Environment or Envy?

With world leaders gung ho about COP15 on climate change; global warming has caught the imagination of Indian media. Corporates too are happy to dabble in this green marketing game and ‘green meetings’ are the buzz words in India Inc.’s corridor of power. Not to be left behind, the hospitality industry is also turning on its green charm. Big star hotels like Ecotel, Orchid, ITC Royal Gardenia and Renaissance are gearing up with various new concepts to lure customers. The idea is to provide corporates with everything which is eco-friendly including the scrumptious delicacies on the menu. So the average menu has begun reading like a dream for the size zero aficionados viz. fresh, organic and local delicacies that in turn translate into lower carbon foot prints. An independent hospitality industry analyst explains the rationale behind these overtures, “The expenditure incurred on such meetings is at least twice that of a conventional meeting which is a key reason for hotels to dabble in this. It also increases employment and creates a ripple effect for the hotel business.” Presently, green meetings contribute just 1-2% to overall hotel revenues, but the same has the potential to reach 8-10% levels by 2012. Is that your saliva turning green?

Neha Saraiya

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Help yourself, please!

The persistent turmoil in the aviation sector coupled with the mounting losses quarter after quarter (all thanks to the increasing input costs) have left Indian aviators high and dry. Moreover, all the major players, which include Kingfisher Airlines, Jet Airways and Air India, are also over burdened with huge debts mounting over them. While, Kingfisher Airlines has a debt of about Rs.90 billion, Jet Airways has a massive burden of about Rs.150 billion on its back. Well, the less we talk about Air India’s financial standing, the better it is! All these financial obstacles have forced the domestic players to urge the Civil Aviation Ministry to relax the FDI investment cap from the current 49%. However, a pertinent question that arises is, will this proposed increase in foreign investment in the sector actually solve all the problems of the airlines? “Airlines need to ensure that they match capacity with demand. There are currently too many airlines, with too many seats, chasing too few passengers. This will require more effective management as well as consolidation in the form of mergers and market exits,” suggests Binit Somaia, Regional Director, CAPA. Surely, apart from foreign investment, the airlines should also look at route rationalisation and cost cutting as effective measures to overcome the crunch. Somaia also highlights the role of the government in pulling the players out of the quicksand as he says: “The government’s key role is to provide a regulatory framework that provides certainty to investors, which is currently missing in the aviation sector.” Thus, it is not only the financial support that is required, but also the various aforesaid measures that must be adopted by the bleeding airlines to help themselves.

Ratan Lal Bhagat

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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The brand was in deep financial trouble till just about three years ago.

Today, a new management, cash infusion and a fresh communication, are striving to bring back brand OCM. The Amritsar-based textile manufacturer, which missed out on its big chance is now back with a vengeance demanding its due. By Angshuman Paul

The 36 acre OCM Estate runs parallel to the Grand Trunk Road in Amritsar and its serene outer facade almost transports you to the time-honoured colonial era. But walk inside the sprawling premises and you would perhaps be almost startled at the sudden flurry of activity that will surround you. It is this perceptual dichotomy that captures the past, present and future essence of this worsted suiting producer more than anything else. For a brand that had almost disappeared from public life over the past few years, the zest and energy at the OCM Estate these days is almost tangible. Spanking new billboards and hoardings have mushroomed across the complex featuring the new goals for OCM’s managers; men and women walk about with a definite purpose and a swing in their steps; someone is talking animatedly into the phone about the recent boost in OCM’s institutional sales figures, while somebody else is showing off a PPT of the recently concluded OCM Dealer’s Conference in Dubai to an audience of premium dealers shortlisted to take forward OCM’s new retail ambition of opening exclusive brand outlets across India and even Europe... WL Ross, the US-based private equity fund management company, which acquired the loss-making OCM from the S. K. Birla Group for $37 million in 2007, is seemingly leaving no stone unturned to not just get brand OCM back on its feet, but to perhaps, even surpass its past glory many times over.

