Professional Documents
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Markathon February 2011
Markathon February 2011
FEBRUARY11
MARKETING MAGAZINE OF IIM SHILLONG VOL 2, ISSUE 10
Cover Story
Private
vs brand
label
DOUGLAS B HOLT,
L’OREAL PROFESSOR
OF MARKETING,
SETH GODIN
Renowned Author
OXFORD
and Marketing Guru
UNIVERSITY
FROM THE EDITOR In this month’s Vartalaap we have Mr. Douglas Holt,
who talks to us about Branding in the Socio-Cultural
Dear Readers, context. Mr Holt, who is currently Professor of
Marketing at Said Business School, Oxford University
The World Cup fever is up and running, now that has authored a couple of books on Cultural Branding
slowly and steadily we are moving towards the and gives us valuable insights on how cultural issues
business end of it. The minnows, if I may call them are necessary to keep a brand ticking.
that with due respect, have as expected caused a
few upsets. But as far as I am concerned the match We also have a special feature talk with Mr. Seth
that has been the ONE of this world cup so far has Godin, one of the most renowned marketers in
been the tie between India & England. No doubt the present day marketing. He shares with us some
match in itself was a roller coaster ride, but what has wonderful insights ranging from his favourite book,
left an indelible mark in my mind and many others’ his idea for Permission Marketing in India, his views
too post that match was the suspense breaking on the world of blogging and much more.
launch of Vodafone’s Super ZooZoos. Moving on, it has been exactly a year since I took
To denote the huge shift in over as the Editor from my illustrious seniors and
technology from 2G to 3G, these past twelve months have been nothing short
ZooZoos have become Super of an exhilarating roller coaster ride. In this period I
ZooZoos to communicate Faster, have interacted with a number of corporates &
Smarter and Better services with academia, written and read a number of articles
Vodafone 3G. To launch the from some of the best minds in the country and also
ZooZoos this time around, interacted with them. All this has taught me
Vodafone have taken a different innumerable valuable lessons which would stand me
Our January 2011 approach. It launched four in good stead no matter where I go.
Cover teasers almost a week before to
create a buzz for the upcoming Coming out with a monthly magazine is by no means
ZooZoos. an easy task, and to have done this month after
The teasers left people guessing what Vodafone is month, without fail, is solely because of the team I
supposed to announce this time. The telecom giant had that was backing me up, behind the scenes.
had used all the mediums for a week long teaser
This bunch of marketing enthusiasts has shown me
campaign. Vodafone even had an exclusive tie-up
what Markathon meant to them, by the sheer effort
with NDTV Group to present the teasers in the form
and passion they have displayed.
of Breaking News Alert. The inspiration for Super
Zoozoo, apparently is that it’s like ‘Superman meets I am forever indebted to my editorial team including
Rajinikanth’ – Rajinikanth style with Superman’s Debanjana Sinha, Samita Srijaya Patnaik, Samrat
powers. It’s all the clichés of superhero films – like Singh Yadav, Saurabh Kumar Sinha & Varshik
using the eyes as a laser and so on. Nimmagadda.
Vodafone, have a got a hands down winner in their I would like to place on record my gratitude to two
stables, yet again! of the most patient souls I have worked with, my
designers, Keshav Sahani & Priyanka Pandit, without
In this month’s Cover Story, we look at and analyse
whom Markathon would not be complete.
the Private Labels that are rising from strength to
strength and giving the established players a run for I would also like to thank the faculty and the
their money. We were prompted to look at the administration for their unwavering support through
strength of the Private Labels after the recent spat thick and thin.
between some of the retail chains and Reckitt
Benckiser. The retails chains countered the Last but not the least me and my team would like to
announcement of margins being cut by stocking their express our sincere gratitude to YOU, our readers
own labels replacing some of Reckitt’s products. We and contributors without whom this dream called
analyse what makes the labels click and why brands Markathon wouldn’t have turned into reality.
are increasingly concerned about the labels.
2
THE MARKATHON TEAM
Now it is time for us to pass on the baton to our
EDITOR
juniors who we believe will continue to strive and
Kaushik Subramanian
give you the best in marketing and ensure that
Markathon becomes an iconic brand. SUB EDITORS
Debanjana Sinha
It gives me great pleasure to announce that Jitesh SamitaPatnaik
Pradeep Patel would be the next Editor,
Samrat Singh Yadav
Markathon, supported by his able colleagues,
Saurabh Kumar Sinha
Gaurav, Kaustubh, Rahul, Ritika, Sana, Sria&
VarshikNimmagadda
Yashwanth.
Signing off for one last time on behalf of the entire MEMBERS
Markathon team Gaurav Ralhan
Jitesh Patel
Goodbye!
Kaustubh Rawool
Love & Regards
Kaushik Rahul Mantri
Ritika Nagar
Happy Reading! Sria Majumdar
Sana Parvez Akhtar
Kaushik Subramanian Yashwanth Reddy Mandipati
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markathon | february 2011
CONTENTS
FEATURED ARTICLES
PERSPECTIVE I
Adapting to Cultures – Marketing in Global Environment
ARAVIND BM | NITIE
5
PERSPECTIVE II
Digging into the reality of Reality Shows: A Booming Marketing Platform 7
DEBASMITA PANJA | IIM B
PERSPECTIVE III
Marketing at source: the no-nonsense marketing
9
KUMAR RAUNAK| IIFT DELHI
SPECIAL
Interview with SETH GODIN
12
AUTHOR AND MARKETING EXPERT
COVER STORY
Private Labels
S. SANDHYA | YASHWANTH | JITESH PATEL | IIM S
14
20
VARTALAAP
Douglas B Holt
L’OREAL PROFESSOR OF MARKETING, SAID BUSINESS SCHOOL
WAR ZONE
EYE 2 EYE
Is the launch of six new world cup flavours by lay’s justified or would it confuse the brand loyal?
