The birth of Titan:
The Indian watch market for a long time was ruled by the public sector giant HMT watches. Indian consumer had very few choices starting from imported watches and other local brands like Timestar and Camy watches. The choices were limited for the Indian consumer and there was a strong need for large range of watches for the consumer to explore. The Indian consumer looked at watch more of a functional value of just seeing the time but watch was not seen as lifestyle brand. At his point of time Titan unveiled their good looking watches exactly 22 years back and launched their collection of world class watches on a Baishaki day in all major cities. This is the beginning of the Titan story and success still continues as the brand has become a household name in watches. Today the equity of the brand is so strong that the company has extended it to jewellery and eye care space in the retail market.
What aided the success of Titan?
Titan entered the market when it was just opening up and there was a need for an alternative brand with more advanced world class technology. While HMT was primarily known for its automatic and hand wound watches Titan bought in the quartz technology to India. HMT also did introduce quartz but Titan offered the consumer a larger collection and to begin with over 150 collection of watches for men and women. Titan also leveraged the name of TATA’s in the beginning so that the trust factor was established amongst consumer. They had to do this as one of their watch brands Hegde and Golay was not well received in the market and hence this time around the trust factor was of paramount importance. The major success that attributed for Titan was they took the positioning of an International watch and delivered that promise with great designs and good looking watches. This was of course supported by a strong product, distribution, marketing and advertising strategy which has positioned the brand as the undisputed king in this category.
Unique Product Strategy:
Here the strategy was simple. The consumer had a wide choice both in terms of style and design. This was backed by good pricing so consumer did not move away after looking at the watches. To begin with they had 4 four brands i.e. Classique, Spectra, Exacta and Fastrack. But over a period of time they kept on introducing new range to entice the Indian consumer. The consumer never got bored of visiting a Titan shop as each time he decides to buy a watch and goes to a Titan shop he or she was always surprised to see fresh, fascinating and innovative designs. This constant introduction of new design gave the brand a good outlook in the consumers mind. The product mix of designs were so varied that the consumer had a wider choice to choose from. Each sub brands showcased a wide variety of style and design.
Innovative Product Distribution:
Titan introduced some innovation even in their distribution strategy. Conventionally in the past watches were sold in traditional markets like D.N.Road in Mumbai or Radha Bazar in Kolkatta where most watch dealers were located. While Titan was available at these dealers the company went beyond to increase the reach for the brand. From traditional outlets they made watches available in places like fashion boutiques etc to showcase their products. Another great step that Titan took was to open Titan Shops and franchisee and changed the way watch was retailed earlier. Very careful planning has gone in choosing the locations of these outlets and utmost care was taken to design the outlets with good taste and ambience keep in mind the values attached to the brand.
This really built the brand’s credibility as the place also offered strong after sales service.
Service was another factor that Titan took keen interest. Since the concept of quartz was new there was the fear amongst the people that it was fragile and how would I get my watch repaired. This was cleverly addressed through their Titan Shops so that customers could get their watch serviced with genuine parts with complete reassurance.
Thoughtful Product Marketing:
The successful marketing of Titan came through their products by launching a wide range with world class designs. Their focus was to move people from buying imported watches to Titan which they did by showcasing good looking watches. The pricing and design was also perfectly matched to address various audiences across the pop strata.
People were always eagerly looking for fresh designs from Titan. One such product was the Moon face watch which caught the eyes of many people. Raga was another brand extension that was introduced by Titan to attract lot of women buyers. Some collector’s item with limited edition like the Jawaharlal Nehru watch, Times watch were other notable innovation in terms of design that was introduced by Titan from time to time to be noticed in the market. To keep pace with the consumer tastes and fashion trends Titan kept on innovating with new designs. Nebula, Titanium, Fastrack (with a sporty look design and later on with fashion oriented sun glasses) Sonata (for the masses). Their mantra was to keep speed with the taste and attitudes of the new modern Indian audience. Clever ideas were used to push pair watches by calling them the His and hers watches for couples. All this innovation catapulted the brand to newer heights and Titan was always in the consideration set of the consumer every time he or she thinks of buying a watch. What’s more the brand also entered the global market with great designs to meet the taste of the International customer. Titan also aggressively entered corporate gifting segment by making special watches for many corporates with company name inscribed in it. The company always looked for new avenues to increase their reach and presence on an ongoing basis.
Campaign Strategy:
The task was to entice and create aspiration amongst the watch buyers to look at Titan. Here the company capitalized on their great products by showcasing the products as the hero in all their communication. This really paid off as the customer could get a good feel and appearance of the product when it appeared in various media vehicles. The initial launch campaign always highlighted the products well. Even as time passed by and they tried to bring in some human element to break the monotony they did not sacrifice the presence of the products. The watches were well showcased and there was a good balance in each of their communication. Since color reproduction was not of good quality in the early stages care was taken to hand pick the publication to get reproduction. The end objective was to show the true / closest colors in their publicity campaign.
Tactical Promotional campaigns:
In the consumer durable category Titan has been one of the most valued brand .The brand has been very focused in their communication and hence their advertising maintained what they launched 20 years back. The brand maintained their desired perception of the most desirable watch to own or gift and truly positioned them as a world class brand. The tone and manner of the advertising has always been international and classy.
When Titan launched their initial communication people looked at the advertisement and rushed to the shops. The watches were admired but the buying decision was postponed as people already had a watch and everybody was looking the watch more as a functional one. Therefore there was a great challenge to overcome and Titan quickly seized this opportunity to run tactical campaign to woo people to own multiple watches. Campaigns were developed to talk to Parents to get a watch when the son graduates. Move loving husbands to buy watches as gifts for their wife instead of the traditional sarees. Push hand wound and automatic watch buyers to buy quartz by spelling out the benefits and educating them positively about the fears of quartz. Tactically running festive campaigns by plugging Titan in the gifting segment.
