeast are close followers with a share of 27 % and 25% respectively.

Good Day, which created the cookie market at one time enjoyed more than 70% share in the market. The decline is attributed to the competition it faced from Parle and Sunfeast. 

Good Day as a brand was promoted on the basis of the happiness platform. The brand had the very famous tagline " Have a Good Day " which was reinforced by some very good campaigns. 

Watch the earlier campaign of Good Day: Campaign 1, Campaign 2

According to news reports, the core philosophy of Good Day is happiness and optimism. The brand has been consistent on the positioning platform since launch. 

2015 saw a relaunch of the brand. The brand has been suffering from the onslaught of ITC's Sunfeast. Sunfeast virtually changed the face of the biscuit market. Sunfeast brought lot of energy to the biscuit market with lot of new launches and varieties. 

Britannia is now responding by elevating Good Day into an umbrella brand with lot of new varieties and sub-brands. For example the Chunkies is a premium cookie brand launched as a sub-brand of Good Day, endorsed by Deepika Padukone. 

During the relaunch, Good Day also have changed the tagline to " Har Cookie mein kayi smiles " roughly meaning - every cookie has many smiles. The brand is reinforcing its happiness positioning through the packaging also. Good Day now has put a smile into the packs and is now selling the curved lines of the biscuits as smiles. 

Watch the ad here : Smile Good Day

The new avatar of  Good Day is a smart move by Britannia. The brand is not complacent in the face of competition. How ever, the brand could have retained the tagline " Have a Good Day " . The original campaign is so powerful and popular, Good Day has virtually let go a very powerful brand element.

Brand Update : Will Tata Motors be made great by Messi

In a really surprising move, Tata Motors roped in the football legend Lionel Messi as the brand ambassador. Tata Motors has been in a sticky wicket in the last few years. Once the Indica magic was over, Tata motors were not able to produce a volume player. Nano was a disappointment and the company watched its competitor  rolling out best sellers year after year. 

The company had been working hard behind the scenes under the revival strategy named Horizon Next. The first two products under this plan were the Zest and Bolt. Both gained good reviews in the market, but the baggage of the Tata Motors brand was pulling down any scope for a spectacular show.

Perception is powerful and often enduring and it is not easy to change perceptions. The  lack of perfection and nagging complaints of earlier Tata Motors cars created strong perceptions which are proving to be a tough nut to crack. Tata Motors is one of those brands which people know, like and trust but doesn't want to buy. 

The big endorsement from Messi is another effort of Tata Motors to change perceptions. The brand knew that it is losing out from the mind of the younger generation. With the competition in the Indian market is global, nothing less than a global icon will do for a brand like Tata Motors. 

The company is currently running the endorsement campaign named " Made of Great ".

Watch the ad here: Tata Motors Made of Great 

The ad is all about Messi. The new campaign is all about Messi and Tata Motors attempt to make some connect with this iconic football player. 

The Messi effect would come into play with the new launches of Tata Motors. According to news reports, the new launch Tata Kite was teased in the above-mentioned ad. The new launches would benefit from this high profile endorsement. 

While Messi would rekindle some interest in Tata Motors, what is important is to make good the flaws that created the perception that is preventing brands from Tata Motors to have customer preference in the buying process. Products from Tata Motors are in the bottom of the consideration set in most cases. Consumers will consider products for purchasing only if caters to some minimum requirements. Sadly somewhere the products of Tata Motors is lacking ( or perceived to be lacking ) on those vital parameters. 

Hopefully, as the ad goes, Tata Motors would rediscover those factors which make the products great. 

Baleno : Premium play using a phased-out brand?

Brand: Baleno
Company:  Maruti Suzuki

Brand Analysis count:  # 560

Maruti Suzuki Ltd ( MSL) is in the process of  foraying into the premium hatchback ( B+) segment with the launch of Baleno. The announcement was surprising to me since the company which is struggling to break into the premium segment has chosen to name the product with a phased out brand!

Interestingly, Baleno was MSL's foray into the premium sedan segment, 16 years ago. Baleno was first launched in 1999. Although the car was exceptional in terms of quality, MSL priced the product exorbitantly high. In 1999, the brand was priced at 8 lakhs. This along with the general VFM perception of Maruti brand caused a lukewarm response to Baleno. Later Baleno reduced the price substantially to around Rs 5.5 lakhs. Despite these efforts, Baleno failed to deliver volumes resulting in its withdrawal in 2006. It is said that the quality of the product is evident in the fact that Baleno is still used as a racing car in India.

It is in this context that the launch of the new Baleno hatchback becomes interesting. MSL has stated that it aims to break into the premium segment of the Indian automotive market. The company had created a premium distribution network branded as Nexa. The company had launched its premium crossover S-Cross through Nexa. 

Everyone knows that MSL has the issue of being perceived as a value-for-money brand. Many experts suggest that more than the VFM perception, the brand Maruti have an issue with the design. So far no product from MSL was having a premium design. 

When  the company has such a perception problem existing, why would it launch a " premium" car with a brand which was phased out? Frankly I don't see any logic or rationale behind that move. Baleno, in my personal view, doesn't have a lasting equity which  could help in the new product launch. Further, the new product is a hatchback and not a sedan. 

So what is the value that the old brand Baleno is bringing to the new product is puzzling. Baleno is also a product which failed due to its high ( premium) pricing. Now MSL is launching a high-priced hatchback in that same name is nothing but an irony. The only logic I see is that the Baleno hatchback is a global product and hence the brand. 

In my opinion, MSL has lost an opportunity to build a premium brand. By launching Nexa, the company wanted to create a separate identity away from old Maruti products. When the company has invested so much in creating a different identity, why would it bring back a brand which has the baggage of history? 

