Fastrack's latest ad campaign wants you to 'Shut the Fake Up!'

Do you know someone who puts up a filter for the sake of it? Someone who uses a hashtag not knowing what it stands for or goes to parties just to be socially relevant? Do you laugh at things you don’t find funny or do you spend too much time in front of the mirror at the gym than the weights? Fastrack has four really real words for them- Shut the Fake Up!

Brought to life in the film by Happy McGarrybowen, Fastrack urges this very philosophy.

Watch the spot:

With this campaign, Fastrack challenges the norms and carves a pathway for millennials. Be it being big and beautiful, being online or offline, or simply being different and unique in your own way. It’s all about being real - online and off it. Speaking on the new direction, Suparna Mitra, Chief Marketing Officer at Titan said: “Following our tradition of being in tune with the language of the youth, this campaign fits in, seamlessly. Fastrack has always spoken the language of the youth and this TVC is no exception. Set in a relevant background, the film represents many quintessential elements to today’s youngster; from a simple chat, to actually meeting the person. The TVC borrows from the archetypal ‘boy meets girl’ narrative and showcases two versions of your life - with and without Fastrack.”

Ayushman Chiranewala, Head of Marketing, Fastrack: “Fastrack being a young brand has always been the candid voice of the millennial generation. The brand has always stayed true to being unapologetic and bold in its communication. The new 'Shut the Fake Up' campaign is a testament to the brand’s longstanding philosophy of being true to yourself and breaking status quo. As part of the larger campaign, the brand looks to ignite amongst its audience the thought of living their lives on their own accord, and we at Fastrack celebrate this individuality.”

Kartik Iyer, CEO Happy Mcgarrybowen, had to say: “The common thread we found was that the youth today are less and less afraid of baring themselves and showing who they truly are. We thought this was a great point of view for Fastrack to stand up and own.”

The campaign is being run on television along with extensive engagements on Social Media. Lowe Lintas, Bangalore continues to manage the brand’s creative duties.

Campaign credits:

Agency: Happy McGarrybowen

CEO: Kartik Iyer

COO: Samarjit Choudhry

Creative: Vijay Joy, Pranav Karnad and Ajeesh

Account Management: Ameya Lokhande and Siddharth Sharma

Creative Producer: Siddharth Vaidyanathan

Production House: Nirvana Films

Director: Kishore Iyyar

Producer: Manjeet Bawa

Source:https://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/advertising/fastracks-latest-ad-campaign-wants-you-to-shut-the-fake-up/62378485

Here's why Cliq is Tata's second coming in e-commerce

Tata Group's e-commerce venture Cliq will not gun for the number one spot in the country but would rather become a niche player, said Cliq's chief executive Ashutosh Pandey. 

"While Amazon and Flipkart can become the Walmarts of Indian e-commerce selling everything under the sun, we want to be seen as the John Lewis of the space," said Pandey. John Lewis is an upmarket chain of department stores in the UK. 

Curated products that are aspirational in nature would be Cliq's USP, Pandey said, apart from its hyperlocal omni-channel strategy, which is being called 'Phygital' by the company. 

This is the Tata Group's second-coming in the online space after the online foray by its consumer electronics retail arm Croma failed to set cash registers ringing. The company will also differentiate itself with exclusive partnerships with top brands in consumer electronics and apparel categories. 

Last week, it entered into a partnership with Gurgaon-based marketer and distributor Genesis Luxury Fashion for brands that include Coach, Burberry, Giorgio Armani and Tumi. 

"The fight for customer acquisition by burning cash has given existing players in the market overlapping sets of customers," said Pandey. "For instance, if there are 40-50 million online shoppers here, every established player says that it has around 30 million registered shoppers." 

Pandey said the Indian e-commerce market will play out like its European counterpart, which has space for several specialized players apart from the big daddies such as Amazon. Several top Indian conglomerates such Reliance, Aditya Birla and Mahindra & Mahindra have launched their own respective e-commerce ventures recently. 

"The market will see an upswing from the latter half of this year as 4G and 3G networks stabilize," said Pandey. "In the next 3-4 years, online shopping is going to be big." 

Cliq is piloting an intra-city logistics exercise to connect its network of stores that includes Westside and others. For inter-city transport, it has roped in independent logistics companies. 