One must salute the Titan marketing team and its Advertising agency for having consistently creating great advertising which perfectly addresses the values of the brand. Titan today is a brand which is known for its world class designs; dependability and strong service back up. The advertising campaign has been delivering all this values by retaining the core essence of the brand. The great background music of the Morzat is still the most memorable one which dates back almost 20 years. The music is so engraved in people’s mind that one can easily relate the music with Titan. In fact during the initial launch when the personality of the brand was defined then Titan was connected with Rajiv Gandhi and HMT with Mahatma Gandhi. Titan was seen has international and contemporary while HMT was looked upon as fuddy duddy and old fashioned. Even today the campaign is maintaining great consistency that even when they selected their brand ambassador they ensured that it was a perfect fit. Amir Khan is the brand ambassador and the campaign around him has been smartly developed with a perfect balance between Amir and the product features.
Success continues:
Titan rewrote the watch industry. HMT a household name in 70’s happened to be too complacent and were not able to combat Titan and in the bargain succumbed to the aggressive marketing by Titan. But Titan also had a very clear ambition that they wanted to be seen beyond watches by moving to fashion space and cleverly entered the jewellery market and the eye care market. The mantra was very clear for the brand and that is to give world class products in the fashion space. And the brand has been supported with some good advertising and excellent customer service. I think this is just a beginning and we will see more brand ideas from this watch giant. What is more creditable is that all this has been accomplished in a span of two decades.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Will fatigue hit viewer ship of WORLD CUP T -20?
Recently I happen to read in one of the column where the Master Blaster of Indian cricket mentioned that Viru and Gauti are going through fatigue. Will they therefore be able to deliver the power and energy as they are the much talked about world opening pair in the shorter and shortest version of the game? In that case even fatigue can kill or bring down the viewer ship of watching cricket on television. Interesting analogy let us dwell on this. What is more attention-grabbing is 90% of the inventory has already been sold by ESPN for the T- 20 world cup where big brands are going to pump good money to leverage their brands through this world cup. One answer to this could be India are the current world cup T-20 champions and in the world cup T-20 we have only one Indian team playing the tournament unlike the IPL league where the Indian cricketers are distributed across different clubs.
There is hardly any gap between the just concluded IPL -2 and the beginning of the T-20 world cup cricket. Getting back to form after some dismal performance by some of the players will tough challenge. Weather should not play a spoil sport as invariably the early part of June it is likely to rain constantly. ( Hope that does not happen ).Various statistics, research and comments from several experts clearly say that IPL 2 did not get the kind of viewer ship as compared to the inaugural tournament. How many of them really watched a complete match? The Indian flavor and razzmatazz at the ground were missing. But the broadcasters don’t agree as they strongly feel that the IPL 2 was a success. We could see the telecom brands dominate this IPL 2 and each brand had to display their creativity power to create an impact in a power packed set of advertisements that kept on appearing. Incidentally most advertisers also seemed to be happy for being present in IPL 2.
Now will the viewer ship dip the answer is yes and no. The initial matches may not fetch the high numbers but as the tournament progresses we will we observe the excitement catch up and if India does well the premium for spots for the penultimate rounds will just shoot up. The question of fatigue is debatable as the shorter version of the game is more of entertainment and less of cricket and with no great programs available marketers will find this has a safe bet. Also the multiplex issue and no big banner movies in the pipeline viewers will have no other choice but to be glued with the idiot box. With T-20 positioned more as ENTERTAINMENT the fatigue level will not creep in so hard. Its like watching the great SHOLAY umpteen number of times.
There is hardly any gap between the just concluded IPL -2 and the beginning of the T-20 world cup cricket. Getting back to form after some dismal performance by some of the players will tough challenge. Weather should not play a spoil sport as invariably the early part of June it is likely to rain constantly. ( Hope that does not happen ).Various statistics, research and comments from several experts clearly say that IPL 2 did not get the kind of viewer ship as compared to the inaugural tournament. How many of them really watched a complete match? The Indian flavor and razzmatazz at the ground were missing. But the broadcasters don’t agree as they strongly feel that the IPL 2 was a success. We could see the telecom brands dominate this IPL 2 and each brand had to display their creativity power to create an impact in a power packed set of advertisements that kept on appearing. Incidentally most advertisers also seemed to be happy for being present in IPL 2.
Now will the viewer ship dip the answer is yes and no. The initial matches may not fetch the high numbers but as the tournament progresses we will we observe the excitement catch up and if India does well the premium for spots for the penultimate rounds will just shoot up. The question of fatigue is debatable as the shorter version of the game is more of entertainment and less of cricket and with no great programs available marketers will find this has a safe bet. Also the multiplex issue and no big banner movies in the pipeline viewers will have no other choice but to be glued with the idiot box. With T-20 positioned more as ENTERTAINMENT the fatigue level will not creep in so hard. Its like watching the great SHOLAY umpteen number of times.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
POWER OF HUMOUR IN ADVERTISING
The role of humour dates back to many years when all of us used to view films like the Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy. These actors and characters really made all of us laugh when we sat and watched their movies. Even all our Hindi and regional movies in India always had a comedian to play a very important role and provide the movie a touch of humour to give the audience some fun and joy. Every Hindi movie had an actor like Mehmood, Jagdeep, Devan Verma or an Saran who played a very important role in making the movie entertaining and thrilling. The same strategy is used by many advertisers in India into their advertising to get noticed and stand out in the clutter with memorable humour which remains sticky in the viewers mind. In fact news papers like the Times of India have made every reader smile early morning with the R.K .Axeman‘s cartoon. Even individual personality or celebrity try and use humour to position themselves differently in the people’s mind. One such example that is top of mind is our Railway Minister Lalo Prasad Yadav. Shri Yadav has used humour so cleverly to attract audience. His witty and funny speeches and replies have positioned him differently amongst other politician. So humour as a tool has been a strong weapon for many brands to draw the customers attention.
