Creativity and Branding. Make a Difference - Stay Original.

Creativity is an all time thing and Brands are for always. When we think of a brand – we think about how creative it is, in terms of –

Utility | Proposition | Benefits | Communication | Value

A brand can we creative is many ways. A creative communication leads to a great recall and a creative product/service makes a brand forever.  We are going to understand the creative phenomena in branding with some significant points for the start-up brands.

Creativity is Innovation

Looking at the Brands of today, creativity is innovation.  The transformation from landline phones to today tabs come instantly to the mind. Isn’t that a creative innovation, you can say the popular jargon for it is design thinking. But this certainly is bringing creative solutions is smallest form possible. They have brought the world to your palm. The industry is working on innovation and they are working everyday on creative solutions.

Creativity fosters Competition

I would say, not all the organizations are creative. Some are competitive. They follow the creative process of the pioneers and create competition through pricing strategy, better service, value added features, sweepstakes and marketing.

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Sustainable Branding - Big Brands Bigger Challenges

Alas! The Brands are going the health way. With the consumer becoming informed, the media reaching out the millions, a buyer is bound to choose. And with changing lifestyles – it is a must to observe – what we eat!

Organic Brands are increasing multi-folds. From what you keep in your living room to what you consume in a respective meal

Sustainability is the way of branding and it is great to see some of the Giant Brands taking the lead.

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How to leverage your Brand in 2013?

2013 is a year of hopes. Economically, socially – the world is hopeful and so is marketer. The marketing world is facing an influx of products/services and the digital world has made it all the more complex. The start-ups are flourishing, the demand is increasing for the value driven service provider – no matter how small or big you are.

So what counts here is – How you can leverage your brand in the year of hopes. I suggest the following shall help us all make progress – in the right direction,

Get Going. Take Bold Steps: Create ~ make sure and then launch it. People spend a lot of time & money on creating a brand identity, the name, the design etc and they rather forget/ignore to work on reaching to the right touch points, avoid that. Remember – a brand design is equally more important as the brand touch point. A beautiful brand created and saved for self – will get unnoticed. The very idea of your existence is business to generate value – so take bolder steps to reach out to consumer. Simply a beautiful brand identity is not enough to run the show – the promise it makes shall be delivered.

Diversify the Services: One must take risks more often. Keep adding to the offerings, this will help you grow your business and will also make you a little more preferred service provider by offering convenience. Find out – and integrate, forward or backward. Experimentation is good – have an approach towards it and launch some new services – offer a little more.

Think about delivering Value and Not Discounts: Sweepstake are happening but they are not all. Offering Discounts doesn’t make you a good brand because the ultimate test is through your work – the delivery. This year you must sell based on value and not on other factors like discounts, offers, coupons etc.

Price Competitively: Gone are the days when pricing was the soul intent for a consumer’s decision-making. The consumption patterns have changed, the consumer is informed and that is why competitive pricing is a recommendation. A conservative approach in pricing is not a welcome idea – as there is a fear of getting trapped as a weak brand. So the price should be as per the promise.

Make Plans to Make Things Happen: Marketing a brand is often seen as something kept for the need of the hour. One should make plans, devise budgets and work on strategy. Remember that building a brand is only the first step, challenge lies in sustaining the brand for a long term. We should plan, work as per the plan and observe the progress. You can always bring in changes if one thing isn’t working as thought of.

Capitalize on New Media: Yes, social media cannot be ignored anymore. I am sure we have all realized the importance in 2012. By the time we were there on twitter, facebook talking about the products & services ~ we felt the need to explore Pinterest, Instagram etc. For social media- work on the content, make it strategic & useful, relevance & truth – the advertising principles work on new media as well. Next is how you present the content – use right visuals, not everything needs to be flashy but everything shall preferably be informative. Remember, your social image will lead to client perceptions about you – so learn, plan and engage the consumer.

Internal Branding: Yes, go strong internally. Hire right people – spread hope for better opportunities, better business and better growth. After all like us, all one looks forward to be – growth. Be reasonable, make promises and keep them. It is immensely important that you hire the right people for right task, a healthy work environment & cordial employee relations are a must. Create an inspiring work place, follow a listen & learn approach.

