Indian Marketing

Cadbury shubh aarambh

2010-07-25T09:23:00.000-07:00

This is a new one from cadbury , a bit different one from the pehli tareekh ( salary time advt ) good stuff , nice connect being built with the product . Our rating is around 3/5 , goood , lets have your views on this , TVC

Micromax ::nothing like anything

2010-03-28T09:06:00.001-07:00

must say , of late we have never seen a great product idea getting killed with some sloppy advertising as has been done for the new Micromax gamulution phone .The brand has had its first share of stardom with Akshay Kumar and some very unique technology which is equivalent to the Nintendo's Wii which shud take the market by storm . The non big brand mobile space is on fire suddenly a Maxx ,karbonn , Videocon , and Micromax have made it to the consumer mind space at the cost of Nokia ,samsung ,we suppose .

The TVC is all noise and eggs and doesn't come out strongly with the feature , and banks on Akshay Kumar to deliver the product which he partially does , considering that the product has a strong USP , the delivery attempt is very weak , looks like the agency involved has taken a small upstart brand for a ride ! , our rating is 2/5 very average , cud have been much better what say ? .Pls click on the link below and rate the new Micromax tvc ::

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxbkKOObrtE

Blogger Buzz: Blogger integrates with Amazon Associates

2010-03-28T09:06:00.000-07:00

Blogger Buzz: Blogger integrates with Amazon Associates

Go Cheese

2010-03-07T05:41:00.000-08:00

Say cheese , say Go cheese , here comes gowardhan dairy's attempt to go up the value chain with its brand of Cow cheese , the cheese market is dominated by big brands like Amul , Britannia currently and making a dent wud be tough though it seems like all categories you can make a dent depending the depth of your pockets and strategy !

The TVC is a very good in terms of execution and is clear that the the TG for this category is Kids and also has an appealing( mouth watering ) design of the slices of cheese , which should generate inquiries at stores .Our rating of the entire execution , connect and ability to build curiosity is at 2.5/5 very good .

With the TVC act right -with cow cheese positioning and unique slice design , there are serious supply cold chain , distribution and pricing ( heard that they are out priced ) issues that needs to be up and running for the brand to win .GO ahead click on the link below and rate GO cheese , does it remind one of the "laughing cow" brand ? what say

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8g1D6y19IE

Snake Jazz

2010-02-28T07:36:00.000-08:00

Yes snakes swaying to some jazz music , and reinforcing the now old knowledge off the snake not able to hear anything ,but its movements being confined to the charmers movement .

The latest TVC for Nat Geo takes the above plank and is spot on in breaking away this myth and reinforcing the position of National Geographic channels niche positioning aimed at the "thinking consumer " and leaving you with the thought/query "Think Again "

Our rating is 2/5 good for the Nat Geo TVC , for nice execution and reinforcing the connect with its 'thinking " consumer TG , go ahead and click on the link below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PByjUIftjLM

Bhagwan Hai

2010-02-20T03:07:00.000-08:00

So how does one build a connect for an agarbathi brand , well the only brand off note that we remember off is Cycle and that too thanks to its investment in advertising not because of its use ! we must add.

The new TVC from Cycle brand takes the " Bhagwan hai "route, and tries to connect with the consumers in their everyday life's with some interesting questions and of course with its biggest benefactor ie God ( Bhagwan ) ! . We must say the TVC is nicely executed and does leave one with a good feeling our rating is 2/5 , good , for Bhagwan hai by Cycle .

Go ahead watch it , click on the link below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xk5ECcr8qms

Hippo chips :: Hunger is the Problem

2010-02-07T01:48:00.000-08:00

Off late we must say we have started liking the TVC's by Parle , to add to our likes , we add the latest Hippo Chips TVC .

Hippo chips enter the snacks category with its baked feature , considering that others have also taken the health route ,like Aliva , Saffola zest . It remains to be seen how this does along with others as the taste factor is a big let down .

Switching back to the TVC , a very interesting route has been taken , saying " worlds problems are because of hunger " and backed with a Pyaar baat te chalo theme song the message of eating and staying calm and not doing the evils is a nice and different route taken ,Our rating of the same is 3/5 very good for being different .

Watch the cute little Hippo take on the world ,with the message" pyaar baat te chalo" ,click on the link below ::

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOv7F_Tw4ko

Phir Mile Sur Mera Tumhara

2010-01-26T09:15:00.000-08:00

The latest version of the Mile Sur Mera Tumhara , got released today on the 26th we guess , and we happened to see the full version of the same .

Although the entire construct is as good as the one we grew up with , this version is an over dose of bollywood but , which could have been avoided , as usual keeping a billion people happy is difficult !, our rating of the same is 2/5 good , it cud be have been better , go ahead click on the link below and relive old memories .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nq31OjsQ124

Hari Sadu Returns

2010-01-26T08:00:00.001-08:00

Naukri TVC shot to limelight with its Hari Sadu campaign , its only apt that they reinvent themselves with the same theme .

So Hari Sadu Returns in the new TVC which cuts off the human element , and tries to connect with a written route with the choicest of expletives and poor old Hari Sadu name in the centre .We rate the TVC 2.5 /5 good

Recession is over, Jobs are back says Naukri.com ,yes you are left wondering who is getting them ! go ahead click on the link below and watch the return of Hari Sadu and rate the same .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_TOI-sxomY

Educomp :: Smart Class

2010-01-17T01:33:00.000-08:00

this one comes from Educomp , which has come with an interesting concept of teaching kids -the visual way .

Teaching was never this way during our times , whatever was black board /text written was to be understood ( if one can ) or mugged and answered during exam times .We liked the concept and are sure that the off takes wud be good .So why is educomp taking the mass media to communicate the product , guess to get at the school and the parents too in one shot , may be the later in a big way .

The TVC shows how a listless set of students try to answer concept of force the traditional way and the smart class way , our rating of the TVC and the concept is 2.5 /5 good , go ahead rate the Smart class TVC click on the link below ::

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3JzeOCxEDw

Aman Ki Asha

2010-01-10T07:20:00.000-08:00

We are perplexed with this campaign objective and expected outcome , as any intent to make a change has to be sustainable and long term and impactful especially an issue of India- pakistan people ties .If that is the plan then fine , otherwise looks like another overnight desire of some people to change the world .

Aman ki asha is the joint efforts been made by two media powerhouses across the border in bringing the nations people together and remind us all that finally we are the same ie "humans ", the TVC is nicely executed and gets the message of the campaign across clearly . Our rating for the campaign is 1.5 /5 average , it remains to be seen that this doesn't go the Lead India campaign way . go ahead click the link below to remind ourselves that we are humans first !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dz6YylorUGM

Pizza Hut What are you celebrating

2010-01-02T20:54:00.000-08:00

The new Pizza hut TVC is all about moving on from the normal pizza's to other menu items , the campaign is about soups , pastas , desserts ,and pizzas too .

The TVC execution is good and also bring about a connect to make a visit to the outlet , atleast in our case it did work ! with a consumer not really able to get going on pizza's alone again and again , this route taken looks logical . Plus Pizza Hut formats have been used for celebration route , haven't we have had birthday celebration's , some office wins celebrations etc . The TVC shows some funny situations around celebrations , first word ,break up etc .