Some Definition of Humour in Advertising:
Humour in dictionary means quality being amusing or comic but in advertising it is serious business. In advertising humour is more than just making a bunch of people laugh. Some of the best brands in India have leveraged humour to such an extent that the viewers look forward for newness in humour each time they a see a new commercial from that brand. To illustrate Fevicol has been one of those brands which have used humour so intelligently and subtly that it remains sticky in people’s mind. Here again one need to closely view the product and the category before applying humour to sell your product. According to David Ogilvy 30% of advertising is based on humour. Humour sells if used creatively with a strong idea and great execution. Claude Hopkins the father of modern advertising had a different view on this. He was of the opinion that people don’t buy from clowns. But in India over the last two decade humour has been drawing lot of attention for communicating your product. Also the conventional wisdom of thinking among our people is that when you buy products it should deliver some value and benefits. These could be nutritious for a health beverage, labor saving for a washing machine or a dishwasher.
Role of Humour:
With the more and more and channels mushrooming, clutter has become a significant problem for most brands. Hence to beat the clutter and break the ice humour has been used by many brands to answer the problem. Over a period of time humour has been proved to be one of the best techniques to keep the customer laughing and grab his attention with some sticky and creative idea. The proof of the pudding for any humour based advertising remains in forcing the audience watch, laugh and most importantly is able to recall the brand easily. Brands must ensure that if they are using humour to sell a product then the connect and the equity of the brand should not be diluted. According to some research humorous ads are recalled fast and easily and it also elevates the consumer’s happiness and mood. Finally humour captures the viewer’s attention, cuts through the ad clutter and enhances recall. If not crafted properly humour can also backfire at times.
Product and Brand connect:
It sometimes so happen that the joke in the advertisement is so powerful that the consumer tends to forget the brand. Hence it is important that there should be strong connect between the product and the humour that you are trying to convey. Pizza world ad showing a hosepipe being used to cool off some one who just had a spicy pizza is a good and relevant example which connects with the brand and really communicates that when you ask for a spicy pizza we deliver it with full pride. Understanding the nuances of the brand and the audience is very important. Over indulgence of humour can put down the audience and the brand if not executed in the right taste. The Amul undergarments ads which tried to use humour and sex to sell their brand never went off well with many consumers. The brand did get some publicity due to controversy but did not win the hearts of the target audience. Hence it is important to base your joke on the core values of the product and the service proposition the brand is offering. No product connect means no effectiveness. All these results in huge wastage of the marketing budget.
Types of Humour in advertising:
Humour can be classified broadly in to the following areas:
- Using a comedian: Here instead of building humour in the advertising one can use a comedian actor to promote the brand. Your choice of comedian has to match the values of the brand. One of the most memorable advertisements that have used a comedian well has been Charlie Chaplin for Cherry Blossom shoe polish. The most recent one in this space using an Indian comedian which has been noticeable and successful is Domino's Pizza who has plugged in Paresh Raval very cleverly.
- Capitalizing on the current topics :
Use the current hot topic in all walks of life which is funny, sticky, memorable and controversial. Amul butter has been doing these for several years. The advertising deployed has been very humorous and are always based on the current topics with tongue in cheek approach. People never get fatigue watching at the Amul ads. People eagerly wait for what Amul butter outdoor campaigns by constantly looking at the prime hoarding points where Amul butter is visible
- Strong idea based humour :
Here the strong creative idea is carefully blended with subtle humour. The case in example is Fevicol. The powerful idea with humour helps in beating the clutter. Centre Shock electric gum is another good example where a strong advertising idea (Idea sprung up from the product) with the help of humour helped in translating into a great piece of campaign. Saint goblin glass is another wonderful example of how humour has been used subtly. The restaurant advertisement (Where the water is thrown) created by the company is so refreshing that one never gets bored of viewing it.
Using the right type humour in advertising will be determined by clearly defining your objectives and positioning of your product. This supported with a strong idea will further help you to create good advertising which can be sticky and memorable for a long time.
Humour will help if it is relevant:
Mostly humour is used in products which is low in investment and which has high impulse purchase. (Candy, beer and mosquito repellents). One cannot totally generalize this, as consumer durable products have also used humour effectively. Humour may not work in category like condoms, sanitary napkins as these products need to explain the benefits of the product more clearly.Similarly cars and diamonds may also not use humour as the decision process to purchase is long.
Finally we need to remember that humorous campaigns are difficult to design and create.
Over exaggeration of humour may have negative effect on the brand? People may remember the joke but not the message and the brand. Can upset individuals if not done tastefully. Products can also flop and brand equity may erode.
While humour is a strong and interesting route to create a great advertising campaign, one must also keep in mind that the imagery, core values of the brand and the positioning does not deviate. If your positioning is perfect then humour with a great idea can do wonders for the brand.
Some Definition of Humour in Advertising:
Humour in dictionary means quality being amusing or comic but in advertising it is serious business. In advertising humour is more than just making a bunch of people laugh. Some of the best brands in India have leveraged humour to such an extent that the viewers look forward for newness in humour each time they a see a new commercial from that brand. To illustrate Fevicol has been one of those brands which have used humour so intelligently and subtly that it remains sticky in people’s mind. Here again one need to closely view the product and the category before applying humour to sell your product. According to David Ogilvy 30% of advertising is based on humour. Humour sells if used creatively with a strong idea and great execution. Claude Hopkins the father of modern advertising had a different view on this. He was of the opinion that people don’t buy from clowns. But in India over the last two decade humour has been drawing lot of attention for communicating your product. Also the conventional wisdom of thinking among our people is that when you buy products it should deliver some value and benefits. These could be nutritious for a health beverage, labor saving for a washing machine or a dishwasher.
Role of Humour:
With the more and more and channels mushrooming, clutter has become a significant problem for most brands. Hence to beat the clutter and break the ice humour has been used by many brands to answer the problem. Over a period of time humour has been proved to be one of the best techniques to keep the customer laughing and grab his attention with some sticky and creative idea. The proof of the pudding for any humour based advertising remains in forcing the audience watch, laugh and most importantly is able to recall the brand easily. Brands must ensure that if they are using humour to sell a product then the connect and the equity of the brand should not be diluted. According to some research humorous ads are recalled fast and easily and it also elevates the consumer’s happiness and mood. Finally humour captures the viewer’s attention, cuts through the ad clutter and enhances recall. If not crafted properly humour can also backfire at times.
