Brand Update : Bingo

According to today's Business Standard, Bingo has eaten into the market share of Lays. Six months into the launch, ITC has really broke into the stronghold of Lays. The report cite the clever marketing strategy and the localisation of flavors as the main factors that aided the success of Bingo.
Although it is too early to praise Bingo or ITC on their success, I feel that getting the brand to a market share of 16 % is something commendable. Bingo now aims for 25 % of the Rs 2000 crore branded snack market. The share of Lays have reduced from 65% to 45%.


The brand had made a base for itself. There are various factors that aided the success of Bingo.

High Decibel Advertising : Although I have reservations about the quality of ads, Bingo was able to capture the Share of Noise through its heavy spend. Helping that was the latest move of Lays to change the famous tagline to " Har Program ka Main Food"

Novelty Factor : The snack market is driven by impulse purchases and Bingo had the advantage of the ITC parentage that encouraged consumers to try out the product without much inhibition.

Regional Flavors : This is where Bingo beat Lays in their own game. Lays was the first to localise flavors but Bingo specialized on local flavors and the key differentiator was the Localized flavors.

Distribution strength : If you ask me which is the most critical success factor of Bingo, I would put the distribution strength as the numero uno. Go to any supermarket or kirana store, Bingo is highly visible. In India there is no company that can match the distribution strength of ITC and this has helped this new launch very much interms of Shelf Space and retailer support.

Having said that Lays cannot be written off. Whenever a new brand comes, the larger brands lose market share . Like wise the high profile launch of Bingo has eroded the market share of Lays but things can change very fast. Lays have already scaled up their marketing initiatives and new flavors are on the anvil. The brand also have came out with pack costing only Rs 3 ( sachetisation) to induce non users to try out the brand.

The war has started and for marketers and customers, its going to be a treat.

Related Brand
Bingo
Lays

Grasim Suitings : For The Self Made

Brand : Grasim
Company : Aditya Birla Group
Agency : O& M

Brand count : 267

Grasim is a major brand in the Rs 2500 crore Ready to Stitch market. The brand which had its existence since 1957 .Grasim is a major player in the Rs 2500 crore Ready to Stitch textile segment. The brand lags behind the market leader Raymond's which holds a market share of about 25- 30 %.
Grasim comes from a company that is one of India's largest manufacturers of cement and VSF.

Grasim is now on its path of repositioning. The brand was earlier positioned as a Modern Fashion Brand. The positioning was reinforced by a series of new fibre launches . The collections like Aqua Soft, Ice Touch etc kept the brand in the limelight. The brand used the tagline " Power of Fashion" to convey the positioning.
Now the brand has changed its positioning. Grasim has roped in the Bollywood Super hero Akshay Kumar as the brand ambassador. The tagline has been changed to " For the Self Made". The TVC featuring the actor is now on air.
The repositioning is very significant for the brand because of the nature of competition that it faces. The competition is not only from the textile brands but also from the Readymades. Every day we have new brands cropping up. In the brand competition , brands like Mayur , Reid and Taylor, Raymond's have stepped up their campaigns. Grasim wanted itself to be relevant and hence this attempt.
The brand now has changed its personality from a Fashionable brand to an Ambitious Brand. According to a report in Agencyfaqs, the brand has broadened its TG to include the rural and small town markets where the Ready To Stitch wears are still popular. The new TG is 35 + male from smaller towns who are informed, fashion conscious and ambitious.
In that way the choice of the brand ambassador is apt. Akshay is known for his humble beginnings and his struggle in life as a cook, a martial arts trainer and then to stardom. Hence the brand ambassador and the new positioning has many things to share. The new TVC also tries to relate the life of the actor and the brand. Impressive thought.