To acquire customers, Cliq will draw on the strength of Tata Group's offline retail ventures. Pandey said marketing will play a big role too and the company has kept aside a significant budget for offline and online promotion to drive repeat purchases

Source:http://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/business-of-brands/heres-why-cliq-is-tatas-second-coming-in-e-commerce/52513778

The new rules of marketing to kids

Did you know that Mondelez can feature kids below eight years of age in its advertisements only if they're shown under the supervision of parents or guardians who're 'affirming responsible and monitored consumption'? Or that Coca-Cola can't place ads in media where over 35% of the audience is children under 12? And that Nestle can't put any outdoor ads within 50 metres of a kindergarten, primary school, or a playground, unless it's for food and beverages that are 'nutritionally compliant' with its global policy?

There are several such 'Did You Knows' pertaining to the rules of marketing to children that a lot of seniors from the industry 'did not know'. (We are refraining from naming them here lest it costs them their next pitch or account). In advertising's national interest, we've put together a set of rules that can help safeguard the children of men from being exploited at the hands of Mad Men. (Check 'The Rulebook' below)

Why marketing to kids requires new rules

* Firstly, kids under the age of 12 are considered to be malleable. Adults, one assumes, know that ads are meant to "sell" things to them; but you can't expect all kids to be that discerning. Kids these days are exposed to more media than any other generation ever was in its childhood. And as Mondelez puts it in its code of conduct: Younger children have a limited capacity for evaluating the credibility of (or the deluge of) information they receive.

* Secondly, childhood obesity has become a worldwide issue. In its 2011 UN Summit on non-communicable diseases, the United Nations appealed to the private sector to "reduce the impact of marketing of products high in salt, sugar and fat to children in light of the dramatic rise in childhood obesity over the past decades."

* Thirdly, and this is specific to the Indian market: Single TV households are in a majority in this country and mothers often control the remote during prime time. So, a child in the 4-14 age group inadvertently ends up watching advertisements meant for an older audience. (Point highlighted by Nikhil Gandhi, VP and head of revenue for Disney India media channels). Therefore, not only do brands have to exercise caution while making ads meant only for kids' channels; brands falling in the Food and Beverages category have to ensure all their advertising maintains a universal standard that promotes healthy lifestyle.

Because rules are meant to be broken? 

It's because of the aforementioned reasons that regulatory bodies have become stringent about the implementation of rules regarding marketing to kids. Yet, a lot of companies don't adhere to these rules quite often. In 2010, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation the United States' largest health-centered charity organisation, conducted a study. It showed that "fastfood companies have not adhered to the food industry's self-regulation guidelines when it comes to marketing to kids."

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation study further observed "That they tend to emphasise toy-giveaways and movie tie-ins when marketing to kids on TV, rather than focus on food." Ideally they should just be focusing on the health aspect of products they choose to market to kids, instead of luring them into buying ancillary items with their product.

The study singled out McDonald's and Burger King for airing fast-food ads on kids' channels Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Disney XD, and Nicktoons. This, when they had reportedly "pledged to devote 100% of their child-directed advertising to healthier foods and lifestyles." And if they weren't able to do that, they would just not advertise to kids at all, read the pledge.

Brands pleading guilty 

Both McDonald's and Burger King disagreed with the study (obviously) and alleged the data was old and didn't reflect current output. Post the episode, at least McDonald's showed some improvement in its kids offering, notes Maureen Morrison of Advertising Age.

Closer home, McDonald's has been using its mascot Ronald McDonald to conduct interactive sessions with school children on balanced lifestyle, good food habits, and road safety, shares Kedar Teny, director of marketing, Mc-Donald's India (West & South). "Last year, we had launched books as part of the Happy Meal takeaway," he says. A healthy fruit-based drink that can be swapped with soda in the Happy Meal has also been introduced recently.

Some brands have had to pay rather heavily for flouting rules. Last year, Coca-Cola was asked to pay $21000 (USD) to the Quebec government for advertising Fanta in a Canadian amusement park. "In India, the kid's category communication has mostly been around emotional and feel-good factor not too many numeric claims in the F&B sector, which is possibly a big reason why the complaints are so few here," says Shweta Purandare, secretary general, ASCI (Advertising Standards Council of India).

Things are changing for the kid's genre that's long been under-indexed in India, notes Nina Elavia Jaipuria, EVP and business head of Kids cluster, at Viacom18 Media. After GECs and movies, kid's genre is possibly the biggest, she tells us. "The genre has been growing rapidly, the subscription revenue has been increasing."