To understand the changes in OCM’s present, it’s important to appreciate the brand’s past. Originally intended to manufacture carpets (OCM actually stands for Oriental Carpet Manufacturing), OCM was started by a group of British merchants from the East India Company and has changed ownership thrice ever since. The first was when India’s oldest business family intervened and the S. K. Birla Group acquired OCM with an intention of manufacturing suiting materials. Under the Birlas, the brand name shrunk to its acronym OCM and emerged as a textile behemoth, with an annual production capacity of 8.4 million metres.

But losses were heavy and three years ago, when WL Ross & Co. bought the ailing company, fresh funds injected were first used to repay OCM’s mounting debts. Analysts say that though OCM was sick financially, it had created a huge brand value as a tweed suitings producer. Likewise, the first big investment that Ross made in OCM was of Rs.75 million for re-engineering OCM’s brand image in the Indian market.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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THIS IS NO HERD MENTALITY

Success depends a lot on how you approach your target audience

After data management, product customisation and segmentation & targeting comes the turn of reaching the target audience using the right channels. When private sector bank, ICICI Bank decided to enter rural India with the aim to give loans for buying cattle to small farmers, they faced a lot of resistance, as farmers were more comfortable with local lenders and sahukars than with a bank. Another major deterrent was the extensive paperwork involved in getting a loan. To overcome this stiff resistance, ICICI launched a unique high impact rural marketing campaign called the Kamdhenu Cattle Loan Campaign. Through this joint campaign by ICICI Bank’s Rural and Microbanking and Agri Business Group (RMAG) and ICICI Lombard General Insurance, farmers were approached and were shown a short film on how availing a cattle loan is easy and not a cumbersome process. Avers Pranav Prasad, Head–Rural & Agriculture Business Group, ICICI Lombard General Insurance, “Kamdhenu was aimed at creating awareness among rural consumers about hedging their economic loss in the event of injury to the cattle due to illness or other perils.” Spread over a period of 150 days across five states and 48 districts, the campaign generated the requisite awareness. Post campaign, awareness levels about cattle loan increased by over 20% amongst the TG.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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There’s a critic!

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

Diptarup Chakraborty,
Principal Analyst, Gartner

This campaign by Yahoo is basically to attract and capture new users that are coming onto the Internet. I don’t think that this is to arrest people that are already using Yahoo! and its services. Talking about the logic behind the campaign, yes, it will help improve the brand value of Yahoo! but the critical fact is that I don’t think Yahoo! will exist over the next two years.

The brand has lost a lot of value and weight in the recent past, and this campaign only appears to be increasing the brand value of Yahoo! to make it more appealing and attractive to potential bidders. Questions are also being raised on why Yahoo! chose to invest in rebranding, instead of investing more on R&D and innovation. The reason is that innovation is a long-term process while branding exercises produce returns within a relatively shorter time period. Also, innovation is much more a risky deal compared to branding exercises. This therefore, justifies Yahoo’s act! Talking about how competition may react to this latest branding strategy by Yahoo!, I don’t think they will react at all. They are definitely stronger than Yahoo! is and two years down the line, I simply see this online war being a two-player game between Google and Microsoft. So this rebranding strategy may not be worth the time and money spent...

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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LOOKING AHEAD...

Who says an old horse can’t learn new tricks? Godrej, the business house that has been around for over 112 years, is learning them fast... indeed, very fast!

Last year, when we first visited the sprawling 20,000 acre Godrej campus in Mumbai, it looked like a sylvan oasis of tranquility, untouched amidst the bustling madness of Mumbai. However, only few knew that behind this serenity lay a turbulent sea, where this 112-yearold business house was fighting a high tide of calculated metamorphosis.

In fact, it was in 2007 that Adi Godrej and his senior management team realised that the brand pedigree of Godrej was not enough to tackle aggressive rivals and newcomers. The top management of this $2.8 billion conglomerate knew that the time had come to drill into the collective psyche of the 23,000 strong Godrej ‘family’, that it requires change. The ubiquitous result was the corporate logo change in 2008, followed by a slew of other marketing and organisational changes that promised to take brand Godrej to a much wider, urban and younger audience. Nobody is saying whether the slowdown precipitated matters or whether the sweeping brand repositioning is Godrej’s way of preparing itself for the future? Chairman Adi Godrej told this magazine, “Our survey showed that the perception about Godrej products required change. They needed to be connected more with today’s young Indians.” Leading from the front is Tanya Dubash, the 30-year-old daughter of Adi Godrej and Director & President – Marketing at Godrej. Starting from 360-degree advertising to changes in HR strategies, she is using all tactics to bring about a change in the positioning of the brand Godrej. Not only Tanya, even the other three young members of the family (Nisa Godrej, Navroze Godrej & Pirojsha Godrej) are seriously lending a helping hand.