Product and Brand connect:
It sometimes so happen that the joke in the advertisement is so powerful that the consumer tends to forget the brand. Hence it is important that there should be strong connect between the product and the humour that you are trying to convey. Pizza world ad showing a hosepipe being used to cool off some one who just had a spicy pizza is a good and relevant example which connects with the brand and really communicates that when you ask for a spicy pizza we deliver it with full pride. Understanding the nuances of the brand and the audience is very important. Over indulgence of humour can put down the audience and the brand if not executed in the right taste. The Amul undergarments ads which tried to use humour and sex to sell their brand never went off well with many consumers. The brand did get some publicity due to controversy but did not win the hearts of the target audience. Hence it is important to base your joke on the core values of the product and the service proposition the brand is offering. No product connect means no effectiveness. All these results in huge wastage of the marketing budget.
Types of Humour in advertising:
Humour can be classified broadly in to the following areas:
- Using a comedian: Here instead of building humour in the advertising one can use a comedian actor to promote the brand. Your choice of comedian has to match the values of the brand. One of the most memorable advertisements that have used a comedian well has been Charlie Chaplin for Cherry Blossom shoe polish. The most recent one in this space using an Indian comedian which has been noticeable and successful is Domino's Pizza who has plugged in Paresh Raval very cleverly.
- Capitalizing on the current topics :
Use the current hot topic in all walks of life which is funny, sticky, memorable and controversial. Amul butter has been doing these for several years. The advertising deployed has been very humorous and are always based on the current topics with tongue in cheek approach. People never get fatigue watching at the Amul ads. People eagerly wait for what Amul butter outdoor campaigns by constantly looking at the prime hoarding points where Amul butter is visible
- Strong idea based humour :
Here the strong creative idea is carefully blended with subtle humour. The case in example is Fevicol. The powerful idea with humour helps in beating the clutter. Centre Shock electric gum is another good example where a strong advertising idea (Idea sprung up from the product) with the help of humour helped in translating into a great piece of campaign. Saint goblin glass is another wonderful example of how humour has been used subtly. The restaurant advertisement (Where the water is thrown) created by the company is so refreshing that one never gets bored of viewing it.
Using the right type humour in advertising will be determined by clearly defining your objectives and positioning of your product. This supported with a strong idea will further help you to create good advertising which can be sticky and memorable for a long time.
Humour will help if it is relevant:
Mostly humour is used in products which is low in investment and which has high impulse purchase. (Candy, beer and mosquito repellents). One cannot totally generalize this, as consumer durable products have also used humour effectively. Humour may not work in category like condoms, sanitary napkins as these products need to explain the benefits of the product more clearly.Similarly cars and diamonds may also not use humour as the decision process to purchase is long.
Finally we need to remember that humorous campaigns are difficult to design and create.
Over exaggeration of humour may have negative effect on the brand? People may remember the joke but not the message and the brand. Can upset individuals if not done tastefully. Products can also flop and brand equity may erode.
While humour is a strong and interesting route to create a great advertising campaign, one must also keep in mind that the imagery, core values of the brand and the positioning does not deviate. If your positioning is perfect then humour with a great idea can do wonders for the brand.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
India needs young parliament
As the parliamentary elections are coming to a close I happen to connect some interesting analogy with cricket and soft drink. I have been a strong follower of cricket and cricket is almost a religion in this part of the country. Over the last 3 decades each time we infused young blood in our team the results have been different. It dates back to the 70’s when Pataudi and the Wadekars of the world were replaced by the Gavaskars and Vishwanth followed by the Kapils and the Azaaruddin followed by Ganguly, Sachin and Dravid and now the Dhoni’s and Yuvraj has produced results. The approach and thinking to the game has been totally different and we are able to see India climbing the ladder in the world in both of forms of cricket.
Even in the case of soft drinks they keep on changing and introducing energetic youth as brand icons with Pepsi being a very classical example. From Juhi Chawla to Dipika Padukone the brand has changed their strategy and tried not to move from the youthful positioning.
These are live examples that our voters should learn and understand that India needs a very young parliament. US already have demonstrated by electing Obama. We have the bench strength when it comes to youth but it is time we handover the baton to these young and bright parliamentarian to bring a change in the way we think.
Even in the early days in England their cricket team had a bunch of oldies some of them made their test debut at the age of 38 years but that is no longer happening. Today even they have a very youthful side. They have changed that theory. Why because youth is working and it is time we in India should also infuse young blood to Indian parliament to take our great country to the next level.
Even in the case of soft drinks they keep on changing and introducing energetic youth as brand icons with Pepsi being a very classical example. From Juhi Chawla to Dipika Padukone the brand has changed their strategy and tried not to move from the youthful positioning.
These are live examples that our voters should learn and understand that India needs a very young parliament. US already have demonstrated by electing Obama. We have the bench strength when it comes to youth but it is time we handover the baton to these young and bright parliamentarian to bring a change in the way we think.
Even in the early days in England their cricket team had a bunch of oldies some of them made their test debut at the age of 38 years but that is no longer happening. Today even they have a very youthful side. They have changed that theory. Why because youth is working and it is time we in India should also infuse young blood to Indian parliament to take our great country to the next level.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
RECESSION TIME, BRANDS MUST LOOK AT PR
Few days’ back I happen to read a piece in one of the news papers which had highlighted how clients are seriously viewing about their relationship with their PR consultants and partners. I completely disagree in what was mentioned in that story. On the contrary brands must seriously view other communication tools to keep their brand top of mind during turbulent times when the market has slowed down for various reasons. PR is one of those tools.
Over the past few months the buzzword has been recession and in the name of recession companies are revisiting their marketing budgets to keep a tight control on expenses. This is one of the old tricks most companies apply when there is recession and the first thing they do is to slash the marketing and promotion budgets. While the global meltdown and inflation has reduced the spending power of the Indian consumer but the recent terrorist attack has further shifted the gears of most companies in all sectors. All this is fine but brands still need to in the minds of consumer but at what cost is worrying the brand teams in most organization. And which is where the power of Public Relation can play a significant role.