Along with the celebration route and new menu items the brand seems to be on the right track . Waiting to see when they start serving indian stuff say biryani's and roti's , ie not far we guess .

Our rating for the TVC is 2.5/5 good , go ahead rate the TVC click on the link below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7kju9Vl9Js

Masala tadka maar ke

2009-12-25T05:21:00.001-08:00

The noodles category suddenly is seeing a lot of action , hitting at the 2 minutes Maggi baston .We have had Top Ramen earlier trying to make a dent with not much of impact that we could note . You now have a "foodles" launch by Smithklime Beecham and Smith & Jones also making an attempt to get a slice of the market ,with its series of TVC's which aims to gain mind share by clearly stating why its different from the usual .

Come to think of it Maggi still gets consumed in tons at college canteens,office canteens , road side dhabas , stalls ( well in kitchens where it was never positioned to be ! ) , and finally at homes ! Thus this strong Masala flavour by Smith & jones , could be a route to displace this strong hold of Maggi ,which must be generating huge volumes .Maggi has smartly extended itself to sauces , pazztas ,soups etc and is no doubt still a dominant player in this category .

The TVC is neatly executed and our rating for the rendition is 2.5/5 , good . go ahead watch the noodles market getting more entwined ! click on the link below !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1y9VCEwYFnk

Mamy Poko Pants

2009-12-20T03:44:00.000-08:00

We loved this one ,the brand has understood the babies diaper issue of the straps opening , parents struggling to put one on when the baby is no mood to have one , and has come out with a solution , here comes "Mamy Poko pants "a Japanese brand which has entered the Indian diaper market- so far a Huggies dominant play .The interesting part is the "pants ' feature.

Moving on to the TVC , its nicely executed , one is able to clearly understand which gap in the market that the product is trying to address , the TVC is simple and evokes a connect , it also is able to evoke a "wow " among consumers who have gone thru or going thru the "diaper " process . It remains to be seen how does the product fare as pricing and cheaper options displacements are the key to success in India for this category .

Our rating is 2.5/5 good for the TVC and the product concept .

Go ahead rate Mamy Poko Pants , Tvc ,click link below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRdLFaycBcg

Beam Aya kya ?

2009-12-13T07:09:00.000-08:00

This is one is an accidental discovery in terms of TVC , Beam Simply Money Service ,claims to allow consumers transact on the mobile in terms of payments for various transactions , it comes from the house of Suvidha .

The concept is good , and so is the TVC , which works on the Aya kya ? pretext and also show the right TG , with the youth going ga ga over the money transfer , for a new idea and the clear cut communication of the concept , we rate this at 3/5 which is good . Go ahead and rate the new Beam TVC , maaza aya kya ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgqGlI5mIr4

Indian Beetle

2009-12-06T07:51:00.000-08:00

The beetle car we all love is in India finally ,the TVC which is on air fails to bring out the best of this adorable car , but takes a very convoluted route of making a statement .

The TVC shows how a valet driver ( we hope ) ends up paying money to an owner for allowing him to park the car , our rating of the TVC is 1.5/5 , average ,could have been better considering the product is a wow and plus we are told that the price is a whopping a 23 lakhs on road , thus the super premium imagery is missing too .Whatever said at this price the Beetle remains a dream for all of us ,like the Fiat 500 , looks like a tough buy , go ahead and check out the new beetle TVC for the time being ,buying can wait !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LcURWiUqno

Parle Smart Chips !

2009-11-29T07:41:00.000-08:00

We loved this TVC ,in what could be a game changing TVC and concept from the Parle Stable , on Smart chips it makes an attempt of using Amir's Khan screen energy to ask a question why eat ordinary chips and add to your weight , by handing over a T shirt - with a message "You will need it "

Parle has tried to create a new category with Smart chips launch ...a Diet coke like version in chips , considering the latest fad for healthy and health related activities , this should work , however sustaining this platform and building excitement and freshness would be the challenge plus other big daddies like Lays ,Bingo would react for sure if it succeeds .But we love the attempt ,thinking and the execution of Parle Monaco Smart chips , our ratings is 3/5 is very good . go ahead link on the link below :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQvR8tbW7pU

Cadbury Panda

2009-11-22T05:36:00.000-08:00

The new cadbury gems TVC is a bit out of the box and out of place at times , and hard to connect with the product at first sight , whatever the marketers tried to do , looks like they wanted to retrench the brand connect with the tg with an unique creative communication which gets the customers to recall the brand name , say a " cheetah bhi peetah "= "mountain dew" varieties .

Gems has been trying to take the color route to reinvent itself , however in the store the top of mind is purely by sight or its proximity to the cash counter, thus placement becomes the key among other things .

Moving on ,the TVC is an interesting way of saying that each gems eating Panda reflects the different colors in gems and shud connect specially among the kids .But again such creative routes have been tried out for other brands , our ratings is 2/5 , good , go ahead watch cadbury gems trying to reconnect/reinvent itself with colors !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51bu_YtQa4w

Fevicol Moochwali

2009-11-15T00:03:00.000-08:00

Fevicol as a brand has been known for its superb TVC's mostly aiming at a distinct connect with the product's main usage which is "stickiness ".Must add that they have been doing a good job at it over the years , but we wonder how does a TVC help in actually pushing their product , as one of the main decision makers in the buying process is the good old carpenter and unlike the paint category which also has similar problem , the consumer is normally not interested whether its fevicol or vamicol !

Anyways the latest Fevicol TVC , must add is good , but we have seen such versions earlier for other brands too , the Moochwali starts with the theatre enactment and how the moochi sticks on an on, the TVC is in celebrating 50 years of fevicol stickiness , we rate the TVC 2.5/5 , good , but you get a feeling that the concept /creative has been tried earlier . go ahead click on the link below for Fevicol Moochwali !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJHnRNhdTgU

Tata Sky - Active Puppet

2009-11-08T05:27:00.000-08:00

The new Tata Sky commercial using Amir Khan , as a ventriloquist is on air these days , we must add that Amir is superb as usual and the brand is desperately fighting to maintain its premium imagery and pricing in the highly competitive market of DTH ,it remains to be seen how long wud they be to hold on this position .

The TVC aims to promote their Active service which helps consumers to do more like educate their kids , games , cooking recipes etc , like in telecom parlance a Value added service .The puppet is supposed to be the TV and how the owner ( amir ) uses its interactive service and the how the TV complaints that there is a hidden " hand " of the owner etc .

TVC execution is good , watch out for Amir's lips when the puppet speaks ( great execution )

,overall our rating is 2/5 good , go watch Tata sky's active TVC , with Amir khan's 70's look .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJq4kV-TiAw

American tourister -Survive Mumbai

2009-11-01T07:44:00.000-08:00

The new TVC for the American tourister , does make one look up due to its catchy jingle and for all who have experienced the local Mumbai train madness each scene is a reminder of the nightmare , one dare not take such a big suitcase inside a train , thus the TVC shows a foreigner trying to get in and how the luggage goes thru the upheavals inside and comes back to its rightful owner ! ( which is a surprise )

The catchy jingle and its ability to connect with a lot of consumers , does go a long way in getting american tourister as a brand across to consumers mind ,but such short bursts of TV campaigns doesn't really help as retention power is minimum these days among consumers . Plus the real battle for luggage is at the retail -with the unorganised players dominating the market -its here that the consumer awareness alone mite not help american tourister !maybe sustained campaigns mite help

Our rating of the TVC is 2.5/5 good , go ahead and watch the american tourister campaign , which says if you survive mumbai ( trains ) you survive the world !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bt1VKvDoESQ

Saint Juice

2009-10-25T09:30:00.000-07:00

Another one of the TVC that caught our eye was from Saint Juice -a new launch , from the Parle Agro stable , what caught our attention was the wonderful nature shots and how one has tried building up the connection of nature and the content in the juice . Nice try we must add to stay different and in making an impact in the cluttered juice market.