23
ANSHUL KUMAR | BIT NOIDA, AMRITA BANGA| NMIMS
SILENT VOICE
Cricket World Cup – 2011
24
SPECIALS
ADDICTIVE
GAURAV RALHAN | KAUSHIK SUBRAMANIAN 25
RADICAL THOUGHTS
JITESH PATEL | VARSHIK N 26
UPDATES
KAUSTUBH 28
30
BOOK MARK
SRIA MAJUMDAR | PRIYANKA PANDIT
Brand Story
SANA AKHTAR | SAMITA PATNAIK 31
FOR THOSE WHO TOOK IT FORWARD 32
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perspective markathon | february 2011
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perspective markathon | february 2011
The marketing world seems to have recognized the importance of cultural marketing.
Cultural marketing assumes absolute importance in order to avoid marketing blunders.
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perspective markathon | february 2011
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perspective markathon | february 2011
contents to tap the local audience. Deepak Dhar, more TRPs. The viewers are also entertained by the
managing director, Endemol India says, “We are show and the celebrities.
planning to get a format
Among the other tools that are
called The Million Pound
Drop for the Hindi audience being employed by the
and then extend it to south television channels are
celebrity hosts and judges and
India and the Bengali-
this has been established as a
speaking market.”
very effective approach as the
Internet is also playing an Indian viewers always have had
important role in its a special connection with
growth. It has been used as Bollywood. Anupam Vasudev,
a cost-effective and EVP marketing, Star Plus, said,
interactive tool for "Celebrity-based reality shows
promotion of reality shows attract new viewers. So, more
by several television channels. These companies have people are sampling your channel when such shows
partnered with popular websites like facebook, come on. A number of them stay with the channel even
YouTube, Orkut, rediff etc. for advertising their shows. after the reality show ends."
Star Plus, for instance, has made use of
social networking sites for initiating The increasing popularity of the reality
conversations on its show Master Chef. shows is making it easier for the
producers to attract higher sponsorship.
These channels have released web
premiers for their shows and are Also most of the revenues are generated
popularizing them through online from text messaging and mobile
interactions by the audience for voting
media posts. The channels are using
blogs, launching their own sites and purposes. There is effective utilization of
placing promos of their shows across content in a reality show shoot as almost
nothing goes waste. “Even auditions and
video sites. A lot of popular reality
television shows have profiles on well- behind-the-screen happenings are shot,
accepted social networking sites. They and broadcast before the actual show
goes on air...controversies and fights
are also creating websites for getting
regular feedbacks about their shows, between participants create frenzy and
thereby creating awareness and the show becomes a talking point in the
press or on social media,” says a
excitement in the minds of the viewers.
In addition to internet, channels are production team member of a show.
also using editorials in print However what remains to be seen is
publications for promoting the shows. whether this dynamic success of the
An evolving trend of cross-promotion reality television industry is sustainable or
not. A lot depends on the ability of the industry to come
of shows and promoting movies through reality shows
have become quite successful. The television channels up with further interesting concepts. Gavin Wood,
are working towards introducing a synergetic relation director of production, India Freemantle Media says,
"India has a great potential to produce its own formats.
between film promotion and reality shows. This is
setting up a win-win situation for all players in the We may discover some formats that existed earlier and
business. Reality shows provide an efficient platform for got sidelined or forgotten. We can work on them as
well. Indian formats have the potential to go global as
movie promotion with minimum cost being entailed by
the film producer. The appearance of celebrity actors in the passion and creativity in India grows in the years to
the shows captivates more people thereby registering come. This will drive the growth of the television
industry in India."
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perspective markathon | february 2011
Whenever we think of marketing campaign, the two watch numerous ads, remember them and recall them
ubiquitous words across the marketing fraternity, things while making purchasing decision. It is also a herculean
that first come to our mind are glitzy television task to measure the impact of these ads in quantitative
commercials, giant billboards at posh locations and high terms. Also one big issue in this regard is that many a
profile celebrity endorsements. These product time when these ads are aired in the midst of any
promotion tactics have captured much of the creative popular show they act as irritants from the point of
bandwidth of most of the marketing managers view of consumers and more often than not they nullify
associated with companies from diverse sectors. The any eye catching effect that was built into them to
underlying philosophy for these marketing and attract viewers. To counter this many advertisers
advertising tactics has been that launching a high thought of using more and more celebrities so we had
decibel mega campaign on television and other forms of Aamir Khan endorsing Coca Cola and Shahrukh Khan
media creates a pull effect among target consumers endorsing Pepsi, HUL roped in former Miss India and
and draws them to the distribution outlets. This model MehrJessiaRampal for ponds cosmetic products
philosophy indeed in response to another former Miss India and Universe
worked when we SushmitaSen’s endorsement of P&G’s Olay
had lesser number cosmetics products. This excessive use of celebrities
of competing by almost all the brands has again robbed this tactic
brands and of any novelty that it promised in the beginning.
products in every
So what should be
sector and some of
the way forward?
the communication
media were Marketers and
brand owners
relatively new, like
themselves seem
television. Take for
example to have come up
with an alternative
Hamarabajaj
which can be
campaign by bajaj scooters in the late 80s and early 90s
when the television medium was relatively new and the termed as the
two wheeler market was not cluttered with umpteen concept of
brands. This campaign actually established bajaj marketing at
scooters as a household name by creating the desired source.This is fast
pull effect. Same holds true for HUL’s lux campaign with becoming a trend on the marketing and advertising
stars like HemaMalini and Madhuri Dixit when celebrity landscape and is being increasingly used by advertisers
endorsements had not picked up in a big way. and marketing managers.