Why PR and not other expensive medium?
The general mood has taken a deep dip after series of incidences. Today shopping and traffic at malls has dropped considerably in spite of Christmas and New Year around the corner. Even if marketers come out with killer strategy in terms of promotion the urge for shopping is being deferred due to various economic factors. With big ticket events like Champions league in cricket has been deferred has made the advertiser to rethink as to what new communication tools will help to keep their brand alive. Although GEC programs have given fairly good viewer ship the return on investment is not encouraging for brands to spend big bucks on the electronic media.
In this scenario brands must effectively use PR to maintain the some presence in the market. While I agree it will not generate rapid awareness for the brand the way advertising does through mass media it will most certainly help clients to look at a cost effective tool. And what is important here is brands should balance their strategy while using PR by judiciously managing advertising spends. This is where PR agencies also need to chalk out new strategy to pitch stories with the journalist to get favorable stories which will help not only brands to raise salience but also build strong credibility.
PR cannot work in isolation:
Having said that companies should not completely depend on PR. Companies must use the 360 degree approach where PR will supplement and boost the brand awareness through sustenance mass media advertising and other innovative tools which is beyond advertising. For example companies can use branding through cybercafe by resting on the desktops of PC’s. With more cybercafes mushrooming both in cities and tier 2 and 3 cities brands need to exploit this new medium. Interestingly many brands have moved to this space as clients are able to capture the hits to the brands through well supported technology which is able to monitor the traffic. Also this is able to help marketers to extend their consumer outreach to smaller towns.
There is always a concern when one uses PR. Is it measurable? Yes it is measurable if companies seriously view in measuring this in a scientific manner. We have strong processes to measure this which not only helps in effective messaging but will also able to throw consumer insights which will help brands to check if the communication strategy and their messaging has met their defined objectives.
Finally as a brand custodian of the brand the brand manager has to believe in what he is doing and should have a complete faith in PR. Miracles may not happen but well thought out PR strategy will definitely yield results.
Over the past few months the buzzword has been recession and in the name of recession companies are revisiting their marketing budgets to keep a tight control on expenses. This is one of the old tricks most companies apply when there is recession and the first thing they do is to slash the marketing and promotion budgets. While the global meltdown and inflation has reduced the spending power of the Indian consumer but the recent terrorist attack has further shifted the gears of most companies in all sectors. All this is fine but brands still need to in the minds of consumer but at what cost is worrying the brand teams in most organization. And which is where the power of Public Relation can play a significant role.
Why PR and not other expensive medium?
The general mood has taken a deep dip after series of incidences. Today shopping and traffic at malls has dropped considerably in spite of Christmas and New Year around the corner. Even if marketers come out with killer strategy in terms of promotion the urge for shopping is being deferred due to various economic factors. With big ticket events like Champions league in cricket has been deferred has made the advertiser to rethink as to what new communication tools will help to keep their brand alive. Although GEC programs have given fairly good viewer ship the return on investment is not encouraging for brands to spend big bucks on the electronic media.
In this scenario brands must effectively use PR to maintain the some presence in the market. While I agree it will not generate rapid awareness for the brand the way advertising does through mass media it will most certainly help clients to look at a cost effective tool. And what is important here is brands should balance their strategy while using PR by judiciously managing advertising spends. This is where PR agencies also need to chalk out new strategy to pitch stories with the journalist to get favorable stories which will help not only brands to raise salience but also build strong credibility.
PR cannot work in isolation:
Having said that companies should not completely depend on PR. Companies must use the 360 degree approach where PR will supplement and boost the brand awareness through sustenance mass media advertising and other innovative tools which is beyond advertising. For example companies can use branding through cybercafe by resting on the desktops of PC’s. With more cybercafes mushrooming both in cities and tier 2 and 3 cities brands need to exploit this new medium. Interestingly many brands have moved to this space as clients are able to capture the hits to the brands through well supported technology which is able to monitor the traffic. Also this is able to help marketers to extend their consumer outreach to smaller towns.
There is always a concern when one uses PR. Is it measurable? Yes it is measurable if companies seriously view in measuring this in a scientific manner. We have strong processes to measure this which not only helps in effective messaging but will also able to throw consumer insights which will help brands to check if the communication strategy and their messaging has met their defined objectives.
Finally as a brand custodian of the brand the brand manager has to believe in what he is doing and should have a complete faith in PR. Miracles may not happen but well thought out PR strategy will definitely yield results.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
India, a great tourism brand.Are we doing justice in marketing it ?
What ails Indian tourism boards in marketing their destinations?
One of the major drawbacks the states are facing to market tourism abroad is that we do not project India as one face. Since culturally India is divided into several states and each state is eying for their share of revenues and the concerted effort is absent. Even when we participate in some of the world tourism fairs which is held in London and Germany every year one finds an India Pavilion promoting Incredible India and concurrently we notice other states taking their own space in the fairs and making noise. Here again the might of some of the state tourism board in terms of presence and visibility is low as they don’t have deep pockets to shell out money. Invariably year after year we witness only Kerala dominating this space with massive stall display and impressive presentation. This major marketing imbalance also sends some wrong signals to visitors and trade about India and its tourism potential. This is one key issue the central government needs to sort it out and come with some cutting edge strategy so that only one brand is being promoted. On that point efforts have been made by launching the Incredible India campaign. But one is not sure how much this has helped to woo tourist to India.
Owning a strong brand property:Countries like Australia, Singapore, China, Malaysia France, UK, Spain, Italy, Dubai and USA has not fragmented their destinations and marketed it. Interestingly most of these countries market their destinations aggressively with one powerful marketing idea. If you take a country like Singapore where shopping has been the big attraction apart from some few place of interest. But the country has owned shopping as their big brand property and has cleverly used that platform as an annual feature with the Great Singapore Sale which lasts close to 2 months with great razzmatazz ambience and festivity. The timing of this event only takes place during summer vacation to tap the huge Indian market. Once the Sale event gets over they plan the Christmas and New Year event which attracts lot of tourists from the neighboring countries. Look at Dubai they have also used shopping as the great attraction with sweepstakes and raffles to woo tourist. Now watch out what Honkong as done, they have built a Disneyland there to entice tourist so each one of this country have created exciting marketing properties to get tourist. You now need not go all the way to US to see Disneyland. All of us know Hong Kong never owned any great attraction to bring in tourist but introducing Disneyland has made the country popular in a tourists mind.