Happy Branding in 2013

Sahara Q-Shop – Completely Adulteration Free 100%, Really?

Sahara Q-Shop, a great start with a big chase for 800 shops. Launched on Independence Day – the August 15^th, 2012. I wonder, were they trying to give the Q-Shop an image of - ‘Swadeshi’ (Domestic) Brand.

The Subroto Roy group has come up with a distinguished ‘Positioning Strategy’. There promise it to get rid of Adulteration. The message which is going to hit everyone – though they say they target the two tier cities, I am sure the TVC has created a buzz in everyone’s mind.Watch here

Who won’t be shocked to see Sachin Tendulkar – taking rounds of a dining table and depicting a funeral scene, M.S.Dhoni with an RIP placard, the advertisement is intriguing and the message very strong. Everybody in this country is tired of and wants to fight adulteration. Who would not fear of drinking the glass of milk after reading in the morning newspaper about samples of Urea in your brand of milk packet? This is disastrous and Sahara ‘Q’ shop is offering a promise. The TVC stands different but the message it leaves on our minds – is negative almost everyone gets horrified of what we eat or drink. I wish it had a hopeful message too but it leaves us with an introduction to a hopeful retail brand – the Q shop.

With the inflation going up every day, the retail sector is experiencing a slowdown. The big retail players are finding ways to restructure and fight back. The middle class who were fond of Big Bazaars have started going back to nearby Kirana shops as the fuel expenses have gone up. Like these, the challenges have grown and now enter the Q shops.

When I saw the advertisements – I readily wanted to explore about it. It is a feast to watch the Indian Cricket stars – all in one go and then you see Sahara and the quest is kind of sorted but the message they are conveying – stays!  Though I am yet to visit a Sahara Q shop and experience the experience they offer but as far as the communication is concerned – we all remember the advertisement. Don’t we?

The advertisement is a simple, to the point message reaching straight to the end consumer with a promise of delivery.

Coming to the business intentions – Sahara Group claims to have set a Quality Revolution with a state of art laboratory process, where the merchandise in Sahara Q-shops will go through Quality Checks and Quality Assurance. Proper care is said to be taken in the Packaging Measures as well.

Check out the Unbeatable Advantages offered at Sahara ‘Q Shops’ (as mentioned on their official website)

• 100% commitment to quality
• Most competitive price
• Doorstep delivery of products under strict supervision
• Right weight/quantity
• 100% disclosure policy across all products
• Convenience of phone shopping
• State-of-the-art Quality Control labs in New Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Patna
• Pan-India quality team of 800 people, comprising Scientist Associates, Senior Quality Controllers, Quality Assurance Managers and Quality Assurance Executives
• 305 warehouses in 285 cities

So we can say that the consumers are going to have another Swadeshi (Domestic) brand with a mission of quality and purity. The offerings are multiple from staples to personal care, from lifestyle products to natural water, they almost have it all.

Sahara Group certainly is on a mission and it is a real challenge to fight adulteration. I hope the consumers find a pure brand in Sahara Q shops as the challenge is getting bigger with the influx of foreign retail giants in Indian Retail scene. But there is another challenge- How many of us are willing to adopt a domestic brand with the so many pleasing foreign brands on the retail shelf?

Microsoft Unveiled New LOGO! Is rebranding becoming Inevitable?

Change is the only constant and progression is the way of life.  Similarly, change & progression is the way of branding too.

Microsoft, after successful 25 years is emerging out all over again this year, reaching places and whoa unveiling the New Logo.

With a wave of exciting product launches, making news about launching latest versions and series of all their products – from windows to Xbox, this seems to be the best time for Microsoft to launch the logo, it just depicts much more colors being added to brand, they are suggesting that they have lots to offer. This was also important to assure consistent brand presence across products – from PCs to tablets and phones. Microsoft surely wants the brand image for a new beginning and they are highlighting the variety they offer, the wide range of products with which they are enlightening many lives in so many ways.

