CHAPTER FOUR:

I N D I A N BRANDS - P O S I T I O N I N G A N A L Y S I S

4.1. INDIAN BRANDS - POSITIONING

4.2. PRODUCT SECTOR - BRAND ANALYSIS

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4 . 1 . INDIAN BRANDS - POSITIONING

The concept of positioning is based on tine following four positioning

themes:

What is my identity?
Why do I exist?
For whom I exist?
Why will they choose me?

WHAT I S MY IDENTITY?

This is usually being accomplished using two types of positioning

strategies:

a. Positioning based on Corporate I d e n t i t y

The obvious examples here are the consumer durables, automobiles

and white good firms such as Honda, l^aruti-Suzuki, Sony, Apple etc.
The idea is to communicate on the corporate theme using the same
logo or punch line. Bajaj uses the theme 'Value for money for years'
that is present at the top right corner of the communication. This is to
drive incremental core corporate value. The TATA group has taken a
step forward in this direction and demand the group companies to pay
a royalty to use TATA logo in their firm.

In service sector, most of the financial institutions such as LIC, ICICI

Bank, HDFC follow the approach of corporate identity considering the
high stakes involved in the trust factor. This is where the organizations
origin and credentials becomes base on which customer relationship is

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 built. Apart from these, the Taj group (hospitality sector) also follows
this strategy. Their luxury, leisure, business and budget chains all
have the Taj identity. Even the Times group is an example as their
brands such as Times school of marketing. Times music. Times
foundation, and off course Times of India and Economic Times carry
the corporate identity.

An interesting entry in this space is the FMCG sector. Though Dabur

and Godrej have done it historically through endorsements, Britannia
made a strong and bold decision to extend its corporate identity into
its brands through its campaign 'Eat healthy Think better'. Also
companies like Nestle have started to show its corporate logo on all its
marketing communications. Cadbury too is working on consolidating
its brands under its Cadbury master brand.

b. Positioning based on brand endorsement

FMCG category is quite popular with brand endorsement. Some

examples are:

- Lakme (colors, creams, moisturizers)

- Ponds (cream, soap, talcum, lotions)
- I^aggi (soups, noodles, sauces)
- Annapurna (salt, atta)
- Himalaya (chyavanprash, herbs, moisturizers, healthcare
products like cough syrups and digestive capsules)

Also organizations like Unilever Group worldwide is now working on

developing Brooke Bond and Upton brands on similar lines after
spending couple of years on developing individual brands like Taaza, 3
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 Roses and many others. These brands are now being combined under
one umbrella. The Upton and Brooke Bond strategy has been
implemented globally. ITC similarly has taken a decision to merge its
brands and consolidate them under Wills.

Further from FMCG, there are brands such as Tractor paints

(distemper and emulsions), Nike (footwear and apparel) which are
working on similar lines. What makes the Tractor paints interesting is
that emulsions are premium products (in pricing and image) while
Tractor was much known for distempers. The basic thought would
have suggested not merging the two as it would become a failure
baggage. However Tractor equity was found to be strong and robust
enough to sustain the merging strategy.

WHY DO I EXIST?

This is usually being accomplished using four types of positioning

strategies:

a. Positioning based on Category

Some of the brands based on category positioning are shown below:
- Tanishq: watches sold as jewellery
- Vaseline: petroleum jelly sold as lip salve and moisturizer
- Waterbury's Compound: iron supplement for protection from
cough and cold
- Sugar free: It is a sugar free sweetener, generally sold to
sugar patients through drug stores. Nowadays it is being
positioned as weight control device for figure conscious
segment being sold through supermarkets

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 At a category level, products such as sunglasses, wrist watches,
bags, apparels, sports shoes and various communication devices
are being bought and sold as fashion and style accessories.

b. Positioning based on Benefits

The two basic benefits are outlines below:

I. Functional

It is all about how the brand's functional benefits are conveyed.

Some examples are:

- Lifebuoy: Kills the germs you cannot see

- Apex Exterior Paint from Asian Paints: Time proof beauty
- Dabur Chavanprash; Immunity against infections
- M-Seal: Seal all leaks
- Pepsodent: 12 hour protection against germs
- Fevicol: jod jo tootega nahin

Shampoos are another interesting category in this area, It has

various functional benefits being sold to consolidate as a
portfolio. For example Pantene offers Lively Clean (for bounce),
Volumizing (for volume). Long Black, Anti-dandruff, Smooth and
Silky.