Set up tourism boards for strong marketing:
Singapore has got full fledged tourism board in Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi to market their country. The board runs several joint promotional campaigns with travel operators and participates in local tourism fairs and exhibition to market their country aggressively. Even the saliency of their brand is high as they are strongly present in high reach magazines and TV channels. This is further supplemented by their national carrier Singapore Airlines who run attractive travel packages to visit Singapore. The airlines have also increased their band width by flying from most of important metros in India. Even other counties like Australia and Malaysia has set up their boards for easy access of knowledge and information of their countries.
We are lagging far behind on this front. Most of our marketing efforts to promote tourism in India are done through our foreign offices and embassies. One really does not have any idea the strength of our marketing force at these offices from the tourism point of view. If budgets are the issue to set up tourism board then we must look at strong marketing tie ups with local travel operators or have strong exchange program to promote India.
What was Maharashtra’s strategy to raise the bar?The repositioning and re branding exercise using the Maharashtra Unlimited campaign increased the awareness of Maharashtra but it was still not seen as a happening destination amongst international tourist. The state also became suddenly ambitious to double the tourist traffic in the global space. Since the state did not own one unique property like other states the challenge to take it to the next level was a big one. The objective was to ensure foreign tourist not to use Mumbai as a transit point. The state also realized some pedestal or strong platform was required to create a hook to pull the tourist .This gave birth to the idea of launching a Luxury train which was the best and most viable option available as the train could travel across Maharasthra touching all destinations in royal style. Branding the train as Deccan Odyssey with strong communication campaign helped in getting some entry in the foreign markets. The online booking and marketing of the train through travel agents in the international markets to some extent helped to push Maharastra as the preferred destination. Today Deccan Odyssey is the jewel of Maharashtra. Condensate traveler one of the reputed international travel magazine has seeded Deccan Odyssey amongst the top luxury trains in the world according to the survey conducted by them.
The way forward:
The launch of the luxury train has definitely catapulted Maharashtra in the world tourism map. The success of this has already prompted Kerala and Karnataka to introduce Luxury trains in their respective states. The state has still got to do a lot to match the world class destination. While airports are modernized and infrastructure is looked at closely the passion to promote the state as hot tourist spots should not get dried fast.
While print campaigns and participating in travel exhibition will generate awareness but it is important we must use our foreign offices and diplomats to promote the state. Credibility has to be built among travel operators and foreign tourists about the state. Strong PR strategy needs to be evolved through fam tours and diplomatic relations to make the state as one of the most attractive tourist place.
The states should look at tourism also as an industry that will generate employment and earn good foreign exchange revenue. The tourist arrival has really shot up in last few years. Today it is close to 6 million but we are way behind to even Singapore who attract close to 10 million each year. So where is the lacuna? Only continuous introspection, aggressive and friendly policies from the government on the tourism front will help us in increasing tourist arrivals.
One of the major drawbacks the states are facing to market tourism abroad is that we do not project India as one face. Since culturally India is divided into several states and each state is eying for their share of revenues and the concerted effort is absent. Even when we participate in some of the world tourism fairs which is held in London and Germany every year one finds an India Pavilion promoting Incredible India and concurrently we notice other states taking their own space in the fairs and making noise. Here again the might of some of the state tourism board in terms of presence and visibility is low as they don’t have deep pockets to shell out money. Invariably year after year we witness only Kerala dominating this space with massive stall display and impressive presentation. This major marketing imbalance also sends some wrong signals to visitors and trade about India and its tourism potential. This is one key issue the central government needs to sort it out and come with some cutting edge strategy so that only one brand is being promoted. On that point efforts have been made by launching the Incredible India campaign. But one is not sure how much this has helped to woo tourist to India.
Owning a strong brand property:Countries like Australia, Singapore, China, Malaysia France, UK, Spain, Italy, Dubai and USA has not fragmented their destinations and marketed it. Interestingly most of these countries market their destinations aggressively with one powerful marketing idea. If you take a country like Singapore where shopping has been the big attraction apart from some few place of interest. But the country has owned shopping as their big brand property and has cleverly used that platform as an annual feature with the Great Singapore Sale which lasts close to 2 months with great razzmatazz ambience and festivity. The timing of this event only takes place during summer vacation to tap the huge Indian market. Once the Sale event gets over they plan the Christmas and New Year event which attracts lot of tourists from the neighboring countries. Look at Dubai they have also used shopping as the great attraction with sweepstakes and raffles to woo tourist. Now watch out what Honkong as done, they have built a Disneyland there to entice tourist so each one of this country have created exciting marketing properties to get tourist. You now need not go all the way to US to see Disneyland. All of us know Hong Kong never owned any great attraction to bring in tourist but introducing Disneyland has made the country popular in a tourists mind.
Set up tourism boards for strong marketing:
Singapore has got full fledged tourism board in Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi to market their country. The board runs several joint promotional campaigns with travel operators and participates in local tourism fairs and exhibition to market their country aggressively. Even the saliency of their brand is high as they are strongly present in high reach magazines and TV channels. This is further supplemented by their national carrier Singapore Airlines who run attractive travel packages to visit Singapore. The airlines have also increased their band width by flying from most of important metros in India. Even other counties like Australia and Malaysia has set up their boards for easy access of knowledge and information of their countries.
We are lagging far behind on this front. Most of our marketing efforts to promote tourism in India are done through our foreign offices and embassies. One really does not have any idea the strength of our marketing force at these offices from the tourism point of view. If budgets are the issue to set up tourism board then we must look at strong marketing tie ups with local travel operators or have strong exchange program to promote India.