Cut to present time and we find a plethora of brands What is this concept all about?
with glitzy and whacky advertisements on television This concept entails intercepting the target consumers
and in newspaper dailies making use of each and every at the right location and the right time in a more direct
spot available. Same holds true for billboards and manner than what traditional forms of advertising
hoardings at posh locations. Now the issue is how much allow. This enables greater impact of marketing and
impact do such campaigns have on the minds of target advertising on consumers while ensuring that they are
consumers, especially when we take into account the engaged in an entertaining way. To illustrate this there
fact that in a small span of time, let us say during 3-4 are two examples that really stand out.
min commercial break on television he is supposed to
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perspective markathon | february 2011
Under this campaign In both of the examples the idea worked because
which was launched in consumers were directly impacted by the campaign and
September 2010 the were made to feel special, so next time around when
women commuters in they go to retail outlets the memory of this experience
local trains in suburban would in all its likelihood make them buy the product
Mumbai were served and use it and hopefully trigger repeated purchases.
delicacies prepared with
Prerequisites of a successful marketing at source
Knorr ready to cook spice mixes. This idea of serving hot
and fresh delicacies to women commuters on their way There are certain things that marketers need to keep in
back home after a day of hard work clicked with the mind while implementing this idea-
consumers.
A large number of dedicated sales forces would be
Over here what HUL was trying to do is to influence the required to make direct contact with the source i.e. end
influencers and break the clutter. In India the decision consumers. For example in case of HUL’s campaign,
regarding the purchase of kitchen items is taken they needed a large number of sales personnel to serve
primarily by the women of the house, so by actually delicacies to commuters in different local trains and on
providing them with a memorable experience of Knorr different routes.
ready to cook food items, they hoped to create a strong
recall and ensure repeated purchase. It also broke the Good distribution network and product visibility- to
clutter in processed food category which has players cash in on initial strong recall after the campaign,
like Nestle, Britannia, ITC, Frito Lay etc. Instead of going visibility and availability of the product in the retail
ahead with any run off the mill television commercial or outlets via strong distribution network is needed
print ad, it made direct contact with the source of its because if consumers ask for the product and do not
market and revenue i.e. middle class women find it there is a likelihood that they may switch to some
commuters and it did so not by pestering them but by other product.
making the encounter a unique and entertaining one
Complementary use of traditional forms of advertising-
and this created a favourable image of the product.
to say that the traditional forms of advertising are passé
would be naïve. Once the initial recall is created
through marketing at source, at this point traditional
NESTLE’s RURAL CAMPAIGN advertising would kick in, in the form of television
In its bid to promote Maggi commercial and print advertising to reinforce the
positive memories of the product and convert it into a
noodles in the rural markets,
purchase decision.
nestle organised a programme
wherein the representatives from Nestle travelled to Innovative and out of the box thinking is required to
rural areas of UP and Bihar and showcased to make direct engagement with the consumers an
inhabitants the process of preparing Maggi and then exciting and memorable experience for them because
they were served piping hot noodles. The entire idea this task is quite unlike sales promotion where either
was to educate the rural consumers about the product free samples are doled out or hefty discounts are given
and create a powerful impact by making them taste hot which trigger short term sales. Over here the idea is to
and delicious noodles. Again over here Nestle chose to build long term association with the consumer by
give traditional forms of advertising and marketing a starting the relationship on a memorable note which
miss which could have been making use of hoardings, can be used to build upon a strong relationship.
distributing pamphlets, or advertising on radio. Rather
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Special markathon |february 2011
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Special markathon |february 2011
Markathon: The next big thing in marketing Markathon: Best Medium for Permission
Marketing in India
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Special markathon |february 2011
Markathon: On the application of innovation Markathon: The book closest to your heart
and insights
Markathon: You were called ‘The Ultimate Markathon: Last word for our readers
Entrepreneur for the Information Age’ by
BusinessWeek. What’s your motivation to
keep starting new ventures?
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cover story markathon | february 2011
There was a giant who was bullying and harassing the children
in the village. One day, a 17-year-old shepherd boy came to visit
his brothers and asked, "Why don't you stand up and fight the
giant?" The brothers were terrified and they replied, "Don't you
see he is too big to hit?" But David said, "No, he is not too big to
hit, he is too big to miss." The rest is history. We all know what
happened. David killed the giant.
Same giant, different perception --- From the Bible
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cover story markathon |february 2011
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cover story markathon |february 2011
point that their flour is “chakki-atta”, freshly packaged provide a balance of price with quality, convenience,
to retain the aroma. consistency, innovation and enhanced in-store
experience. The market penetration of Reliance is 80%,
The secret of the success of private labels lies in the Pantaloons 75% and Shoppers Stop and Spencer’s have
trust the customers place on the parent chain – a penetration of 20% and 10% respectively.