Go ahead and watch the new Saint juice TVC , which claims to deliver juice the way God meant it to be - thus the name saint we guess ! our rating is 2.5/5 good .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKnSNsGGRMk

First Flight - We have arrived

2009-10-25T08:47:00.000-07:00

It does feel really nice when you find that you have grown up with the life cycle of a brand one such discovery was that off First flight couriers, from a small start , after which what must have been an arduous path in the cut throat courier business , they have hit the TVC space with their campaign , the TVC is neatly done , with a connect with India's no 1 sport- cricket and is built on the delivery of the "Item " right on time .

Our rating of the TVC is 2/5 good , for a brand which wants to say " we have arrived " with its TVC , go ahead watch the first flight courier TVC , and see what that "item " was ..in case you are wondering what was it !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAwUQETpIzo

Vodafone Diwali

2009-10-11T09:12:00.000-07:00

We liked the new Vodafone diwali promotion , first of all its a refreshing different from what the usual telecom promotions wud be , plus also it has a certain element of likeabilty each time you watch it , especially the old man in the TVC and how he keeps changing his ,mind till the end .

Go ahead watch the Vodafone Diwali promo which is a joint tie up with dulux , our rating is 2.5/5 , good , go ahead and watch the old man's tips on colors ,its so funny !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1txSgP836E

Mahindra Rodeo

2009-10-06T19:55:00.000-07:00

Here comes Mahindra with its entry into the 2 wheelers market with Rodeo -post its stake buy in the erstwhile Kinetic motors .

We like the way they created a new category of Power scooters ,or at least envisaged a try ,key competition would be the Honda Activa , the rodeo TVC tries in a very interesting way to come out of the usual run of mill ,macho stuff that 2 wheelers TVC try to showcase .Our ratings is 2.5 /5 good , lets see whether Rodeo is a runaway hit in the market .

Go ahead and click on the link below ,and watch Mahindra's 'Power Scooters" entry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBMMfTPhJak

Royal Enfield - leave home

2009-10-02T08:20:00.000-07:00

How many of us would have seen an Royal Enfield TVC ,must be a minority count , here is slightly old royal enfield commercial , for their Thunderbird twin spark model ,which thru a slightly convoluted( must say not slightly- highly ) route tries to showcase the growing up of a guy and his urge to get free on seeing a thunderbird .

Enfield needs to shrug off a lot of legacy , get aggressive on its product portfolio redesign and also be able to leverage its strong equity ( it enjoys a cult like status among some some consumers) on "macho "bikes by launching India's harleys.Enfield also has an opportunity to be a strong niche player with higher prices but with low volumes in the bikes market ,maybe that's what thunderbird was planned to do ..not much thunder on the roads though !

Switching back to the TVC , all in all a good piece of execution and our rating for the same is 2.5 /5 , good . go ahead watch the TVC and " leave home " ,its different

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1B6IQPzq0Tw

Bajaj rediscovers India

2009-09-19T08:14:00.000-07:00

This TVC is another great execution , here comes Bajaj back with Discover dts -si in the 100 cc segment , which they had vacated saying that the margins are lower , the No 1 is very strong etc , and let run Hero Honda run away with the market ..back they come , like all strategies -nothing is final and sealed and can always be re looked based on your performance especially when u are going nowhere .

So out they come with what we feel is a super campaign which takes you to some destinations in India ,one might have never heard about( India's africa in gujarat !) ,don't really know whether true ,for instance the vedic village near Mangalore is news ! that aside ..moving on the campaign tries to build the connect of these places with the power of a 1 litre on the bajaj discover dts -si

Our ratings 3/5 very good , go ahead the three versions of the campaign by which bajaj is trying to rediscover India and itself and play catch up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0D6Jduxfq0 ( magnetic hill )
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjRzLLSNmXQ ( madhur the Sanskrit/vedic village )
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tihwBkfZ01Q ( jamboor india ka africa )

White Ice deo

2009-09-12T10:01:00.000-07:00

Off late the Indian deo market has seen a flurry off brand launches , either the market is big or brands are vying for the market which is currently on excel sheets ,based on low per person consumption etc , as a consumer ,when one walks into an outlet , u are confused by the choices ,both Indian and foreign brands , you tend to decide on the best "smelling "one .In this cluttered space walks in White Ice with its brand of deo for men .

White Ice tvc is a typical run of the mill deo advt ,which surprisingly shows girls getting attracted to you due to the deo ( wish in actual life it was true ! ) our rating for the White Ice tvc is 1.5/5 ,average , go ahead watch another deo brand namely White ice sniffing at the market ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPKjtOqpWOE

Britannia Bourbon

2009-09-06T19:27:00.000-07:00

We liked the New Britannia bourbon ,advertisement , quite a naughty one ,though the concept is an old tried tested one ,the only thing is that the context of the situation of a brother and sister is a bit fresh .

From a creating a buzz around an existing brand , the TVC seems to have done its piece .Britannia Bourbon TVC gets a rating of 2/5 good , go ahead the naughty Britannia Bourbon TVC and rate it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSOGqstj8_Y

Revive

2009-09-06T02:43:00.000-07:00

How many of us remember Revive !,maybe at various homes the old starching clothes business continues , must be still a big market ,as u see revive brand is being put in the spotlite .The TVC uses kids , ie in line with a whole host of brands which have used emotional power to lure purchases !

The TVC shows the everyday struggle of a shirt and how it gets "revive "d for the next day , nice execution especially -how the shirt has been handed over from the elder brother part - the wrestling part etc and good attempt to drive home the revive vs starch - so as to drive non consumers into revive . Our rating is 2/5 good .. go ahead rate the latest Revive campaign .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeCtKjVvtMY

Purple glue

2009-08-30T03:16:00.000-07:00

We just loved this one , how one has converted a mundane glue and added a BIG differential element to it , we have come a long way from liquid glue to glue sticks , but this one beats all in terms of innovation and it had to come out of the 3M stable ! .

go ahead and watch the Scotch Purple Glue TVC and how they have cleverly used kids to drive home the point that unlike other glue sticks, this one rubs purple but dries clear,our rating for the execution of the TVC and the concept is 3.5/5 very good ,

pls go ahead and rate the 3M Scotch purple glue Stick ...its Magic ...( click the link below )

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZ7pCoihFW4

Toyota fortuner

2009-08-29T08:25:00.000-07:00

The latest launch from the Toyota range is their SUV , Fortuner , the TVC for this tries to get at your senses in creating aspirational values for the brand , backed with some good shots showing the power capabilities and soundover , it strikes a good note with the viewer .