On the first look – I loved the colors though the logo doesn't looks distinguishing. The colors look zestful and I thought this is quite simple logo with a solid presence. This can’t get unnoticed as it has got Microsoft with it. Besides, the logo is simple, solid, multicolor shows the multi-offerings, variety etc and pleasing to eyes. For me, it lives upto the brand promise. And the video is even better as to a great extent it explains their concept of logo. Watch here.

If we see it from the perspective of Cymbolism – the logo is friendly which is good. The brand is no new, people know the brand and the only idea is to get close to them, the logo design promises to reach out. It is pleasing to the layman not just the brand/marketing/technology experts. So we can say, the brand is trying to take the promise forward, it says I am here to stay and have got some very exciting offerings. I think this is a very progressive brand approach.

What do they have to say?

"The Microsoft brand is about much more than logos or product names. We are lucky to play a role in the lives of more than a billion people every day. The ways people experience our products are our most important 'brand impressions'. That’s why the new Microsoft logo takes its inspiration from our product design principles while drawing upon the heritage of our brand values, fonts and colors," says the company in its official blog.

The Logo Transition – a Rebranding Tool

We have seen the logo transitions of some of the most popular brands earlier too – be it Discovery Channel, Walmart, Pepsi, Videocon, Airtel – we loved the logos, we belonged to them but that is the magic, the brands play the trick and we realize that the belongingness is to the brand and not with the logo.

Rebranding is considered a tool to keep the customer focus. With the competition and several creative vehicles, the brands evolve every day. It is seen that when a brand wants to hit back – they simplify themselves and it works like awakening with a childhood dream one day and realizing how fond and close we were to a certain thing/emotion. Rebranding is a way to reveal – the next big thing. That is why rebranding also occurs in the case of mergers, takeovers etc. Logo changes mostly symbolize evolvement, growth and future.

Like all kinds of transition, a brand transition will also take some time. So watch out how these colors replace in the respective spaces, from the TV ads to retail stores, from our desktops to our phones. The Microsoft colors are here to spread and leave a mark.

The Utterly Butterly Amul Moppet – Hot & Intriguing @ 50

Wow! Day before Amul Moppet turned 50, perhaps the only brand to rule for consecutive 50 years.  Five decades of success and love, of reaching out the various age groups, demography and even crossing national boundaries – Remember! Last year Britain came up with a butter brand named – Utterly Butterly.

A brand – creates a very normal brand mascot which turns into an abnormally excellent creative brand which is looked after by a nation even after a decade. Certainly, phenomenal it is.

Have a look at the Amul girl, a tiny round faced little chubby girl who is dressed up in a polka dot frock - no wonder even the polka dressing marks an evergreen approach in the creation of this brand. This little girl is honored with a Guinness Book Record for being the longest advertising campaign ever. Considering the skewed shelf lives and mad consumerism – it looks almost impossible that any brand or campaign will even reach any closer. [Did you read about Facebook dying by 2020?]

Not only the Amul Moppet is a successful brand mascot but it also stands out in a way – that it is one brand which doesn't needs any celebrity to ride the brand bandwagon. Infact, she pokes and observes as to what is going on in a celebrity’s life and eventually they feel lucky, embarrassed and even provoked at times – but there is no stopping as Amul Moppet is very much accepted as a voice of common man. She reaches out and connects through the campaigns.

If one checks the chronology and background of Amul, we would realize that it is the positioning of the Amul Butter and the mascot really getting to the zest of it.  Since the inception -

The Brand Image is that of a Cheerful, Fun Loving, Naughty, Healthy, Youthful and Family Oriented at the same time.

Later, it went on to become a Social Observer. Campaigning with strong messages, there by reaching the common man became a brand style. Amazing Strategy -  the Amul girl is better recognized now as a Social Observer. You talk of anything which is on air, breaking news, controversy, talking change or even a talked about movie – Amul girl will share her review – largely a common man’s take on the issue.  She is a remarkable social observer with a great 'sense of humor' which is hardly seen backing down.

Leader -It always remains a mass marketer and lead through cost and quality both.

Emotional Connect – The taste of India and the very campaigns with almost all alarming national issues, kept the emotional connect intact and the brand a success. The brand is still leading with right spirits and living upto its very basics – value orientation, sociable and Indian.