The brand has now adopted the mainstay marketing philosophy of most of the readymade brands now existing in the market. Get a star to endorse it. In that way Grasim has forced itself to move to the popular road ( easy one ) . The brand is expected to spend around 7- 8 crore on this exercise. Remember that Grasim has become popular on the strength of the innovations in fabric rather than emphasis on promotions.
Grasim was perceived to be an upmarket elite brand. The brand was also sold at a premium. Infact this is a brand that has used EVENTS to promote itself as an upmarket fashionable brand. Grasim was the brand that came out with the first Mr India contest which is running in its 12th Year. When it was launched, the contest evoked lot of PR and media attention which inturn benefited the brand.

But the managers at Grasim wanted the brand to look at the masses. From the elite premium club, the brand wanted itself to be more affordable. The logic behind the current repositioning is to make the brand a Masstige brand. Hence the brand chose to go in for a undifferentiated celebrity approach. By doing so, Grasim is putting its entire brand equity at stake and that too on a celebrity. Grasim could have done so with out a celebrity. Now look at the plight of Mayur suitings which took Salman as its brand ambassador. Now Salman is in Jail and can the brand bank upon Salman?
I am not jumping into conclusion that the new positioning of Grasim is not good. I feel that it lacks the depth and is too much depending on the endorsers rather than the brand itself. After the contract with Akshay ends, what will the brand do next ? Can it survive with a model? NO !
It will have to find another celebrity who was self made . The brand has put itself into a vicious circle and it may have to depend on one celebrity or another. Personally I feel that a brand should stand for itself not on any real person ( celebrity) .
I think that the brand had made an error in believing that the guys in semi urban and rural markets are only influenced by celebrities . I am sure that they are pretty confused by the plethora of celebrity endorsements and may be looking for a change. Those fashion conscious customers of Grasim will be wondering what happened to this fashionable brand suddenly changing its personality.

Akshay is definitely a right celebrity to endorse the brand with the new positioning. But whether the celebrity endorsement strategy is right for the brand, only time will tell.

source : agencyfaqs

Gold Winner : G for H

Brand : Gold Winner
Company : Kaleesuwari Refinery Ltd
Agency : Crayon's Advertising and Marketing

Brand Analysis Count : 266

Gold Winner is a major player in the branded edible oil market in India. This brand from the Southern India made its debut in 1995. A price warrior during its launch , this brand has transformed itself to a serious brand.
Gold Winner now commands a 20% market share in the whole of India and have a commanding 70% share in Tamil Nadu. The brand has serious plans for itself and has already making its way to the North Indian market.

I have noticed the earlier ads of Gold Winner talking about health and ending with the tagline : Gold Winner is Gold- Winner. The ad made no impact on me as a marketer except an acknowledgment of the huge budget that the brand had. Gold Winner gained its initial market with a price war on the major brands like Sundrop and Sweekar. Gold Winner was retailing on a huge price discount and the heavy media campaign ensured the required volume to sustain the price war.
Then came a surprise. The quality of the campaign changed dramatically with a new Big Idea.

G for H
Gold Winner For Health.

The brand identified its DNA in those simple equation. This discovery changed the whole brand personality. I am not saying that Gold Winner discovered something new. Health was the platform that all edible oil marketers used to promote their brands. Sundrop and Suffola held their markets building on the health platform. But what I liked about Gold Winner was on its execution of the Common Idea.
Watch the Commercial here : Gold Winner Ad
Also the brand used Kids effectively in the ads making the Mothers the Target Segment. While Suffola uses Wife as the TG and the ads are more adult dominated.

With the TamilNadu market in the fold, the brand is making inroads into new market. This Onam, Gold Winner has entered into the Kerala Market. The brand has already started a high profile marketing campaign comparing the Brand with the popular Coconut oil . Kerala is a different market because here coconut oil is used as the cooking medium. Gold Winner is trying to position itself as a healthy alternative to the Coconut Oil.
Gold Winner is an example of how a brand can make a mark on a cluttered market through smart execution of an old idea. The brand is now moving out of its major market to a more competitive National Market. The G for H campaign will get the necessary eyeballs. I am sure that the threat will prompt players like Saffola and Sundrop to take the war to the Gold Winner's territory . It is war time....