But we must say not anything different from a typical automobile advt . our rating for the same is 2/5 average . go ahead and watch the Art of power from toyota fortuner . Saw the model on the roads , doesn't look awesome either !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkgUTQyvoZY

India Bulls Ghar aa Jao

2009-08-09T00:20:00.000-07:00

Any TVC that is backed with a strong hummable jingle and builds up an emotional connect , shud do well , the latest India bulls home loan TVC , does this clearly , playing on the emotional favourite four letter word "home " and backed with a great jingle there is an immediate connect built in .

Set with the theme that in each day the best part is home coming ( u bet !) this

surely strikes a chord .Our rating is 3/5 ,good , go ahead experience the home coming emotions from India bulls .

CLICK HERE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRFzDTG1CLE

Sulekha Arrows

2009-08-02T05:14:00.000-07:00

Chanced upon the Sulekha campaign , named Arjuna the Archer , must say awesome , very good rendition of the thought and how the power of Sulekha engine can be used to what you want to do say buy something , sell something etc .We liked the concept , the execution , and are sure that this wud drive home traffic and transactions to the site ,among people who havent used the power of this engine .

Our rating is 3.5/5 excellent , go ahead( click the link below ) and rate the latest Sulekha TVC, it hits a connect arrow into your mind !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ppxQdNueJY

Iska ho gaya good day

2009-07-26T01:46:00.000-07:00

Britannia is one brand on which we have great admiration for ,of late has been stuck by stiff competition from the smoke money giant ITC ,and host of regional players like priya ,plus add to it the old enemy Parle plus more coming their way as even frito lays seems to be laying its hand into snacks with ALIVA , after Lays chips , saw some on shelfs recently.

One of its strong brands ( if one were to use the latest fad say : power brands ) is good day , we are left wondering what happened to another strong brand Tiger . Good day's latest station master tvc , comes across nicely in a category where its difficult to create much of differentiation on the product side , maybe one can have brand extensions and do feel good communications and thus connect with the consumer.

The TVC shows the spontaneous joy of the station master after having a good day , reminds one of the good old dairy milk tvc where in the girl jumps into the field and does a spontaneous jig .You have the same nice feeling about the Good day TVC .

Go ahead and check out the new Good day Tvc , ting ting ating ! its good our rating is 3/5 , but how is this connecting to the point of sale outlet is another question ,maybe the station master jig cutouts ,shelf stickers ,wobblers at some key retail shelfs might help !what say ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hFNCkbtFZs

Lifebuoy attendance

2009-07-19T01:28:00.000-07:00

Lifebuoy as a brand is desperately trying to get its act on the health platform right , its fighting a big battle with brand Dettol which also fights on the on kids not missing school route .Reminds one of the use of kids for the classic battle between Pepsodent and Colgate .

The tvc is believable till we get to hear that the kids have to use lifebuoy 5 times a day to get the immunity levels . Our reading is that Dettol has strongly entrenched this platform and lifebuoy in spite of its repackaging ,repositioning etc has still got its old baggage of being a toilet or a rural soap ,to clear !

Go ahead and watch the lifebuoy soap attendance tvc our rating is 2/5 , average

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJAm9bNFYl0

Bajaj pulsar Fastest Indian

2009-07-11T06:02:00.000-07:00

We just loved this one , the new Bajaj Pulsar TVC comes with a different approach ie it doesn't show the product at all , but the storyboard with the bank robbery and the amazing coolness with which the lead model walks off when the police lands and how the bike disappears ,in the last shot is amazing .

Great work , backed with good music and a twist of not showing the product , our rating 3.5/5 very good , go ahead rate for the fastest Indian ,its very fast and good !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RwCFrwhYCg

Cadbury pehli tareek

2009-07-05T01:19:00.000-07:00

We just loved this one , coming from a brand which is desperately trying to retain its identity and consumer interest .With all the newer aggressive brands like perfetti , candico , wrigleys being hyperactive this is not going to be easy .

The brand( dairy milk ) does that in a very smart way it takes the occasion route , the ocassion used here is the 1 st salary and also the need to bring home some sweets , after the old kaane ke baad kuch mitha ho jaye (again occasion ) , the kenya cricket match one( again occasion ) and the amitabh led campaigns ,this one also stands out .

With a 70's look and feel ,u are wondering whether the dairy milk has become a older generation brand ( which mite be true ) targeted at 35-40 plus as there is a husband wife connection , just when u were doing that lo there is a version 2 targeting at the youth that sprung up !

Our rating is 3/5 good go ahead -aaj pehli tareek ( sorry today is 5th july ) hey !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ta96Np7t6CE

Fuel Deo

2009-06-27T06:15:00.000-07:00

The latest TVC is from a new deo brand , named Fuel , when we saw it for the first time never cud connect as to which is the product category , till in the end Fuel came out .

Backed with some good music which sounds like a song made for the campaign and some hot steamy visuals at the end ,sex appeal and deodorants as a category go hand in hand we feel .

Fuel TVC , does make an attempt to gain mind share with its strong visuals and music ,in a highly cluttered deodorant space .Our rating of the TVC is 3/5 good , go ahead and watch and rate the steamy Fuel Deo campaign .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_l2zKMiDMoc

Honda jazz bubbles

2009-06-20T07:19:00.000-07:00

here comes a great looking car from Honda , the Honda Jazz ,with an interesting original soundtrack( twee do dee ....) and TVC aims at showcasing other competing vehicles being treated as bubbles and how they burst when the Honda jazz passes by . Thus making a statement of its superiority .

However how many of us were able to get the cactus plant placed inside the car bursting the bubble , is a million dollar question and needs serious watch , that coming from a brand saying "Why So Serious "is a bit funny

our rating is 1.5 /5 average , with a great product the TVC could have been better in terms of creativity . Go ahead watch the Honda jazz TVC and hum the twee do dee ...song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g51KiD9LHc8

Happydent Elephant

2009-06-13T06:15:00.000-07:00

This is one brand that keeps breaking all conventional routes of advertising but takes routes of never tried paths , after the palace one ( which was awesome ) here comes the elephant one , how a herd of elephant finds a toppled jeep ,they then stamp on the Happydent wave on the ground , which creates a river , in which the elephants swim and then lo their tusks start to glow with a tongue in cheek comment of villagers saying "Jangal mein mangal ho raha hai, par gaon mein toh bijli aayi hi nahin bhaiya!” ( electricity in the jungle but not in the village !)

Great out of box creative , good execution , and ability to stand out of the clutter . our rating is 3/5 good check out Happydent elephant stuff its good !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VO4sjyIYh3E

Parle Lite

2009-06-07T01:26:00.000-07:00

Another very interesting TVC on air currently is the Parle lite one for their sugar free bon bon .Very nicely done and executed ,and brings out the message quite clearly abt the product .The way Sumo wrestlers flying around is shown along with the ballet dancers who anyone expects to be be light on their feet ,is great ,the tvc is backed with great music , our rating is 3/5 good , go ahead and watch the new Parle Lite commercial , its "so Sweet"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1JtMFPRs0w

Crabtree

2009-05-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

Any TVC which brings in some amount of freshness , simplicity and is able to get the message across clearly ...works for sure , well according to us the Crabtree TVC , works on all these counts and is brilliantly executed . How the communication changes from a switch is a switch to tea is a tea ,and goes on to reinforce Crabtree in the consumers mind is nicely done .