Spencer’s Retail was already a household name when
they introduced their store label. Most players in this At the start of the private label revolution, many
business tend to start off in the un-branded space and manufacturers considered it as an avenue to increase
then branch out to products which are high- revenue. They used excess production capacity to
involvement or high-technology oriented because price- supply to the labels but this only caused a reduction in
conscious consumers are more willing to go for private their brand’s sales, which further increased their excess
labels in the case of daily-use commodities than high- capacity. By the time manufacturers caught up, the
involvement products such as in the personal care labels were very well established. From 13% of food
segment. Simply put, one might take a risk with a dish- products in 2005, they grew to 25% in 2008 in the US
wash than and are now
with their Depth of Private Labels by Retailer here to stay.
brand of body- But this
wash. intense
However, once Ebony competition
the chain Spencers has resulted in
establishes one clear
Subhiksha
their label as winner – the
trust-worthy, Shopper's Stop customer. He
Retailer Name
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cover story markathon |february 2011
discovery as brands brought down their margins while penetrate into the rural segment. Lack of a rural
stores increased theirs. retailing model and infrastructure are often cited as
reasons for the same but is a cause of concern as this
Major brands such as Britannia, Hindustan Unilever and limits the market to urban areas which are already over-
P&G originally utilized third party manufacturers to crowded with brands.
outsource part of their production but this strategy
back fired as these small companies now had the know- Market predictions indicate that there is high potential
how of production and are now competing against the for private labels in food and groceries, medium
major players by tying up with new entrants or major potential in clothing and consumer durables and quite
retailers. Such was the case with Frito Lays which has low potential in segments such as jewellery, watches
trouble due to ITC’s Bingo and Future Group’s Tasty and footwear. But retailers are wary about volumes as
Treat or Britannia against Sunfeast of ITC. spiralling inflation brings price hikes with it, which
adversely affects private labels. For instance, the
Nearly 36 consumer products including breakfast increase in cotton prices by nearly 50% might lead to
cereals, 10-15% hike
detergent, in prices at
fragrance Shopper’s
and Stop and
packaged Pantaloon
tea, Retail.
household
products The food and
like apparels
cleaners segments are
have high of particular
penetration interests
of private when looking
label at private
brands, labels – after
according all the profit
to the margins are
Nielsen generally a lot
study which higher in
puts their these sectors
share at 6% with foods at
of the total retail sales in those stores in late 2010. 20% and apparels at 40%.
The private labels scene in India is still in the nascent It is evident that private brands come with their own
stage and as the focus shifts from low price to product share of issues, especially in retail scenario like India’s
differentiation and quality, it could shift to the mature where the market is highly fragmented. The high costs
stage as seen in US , UK and the rest of the EU in the for initial investment, product establishment,
next 5 years. Feature differentiation, free samples and promotion, and heavy competition from established
increase in Advertising budgets have helped these brands all paint a bleak picture. Yes, David was small
labels better their perception in the eyes of customers. and young. However, he had a sling. And Private labels
However major inhibitors are the lack of sophistication have higher margins and increasing customer loyalty.
in business processes such as management of supply The giant was huge, the national brands have higher
chain and successful implementation of IT as market shares, are established and rich. The giant was
demonstrated by Walmart as well as reluctance to also complacent about David.
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cover story markathon |february 2011
Big Bazaar aims at a diversified product portfolio with specific lines of niche goods that
cater to the local taste, identified through the better contact they have with end users
than manufacturers. Thus, apart from cornflakes, cheese, ghee, butter, toothpaste and
even diapers, they have entered the niche markets through their community foods brand
Ektaa.
Their marketing mix offers an interesting insight into the way they have become this
successful - the product is what the customer wants (red rice in Kerala, Basmati in Punjab,
Sona Masoori in Hyderabad under Ektaa, poha, community specific pickles and snacks
such as khakra are some examples), Promotion is mainly in store, Prices are kept low by
lower costs and the distribution includes nearly 300 Stock keeping units and planned
supply chain initiatives.
According to Big Bazaar executives, private labels mean a 15% savings in retailer margin,
7% in distributor margin and 5% in marketing costs – this translates to 27% net savings
which is transferred to the customer thus ensuring higher sales even in categories without
extremely high demand. Marketing efforts involve strategic placement of products next to
the main competitor so that visibility is increased and there is an effort to gauge the
merits of the private label against the major brand. There is high emphasis on the price
aspect, in fact, the labels are distinctly categorised as opening price point labels,
promotional labels, trade-up labels and deep-discount labels. Further, there are ads
placed at eye-level to the customer and products are sold as a bundle, for instance
noodles and sauce in a combined offer – this way it is also easier to get relevant feedback
regarding the suitability of the products.
Big Bazaar is aiming for a 60% increase from last year’s 1000 Crore revenue and it can be
expected that 25% of their bottom line is met by private labels!
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cover story markathon |february 2011
Pantaloons takes an aggressive approach and nearly 80% of their revenues are
through private labels – in essence, they are looking at creating a chain like Zara,
whose value comes from the unique merchandise, variety and trendiness. They
sell 20 different labels and associate certain labels with popular designers to
accentuate the perception of uniqueness. They adopt a vertically integrated
structure and source from the manufacturer for additional margins.
Expansion plans include upgrading the labels John Miller, Bare, DJ&C, Rig and Ajile
into stand-alone brands with their own stores and even retailing them outside the
company-owned stores. This is possible with labels that have become hugely
popular with the public, have significant volumes and have a distinct identity. It
has become a case of private label established through the retailer and eventually
maturing into a brand of its own. This gives Pantaloons’ segments such as the Star
and Sitara line of beauty products, to be moulded into beauty salons.
