Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN
If you are a market leader or a brand with long years of expertise or a trusted name, reassurance advertising that reinforces trust may sometimes work as a great slowdown strategy. We’ve seen a lot of that in recent times. A case in point is ICICI bank, which maintained its leadership position by reinforcing ‘50 years of believing in each other’ – a platform that celebrated its long years of existence, expertise and partnership. Tata Capital, which came in as a new player at the height of slowdown, made the unusual choice driving reassurance at launch when it went with the ‘We’ll only do what’s right for you’ campaign. The importance of driving trust and reassurance in the insecure, volatile climate of a slowdown can’t be over-emphasised. And even far away from the world of commerce, it’s interesting to note that the Congress party has used the reassurance logic when it mentioned the progress made by its government as part of its election strategy.
Then there has been a third category of players who were already faltering on growth or image or relevance, even before the slowdown. The advent of the slowdown gave them the impetus to correct their course. A case in point is Videocon, which came out with its well thought out repositioning strategy that involved a new visual identity and a change in approach to get connected better with today’s consumers. The new positioning line of ‘Experience change’ as well as the ‘Chouw Mouw’ campaign fell in very neatly with the overall attempt to make brand Videocon fresher, younger and more relevant.
So, is re-branding and repositioning every brand’s strategic answer to every slowdown? Looking at the experiences of various marketers, the answer would be that ‘It all depends’. If a man wants to look more modern, then wearing rimless glasses and pink shirts, and parting your hair in a different way is not the only way to go. And the story is the same with brands. Marketing budgets are always tight, and especially during a slowdown, one has to be choosy about how best they can be employed, because every decision takes money away from another. And sometimes there are some high efficacy answers to be found without the need for any drastic repositioning exercise. Thums Up had a record year without any change in its campaign, much less any repositioning. Idea Cellular’s ‘What an idea sirji’ campaign, followed by the ‘Walk when you talk’ campaign not only helped the brand make a turnaround, but also drove saliency and a more youthful image. Similarly, Complan grew despite commanding a price premium in the heart of the slowdown, by its simple choice of driving its irresistible kesar-badam flavour with advertising targeted at kids. And driving its growth message harder by the ‘Twice as fast’ claim.
Once the genuine need for rebranding is established, a slowdown is as good a time as any other to carry it through. Since many advertisers cut back in times of slowdown, consumers tend to pay more attention to the brands that are advertising and what they are saying during a slowdown. The problem comes when brand and agency teams get too trigger-happy and repositioning becomes the easy way out.
At the end of the day, it comes down to good judgment. Marketers who can look objectively at their brands, keep their hand steady and their minds ticking even as the markets slump, will live through the slowdown, and when they wake up the next day, their world will be straight again!
Arvind Sharma is Chairman-Indian Subcontinent, Leo Burnett
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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