Market Adaptations – Like the campaigns even the product and competition was not backed out. Amul Butter launched Amul Lite, to adapt to the market players.

A beautiful example of an exemplary brand - Amul Moppet still have decades to go!

Video Emails – Future wave for Brand Communication?

Imagine that you record your profile and work experience with some references from your colleagues and seniors being added to it and ultimately you get an offer letter. Wow! This certainly sounds interesting. While discussing about video emails with a friend – this was the first thought which struck me. No CV…no CV with picture…no covering letter…reference check… simply a video email with all the details and references with their contact details would work, there would be absolutely no hassle of printing/calling/meeting. This is going to be amazing.  

Video Emails are fast catching up and they are emerging as the latest trend in marketing. During the discussion some 2 days ago, we could almost imagine and list some very remarkable benefits. With IT reaching the households so quickly, video chats and video interviews gaining popularity, why not get on to video emails. Sending a video email requires only 2 simple steps–

1.       Creating a video file

2.       Attaching it to the email

Basic requisites are a camera and microphone. Most of the machines have these as pre-installed programs.

Thinking about other benefits I could think of Exciting Product Demonstrations and User Manuals, Sales Messages, Client Servicing, Online gaming, Tracking video play, Video emails – for urgent messages and what not – video emails are sure to reach out.  

Consider this – the matrimonial services!

No emails, bio-data, horoscope matching, family chats – one can simply record a video message and we can share it as per our wish. Though there won’t be a real time response but then the receiver can easily record a video email in reply and share.  Who knows the busier ones will now be hooked!  It is more like a person sitting across table with you and when you send a video email, the recipient is certainly going to have a much easier time in understanding you.

Also the elderly who are not very comfortable in writing mails / typing or spending time on a machine, reading through it and those who think writing is really a pain – would get a chance to express. Express yourself in your own words. There are many who think writing is tedious as it requires lot of time – expression, choice of words, the form given to them and how they could be interpreted.  All this hassle can now be removed.

No wonder more and more brands will be going to the video emails way. Brand Communication will be just an email away. Point to wonder – will be click or it will spam? What if the advertisements are sent via email? Consider – the ‘Satyamev Jayate’ song in a video email once you subscribe to their page on facebook? Banks sending their new value add services via email or new pizza range launched in the city and you have the range in a video email? May be buying a consumer durable and checking out the demonstration in your inbox…

All good things in technology have got some limitations – like in this case there would be a restriction to the size of video message, initially it may have some special charges, the bandwidth can be a limitation in using the video email facility etc but once we all try it we would realized – if it is all worth it.

Starved for Content, Flooded with Junk Food - Indian Television

Content Marketing is on its peak in India and with the influx of Tv channels – it looks like the marketer is suffering with a lack of content. Look at the kind of daily soaps which are running these days and riding the TRP bull, you will find a remarkable repetition of once hit bollywood movies.  Since it is a tried & tested formula the idea hits and makes initial points with great TRPs and reviews. As the story reaches its peak and the characters get into a routine life of heroes, victims, friends etc in the serial – an average viewer takes the remote in hand and is ready to flip channels.

Unlike few most popular ones, several daily soaps are taken out of a popular hindi movie. On one hand the recently popular ‘Saubhagyavati bhava’ on Like OK reminds of the movie Agneesakhi and on the other hand – the tele-serial ‘Kya Hua Tera Vada’ looks like a replica of the Salman-Karisma starrer Biwi No.1, the serials do pick up instantly because of the tried and tested formula but few more episodes and we lose the charm completely. Even the sequences and situations are found to be copied.

At times I wonder, is it because of Consumerism and the Brand Endorsements making the channel owners mad to win advertising business? Certainly a point to ponder!!

Considering the case of news channels – it is no different. Shockingly, each of them have on an average 6-10 breaking news a day. All kinds of content – be it political, social, economic, defense related, crime, a tv program or its artists, a God men – almost everything is served as a Breaking News. Gosh! How many breaking news a country can tolerate in a day.  