Brand Update : Parachute

Parachute is getting bigger and better. This super brand from Marico has moved into the next level. The brand is running a new campaign for its variant Parachute Advansed. The campaign titled Gorgeous Hamesha is one of the best ads I have seen in recent times

Watch the TVC here : Gorgeous Hamesha

The campaign is a classic example of Laddering . Laddering is deepening the meaning of a brand to tap into core brand values or other, more abstract considerations. For effective laddering, the target group should have a clear understanding of how the brand relates to alternatives in the same category ( Kevin Lane Keller).
Here in this case Parachute has established itself as a hair oil brand, the time was ripe to move up from a basic positioning to some thing more deep. The brand is aiming to reach a higher ladder through its variant Advansed.

In the new campaign Gorgeous Hamesha ( translated to Gorgeous Always) , the brand talks about its efficiency in strengthening the roots of the hair so that you look Gorgeous Always. The brand has embarked on a 360 degree campaign with contests, viral campaigns and media promotions.
The brand has taken a lesson from the iconic Mastercard's Priceless campaign discussed elsewhere in this blog. Like the Priceless campaign, Parachute Advansed is also trying to capture those " Special Ordinary Moments " in life where one looked Gorgeous. The brand has roped in Deepika Padukone as the brand ambassador.
What I liked about the campaign is that it captures the very essence of the brand in a simple way. The ad is sticky and the music is impressive.More than that the message is very simple subtle and effective.
I hope that the brand continues to build on this new Gorgeous concept.

Related Brand
Parachute

Crezendo : Passport to Republic of Pleasure

Brand : Crezendo
Company : Hindustan Latex Ltd

Brand Analysis Count : 265

Crezendo was all over the news for all the wrong ( right ? ) reasons. This is the new brand of condoms launched by the public sector Hindustan Latex ltd who also markets the popular brand Moods.
Crezendo is more than just condoms. The pack of Crezendo contains a battery operated ring which also acts as a vibrator enhancing the pleasure during the intercourse. It is this feature that put this brand into controversy.
The brand was launched with much expectations by the company. Crezendo was a result of a market research by HLL on the reasons for the recent decline in the usage and popularity of condoms. The reason was obvious. Condoms were considered to " restricting pleasure " by men . Another alarming finding was that most of the condoms supplied through the Social marketing schemes were wasted because of non usage. The company was hoping to bring back the customers by adding a pleasure enhancer with the condoms.
Crezendo faced controversy in Madhyapradesh ( MP) when on of the ministers pointed out that the Crezendo ring is a Sex Toy rather than a condom and is against Law. Indian law do not permit the sales of Sex toys. The controversy was then taken over by the So called " Moral Police " which forced HLL to think about withdrawing this brand from the market.

There was a mistake on the company's part too which created the controversy. There was a message in the pack that said " the vibrating ring can be used without a condom for self -pleasure ". Since such toys are banned in India, one cannot blame the hypocritic moral police to stir up a controversy.
But that controversy had a big positive for this brand. It got tremendous publicity across media. As we know controversy is the cheapest and most effective marketing tool for any brand. The sale of the brand zoomed to around 50,000 packs within two months with MP contributing more than 15 % of the sale.
Crezendo was positioned as a bold product. The wordings in the pack referred it as a passport to the Republic of Pleasure. The idea was to reposition the category of condoms from Family Planning Tool to Pleasure enhancement tool. But those bold wordings landed it into trouble. The funniest part is that this matter was taken up in the Parliament and even some request have gone to the Prime Minister's office.

The controversy may have put the brand on a backfoot. Since the launch in June, the brand had not endeavored any sort of promotion. My personal feeling is that Crezendo will be successful as a niche brand because of its adventurous feature. The lack of promotion or the over caution can stifle the growth of this brand. HLL was hoping that this brand will act as a catalyst for the future growth of this product category but the controversies played spoilsport. This brand is an example of how environment can act as a major factor in marketing of a product.