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 ii. Emotional

It is,all about how the customer feels about the brand. Some
examples are:

- Close-Up: Confident
- Johnson &. Johnson: Caring
- Franklin Templeton Blue Chip Fund: Secure
- Axe: Irresistible
- JK Tyres; In control
- LG: Invincible
- NUT: Inspired
- Liril: Fresh

c. Positioning based on Usage Occasion and Time of Use

Few examples in this category are below:

- Kwallty Walls: Post dinner treat....10 o'clock

- Listerine: Night time rinse....Get fresh tonight
- Babool: Perfect way to start the day....subah Babool ki to din
tumhara
- Clorets: After drinking, smoking, eating....After Anything
- Nescafe: Great start to the morning
- Britannia: Cfiai Biscoot (for tea times)
- Domino's Pizza: When families are having fun (example -
watching TV)

Usage can also be used to expand market. An example is Boroplus

which showed occasions such as shaving, nick and cuts, chapped lips,
winter dryness, nappy rash for using the cream. Cadbury Celebrations
was launched to target adult gifting segment. Research has shown that
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 in India, Raksha Bandhan and Diwali are the two largest occasions for
gifting. Cadbury now has advertisement specially designed for these
two occasions. Maggi could have positioned Its noodles as just -
noodles. Instead It chose to position them for the evening time when
kids come back after play and ask for food. We all know the result that
it became an instant hit.

d. Price - Quality Positioning based on Usage Occasion and Time

of Use

The biggest innovators In this arena are brands like Aiwa and Philips in
consumer electronics category with their aggressive price - quality
proposition. Peter England (the honest shirt) and Westside
(surprisingly affordable) have attempted the same In clothes and
accessories segment. Deccan Airlines, now owned by Kingfisher (low
cost flying) and TATA Indica (more car per car) are other examples In
this category.

FOR WHOI^I I EXIST?

This is primarily based on the target market segment as explained below:

a. Demographic fit

- Elle 18 for teens

- Colgate Kids
- KId-e-bank from ICICI Bank
- Benetton 012 for below twelve years old
- MTV music for future generation
- Lee Kids
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 - Femina Girl
- Cartoon Network
- Big Bazaar Women Card

b. Behavioural fit

Lays has smartly used the typical behavioral of heavy eaters of potato
wafers with its campaign 'no one can eat just one'. Gelusil has also
targeted the obsessive eaters (who are generally the largest sufferers
of acidity). Another very interesting case is of Coke. In their ad
campaign ^Thanda matlab Coca Cola' has successfully translated the
general behavior of asking for a chilled cold drink. The idea was to
transition from 'e/c thanda dena' and linking it with Coke which was
completed by celebrity endorsement through Aamir Khan.

c. Satisfaction fit

Product categories such as cigarettes and alcohol are an example

under satisfaction based positioning. Based on what the target group
source of satisfaction, the drink can for instance be positioned on taste
(Blender's Pride), smoothness (McDowell's No 1), strength
(Haywards), good cheer and high spirits (Bagpiper). However this
category does have an overlap with positioning based on benefits as
discussed in section earlier.

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d. Psychographic fit

This is more to do with the self-image portrait of a consumer. How the

consumer wants to be seen and how the association with the brand
converts that into feeling.

Examples include:

- Pepsi:. Youthful
- Van Huesen: Corporate / Power dressing
- Bajaj Pulsar: Masculine / Definitely male
- Thums Up: Macho / Have you grown up to Thums Up yet
- Hitachi: Perfectionists

e. The consumer as complete person

Some examples in this category are:

- The Whirlpool housemaker

- The Johnson & Johnson mom
- The Saffola wife
- The Surf housewife (surf Excel hai na) and off course LALITA
JI

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WHY W I L L THEY CHOOSE ME?