Leaving a bunch of reporters and journalists, you can find many on news channel who are inacting emotions while anchoring the show. Celebs and Bollywood stars are pulled in to anchor, because for TRPs they need a face – whether or not they have the Content/ Experience or Purpose to do it.

Advertising Slots are increasing multi-folds. You watch a movie on tv, it will take at least 4 hours and post that you wonder, you would have it rather watched in cinema or a DVD – not only it takes hell lot of time but also it didn’t offered any relevant advertisement in between. Even this issue needs to be addressed. A half an hour tv serial offers 3 to 4 advertisement slots of minimum 2 minutes during prime time.

A lot is been said and discussed about the Censorship on TV. The content is obscene and so is the depiction. The tele-serials are getting bolder without a notification of U/A but why shall they – you have a look at the reality shows, even if they introduce beeps and blur for certain scenes – you cannot just change the way – people dress, their basic mannerism etc. Is it all because there is a lack of content or it is because, this sells.  Vodafone sponsors Splits-villa, Roadies is trying its best to be what it intended to be, whereas it was the contenders who wanted Instant shot to fame and hence got into what wasn’t required.

Coming back to the news channel, why are they becoming Offending and even funny at times? Is it again the lack of content or the race of TRPs. Do they have a moral responsibility? Why cannot we still create wonderful memories of Jungle Book – there wasn’t anything obscene. Even the cartoons today are becoming hotter & bolder.

Is is the LACK of Content or attempt to oversell with whatever clicks to the audience. Or it is simply because the content on television is too much to monitor? Or it is the pressure to get more business from consumer brands who will only advertise in the show with maximum TRPs.

It is certainly sad to see Indian Television struggling for Brand Loyalty amidst the battle of content marketing.

Is the Brand IPL fading?

Brand IPL – what a brand it is, a crowd puller, a perfect mix of game & glamour, celeb cricket league and what now. From the initial promos to after match parties – everything they did shined out as a new piece, a page 3 article and even breaking news on some channels who work only for TRPs.

Brand IPL became a brand for its perfect start with an absolute mix of content, stars, players and a fabulous marketing with a star studded launch and promotion. It was through the line, all over the media – above the line, below the line and online.

IPL was here and with a bang. It stole the viewership of daily soaps and reality tv. It emerged as the best reality show.

Suddenly like every brand, IPL had got the challenges which emerged and made their space. It had its own phase of controversies and gimmicks before the marketers and consumers realized that the brand is fading off. But did you ever wonder if there were any lacunae in the Brand that was created 4 years back. Did the creators missed out on something!! Or it is normal for any brand.

A recent survey says, Indians prefer hard-working and ambitious brands and I thought may be this is the reason why I personally am not watching IPL this year. But then I thought is this the case with many. Does the brand really have a weak story or no story. If the Brand IPL has no story – will we call it a fiasco or it has simply lost the purpose? I thought about the reasons,

   

      Brand Story

IPL never had a story, if it had its format ruined the story. The characters of the stories are not only changing but switching too. I had a preference for KKR – for SRK and Saurav Ganguly. I was thrilled by the fact that two of my favorites are leading KKR and it shall win.  For three years I followed KKR as a fan and finally the changes took place and Saurav Ganguly was now the captain for Pune Warriors. Can a viewer or consumer of brand switch loyalties without difficulty. The reasons weren’t sufficient to do so and if they were – it is difficult to choose.

I realized the brand doesn’t have a story. I could not relate to it like a brand, it doesn’t have the attributes. It is more like an annual fest with new editions each year.

 Brand Purpose and its meaning

IPL started off as a premier league, with healthy competition and a display of enormous talent. The season 1 and 2 emerged with great talent discoveries, audience was enthralled and so were the owners.  Strugglers were excited as they got a great platform to exhibit their skill and a real time means for achieving excellence. All they wanted to do – was to perform.This year the money became even enormous and it was felt that players started taking it as a seasonal job, a chance to reap the riches. For players, it seemed to be becoming a chance for making a fast buck. It seems to be losing its meaning. I felt it is the loss of brand more than anyone else.

Ofcourse, there is no remarkable loss in business. The endorsers are numerous, stars are there in the stands, money is flowing, TRPs maintained but certainly the brand is losing its equity.