Kinder Surprise : A Surprise Inside

Brand : Kinder Surprise
Company : Ferrero International

Brand Analysis Count : 264

Those who have visited supermarkets recently may not have missed a unique bright red and white colored egg shaped confectionery stocked at strategic locations. Its Kinder Surprise eggs for you. Kinder Surprise is a world renowned brand which has iconic status in some important markets in Europe.

I came to know about this brand from the latest book of Philip Kotler titled " Lateral Marketing". This brand is exhaustively quoted in the book. When I first saw this brand in the super market, I checked whether it was serious about India. Later media reports confirmed that the brand have serious plans about Indian market.

Kinder Surprise is an Italian brand launched in 1972 by Ferrero SPA . Kinder Surprise is a hollow milk chocolate in the size of a hen's egg. Inside the chocolate egg, there is a surprise toy for the kid. Usually the toy requires fixing of smaller parts. Kinder Surprise got the name from the combination of two words Kinder ( in German means Children) and Surprise. It is also known as Kinder Eggs.

This brand attracted Kotler's attention because it redefined the confectionery market in Europe. When this brand was launched, the entire snack market was fragmented. Especially in the category of chocolate bars, the brand saturation was also high. The company wanted to launch something different and attractive to both the end user ( Kids) and the influencer/decider/purchaser ( Parents). Thus the idea of Kinder Surprise eggs was born.
The idea was a lateral one . A toy inside a chocolate. That too a series of toys that can be collected by the kids.
Why the brand was popular among both parents and kids was simple. Most of the time when parents bought chocolate for the kids, they are almost always worried about the health factor. Secondly , seldom kids are satisfied with one chocolate. That creates a hell of an issue at home.
Kinder Surprise aimed to erase these two problems. The brand was advertised in the media as a healthy product rich in energy and carbohydrates. The Egg size ensures enough quantity of chocolate for consumption by the kids. The tricky part is that when the kids open the egg, he/she finds the toy and plays with it and the parents are relieved of being asked for more chocolates. That prompted many parents to opt for Kinder Surprise . For the kid the gets a chocolate , a toy and a collection. ( source : Lateral Marketing by Kotler )
Although Kinder Surprise is a rage in Europe but the product is not available in US because the regulations does not allow non nutritive products to be embedded in food products.

Kinder Surprise had a soft launch in India. I doubt whether they still is test marketing the brand in select market.There are no ads but only in-store promotion/ display. The brand is targeting young children and the differentiation is the toys inside the chocolate egg.

The brand was a surprise to me for another reason. The price. Kinder Surprise is priced at around Rs 25-Rs 30 which I consider too premium for a chocolate brand. ( Slow Skimming ? ) Those customers who are not aware of the surprise inside the brand may not opt for it. With out much promotion, customers are also not going to know about it. That makes the new launch a little troublesome for the company. We may see certain price rationalization in days to come.

Although the brand has established its position in global market, it is in for a certain surprise in the Indian market. I feel that the brand has got its initial pricing wrong. Indians are too choosy to spend Rs 30 on a chocolate as small as an egg. Secondly the USP of the brand is the toy inside. But in Indian market, this concept has been hijacked by ITC for its Sunfeast range of biscuits . Although the toy is not embedded in the product, Sunfeast have the toy which it calls FIXOS which is the same kind of toys found inside Kinder Surprise. And the Sunfeast biscuits are priced much below the Kinder Surprise' price. Hence Kinder Surprise may not result in a big surprise.

I am not writing the epitaph of a product that is newly launched but trying to cite the challenges faced by this global brand entering into the highly competitive Indian market. World over Kinder Surprise has succeeded because of its ability to create unique collectible toys . The company is very careful in the design of the toys and there are lot of exciting series like German Series, MPG, Limited edition , hand painted toys etc. In India too, the brand may be trying to replicate the global model.
With this high price and little surprise will Kinder Surprise can make it big in Indian market will be an exciting story to watch.

Source : wikipedia,lateral marketing