Shopper’s stop takes a different route with only 20-25% of their revenues being
generated through private labels. In this case, the emphasis is on leveraging the
private labels for the higher margins that they provide. Their labels include
Kashish, STOP, Life, Mario Zegnoti, Acropolis, Push and Shove, Vettorio Fratini and
Elliza Donatein.
In contrast with Pantaloons which aims at creating its own identity, Shopper’s Stop
aims at providing customers with an international shopping experience. Key to this
is providing a wide variety of brands and ensuring that the visibility is not
predominant only for their own labels. However, in the interest of revenues, they
spend 2-4% of their revenue from private labels, 200 Crores, in marketing efforts –
even 4 Crores of expenditure is generally huge for private labels where usually
marketing is in-store. Shopper’s Stop takes a different line and promotes its labels
through extensive advertising including product placements in movies (such as Om
Shanti Om), television and print ads and stark black and white logos that are
arresting. And this is their strategy to build their “House of Brands”, not increasing
the profusion of private labels but increasing revenue and providing a much wider
variety than competitors.
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vartalaap markathon |february 2010
2011
Douglas Holt is the L’Oreal Professor of Marketing at the University of Oxford, and Co-Principal of The Cultural
Strategy Group. Previously he was a Professor of Marketing at the Harvard Business School. He is a leading expert
on brand strategy, having established cultural branding as an important new strategy tool in his best-selling book
How Brands Become Icons: The Principles of Cultural Branding. He is also the author of Cultural Strategy: Using
Innovative Ideologies to Build Breakthrough Brands. He has developed cultural strategies for a wide range of
brands, including Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Ben & Jerry's, Sprite, Jack Daniel's, MINI, MasterCard, Fat Tire beer,
Qdoba, Georgia Coffee, Planet Green, and Mike's Hard Lemonade, along with a number of non-profit
organizations. He holds degrees from Stanford, the University of Chicago, and North western University, and is the
editor of the Journal of Consumer Culture. He has been invited to give talks at universities and management
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vartalaap markathon |february 2011
2010
Markathon: How have global brands evolved in scuttled with the first waves of outsourcing in the
the last decade or so; in the context of the 1970s, Budweiser’s extolling of the virtues of the
emerging economies becoming a massive traditional artisan served up a shot of old-fashioned
consumer base? respect with every brew to embattled blue-collar
men. Budweiser understood the socio cultural
Mr. Holt: It is hard to provide any overarching context and used their campaign to capitalize on it.
comments because there are a number of different
types of global brands that succeed (or fail) based Markathon: Do you feel that in a country like
upon different brand mechanics. Generally western India, cultural branding might be difficult, given
companies have viewed developing markets as their that the culture is highly diverse across the
last great hope at double digit growth. But to expand nation (most of the state provinces speak
their brands into such countries, they’ve had to learn different languages, have different customs)
the hard way that creating brand value requires a unlike the United States or United Kingdom?
nuanced understanding of issues like national
identity and global status. Western brands can bring Mr. Holt:
potent cross-cultural value, representing western First I
ideologies that are much valued in developing disagree with
countries. But they can also act as a ball-and-chain, your premise.
carrying symbolic baggage from the west—such as If you’ve ever
connotations of post-colonial domination—that visited
consumers in developing countries resent. London, you
Branding in such would find
situations requires that it is one
considerable of the
cultural nuance. ethnically
Cultural branding works diverse cities
Markathon: You because people are in the world.
have emphasized cultural beings, which Likewise the
on socio-cultural applies to all people in all United States
branding for the countries regardless the is extremely
creation of an configuration. The idea is
Iconic Brand. Can that brands respond to heterogeneous despite that most people speak
you share with us major shifts in society English.
an example of a that create cultural Finally, cultural branding often thrives on political
brand which has tensions, which can only and cultural difference. For instance ben & jerry’s
achieved it in a
be resolved by new ice cream shot to success in the USA by opposing
successful manner
ideologies. Brands can Reagan’s politics in the 1980s, and Apple and
and how it has
provide these ideologies. Starbucks have championed ideologies that the
achieved it?
Iconic brands never work majority of Americans find condescending and
Mr. Holt: There are for everyone in society, elitist. The cultural diversity of the USA was helpful
lots of brands which only a segment. So there for these brands. So India’s diversity likely
have achieved iconic is no reason to exclude produces excellent conditions for cultural branding.
status by using India due to cultural Markathon: What trends in consumer culture
cultural branding diversity. and behaviour do you see emerging in the next
which I have talked
decade and the impact that they make on the
about in my two
way brands are created, marketed?
books. To explain
how they achieved would take a long time. One Mr. Holt: In cultural branding, we avoid looking at
example which comes to mind is that of Budweiser, trends because they are usually characterized in an
when America’s high-wage industrial base was being extremely generic manner. To do cultural strategy,
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vartalaap 2011
markathon |february 2010
you need to move beyond thinking about social Mr. Holt: I’m very interested in how branding can be
change in terms of a handful of trends. Rather used to improve the lot of the poor, especially
society is always changing in myriad ways and only a commodity producers in the global south. At Oxford I
small fraction of these changes are important for a worked with Oxfam to help Ethiopian coffee farmers
particular category and a segment therein. So the make more money by branding their traditional
challenge is always to treat historical changes in a coffee appellations (like yergecheffe), which are
highly customized manner, studying the particular highly renowned in the West. This is a fresh
changes that are important to the business problem branding idea, ripe with huge possibilities to push
you are trying to solve rather than buying in to the value chain rents down to the farmers in the south.