What was Maharashtra’s strategy to raise the bar?The repositioning and re branding exercise using the Maharashtra Unlimited campaign increased the awareness of Maharashtra but it was still not seen as a happening destination amongst international tourist. The state also became suddenly ambitious to double the tourist traffic in the global space. Since the state did not own one unique property like other states the challenge to take it to the next level was a big one. The objective was to ensure foreign tourist not to use Mumbai as a transit point. The state also realized some pedestal or strong platform was required to create a hook to pull the tourist .This gave birth to the idea of launching a Luxury train which was the best and most viable option available as the train could travel across Maharasthra touching all destinations in royal style. Branding the train as Deccan Odyssey with strong communication campaign helped in getting some entry in the foreign markets. The online booking and marketing of the train through travel agents in the international markets to some extent helped to push Maharastra as the preferred destination. Today Deccan Odyssey is the jewel of Maharashtra. Condensate traveler one of the reputed international travel magazine has seeded Deccan Odyssey amongst the top luxury trains in the world according to the survey conducted by them.
The way forward:
The launch of the luxury train has definitely catapulted Maharashtra in the world tourism map. The success of this has already prompted Kerala and Karnataka to introduce Luxury trains in their respective states. The state has still got to do a lot to match the world class destination. While airports are modernized and infrastructure is looked at closely the passion to promote the state as hot tourist spots should not get dried fast.
While print campaigns and participating in travel exhibition will generate awareness but it is important we must use our foreign offices and diplomats to promote the state. Credibility has to be built among travel operators and foreign tourists about the state. Strong PR strategy needs to be evolved through fam tours and diplomatic relations to make the state as one of the most attractive tourist place.
The states should look at tourism also as an industry that will generate employment and earn good foreign exchange revenue. The tourist arrival has really shot up in last few years. Today it is close to 6 million but we are way behind to even Singapore who attract close to 10 million each year. So where is the lacuna? Only continuous introspection, aggressive and friendly policies from the government on the tourism front will help us in increasing tourist arrivals.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Do jingles really work in ads ?
If you look at what the great David Ogilvy had said about jingles is that you land up using jingles when your product has nothing to say and therefore you have no other option but to sing. But I strongly feel the role of a jingle is basically to give that extra embellishment to a message be it in television or radio. When I think of embellishment one thing that connects my mind is music in any form be it carnatic or Hindustani music as with out the support of other musical instruments played by the musician the performance of a vocal recital will never stand out.
The same principle or logic applies to jingle. The most common example that one can easily think of is the Nirma washing powder. The entire advertisement commercials revolve around the powerful jingle which blends with the visuals to give that impact. The jingle is so powerful that even as a standalone communication also it works very well in the radio medium. Therefore there are mixed views from various quarters on the role of jingle in an advertisement but all one must make sure is to try and use the jingle at the most appropriate juncture
Memorable tune and simple lyrics can work wonder:
Most jingles which have been have been successful and sticky in the minds of the customer is primarily because of its lyrics and unique tune. The case in example is Hutch brand now Define when they wanted to emphasis the network capabilities of their service they used the jingle in the most interesting and clever manner to covey their superior network strengths.
The clever use of the pug and the boy with its jingle of ‘You and I in this beautiful world’ set new yardsticks of how jingles should be exploited. What an endearing ad! It’s a jingle with lucid and simple lyrics beautifully captured the innocent, charming world of the pug and the boy. What’s more the song and tune has become so powerful that the brand using the tune very cleverly in each of their new communication that they are trying to communicate.
Another brand that has used the tune to orchestrate with all their communication has been the watchmakers Titan. The Mozart tune has been in existence with the brand close to a decade and has been very creatively used and express in all their communication. They have also made the tune contemporary and adapted it to each of the products they launched . The tune has sunk into people’s mind over a period of a time and today people will be able to connect with the brand purely on hearing the tune of the Mozart.
What drives great jingles?
Jingle is a great combination of lyrics, music, and tune and to a large extent the way it is sung. Hence even if you have great lyrics the jingle can be effective only if you are able to produce the jingle with the right voice and a memorable tune. And this is where it is important that you identify the right music director to compose the tune.
Music contributes a lot to any film, especially an ad film. Indian commercials often have wonderful tracks. In fact, when we show Indian ad films abroad, the high standard of music usually comes in for praise. Coming to jingles specifically - creative people tend to shun them because they sometimes are a substitute for an idea. Also it makes the ad 'addy'
Hence it is the endeavor of most creative directors to make the ad a piece of film that has the potential of passing into popular culture. A vehicle for strengthening the brand that does not scream 'I am a commercial'.
Jingle and a Song what’s the difference:
The distinction between a jingle and a song is that in the former you mention the brand name. So 'Hamara Bajaj' is a jingle but 'Kuch khaas hai hum sabhi mein' for Cadbury’s dairy milk chocolate is a song. The 'You and I' song of Orange/Hutch is an immensely popular song that passed into popular culture is also a song
Having said all that, jingles have their own place in advertising. Especially, if we try to think back to commercials that have left a mark on us from yesteryears, it is 'Aaj bhi, kal bhi VIP' and the perennial 'Washing Powder Nirma'.
A recent case in example of a jingle that transformed the fortunes of a brand is 'Kya aap Close Up karte hain?' There was no idea in that campaign. But nothing succeeds like success. The jingle has hit and is being used in various avatar to make it stand out.
Only another key distinction once notices between a jingle and a song is in the case of the jingle the brand name gets mentioned in the jingle while in the song it builds up to connect with the brand.
Is jingle a must in a commercial?
The answer is yes and no. You should not force fit a jingle or a song in commercial. There are several instances where you commercials which have worked wonders for the brand without the use of a jingle or a song.
A very good instance of a successful non-jingle ad is the ‘Asian Paints’ – ‘Waah Sunil babu’ ad. The ad had a brilliant script with an element of humor. No background music, no jingles. Yet a phenomena! Another case in point being the ‘Airtel – Beyond Barriers’ ad. To use as a case study, the ad did not have any jingles to convey its message. Through the sheer brilliance of its visuals and cannily crafted exquisite background score with the signature tune of A.R Rahman it did manage to tug our heartstrings. The message was conveyed to us simple and clear – ‘Barriers break when people talk’.