No doubt, with FMCG products contributing most to the group’s profit, Godrej has all reasons to re-structure these cash-cows to maintain a steady flow of revenues in the future. But here’s why market watchers point towards the slowdown as the big catalyst. Though FMCG might be recession proof, Godrej’s other ventures like durables, appliances and furniture, et al (target audience for which are young couples in metros), have perhaps been affected by the slowdown and surely require an image makeover. “We are creating a platform that will enable synergy in distribution and supply chain management for various business,” elaborates Kamal Nandi, VP, Sales & Marketing, Godrej Appliances. After all, the times, they say, are changing... even for the Godrej Group!

Angshuman Paul

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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A 20-year itch?

The recent bbdo and pizza hut split has left many in the global ad-frat bewildered, given that the parting of ways came after 20 long years. But this has not been the first such occurrence and if anything client-agency relations have become more fractious with time. In fact, the last few years have really been harsh on them. While the account of Magnum Ice creams (handled by McCann Erickson) moved to Lowe Lintas, Cornetto (under Heart brand) was shifted to DDB. Similarly, Unilever’s popular deo brand Axe, which was earlier handled by Lowe, finally fell into BBH’s palette. So what is it that makes clients to shop for a step agency? Notably, it’s not always a wrecked relationship between the two (as perceived by many!), instead there are a number of factors that are responsible for this habitude. “Pizza Hut always has had multiple agencies on its board, which include O&M, JWT, et al. So it’s not exactly an account shift,” avers Ajay Jhala, CEO, BBDO India. Moreover, even a change in management at client’s organisation (or even the agency!) can lead to an account movement. As Jhala further adds, “Sometimes a sudden upheaval in the market can also prove to be major reason for the break up between the two”. It’s time that agencies catch up with the clients’ changing needs or else one could see some more break-ups, for sure!

Neha Saraiya

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Biding adieu to the good ol’ Devil!

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It’s been turning many eyes green for more than two decades now. But, the electronics & home appliances maker Onida has finally bid adieu to the Devil. Sriram Krishnamurthy, Vice President, Marketing & Services, Onida, reasons the sad demise...

4Ps B&M: Although Onida wanted to adopt a renewed positioning, but was it really important to drop the Devil considering that it had high recall and was instrumental in the growth of Onida, especially in the television category?
SK: Envy has lost relevance as an emotional driver of durables purchase, which has become a necessity and is no more a luxury. And, consequently the Devil loses its meaning as a representation of Envy. Therefore, we decided to move away from using the Devil as our mascot.

4Ps B&M: From ‘Neighbour’s Envy, Owner’s Pride’ to ‘Tumko Dekha To Yeh Design Aaya,” how has Onida’s communication strategy evolved?
SK: “Neighbour’s Envy” was a breakthrough campaign in the 80s and 90s and it really boosted our share in the television market. Our new campaign, “Tumko Dekha To Yeh Design Aaya” is not just a tagline or a communication strategy, but our intention to make it a reflection of our organisational culture – one of continuous customer-centered innovations.

4Ps B&M: Going forward, what is your advertising and marketing plan?
SK: We intend to re-establish ourselves as a multi-category durables brand with a strong customer-centered promise of thoughtfulness. Towards this, we plan to double our current spending of about Rs.500 million on advertising and promotions outlay to Rs.1 billion in this financial year. The ratio between various media/months is not fixed and will be re-allocated on a dynamic basis.

4Ps B&M: What does your media mix look like?
SK: Our campaign will run extensively over television. Apart from that, we are also devising a comprehensive 360-degree campaign covering all media verticals – radio, cinema, print, outdoor and digital media. We will also launche point-of-sale merchandise.