generic trends hyped by the media. However Starbucks was deeply opposed to this effort
because they made lots of money by using these
Markathon: What, in your opinion, is one Ethiopian appellations for free. As a result, the
common error (if any) most of the brands commit leadership of the Saïd Business School stridently
which prevents them from becoming an iconic opposed my work, even stripping my essays from
brand?
the faculty website, on the rationale that Starbucks
Mr. Holt: The might interview at the school someday and they
managers of might take offense to what i was doing. This is
such brands despite the fact that I testified before the British
follow the parliament, conducted interviews on the BBC, and
conventional so on. This incident shocked me. It taught me that
marketing even supposed liberal bastions like Oxford are
handbook. They very much captured by economic elites. It is a real
believe that the challenge to work within business schools to
value of the advance the interests of common people.
brand is derived Markathon: Any advice for young marketing
from the
graduates (our readers) stepping out from
distinctiveness college and looking to make a career in the
of the brand’s
world of branding?
rational and
emotional
benefits in the
consumer’s Get a liberal arts education along
mind and they hammer these benefits across all
with the nuts-and-bolts analytic
marketing efforts and consistently over time. Iconic
brands are created because the brand is dynamic: it skills needed to do day-to-day
responds decisively to changes in society with new brand management. Marketing as
ideology. And rather than think of value in benefit taught in most MBA programs
terms, iconic brands dominate their categories by strips from students the key
proposing new ideologies that consumers value so
humanistic expertise necessary to
much that they are more than willing to ascribe
rational benefits to the brand—it is the highest
build brands. Studying history,
quality, tastes the best, is the most innovative etc anthropology, sociology, media,
simply because consumers identify with what the politics and such provides a much
brand stands for. richer foundation for branding
Markathon: You’ve had an amazing career spanning
than what is taught in business
from being a brand manager to teaching at Harvard education.
Business School and now Saïd Business School at
Oxford, could you share with us an incident/moment
which you’d call a ‘great learning experience’?
22
war zone | eye 2 eye markathon | february 2011
“The launch of new flavours would create discomfort for the brand loyal customers”
the flavour you want but
large profits from its business. what you see on the display
From customer’s perspective, is a number of new flavours
“Lay’s is right in taking advantage of the world Cup to launch new flavours”
It should be the effort of every firm to keep its existing Adding on to this grievance is launching of new
customers happy and to attract new customers. An brands of chips like by Parle etc. which have same
obvious area for this critical marketing requirement color packaging done as Lay’s to confuse the
would be new product introduction. So this is a step customer. In such a scenario, when in a shop the
towards the same objective, which is taking advantage customer sees a variety of bag of chips he is bound
of World Cup for its new offering. to get confused and lose faith if the flavor that he
picked out doesn’t please his taste buds!
Topic for the next issue’s Eye to Eye: After Starbucks with Tata, Dunkin Donuts with Jubilant Food is also
entering Indian market. Will India be a success story for these coffee retail chains or is Indian market not big
enough for all these players.
Your opinion (view/counterview) is invited. Word limit is 250-300. Last date of sending entries is
17th March 2011. Include your picture (JPEG format) with the entry.
23
war zone | silent voice markathon | february 2011
Silent Voice
LAST MONTH’S RESULTS
Theme:“Cricket World Cup-2011”
Runner Up
RaseshPadia| NMIMS
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24
specials | ADdicted markathon | february 2011
Ad-dicted
Gaurav Ralhan, Kaushik Subramanian | iim s
TARGET AUDIENCE: Young professionals who aspire TARGET AUDIENCE: All the cricket lovers, the ad film
for all time connectivity along with faster internet is a part of “Change the Game” campaign to cash on
speed. the rising ICC Cricket World Cup fever.
CONCEPT: The film opens in an aeroplane that has CONCEPT:The backdrop of the advertisement is a
just landed. It describes a scene that is very common small village in Haryana. The film opens with Billy
in the domestic flights, the airhostess is doing Bowden and a local sitting having a paratha
announcement to be seated with mobile phone still in surrounded by all the villagers. Billy Bowden asks for a
switch off mode till the plane stops completely. In the spoon to take out butter from the utensil to which
mean while all the passengers get up from their seats, the local replies “Jab seedhiungal se ghee
switch on mobile phone and start opening the nanikaletohungaltedhikal le Bowden” symbolizing a
overhead compartments. As the passengers are Hindi idiom to get work done by all means. In the next
jostling a young executive shoves her way to the scene the local encourages Billy to do the same
front. At this point the narrator kicks in introducing “TedhiUngal” in the Match as well. Then the few
the Reliance Netconnect with the tagline “‘Because spectacular helicopter shots show Billy Bowden
we know you’re always in a hurry”. This connects the repeating the same, signalling out to the batmen in
fast paced life of an executive with the fast internet the match. The film ends with the tagline the Official
service Reliance provides. Sponser of TedhiUngal , Pepsi.
VERDICT:
VERDICT: Catch/Miss – Catch
Catch/Miss – Catch The idea of the commercial is very unique and
The film is based on a situation that is not very innovative. The film has a bit of surprise element as it
uncommon in the regular life and the connect uses Umpire rather than the players and adding to
between the incident and the product has been spot that Billy’s acting has made the commercial more
on. The film is very catchy and is able to attract all the interesting. The film clearly portrays Pepsi as the
audience attention that it deserves. The concept is official sponsor of the World Cup and has been able
fantabulous and dovetails perfectly with the product. to create a buzz among the cricket lovers. With the
Nice Work, Grey Mumbai!! “Change the Game” campaign Pepsi wants to cash on
the rising cricket fever in the country where cricket is
considered as a second religion.