The consumer awareness and the regulatory framework may also become stronger. Soon, what happened in the US with Mc-Donald's and Burger King could well be happening here with some other brands. In such circumstances, it's imperative that brands move beyond 30 second brand promotions and start thinking of aligning with IPs in a way that doesn't disregard advertising guidelines. For whatever it is that you do, you have to keep the "gatekeeper's" (parents) trust intact.

Source:http://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/marketing/the-new-rules-of-marketing-to-kids/52418120

KKR gets most mentions; Freecharge's social campaign no. 1: Maxus' IPL 2016 report

As the IPL fever is on, Brand Equityexclusively brings to our readers yet another round of interesting digital stats around brand conversations and the game. GroupM's Maxus Mesh, a marketing command centre, is tracking IPL content in real time for this special report series. Mesh has been monitoring social chatters across Twitter, blogs, forums and Google news for the same.

According to the report released last week, Gionee was the most mentioned sponsor whereas Vodafone's 'Super Son' was the top discussed ad.

This week Vodafone continues to be in pole position with the mentions pouring in for its 'Super Dad' ad. The brand's #besuper hashtag is getting attention on Twitter, too. The report states that brands are mainly leveraging social to mirror their TV campaigns, which seems to be true in the case of Vodafone, in the very least. Freecharge's 'Lo Do Khatam Karo' campaign has grabbed a significant share of social mentions.

While the IPL witnessed a slowdown in the last few weeks, historical trend indicates the buzz around the event is gaining momentum as the game progresses. It is expected that brands will show some more excitement and action around IPL in the coming weeks.

As far as the teams go, this week Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils took top positions on the leadership board. Mumbai Indians, who were leaders on the social scoreboard, were in a shaky place for the first time in this year's tournament.


Source:http://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/digital/srks-kkr-most-mentioned-team-freecharges-social-campaign-leads-the-chart-maxus-ipl-2016-report/52211797?photo_id=52212339

Top fashion brands take the online route to enter India

Several high fashion brands are taking the online only route to enter India, taking advantage of the absence of regulations around selling through third party portals and owing to factors like lack of quality infrastructure and high real estate costs. Under current regulations, the global brands do not require a licence to sell in India through online portals if they do not have operations here.

Amazon this month signed exclusive deals with four fashion brands Bjorn Borg, Drunknmunky, Replay and Rockland to sell their products exclusively in India. It had also signed up with American brand Aeropostale recently. Mayank Shivam, category leader for Amazon Fashion, said the number of brands on the portal has more than doubled over the past six months, and it has more than two million fashion products now.

"Our men's apparel selection has grown over 450% since the launch with over 200% year-on-year growth in sales, and western apparel selection for women has seen over 800% growth in sales over the past one year. Customers can now shop for brands such as Superdry, Gas, Quicksilver, Gant, Calvin Klein, Roxy, Fossil, Steve Madden, The Hub, British Knights, CR7, Desigual, and Dune among others across categories," he said.



Gunjan Soni, chief marketing officer at Myntra Fashion, said the fashion portal has signed exclusive tieups with brands like Timberland and Parfois. Myntra has also tied up with others like Mizuno, The North Face, Brooks Brothers, Silvian Heach and Jeep over the last quarter. It is in talks with others, she said.

"We have been getting calls from several brands. Lack of quality infrastructure and high real estate costs can be limiting for brands. Even the brands that have a physical presence here realise that they are only restricted to a few cities, and online platforms can provide them a wider reach," Soni said. Analysts say the online-only strategy is ideal for global brands to test the market.

"It's a win-win situation for all and brands are using this route to test the market," said Paresh Parekh, partner at EY. "While brands need licences for single brand retail, no licences are required if they are selling through online portals and don't have a physical presence here," he said.

Swedish brand Bjorn Borg, which has stores in seven European countries, launched its leather sneaker collection and men's innerwear on Amazon this month, while Drunknmunky, a Californian brand, is launching their sneaker and running shoes range for both men and women.

"India is one of the fastest growing economies and we are delighted to launch the brand online in order to provide maximum possible reach," said a spokesperson of Drunknmunky.

Source:http://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/business-of-brands/top-fashion-brands-take-the-online-route-to-enter-india/52070599

How Pulse candy captured the market: The Full Story

A look at how the 14-month-old brand touched the Rs 100 crore mark.

Population of India: 1.25 billion

Value of DS Group's candy brand Pulse as on January 2016: Rs 100 crore

Price per unit: Re 1

Translated linearly, this means, almost every person in the country has sampled it at least once.