4Ps B&M: So, Onida is all set on the ‘Promotion’ front. But, what new is happening with the product considering that Onida KY Thunder Series was the last blockbuster product from the stable?
SK: All our four campaign ads – across categories – today reflect strong new innovative product propositions. However, technology is a commodity nowadays and therefore we will need continuous innovativeness to stay ahead in the consumers’ minds.

4Ps B&M: And what’s Onida’s exact positioning?
SK: Our positioning is not based on price but on ‘Thoughtful Innovations’. All Onida products represent exceptional value to customers – great quality at the right price points.

4Ps B&M: Can you elaborate on your retail strategy?
SK: We are currently working through multi-brand retail outlets. We are working on a plan for some exclusive Onida retail outlets so that customers can get to experience the entire Onida product range which is difficult to achieve in multi-brand outlet formats.

Savreen Gadhoke

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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FROM 2-MINUTES TO 25 YEARS…

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...the journey has been quite delicious for a phenomenon that has entangled young and old alike in its twirling noodles, says Savreen Gadhoke

“Mummy bhook lagi hai… Bas beta 2 minute!” The popular jingle coined in 1984 seems as relevant today as it was 25 years back. In fact, it starts resonating in our head once we hear the word – Maggi. But then, the start of this journey wasn’t all that smooth. When Maggi was launched in 1984 (first convenience food to be launched in India), the foremost concern among Nestlé honchos was with regards to the promotion and positioning of this instant noodle product in the Indian market – a category which hitherto had no strong footing on the desi soil and a market that never believed in packaged food. But, charged with the challenge to create a new food habit across age groups, the ‘2-minute’ jingle was composed and well, the rest is history. In fact, it has quietly slipped into the lives of millions of consumers with unique associations and fond memories – a favourite tiffin, a treat for hostelers or delight for the newly weds. Reckoned as a convenience food with ‘Taste bhi, health bhi,’ Maggi has indeed come a long way since its foray.

And in 2009, when Maggi initiated the celebrations to mark the completion of its 25 years in India by launching the “Me & meri Maggi” campaign, there were many who even went nostalgic. The campaign, created and conceptualised by Publicis India, traverses down the memory lane and captures real memories of consumers attached with Maggi. Even the packaging of Maggi carries pictures of commoners showcasing their bond with Maggi, for instance, “Meri hamesha hamesha ka saath Maggi.” The campaign is certainly based on the strength of this unique emotional bond that consumers have developed and continue to associate with Maggi. Says Emmanuel Upputuru (who worked on the commercial), “Indians have grown up having Maggi. Such is its popularity that even elders enjoy it as much as youngster. Through this commercial, we wanted to capture the moments shared by all with Maggi.”

With the insight that today’s young generation is continuously on-the-go and copes with a busy lifestyle, and need products that offer taste, nutrition and convenience, Maggi introduced ‘Maggi Cuppa Mania’ as a trendy ally of the multitasking generation. It also launched – Maggi Bhuna Masala – a ready-made cooking paste of Tomato and Onion (with and without Garlic). Says Shivani Hegde, GM Foods “…We worked closely with the Nestle R&D Centre in Singapore, who have used their technological know-how and our knowledge of culinary art in India to develop an innovative product that does not have any added preservatives and contains low levels of oil.” The launch of this product has further made inroads for Maggi to become an integral part of everyday cooking in India.

Harping over the ‘value for money’ quotient as its core strength, Maggi maintained the price point of Maggi 2-Minute Noodles at Rs.10 and Chotu Maggi at Rs.5 all year round (despite rise in prices of key input materials). In its endeavour to make Maggi Tomato Ketchup affordable to many more families, Maggi also launched Maggi Pichkoo, an easy to handle, squeezable pack of Maggi Ketchup priced at Rs.12.

Today, Maggi stands generic to its category. With continuous innovation and renovation of its product portfolio based on strong consumer insights, Maggi has become an integral part of millions of Indians. But certainly not in 2 minutes, they say!

Ambika Sharma
National Head, Jagran Solutions
“Maggi is like a pal that gives you a comfortable space. It’s a companion in odd hour. And no doubt, it carries a few characteristics of a contemporary mom too. In fact, the category of processed food would have maintained a far distance from consumers had Maggi not existed. I won’t even hesitate to say that millions of Indians can go on a hunger-strike for Maggi.”

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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