Much needed attempt for a category which is almost a commodity currently .Our rating is 4/5 Excellent ,a rarity in terms of our ratings , but thats how strongly we feel about this one .Watch and rate it , we are sure you will agree !.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AheIJlGdtpg

Vodafone zoozoo

2009-05-07T05:50:00.000-07:00

with India's super bowl ( ipl ) currently underway , there are some TVC's that have caught the attention , top on the list would be the Vodafone zoozoo character tvc which has created white characters out of nothing literally !!! being used to communicate their product /VAS features .We like the simplicity and the attempt to communicate clearly ,and in the mad rush for tvc space the creative also has a clutter break effec , our rating is 2.5 /5 ,good ,though the earlier advts by this brand where better , is what is our view .
what is "zoozoo " u may ask -another marketing creation we guess !
Go ahead take a peek at the complete compilation of all zoozoo tvc's
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGqndA5F3i8

Bajaj Transformers

2009-04-26T03:52:00.000-07:00

The new Bajaj bike TVC with the "transformer" feature goes in line with the high quality advts that the brand is now synomonous with . Sub brands like Pulsar , Discover and XCD are showcased , playing basketball , till the watchman comes in to spoil the show !

Good production and high degree of animation is a catch , you get to see a completly different route used in delivery by the agency , Burnett .Our rating is 2.5 /5 good . Go ahead watch the transformer advt and rate it .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrNiqCHkeo8

Pepsi first ball ka captain !

2009-04-23T05:57:00.000-07:00

This latest Pepsi commercial offers consumers to be a first ball ka captain by drinking a Pepsi , this is another run of the mill campaign , maybe the theme itself doesn't give a chance for creativity , but the overall output is poor , our rating is 2/5 , average , go ahead check out and rate the new Pepsi first ball ka captain , god knows who wins such contests , you need to be really lucky ! what say
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mtm59g1Pdg

Impatient Ones

2009-04-11T02:38:00.000-07:00

This one is yet to hit the TV screens but would do soon , the Impatient Ones campaign by Airtel broadband , a fast paced TVC it brings out the element of todays "no wait" youth and their need for speed .With Broadband being the next Big wave in the telecom domain , this campaign is bang on , the way the jingle hits a cresendo at the end is brilliant , our rating is 3.5 /5 , very good , pls check out the brand new Impatientones campaign by Airtel, and rate it !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0vVIw81bws

Big Adda

2009-04-04T23:37:00.000-07:00

Though this one is a bit old , we rate this one as a better made TVC , with a clear connect with the product and the communication , back this with a great a jingle , we have an excellent end product .

So remember , fame , money , home ,kids , GO , but friends STAY , go ahead watch this what according to us is a classic and rate the same , our rating is 4/5 excellent !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNhbYFuFSn4

Visa Go !

2009-03-29T07:32:00.000-07:00

along with the Summer season Cola wars and now the IPL blitz there is a suttle campaign by Visa , revolving around GO ! how "go "sparks off a lots of energy , remember Lets "go" ! ... nice , considering the next 2 months would be full of travel considering the school holidays ( don't know whether there was a connection to this ) brilliant visuals ! Good campaign , a lot of color and the Indian piece bought out very nicely . Our rating for the visual and the simplicity of the concept , is 3 /5 good , GO ahead rate the advt , pls

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr42rfptEdg

Parker Pens Blah Blah

2009-03-28T01:35:00.000-07:00

Saw the latest TVC for parker pens with Amitabh Bhachan , interesting concept the message is quite clear , which connects Blah blah speak and bad handwriting ...which Parker aims to improve. There starts the disconnect as how many consumers think so that this really can happen ie a pen can improve your handwriting ! Maybe to bring in authencity they have bought in AB !

our rating is a 2.5 /5 , good , Check the advertisement on the link and rate the same .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nehRqyftld4

7 up Nimbooz - Squeezed !

2009-03-21T23:55:00.000-07:00

Continuing the great Summer quest for TVC from cola companies , here's an innovation which the blog wonders should have come in earlier , the good old Lemon ,Nimbu , in a bottle would be simply great , as Lime juice/pani or lemonade is still a rage in India . The TVC tries to bring in some connection between the product and it being very Indian , however falls short ( according to us ) in getting the Lemon aspect of bringing freshness , quenching thirst , etc , maybe that is round 2 .Our rating is 2 , average , moreover have tried a few stores for the product , with no avail , looks like Mind 1 , shelf 0 score line for this currently , check out the the 7up Nimbooz commercial , go ahead Squeeze and rate it !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdsj1unkqL8

Daichi Rishtey !

2009-03-14T23:51:00.000-07:00

Spotted another good TV commercial for Star union Life insurance , surprised that coming from a firm formed by some govt bank tieups with Dai-ichi , the quality , sound track , and the finish is just superb .

Though in the crowded Insurance market don't know whats the dent this firm is going to make, though like telecom there must be space still !

For a launch purpose the TVC storyline is good ,also , must say that after the recent Tata Dicor advt , this one comes close to reading the consumer minds ,which is of a state of belonging /rishtey & memories -which all of us need at these times( what say ?) ! there is a real connection generated backed with good music too ,Our rating is 4 or this one , very good , go ahead and watch this one ! its worth it !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_v5UtmGlwA

Thums Up ....Time for touching Ground !

2009-03-07T21:54:00.001-08:00

...temperatures are going to be HOT this summer for sure ,soft drink brands have gone full blast with their splurge on new TVC's .

Thums Up association with Akshay Kumar continues and the new TVC has twins working on the typical building jumps for getting their drink without their feets touching the ground , Yawn ! we have seen this before , if macho , adventure and risk taking are the core brand values then there other ways of showing this ,time for change Guys.

Our rating is 2 , average , a Thums down for this , what say ? Check out the new commercial !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsvtuNowMbg

Wearing Nothing Tonight !- But Virgin !

2009-02-27T23:46:00.000-08:00

Must state that the brand( Virgin mobile !) has done consistent youth relevant advertising with a degree of humour attached , the best of the lot being the "my name is mahalingam " one . The Virgin Mobile seems to be inching its way to the 1 million subscribers mark and for a new brand ie not very bad ,in a very tough telecom market .
The commercial communicates whats on the today's youth's mind clearly , we like the ending " wearing nothing part "! enjoy

our rating for consistency and humour is a 3 /5 good

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcbIT8RH3qc

Pepsi Mera Baap Kaun!

2009-02-21T22:42:00.001-08:00

With the summer cola wars about to start -Pepsi seems to have got one commercial right after a long time with the new Mera baap one , the "My can "series was nothing sort of waste ,how the hell did the agency get it cleared ! with some colloquial language added to spice it up this one has got the zing back to the brand advertising .however the probe asking that the only connection that you need is with your thirst is taking it a bit too far , we are assuming it meant "your connection with your desire /ambition " hope true .Our rating of this advt is a 3 /5 : good .

Pls view the advt on the link ,and post your ratings and comments too ...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sD07peVfkpQ ..aha summer time is here again !

Tata Dicor

2009-02-14T22:58:00.000-08:00

Must say , one of the best advertisement thats come out for a long time , the Tata Dicor , commercial is Super , backed with great amazing visuals and text thoughts that leave you wondering what the hell are you doing with your life , which the blog must be sure a number of us are asking ,it leaves you with the thought " reclaim your life " Our rating is 4/5 .. excellent ,pls check the commercial

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYthT2wB394, and put in your rating at the comments field below , go ahead " reclaim your life "

ING

2009-01-24T20:59:00.000-08:00

The ING corporate campaign off late is one of the big splashes that one has seen during these lean times , market news is that the bangalore based financial giant has spent/is spending close to 15 crores on the campaign !