In February last year, the DS Group - manufacturer of brands such as Rajnigandha (Pan Masala), Baba (Tobacco) and Catch (spices) -- entered the candy segment with Pass Pass 'Pulse'. Today, the Kaccha Aam-flavoured hard-boiled candy with a tangy twist, which fans also call the 'magical core' or the 'masala bomb', is a Rs 100 crore brand (as of January 2016), Shashank Surana, vice president, new product development, DS Group, tells us.

Pulse claims to have crossed the Rs 50 crore mark within six months of its launch. It contributed close to 40 per cent to the Group's revenue in the confectionery segment in the year gone by. And, this was achieved without any formal advertising push.

So, when and how was this product, on which the company is pinning its hope of becoming the category leader, conceived?

Pulse was launched to capitalise on the fastest growing HBC (Hard-Boiled Candy) segment in the confectionery basket. As per the market research and insight firm Nielsen India, while the overall sweet candy category, pegged at Rs 6,000 crore, is growing at 14 per cent year-on-year, the Rs 2,100 crore HBC segment is growing at 23 per cent. Kaccha Aam (26 per cent) and Mango flavour (24 per cent) together claim 50 per cent share in the HBC market. Raw mango was thus, the obvious choice. The makers further realised that there were only straight flavours such as mango, orange and caramel in the market. Hence, there was a need for innovation.

"In India, the common practice is to eat raw mango with something tangy. Whether it is 'aam panna' or a slice of raw mango sold on the roadside, it is incomplete without the tang/spices. That's how we got the idea of a powder-filled candy," says Surana.

The 'Pick-me-up' Look

Why 'Pulse'? A succinct response from Surana is, "Because it sets your pulse racing."

The candy market had started shunning the Rs 0.5 price point a couple of years ago with big players such as Mondelez, PVM (Perfetti Van Melle), and Parle launching or re-launching their products at Re 1. High raw material costs, fewer 50 paise coins in circulation, and the demand for higher margins by retailers were some of the factors that propelled the wave.

However, according to Surana, at the time when Pulse was launched, 86 per cent of the industry was at Rs 0.5 for a candy weighing anywhere between 2-2.5 grams. The DS Group decided to go with Re 1 instead, and to justify the price, the weight was increased to 4 grams.

"If you look at the experience life cycle of any other candy in the market, it is usually constant throughout. But, Pulse is an innovative value-added candy, the experience of eating which peaks later as you reach the powder filling. In order to give consumers a full mouth feel for a heightened experience, we increased the grammage," shares Surana.

And, this is indeed true for the visibly large candy that lasts for a good five minutes! Midway, one gets hit with the 'masala bomb' which is released in just the right amounts in a sustained manner. This ensures a perfect balance of the sweet and tangy flavour.

Who Likes Pulse?

Raw mangoes are relished by people of all age groups and geographies in India, so there was no particular target group singled out for Pulse. The candy, with its tangy taste, was expected to cut across age groups in a market focussed on kids, and therefore, flooded with straight and sweet flavours.

In that case, did Pulse think of owning any particular consumption occasion? Says Surana, "Pulse is an anytime, anywhere candy. India is a hot country where you need to keep having something to keep the saliva going. That's exactly the reason why candy sales are maximum in tropical areas."

Since Rajasthani and Gujarati cuisines share a similar tanginess as Pulse, the company decided to test-market it in these states first. The exercise proved so successful that it had to be converted into a full-fledged launch.

Distribution was no challenge for the Group, who are the makers of brands such as Rajnigandha and Baba which are available in the country's remotest corners. The challenge was to scale up production to meet the skyrocketing demand. By January, the brand managed a pan-India presence. Meanwhile, cheaper imitations such as 'Spicy Beats', 'Plse', and 'Plus' exploited the need gap. As of now, Pulse is produced in seven contract-manufacturing units. In December, the guava flavour was also launched.

The Advertising Push

The makers of Pulse believe that it is one of the most successful examples of brands built through word-of-mouth, with social media facilitating the reach. While the company pushed the candy through in-store promotions and an outdoor ad at select locations in NCR, its fans were active in the online world. The brand has, thanks to them, a presence on all social networking platforms including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. In fact, the catchphrase on the outdoor ad - 'Pulse of India' - was also suggested by them.

To take the story forward, DS Group awarded the mandate for Pulse to Scarecrow Communications last December. Talking about the expectations from the campaign that will be rolled out shortly, Surana says, "Advertising is not going to drive sales. It will be reinforcement. Our objective is to own the innovation Pulse stands for."