25
specials | radical thoughts markathon | february 2011
If there ever was a marketing gimmick going on in the audience for any political party is the common man and
Indian Parliament, it happened when our very own they would be thoroughly pleased with the announced
Mamata Di was presenting the Railway Budget. There budget. No hike in train fares despite a deficit shows a
seemed to be a single minded approach to it, one single pro poor attitude for attracting more votes. There is
goal, ensure that Trinamool Congress emerges the vote actually a reduction in booking charges aiding Mamata
winner in Bengal. Many dailies sarcastically but rather Banerjee’s populist measures. Any marketing company
accurately termed the budget as “The Voter Express”. would love to have a campaign which is so
Can there be a more effective marketing campaign than fundamentally sound. In all probability, this budget will
the railway budget? Let us ensure Trinamool Congress’
look at what elements of a victory in the forthcoming
marketing campaign the Bengal Elections.
budget encompasses.
Talking about campaigns, it
An essential element of reminds me of how much an
any marketing campaign is Election Campaign has
the timing. Mamata Di is changed over the years. If
immaculate on this front. we go back in history and
With elections scheduled look at some of the National
early in West Bengal this elections and how they were
year, the budget will won, there was always one
garner a lot of attention decisive factor- the election
and stay in the minds of the people till elections come campaign. The oratory skills of the party candidate could
up. Though it can be argued that she doesn’t handle the sway the voters in his/her favor and so could a catchy
timing of the budget, but the fact is that she is taking election slogan.
advantage of it and using it to her benefit. Capitalizing
Indian National Congress ruled the roost in Indian
on the timing opportunity is as important as getting hold
of an opportunity. politics till 1977, when the first Non-Congress
government was formed by the Janata Party. The two
The ‘Message’ is another pillar of an efficient campaign. reasons why Janata Party came into power were
The one which the railway budget sends out
a) The dissatisfaction due to the emergency imposed
is loud and clear. West Bengal gets
all the apples in the basket and the b) The countrywide campaign by Janata Party
leftovers are distributed among the reaching every nook of the diverse Indian
other states. There are more trains geography. The campaign was done by
for Kolkata(34 new Metro services), stalwarts like Morarji Desai, JB
more trains for other areas of Kripalani and Jayprakash Narayan.
West Bengal, lucrative railway The latter two did not want a seat,
projects being set up all over but became the leading
West Bengal. There are projects campaigners for the amalgamated
given to other states but meager and there mix of parties and drew huge
isn’t any justification for these project going to West masses (in some cases 100,000 in a
Bengal apart from it being the railway single gathering) of people across
minister’s home state. the country. Not to forget, Atal
The final cornerstone of a successful Behari Vajpayee, whose oratory
skills were stupendous and could
marketing agenda is the target audience. The target
win over the hearts of any crowd he spoke to. This was a
26
specials | radical thoughts markathon||february
markathon january 2011
This column has been a tough one to write for me and a bigger headache for my editor. He’s become used to my
column always ending up as the last one submitted. All things said and done, this is the last time I don the hat for
writing this column. The farewell is here, I am going to miss this column a lot even though it was never easy for
me to write it. I pass on the baton to the oncoming team members of Markathon and wish them success.
Goodbye guys!
27
specials | updates markathon | february 2011
BRAND LAUNCH
BRAND WATCH
InterContinental to Launch New Brand in
Muthoot Group: Main team sponsors of China
Delhi Daredevils
InterContinental Hotels Group will launch an entirely
The Muthoot Group has signed as the main team new brand this year in China to cash in on the booming
sponsor of the Delhi Daredevils for the fourth edition of economy. The company’s revenues in China went up
IPL which is scheduled to start on April 8, 2011. more than 25% over 2009. According to the official
Marketing and promotion agency Creatigies reports, the new brand will be positioned between
Communications played an important role in forging Crowne Plaza and the luxury InterContinental brand.
this partnership. Director of Muthoot Group, Alexander The company believes that China will be the biggest
George Muthoot, said, “IPL is by far the biggest sporting hotel market in the word by 2025 and so launching the
spectacle in India and has got bigger and better each brand now will prove to be strategic advantage for the
year. The Muthoot Group looks at this association with company
Delhi Daredevils to grow from strength to strength.”
The Muthoot group believes that investing in the BMW to launch a new sub-brand
partnership would reap greater mutual returns.
BMW is planning to launch a new sub brand to
Strategic alliance- Mint and Bloomberg manufacture and market electric vehicles. The new sub-
UTV brand will help BMW attain its ambition of becoming
the world’s largest manufacturer of premium electric
Mint and Bloomberg UTV have entered into a strategic vehicles. The new range of Megacity cars will initially be
content alliance under which they will share content offered in a two-door, four-seat configuration with
with each other on a daily basis and undertake various launch of launch the ICV short Intracity Vehicle in 2015.
joint editorial initiatives through the year. This In 2017 the company will launch a four-door, five seater
partnership is an attempt to expand their content vehicle with the name UCV.
footprint to multiple platforms and reach new
audiences. In this partnership, Bloomberg UTV will Brand Relaunch
feature important news and analyses from Mint every
day and every issue of Mint will carry relevant news Mahindra to relaunch two Logan variants
related stories from Bloomberg UTV. In addition to this, without Renault brand
Mint will produce news and lifestyle related weekly
television shows to be aired exclusively on Bloomberg After the dissolution of the JV between Mahindra and
UTV. Renault on account of poor sales performance of the
Logon, Mahindra plans to roll out two new variants of
AOL to buy Huffington Post for $315 mn the Logan without the Renault tag and its diamond-
shaped logo.