The campaign is a good attempt to showcase the diversity of the country and associates the different ocassions that we use money , backed with some good lyrics , and with the huge spends the campaign surely grows on you , blog rating is 3.5 , ( good ) so have a look at the "Is Desh Mein ....paisa hi paisa " campaign , Check and rate it .....1 for poor , 3 for good , 5 for excellent ,pls put in your rating on the comment link , below.

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=P7x39unWHOY

Essilor

2009-01-23T19:25:00.000-08:00

Not many consumers might be aware of this brand yet , but off late the brand has made a strong attempt to be visible in actually a brand starved category ( whoops one exists still ) that is eye wear !

Essilor is a world leader in eye wear and is a french MNC , the campaign currently running is for their Crizal range of lenses , which are supposedly make one see things clearly ! the campaign has a great jingle , and is able to hold ones attention due to this , am not very sure whether the registry of the brand name is happening though , check & rate the advertisement here

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=iAg5Lhjcseo, what do you think !

there is another campaign on with Shabana azmi for Varilux ,with the product feature of a single lens for reading and and long distance sight being shown clearly ,the advt tagline says "its great to go single after 40 !" check & rate the advertisement here !

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=XbQNQeIAKyk ( not the orginal one ,the search is on ! )

Rate , the advertisement in the comment column , on 1 to 5 scale , 1 being poor , 3 being good , 5 being excellent .thx

GMROF ,CMS ,and other Retail Jargons !

2009-01-11T02:30:00.000-08:00

New to Indian retail industry or contemplating an entry , then here is what you should know to get over the jargon shock !!:: here goes , the A B C of retail ::

Catchment ::The area /zone of the city from which the customers come into for shopping from a particular store , catchment analysis pre launch would ideally decide the product mix and formats of the stores , catchment analysis done after a time gap of launch would also give a correct picture of whats happenng and where to concentrate ur Mktg energies to get more walk ins !

Cash memo size :: CMS = total sales for the month /no of bills generated in the month

UPT :: Units per transaction , would give you a fair idea on to how customers are buying more of your products , per person or less per visit , UPT = No of bills generated in a month / total bills generated in the month , the higher trending of UPT with a distinct increase in cashmemo size is a healthy indicator of business .as UPt can be taken up by increase low value sales , which would give the numbers !!( UPT and CMS should have positive correlation )

Like-for-like comparison( l to l ) : Comparing sales figures from the current period with sales figures from the same period in the previous year..This is a critical business health parameter check .

Units per sqft :: UPS = Total units sold in the month/Total area , basically gives yoy the sell thru rates on a sqft level , good comparison point while evaluvating performance between stores !

Rs /Sqft ::= Total business generated in a month /total sqft , basically indicates biz generated at per sqft level
conversion :: no of bills generated /number of customers walked in
Footfall: The number of people making their way to your store or shopping precinct.

BOGO: Buy one, get one free promotional offer and a way to be rude to customers without your boss having an excuse to sack you.

GWP: Gift with purchase. A type of promotion designed to encourage us to buy expensive perfume or makeup with the promise of a neat little goody bag containing free samples.

SOP :: Standard Operating procedures ,basically documents the way to operate a store /retail setup
VM :: Visual merchandising, the science behind" jo diktha hey woh biktha hey "!
Shrinkage: Sounds like its caused by a diet but often the result of shoplifting. This is the proportion of your stock which is lost through damage, theft or loss. lower the better , typically measured as a % of sales generated !
Gross margin GM = Sales - COGS
GMROF :=GM /Total sqft for the particular store or section
GMROI = GM/ total inventory for the particular store or sectionGMROL = GM / number of people employed
NET MARGIN( Nm) = GM - OpexNMROF/NMROI/NMROL are nothing but Net margin ( NM ) version of the above
OTB ( opportunity to Buy ) = Planned purchase -already ordered qty , basically a merchandising tool which helps in the planning process
Private label :: Nothing but inhouse brands off the retailers , built on 0 advertising cost , fights other well known /well advertised brands mainly on shelf space plus on price
PICS :: perpatual inventory control system ( PICS ) , is the process off stock taking to report actual stocks category wise /brandwise
EOSS :: End off Season Sale , Apparel retailers typically would work out off 2 seasons , Autum winter /Spring summer at the end off each season , retailers would markdown( discount ) their merchandise to make space for the next season merchandise .Although its another matter that customers think its an annual 2 times a year bargain hunt !
More updates Later ..............cio ! ( hope this was useful !) .........

Levis ka new Khiladi !

2008-09-12T22:14:00.000-07:00

News is abuzz about the latest brand ambassador for Levis in India , Akshay Kumar ,must say that as an avid Levis watcher this blog believes that there is buzz thats been bought back into the brand .For a legendary brand that has sadly seen its fortune only slipping down globally ,with its strongest market US ,beating it black and blue the only Bright spot continues to be India for their global operation ! Thus the need for creating this new buzz ,which surely must have , cost them a bomb ,blogs estimate is nothing less than 10 crore paycheck to Akshay .

Its surprising that they have used their oldest legendary product 501 as the product hero , the buttoned jeans for this campaign Will it work ? well thats a good question as there is no doubt that there is suddenly SOV for the brand , however the product is nothing new ,so Levis expects consumers to wakin to their stores just by the unbottoned campaign ,which according this blog wouldnt /mite not happen .The next scenario would be of high footfalls but No buy , thats a possibility as most of the Levis stuff sometimes doesnt fit the Tg walking in ,Levis should do a thourough demographic study of the age profile of the visitors into the store and the buyers from the store ,there is a disconnect between the merchandise and , say >35 age consumers walking in have hardly have much choices , and the Youth segment which Levis claims to be catering to hardly walks in to their stores check it out !!So in a such a scenario the Merchandise play at the stores would be key .

Levis success story has been in India for their global operations as mentioned before , Levis India continues to be in a HOT spot , although there is no published report on their profitability ,it must be under tremendous pressure considering the huge retail ramp up they have done in India , they have stores in remote Calicut even too now ! The last time Levis got a boost in India was when controversy dogged them with their "dangerously low campaign" , this time things seem to be much more sober ,however keep an eye on the female models hand in the print campaign ! Lets wait and see whether Akshay really becomes a Khiladi for Levis ,watch this blog for more details .Levis seems to have got the timing wrong as the entire environment for retail business is extremely lukewarm currently !

Watch the Levis advt :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OIzBY1WldA

The I phone Launch --- Case Study of What not not do in a product launch

2008-08-24T07:38:00.000-07:00

...well well we have been out of action on this blog but , we would get hyperactive soon ..... lets start with the Iphone launch in India ,that reminds one about how you mite have the worlds best brands behind a product ,and how marketing brains can sometimes not work at all in the best brands too ,the i phone launch in India is a classic case of how not to launch a new product , here's is why

Don't take the consumers for granted : Everyone knows how well informed the consumers are about happenings across the world , so when the iphone retails at around $ 199 in the US with bundle tariff plan , why the hell should a consumer pay for the same phone around $750 ,true Indian economy is growing etc , but the pricing should have been exactly in reverse ! with unlocking capabilities running in the blood off most 3rd world countries ,this is absolutely an excel sheet approach to pricing , there is no market reality check here !