And, talking about the challenges of advertising a brand that is already quite successful, he adds, "It is difficult because we have to mean different things to different people. There are various opinions about the product. People are claiming ownership,and we do not want to violate that thought of 'Meri Pulse Candy'."

Category Talk

Speaking about the lack of brand loyalty in this category, Surana remarks, "The unorganised candy market in India is big, and no brand has been able to break the tradition of flavour over brand, wherein customers ask for "orange, mango or mint wali" candy. Pulse has changed that. It has taken the category from impulse-driven to Pulse-driven. This is true of the pricing strategy as well. Looking at the success of Pulse, other players have started launching their 'gold versions' at Re 1."

Says Pravin Kulkarni, general manager, Parle Products, "Pulse is a case of a small, but remarkable innovation that caught the customer's fancy." While he agrees that the brand's success is unprecedented, he differs with Surana on the shift in price points. According to him, factors such as fluctuating raw material costs, especially sugar, fuelled this trend almost three years back, and today, only 30-40 per cent products fall in the Rs 0.5 segment. The rest are Re 1 and above.

Giving a perspective on how big is Rs 100 crore for a confectionery brand, he says, "Rs 100 crore is a big number in confectionery -- anything beyond Rs 50 crore is, particularly in the sugar candy segment. Since the unit price is low, one has to sell large volumes. It is difficult business. Our Kaccha Mango Bite (Rs 0.5) has entered the Rs 100 crore league, while Melody (Re 1) still has to."

Other than Parle, DS group competes with companies such as Perfetti Van Melle, Mondelez India, and ITC which have candy brands such as Alpenliebe, Cadbury Chocolairs, and Candyman, respectively.

According to Nielsen India, the category has low entry barriers as a result of which new players enter the market every year; there are fairly quick exits too. Low entry-exit barriers facilitate innovation on formats and flavours in the category, the most recent one being in the coffee-flavoured segment. The eclairs and soft toffees' segments grew in single digits in 2015. The lollipop segment, too, is witnessing healthy growth.

Commenting on the challenges and opportunities that exist within the category, Vijay Udasi, senior vice-president, Nielsen India Region, adds, "Innovation and introduction of new flavours are two major growth drivers for this category. Distribution continues to play a key role, and newer players and brands in this space face the formidable task of expanding distribution to reach the vast traditional trade universe. Innovation will also help the category move away from the 50-paise price point, as today, consumers are willing to pay a premium for innovative and new flavours. Positive word-of-mouth by consumers will drive trials."

Source:http://www.afaqs.com/news/story/47821_How-Pulse-candy-captured-the-market-The-Full-Story

Will Virtual Reality Change Online Marketing?

To some, virtual reality may seem like a revolutionary game-changer in the realm of technology, about to radically alter how we interact with the world. To others, it’s just a fad that will dry up in a few years to make way for something else. Most analysts claim that VR is about to go “mainstream,” thanks to current levels of consumer interest, the state of the technology, and the overall timing, but of course, most analysts tend to be optimistic when it comes to the pace of technological adoption.

As a marketer, the question is whether VR is going to change the online marketing world, and if it is, when it’s going to happen. Let’s take a deeper look at how, if, and when VR will change the online marketing industry.

Key Influences

VR could change the marketing world in some strong ways, ultimately through one or more of these paths:

• Visual transmission. Visual marketing has seen a massive boost in the past few years, and VR is going to take that boost even further. Live-streamed video will start to become more popular, especially as other social apps jump on the bandwagon, such as Facebook’s recent rollout of Facebook Live, and users will come to expect visual experiences in all the media they consume. Written content and other non-visual forms could take a nosedive, accordingly.
• Immersion. The immersive factor of VR is one of its biggest selling points, so it’s only natural that it would be one of its biggest influences in the marketing world. The whole idea behind VR is 360 degree surroundings, and that’s what users will come to expect. Forms of content like interviews, tutorials, and demonstrations will need to evolve accordingly; rather than staging an experience like a play or a film, you’ll need to frame them for a user “in” the experience. This will also lead to higher forms of user engagement.
• Social integration. Oculus Rift is owned by Facebook, and Facebook is already taking measures to provide more forms of content for VR users. In the near future, more social apps will try to capitalize on the rising VR trend, and eventually, VR will change how we interact socially. Live-streaming first-person videos will become more popular, yes, but we’ll also see and engage with updates from friends (and companies) in new, unpredictably different ways.

Source:http://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2016/04/25/will-virtual-reality-change-online-marketing/#825546a64567