Therefore if you have a strong idea you need not force fit a jingle into a television commercial? In the good old days the client will brief an agency on the product and at the end of the discussion he would say give me a catchy tune or jingle. Those days are history today as agency use song and jingles very tactfully and cleverly in their radio or television commercial. Even in radio today you hardly notice jingles even if the jingle comes on the radio it is pure adaptation of the television commercial. Most of the radio scripts today are based on strong idea with good humor and dialogues.
Finally does jingle works?
In my opinion, one cannot give a definitive response as to whether jingles are relevant in ads or not. To some extent, it also depends on the product one is advertising. If it’s an ad about HSBC, LIC policies and similar kind of product singles don’t really matter that much as jingles are usually associated with fun and frivolity. However, for the advertisement of FMCG and consumer durable products jingles do play an important role provided it blends with the product without diluting the core idea of the brand. As I said in the earlier paragraph jingles are used when they lack a strong idea and let’s also be clear a jingle and a song can only supplement the advertisement but the larger picture is that you commercial should have big idea.
The same principle or logic applies to jingle. The most common example that one can easily think of is the Nirma washing powder. The entire advertisement commercials revolve around the powerful jingle which blends with the visuals to give that impact. The jingle is so powerful that even as a standalone communication also it works very well in the radio medium. Therefore there are mixed views from various quarters on the role of jingle in an advertisement but all one must make sure is to try and use the jingle at the most appropriate juncture
Memorable tune and simple lyrics can work wonder:
Most jingles which have been have been successful and sticky in the minds of the customer is primarily because of its lyrics and unique tune. The case in example is Hutch brand now Define when they wanted to emphasis the network capabilities of their service they used the jingle in the most interesting and clever manner to covey their superior network strengths.
The clever use of the pug and the boy with its jingle of ‘You and I in this beautiful world’ set new yardsticks of how jingles should be exploited. What an endearing ad! It’s a jingle with lucid and simple lyrics beautifully captured the innocent, charming world of the pug and the boy. What’s more the song and tune has become so powerful that the brand using the tune very cleverly in each of their new communication that they are trying to communicate.
Another brand that has used the tune to orchestrate with all their communication has been the watchmakers Titan. The Mozart tune has been in existence with the brand close to a decade and has been very creatively used and express in all their communication. They have also made the tune contemporary and adapted it to each of the products they launched . The tune has sunk into people’s mind over a period of a time and today people will be able to connect with the brand purely on hearing the tune of the Mozart.
What drives great jingles?
Jingle is a great combination of lyrics, music, and tune and to a large extent the way it is sung. Hence even if you have great lyrics the jingle can be effective only if you are able to produce the jingle with the right voice and a memorable tune. And this is where it is important that you identify the right music director to compose the tune.
Music contributes a lot to any film, especially an ad film. Indian commercials often have wonderful tracks. In fact, when we show Indian ad films abroad, the high standard of music usually comes in for praise. Coming to jingles specifically - creative people tend to shun them because they sometimes are a substitute for an idea. Also it makes the ad 'addy'
Hence it is the endeavor of most creative directors to make the ad a piece of film that has the potential of passing into popular culture. A vehicle for strengthening the brand that does not scream 'I am a commercial'.
Jingle and a Song what’s the difference:
The distinction between a jingle and a song is that in the former you mention the brand name. So 'Hamara Bajaj' is a jingle but 'Kuch khaas hai hum sabhi mein' for Cadbury’s dairy milk chocolate is a song. The 'You and I' song of Orange/Hutch is an immensely popular song that passed into popular culture is also a song
Having said all that, jingles have their own place in advertising. Especially, if we try to think back to commercials that have left a mark on us from yesteryears, it is 'Aaj bhi, kal bhi VIP' and the perennial 'Washing Powder Nirma'.
A recent case in example of a jingle that transformed the fortunes of a brand is 'Kya aap Close Up karte hain?' There was no idea in that campaign. But nothing succeeds like success. The jingle has hit and is being used in various avatar to make it stand out.
Only another key distinction once notices between a jingle and a song is in the case of the jingle the brand name gets mentioned in the jingle while in the song it builds up to connect with the brand.
Is jingle a must in a commercial?
The answer is yes and no. You should not force fit a jingle or a song in commercial. There are several instances where you commercials which have worked wonders for the brand without the use of a jingle or a song.
A very good instance of a successful non-jingle ad is the ‘Asian Paints’ – ‘Waah Sunil babu’ ad. The ad had a brilliant script with an element of humor. No background music, no jingles. Yet a phenomena! Another case in point being the ‘Airtel – Beyond Barriers’ ad. To use as a case study, the ad did not have any jingles to convey its message. Through the sheer brilliance of its visuals and cannily crafted exquisite background score with the signature tune of A.R Rahman it did manage to tug our heartstrings. The message was conveyed to us simple and clear – ‘Barriers break when people talk’.
Therefore if you have a strong idea you need not force fit a jingle into a television commercial? In the good old days the client will brief an agency on the product and at the end of the discussion he would say give me a catchy tune or jingle. Those days are history today as agency use song and jingles very tactfully and cleverly in their radio or television commercial. Even in radio today you hardly notice jingles even if the jingle comes on the radio it is pure adaptation of the television commercial. Most of the radio scripts today are based on strong idea with good humor and dialogues.
Finally does jingle works?
In my opinion, one cannot give a definitive response as to whether jingles are relevant in ads or not. To some extent, it also depends on the product one is advertising. If it’s an ad about HSBC, LIC policies and similar kind of product singles don’t really matter that much as jingles are usually associated with fun and frivolity. However, for the advertisement of FMCG and consumer durable products jingles do play an important role provided it blends with the product without diluting the core idea of the brand. As I said in the earlier paragraph jingles are used when they lack a strong idea and let’s also be clear a jingle and a song can only supplement the advertisement but the larger picture is that you commercial should have big idea.
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