Your most communicated USP is not available !: When you make your communication all over the place about it being a 3G phone , the advt says iphone 3g , where is the 3g service in India ?, not ready for the next 6 months ,minimum , in the next 6 months ,anyone with the Iphone from the current lot , would be able to get the same at $ 150 rates for sure as prices are surely gone come down !

The Indian market Compatibility : Have seen the i phone being used by some of my friends from the grey market !yes its available at half the rates if needed , well well most have them moved to other business phones , why ? the screen of the iphone becomes so dirty after all the fingering one does on it ! that its a nightmare to see .A small reminder of no change specific for the Indian market , but a straight fit from the Us of a !

The Indians are a smart breed , the iphone at current rates and with the grey market realities staring , we didnt see any great ques as in the US of a , that only happened when Reliance launched its Monsoon hungama as part of its mobile service roll out,hope people remember that , so the uniqueness factor of this launch has been as good as zero , this blog estimates a not more than 75k sales for this product in its initial launch against the 3 lakhs etc that is estimated , watch this blog for more details! the iphone3g has got it wrong for sure !

Mind 1 Shelf 0 !

2008-06-01T00:07:00.000-07:00

What's on your consumers mind is it on your shelf ? is a good question to always ask both at a marketing front and on the operations front in retail , or any other consumer products business .

Brands spend crores in driving awareness and desire , when the consumers come seeking in for the product , its a sheer waste when they dont find what they have come looking for .This is what the blog would term as "mind1 shelf 0 "(tm) phenomenon ( where on the mind gets 1 , not on your shelf gets 0 )

So why does this happen always , yes its a historical issue but never is addressed ...here is this blogs take on the why piece

i) Too many variants ::most of the problems occur due to the brand's great desire to satisfy everyone , thus the great urge for more skus 'which could take the shape of too many colors ,sizes , contents etc , so more the variants more the chance of "mind 1 shelf 0 " phenomenon ,take a max of two winning variants , with proper demand forecasting and production planning you will see the difference .

ii) Under Projection :: Sometimes demand > supply , due to wrong demand estimation or unexpected customer reaction ( very ideal situation !) rarely happens these days ,this situation gets corrected naturally as when demand > supply , the consumers would come back asking for it , so you get time to correct the "mind 1 shelf 0 " phenomenon.

iii) Operations and SCM :: If you don't know what is moving on an online basis , what size , color etc and what is not moving then GOD only help you .it will be "mind 1 shelf 0 " always and soon " mind 0 shelf 0 " for you ! .

iv ) The Great Vendor debate ::In spite of most brands having the state of art IT deployment , and putting a horde of team members behind whats mentioned in point iii) above , they are not able to get their act right still as their is the great Vendor dependency .if the Vendor is not aligned ,you had it !

so how does "mind1 shelf0" get measured ::

low conversion percentage :: Bills generated as a percentage to the footfalls to your counter is a good measure , higher the conversion could be an indicator to "mind1 shelf 1 " ( ie what is on the mind is on the shelf thus 1 1) , although conversion is not only influenced by this factor .

low items per bill ,or upt :: the other measure is the number of items that a consumer generates per bill , a low item per bill is an quickly good indicator for your" mind 1 ,shelf 0 " phenomenon .

With a growing apathy of going out considering the traffic scene in most cities , and a shopping also being driven by Word of mouth ,consumers don't have the time and desire to give outlets a second chance so brands would do well to get their play on "mind 1 shelf 0 " right , otherwise it would be soon "MIND 0 SHELF 0 " soon for your business !

SHOPPERS STOP ( HAD TO) START SOMETHING NEW !

2008-05-07T12:28:00.001-07:00

Media is abuzz with the rebranding exercise by Shoppers ,v are not surprised with this , Shoppers has fast lost its sheen and direction , in an era that has seen a multitude of retailers enter the market ,Shoppers was neither able to position itself as a premium retailer or mass ,caught in between it was about to be crushed .The results of the last qtr that is q3( 07-08 ) was nothing short of a disaster , the writing was on the wall .

Know it all !
Shoppers stop system had an element and continues to have an aura built around it , stemming from the fact that they were the pioneers in some way of the organised retail !

MARKETING & OPERATIONS VACUUM !
This Retailer had some of the best Marketing and Operations brains working for them , people with excellent credentials , till say 2005 ,all have left for sure the vacuum is showing , haven't seen anything great on the marketing front , the loyalty program which was the strength , is another run of the mill program replicated by others too ! The operations across all stores has deteriorated ,people who have seen the operation rigour in the late 90's or early 2000 ,would notice the distinct dip in the rigour ,along with scale of operations ,control of operation has gone out of the window ( this looks like a problem with all retailers though !)

RISK AVERSE !
Shoppers other problem is not thinking BIG , see their roll out of the Home Stop , no distinct USP , nothing unique ,Shoppers can't and have the BIG thinking of say a Pantaloon group ! God , knows why didn't they get into e commerce business in a big way , although they had tested this a good 6 years back !

All that they are good at is looking at data , do all sort of analysis , so as they say paralysis wouldn't be far away , and it came with the q3 results !

not sure whether a re branding exercise would alone help , there would have to be complete overhaul and execution of the strategy at all levels

Marketing Blogs Directory

2008-05-05T10:32:00.000-07:00

Some very interesting blogs & sites on marketing , Enjoy !

http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/
http://www.marketingprofs.com/
http://brandautopsy.typepad.com/
http://brandchannel.com/
http://www.indianstoryboard.blogspot.com/
http://brand-ad.blogspot.com/
http://indianbrands.blogspot.com/
small business blog
Spotlight Ideas
Stupid Marketing
Super Brands
http://www.ramabijapurkar.com/

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/

http://harishbijoor.blogspot.com/

http://marketinginindia.wordpress.com

http://marketingchitchat.wordpress.com/

http://blog.searchenginewatch.com

http://www.seobythesea.com

http://adage.com/adages

http://www.ducttapemarketing.com/blog

http://wendy.kinesisinc.com

http://www.frederiksamuel.com/blog

http://www.adage.com

http://www.pronetadvertising.com

http://www.adverblog.com

http://www.toprankblog.com

More reviews and updates later !

Evolving Asian Consumer

2008-05-03T23:00:00.000-07:00

A lot of studies done in the field of psychology suggest that Asians' way of thinking is fundamentally different from the westerners. A book written by Richard Nisbett, called 'The geography of thought' outlines the details of the differences and implications of the same. The key differences are:

1. Asians look at everything 'within a context', while westerners look at things 'individually' or in isolation which is independent of the context. Westerners therefore pay more attention to the specific attributes of the object and would judge it in the same way irrespective of the occasion/situation. But Asians could judge the product differently in different situations! For instance, if you ask a westerner to describe himself, he would talk about his likes, what his passions are, what he want to achieve in life, etc. Asian is more likely to describe what people at work think of him and what kind of husband/father/brother he is. Asians are very comfortable in changing roles from one situation to another and they behave the way society expects them to behave - there is no ambiguity in switching roles and they are very comfortable in quick transition from one role to another. A westerner, on the other hand, would behave in the same way whether he is in office or at home or with friends. All this comes from the fundamental belief of Asians that everything is connected to each other and everything is a part of larger 'continuum' where anything done by anyone can affect everybody. There are slightly different versions of this in Indian, Chinese and Japanese philosophies, but they are essentially the same on this front.