AOL Inc has agreed to buy The Huffington Post, the
struggling US Internet company, for $315 million. The Logan will now be Mahindra's first and solo product in
move will create a media group that has an enormous the passenger car segment. The company is currently
impact reaching a global audience on every imaginable focusing on two aspects- developing a new re-styled
platform. The deal will combine AOL’s infrastructure version and developing a new lower-price version of the
and scale with The Huffington Post’s pioneering model. Mahindra will reduce the length and other
approach to news and innovative community building specifications of the car so that it fits into the small car
definition.
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specials | updates markathon | february 2011
Geneva Motor Show 2011: Skoda unveils features. The campaign includes three TVCs and a
new brand design digital collaboration with MTV. It involves a contest
where users can upload videos of themselves asking for
Czech automaker Skoda has launched a new direction Lenovo PCs among other prizes, with the highest-rated
for its brand at this year's Geneva Motor Show. The ones to air on MTV. This helps in maintaining connect
company is gearing up to intensify its activity in Europe, with the customers where the youth are the main
China, India and Russia. The brand revamp involves target. Lenovo believes that the follow-up campaign
"above average" interior space and an integrated along with MTV collaboration will help strengthen bond
tailgate for the rear of the concept. A new logo for the with the audience
automaker has also been released, making the winged
arrow design larger and more visible with a brighter Videocon makes ‘zero’ the new ‘hero’ for
colour. new campaign
Lenovo’s follow-up campaign to "Please Foodles has launched a new TVC for its instant noodles
with JWT as the creative team. It emphasizes on the
Daddy Please" campaign
nutritional value of the noodles. Main aim of the TVC is
Lenovo has launched a new 360-degree TVC campaign to reinforce the unique balance of taste and science in
as a follow-up to its "Please Daddy Please" TVC Foodles which differentiates it from the instant noodles
launched last year. The new campaign integrates the category. The Ad is presented from a kid’s point of view
entire product story with focusing on the product so as to develop connect with the young kids who are
the main target audience.
The last date of receiving all entries is 15th March 2011. Please send your entries marked as
<ARTICLE NAME>_<SENDERS’ NAMES>_<INSTITUTE> to markathon.iims@gmail.com.
29
specials | bookmark markathon | februaury 2011
30
specials | brand story markathon | february 2011
Titan, in the Indian context has become synonymous Titan’s latest tagline, “Be
with watches. The brand which started as a joint More”, encompasses all that the
venture between the TATA Group and Tamil Nadu brand stands for-leadership, innovation and pride in the
Industrial Development Corporation in July 1984 has consumers’ mind and appeals strongly to every
grown to become India’s leading watch brands contemporary Indian. The campaign, conceptualised by
capturing over 50% of the market share. O&M, seeks to nurture and maintain the appeal of the
iconic brand and invite consumers to cherish Titan as a
Titan brought about a paradigm shift in the Indian symbol of their own identities. The Titan Aviator
watch market offering quart technology with series, the Titan Octane collection, Titan Raga crystals
international styling at a time when the only technology for women, and Titan Heritage each represent a
prevalent was that of the bulky and reliable mechanical different identity. Titan also targeted children and
spring. youth with its brands Dash and “The Cool Watches”-
Titan brought in the ritual of gifting watches and it Fastrack.
benefitted hugely from the campaign which included a Realising that the only way to sustain the fashion
series of films depicting strong emotional bonds and accessory perception is by continuous innovation, Titan
moving personal moments. In a time when watches has come up with several sub-brands to connect with
were considered no more than a time keeping device, the various facets of deep-rooted human yearnings for
Titan positioned itself as a fashion accessory and self-expression. The Raga focussed on different roles
introduced the concept of “Matching Watches To that a woman plays, that of a mother, a wife, a
Clothes”. It roped in Aamir Khan as its brand girlfriend and how from 9 to 5, she becomes a
ambassador to match with the brands new persona. professional after fulfilling her other roles. The target
Talking of the communication of Titan requires a was the woman in metros from Sec A homes and
mention of the sonic branding done by the brand- former Miss India Gul Panag was roped in as the brand
Mozart’s 25th Symphony which is arguably Indian ambassador.
Advertising’s most memorable track and has seen a Xylys, another offering from Titan, brought about a
number of innovations ranging from Indian Classical, redefinition of sorts in the premium watch segment. It
Indian Folk, Operatic to Rock and Funk. was targeted at new generation achievers who go
In an attempt to increase its volumes Titan introduced beyond the obvious who know who they are and set
brand Sonata which was a huge success in itself owing their own standards and live by their own values. It is a
to its cheap prices but it fell heavily on the mother style statement for those who stand apart from the
brand Titan which was perceived as a premium brand. crowd.
Realising this mistake Titan took away its brand name The most stellar example of Titan’s innovation is the
from Sonata which was then endorsed by Tata. Edge, positioned as the slimmest watch in the universe.
The World Of Titan, another pioneering effort from This technological marvel received the Best Design
Titan, was born to introduce the concept of retailing in Award in the Lifestyle Product category.
the watch market. This network of exclusive Titan has indeed created a market for itself with careful
showrooms helped the brand establish itself as one of strategies and constant innovation. Coupled with
the most prestigious and visible retail brands in the passion and energy, the brand Titan has a very
country. promising future.
31
For those who took it Forward…
32
For those who took it Forward…
33
Please send in your comments/feedback to:
markathon.iims@gmail.com
Visit: www.iims-markathon.in