Premium-ness comes from exclusivity, stellar performance and brand equity. I wonder how could anyone relate premium-ness to a brand which was phased out because it was not successful?

On the branding front, I consider the Baleno branding as a big mistake. Baleno hatchback would be a successful product probably as a VFM product and I doubt whether it would be a premium brand as wished by MSL.

Brand Update : Peter England wants you to Be Everything You Love

Peter England that came to India with the promise of an Honest Shirt, has undergone yet another change. This time, the brand has seen a significant change in its personality. From a stiff collar personality, Peter England has become a very youth, adventurous brand. The change in the brand personality is now reflected in the new TVC. Along with the new personality, the brand has also adopted a new tagline " Be Everything You Love ".

Watch the new TVC here: Peter England - Be everything you love

The brand that was launched in 1997 had made a significant positioning change in 2010 when it adopted the tagline " Beginning of Good Things ". The brand had a celebrity endorser at that time. Even then, the brand's personality was that of an affable, honest, serious brand.
In the new avatar, Peter England has become a new person. The new personality reflected by the main actor in the advertisement is young, adventurous and probably irreverent. This is a serious shift from the original brand's persona.
Along these years, the brand has also added more products to its portfolio, including belts, bags and the like. The brand is trying to woo the new young generation and this effort is reflected in the new commercial.
But sadly the theme that the brand has used in the new avatar is used many times by other brands. The interview setting, the older interviewers, and the  smart young hero all looks so cliched and stereotyped. While the move towards new personality is justified, the execution of the new positioning seems to be below average.
It is also to be noted that the young man depicting the brand's personality has not done everything he loves and wishes to do so in the next five years. That prompts me to ask why is he not doing it now ?? 

Mahindra Gusto : Kisi Se Kam Nahi

Brand : Mahindra Gusto, Centuro
Company : Mahindra Two Wheelers

Brand Analysis Count  : # 559

I think, this is the first time I am writing on two brands in one post. Mahindra had launched its 110 cc scooter in 2014. The brand is going to compete with the likes of  Honda Activa, Access etc. Gusto is interesting brand because it calls itself as a car in two wheels ! 

Gusto is positioned on its car-like features. The brand pitches against the cars claiming that it has car-like features like height-adjustable seat, remote flip-key, LED pilot lamps, find-me lamps etc. The brand has based this theme on the insight that car-owners look down upon the two-wheeler riders ( source - afaqs). Hence the campaign of Gusto features car-owners mocking the Gusto rider and become surprised when they find that Gusto had car-like features. 

Gusto was initially launched with tagline " Break Free" and was positioned as a fun scooter. Now the brand has adopted the tagline " Kisi Se kam Nahi".

Another interesting fact is that Mahindra is promoting its motorcycle and scooter using the same concept. There is a common campaign for Gusto and Centuro and both these brands share the common tagline " Kisi Se Kam Nahi . 

Watch the ad here : Mahindra Two Wheeler ad

Along with this long ad, there are small ads featuring the various car-like features. 

The concept and the innovation creates a wow feeling. I think Mahindra two-wheelers has done well in identifying good differentiators. The brands can be proud of being pioneers in bringing in car-like features into two wheelers. 

Having said that, these features can be easily copied by the competitors and hence the extent of sustainability of this differentiation is limited. Since Mahindra Two-wheelers is trying to get a foothold in the market, these feature rich products will help the company very much; provided the brands succeed in the basic product functions like ridabililty , reliability , performance etc. 

Brand Update : Cycle Agarbatti ropes in Big B as Brand Ambassador

Cycle Agarbathies has roped in Amitabh Bachchan as the brand ambassador. The organized agarbatti market in India is worth around Rs 2400 crore, and Cycle has approximately 20% share of this market. The move for a high-profile celebrity endorsement is a strategy to take the brand to a national level. 

The brand also changed its slogan to “ Purity of Prayer”. The new commercial is well made, and BigB was able to pack an emotional tone to the brand. According to reports, the ads were created by Soojith Sirkar of the Piku movie fame. 

Watch the tvc here: Big B Cycle 

The agarbatti market that is highly fragmented is witnessing intense competition with the entry of ITC with the Mangaldeep brand.  In a market like this, distribution is the key since customers tend to experiment with new fragrances and brands. Cycle wants to play the game of branding and with a high profile endorser like BigB, the brand stand a good chance of gaining more share of mind in the market. 

Brand Update : Honda Relaunches Jazz

After withdrawing the premium hatchback Jazz in 2013, Honda has relaunched Jazz with an aggressive pricing. Jazz is an interesting marketing story of a brand which failed not because of product but pricing. Honda had priced out Jazz in its earlier avataar. Now the company had become very responsive to the value conscious nature of the Indian consumer. 

Jazz in the 2015 version has been priced upwards of Rs 5.31 lakh which makes a great value proposition in the segment. The Jazz will compete with i20 and higher version of Swift. The new aggressive pricing, new styling and the Honda brand equity will definitely boost the fortune of Jazz in the new launch. 

Also unlike the earlier brand-pull strategy of Honda, there is a marked change in the approach of the dealers towards sales. I casually inquired about the Jazz at Honda service center when I gave my car for service and has been getting sales call for Jazz. This marks a clear departure from the earlier " Take it or Leave it " approach.

The brand is launched with the tagline " Nothing Else is a Jazz " and is playing on the sporty features of the brand. 

Watch the ad here : Honda Jazz relaunch TVC

With aggressive pricing, new styling and with a diesel engine under hood, Jazz would further boost the share of Honda in India for sure.