2. Because of this belief, Asians are comfortable in accepting that the opposites can exist at the same time. Contradictions do not make them uncomfortable. The yin and the yang philosophy of Chinese is similar to the Indian belief that opposites are always together. (For instance Indians believe that sadness would always follow happiness, rich people/countries are bound to see poverty in the future). Westerns thinking, on the other hand, has been very 'logic' oriented where contradictions don't exist. For instance, a very common principle in the development of scientific theories in the west has been to prove that the opposite of the hypothesis is false (and hence the hypothesis is true). Asians indeed struggle with this kind of thinking and this actually leads to several Asians having to work much harder in the American universities for their PhDs!These are the reasons why Asian philosophy, science, way of life is different from westerners. One of the big examples is the system of Ayurveda or even the Traditional Chinese Medicinal system which believe in holistic treatment rather than curing the symptom. If you go to an Ayurvedic doctor for a headache, he would prescribes the entire diet change, gives medicines for overall digestion improvement which would seem far away from the problem you went to him for! A western doctor would simply give you a pain killer for a headache!Anyway, the implications for us, selling products to consumers in Asia and the west are huge! It has implications on the way the way we position our brands, the way we advertise and the way we do consumer testing. It also addresses an often asked question - if the Asian consumers are evolving with their economic growths - would they evolve in the same direction as the west has?My submission to this would be - no they would evolve differently, because they are fundamentally different from westerners.

I recently presented a paper at global ESOMAR conference highlighting how Asian consumers are evolving and how the evolution is different from the west. This was done by studying consumer evolution various consumer goods categories (soaps, shampoos, detergents, skin care, etc) in the last ten years and comparing it with the western market.

Important learnings from that analysis are:1. Spontaneous recall levels are changing: Number of brands that consumers can recall spontaneously is going up! But the number of ads she can recall spontaneously is going down. This is true in Asia as well as in Europe. This means that we have a lower chance of our ad being noticed, but if the ad is well branded and relevant to her, she may remember the brand name!

Also, there is no point in mindlessly increasing GRPs for the ad - that would only increase the clutter and reduce the recall chances further.

2. Consumer needs are changing: This trend is also common in Asia and Europe (indeed it started happening in Europe much before Asia). The needs are changing in two ways:1. Needs are becoming more specific in each category: For instance, Indonesian women expected mosituriser to be good and suitable to all etc 8 years ago. Today, she wants it to care for her, make her fairer, younger and be innovative and premium. Same is true for shampoos - which have been transformed from a cleansing into beauty category. Needless to say that this change has been brought about by marketers, along with the influence of media from the west.

3. Consumer is simplifying and prioratising: With increasing clutter and brands making all sorts of noises, consumer is beginning to prioratise on what she wants and what gives her what she wants! For instance, facial foams in Thailand were expected to give her beauty care, apart from cleansing in 1998. But today, she expects facial foams to give her effective cleansing more than anything else!3. Evolution of brands: This is where Asia and Europe start becoming different! In Asia, with this consumer evolution, brands have gone from being generic good for all brands to the ones that are differentiated on some key needs. Which means, consumers today see different brands being suitable for different needs (Sunsilk for beauty, H&S for dandruff and so on). Asian consumers (who are used to dealing with ambiguity and are used to seeing things differently in different lights as the discourse above highlights) manage to break through the clutter and recognise what brands stands for what benefit. Westerners, on the other hand are not!! The brands in Europe have remained largely as undifferentiated as they were 10 years ago! Consumers have not been able to understand how one brand is different from another. It would be hard to justify this by saying European marketers are not clever enough - but Richard Nisbett's theories come in handy!

4. Changing consumer behaviour: Here the difference between European and Asian consumers gets magnified even more. Asian consumers, who see many things at the same time, who are able to see brands differently from each other are using more brands at the same time. They have been increasing their purchase basket by buying more number of brands within a category (like I said Sunsilk for beauty, H&S for dandruff). However, the amount spend does not increase dramatically - which means smaller pack sizes have a huge role to play. Europeans on the other hand, given their aversion to contradiction and complexity, have not increased their basket size. They stop buying one brand and then switch to another instead of using multiple brands at the same time. This is I think the true manifestation of the fundamental difference between Asians and Westerners.

So what are the biggest implications for us with all this learnings?

1. Smaller pack sizes would continue to be key - not just because Asians are poor! But also because they love to experiment and use multiple brands.

2. Variants within a brand can exist - as long as you can differentiate them clearly on key benefits sought by consumers

3. Increase in GRPs for increasing salience could be mindless. A good focussed advertising could make the consumer remember your brand, even if she does not remember the ad

4. Keep discovering the new and innovative benefits and keep the consumer evolving. If you don't, someone else will

5. The biggest of all - don't expect a brand/variant to be successful in Asia, just because its been in the west. If you want to sell a pasta, don't expect Asian woman to stop consuming noodle! She would probably add it to her basket initially and cook it like a noodle. But don't expect her to start eating a pasta like a European!
Get in touch with the author at "mailto:makkhi@gmail.com ....This is A Guest Blogger Post

Godrej decides to change !

2008-04-28T10:30:00.000-07:00

...After a period of complete hibernation wherein customer had almost forgotten the brand , yes the brand that gave us the Godrej Puf , the legendary Godrej Storwel ... Godrej finally seems to have woken up , in all sense it is one of the legendary brands that has withstood time , and cuts across product categories ,so what has kicked this sudden awakening , obviously the left behind syndrome , and complete loss of relevance in spite of it being clearly strongly entrenched as a various categories , like say hair dye , office furniture , security equipment , locks ,plus not being among the brands speaking to current set of consumers , who are more youthful in numbers .

so out comes the new logo to start with , Dissecting the logo, citrus green is about expression, representing growth, harmony with nature and renewed life. Sky blue embodies progression – big ideas, blue sky thinking, technology and innovation. Ruby red reflects cherished experiences – passion, indulgence, energy and dynamism.

Work done by the international brand consultancy Interbrand , after some initial work by Shining of Bangalore , we are told , which fell off .

Also inside news is that there is a fund over drive they are getting into shortly , whatever it is about , the elephant wants to dance finally !

It remains to be seen how Godrej goes abt operationalising this change on the ground , which we are sure they will have a tough time ,and how it builds a renewed connect with the new consumers ! watch this blog for more !

Welcome to Indian Marketing!

2008-04-27T04:38:00.000-07:00

..well we will try to be the Story board for ALL Indian marketing related topics , be it latest camapigns , moves in the markets across categories ,the lesser knowns or the men behind the scenes of all great campaigns , whats new in marketing , how does the Indian marketeer talk to such a volumunus mass of people and how does he /she make the brand relevant for the consumer ! what makes one brand tick and another not , and why ! How does marketing and PPT's have a strong correlation ! why does a marketing role be a a thankless job most of the time ?

Be rest assured we will cover all aspects of it , we are professionals with > 15 years of marketing with leading FMCG and telecom brands , we are yet to see everything , but yes we have seen some of the things , and have decided to pen our story on http://www.indianstoryboard.blogspot.com/, hope you enjoy it !