This is based on two types of positioning strategy:

a. Positioning by Unique Attribute

Few examples are:

- Center Shocl< (sour center)

- Moov (special ingredient for backache)
- Dove (1/4 moisturizing, not a soap)
- Amaron batteries (silver)
- Dermi cool (prickly heat power that cools)
- Blue Pepsi

b. Positioning by Competitor

Few examples are:

- Captain Cook (free flow vs. Tata Salt)

- Time Pass (safe & healthy vs. pan masalas)
- Savlon (does not sting vs. Dettol)
- Borosoft (non-greasy vs. Boroplus and Boroline)
- Annapurna salt (iodine that stays active post cooking vs Tata
Salt)

With respect to the above discussion on Positioning framework, a

sample of leading Indian brands has been discussed and analyzed
below:

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1. Brand: BRU (Company: Hindustan Unilever Limited)

Among all the brands of Hindustan Unilever Limited, "BRU" is the

most popular and the powerful brand in the instant coffee sector
with a market share of about 46.9%.

The product was initially ' positioned as a substitute for the

original and pure filter coffee in the minds of the consumer.
Gradually, the brand was positioned as adding greater value and
happiness to coffee consumption. The brand initially had to
compete with big names like, "NESCAFE". But eventually took
the top position. The success of this brand is usually attributed
to many of the following factors:

- Innovation in new products

- Innovation in packaging
- Aggressive campaigns

A lot of researches were conducted to understand the reasons

for the failure of the leading brand, NESCAFE and it was mainly
attributed to the fact that the company failed to invest in the
brand and hence led to its failure.

As a product, Bru always gave new offerings to customers. One

of the recent new product variant which was highly successful
was the cappuccino packs. The new flavor gave the brand a new
thrust in the market.

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 Hindustan Unilever Limited also understood the importance of
packaging a product and they introduced various kinds of
packaging to the product, BRU. This also made the product more
affordable by the consumers and hence more popular also.

2. Brand: Alpenliebe (Company: Perfetti Vanmelle)

Alpenliebe is the largest brand in the Indian Confectionery

Market which is worth about 1200 crores. The worth of
Alpenliebe is estimated to about 160 crores. It is one of the
successful brands and is positioned as a candy for the entire
family.

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I
Perfetti, the global giant entered the Indian market in 1944 and
in the year 2001, Van Melle entered the market and this
company along with Italian and Dutch companies formed the
Perfetti Vanmelle. The company has its second largest operations
in India.

This brand has an innovative and effective system of brand

building and is the biggest brand in the segment in the country.
Everything seems to be unique about this product. Right from its
name, shape and the flavors in which it is available. The
company also introduced a taste which suited the Indian

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 mindset. The company, Perfetti, is not hesitant in spending
money for advertisements and in turn building a brand image for
itself in the minds of the Indian consumers, Alpenliebe is a
classic case of marketers defying the theory and also highlights a
simple truth, "If you have money to spend, you can make a
consumer sing in your language without understanding a bit of
it.

3. Brand: Band-Aid (Company: Johnson & Johnson)

Band-Aid is considered as a classic case of branding success. The

brand which is almost 86 years old has become generic to the
category.

The product is an adhesive bandage used to cover minor cuts

and bruises. The brand has come a long way to become one of
the classic marketing case studies, In India, the product was
launched in the year 1978. Band-Aid was successful because it
identified the need in the households for wound care. In a
country like India, Band-Aid had to fight the tradition rather than
the competitors to succeed.

Traditionally, Indians prefer not to cover the cuts and bruises

because there is a feeling that wounds should be kept open in
order to heal faster. The company also tried to educate mothers

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about the various possible problems if the wounds would be kept
open. This also helped the brand to become more acceptable.
The other reason for the success of this brand was its
distribution strategy. It was made available in the mass market.
The brand always changed with time and it always understood
the needs of the consumer and always came up with strategies
to satisfy the needs of the consumer. One of the major
inventions was that of water proof band aids. This made the
product usable in any condition. This innovation catapulted the
brand popularity to newer heights. Band-Aid focused on the area
of application and was clever enough to come out with various
sizes.

The company always used various techniques to cater to the

demands of the Indian Consumer. The promotions of the brand
are very effective and it was the first in the sector to use brand
ambassadors like Sachin Tendulkar and Virendra Sewag in its
promotions.

Initially positioned as a wound care brand, Band-Aid was

repositioned as a product that encourages kids to be active.
Band-Aid has been lying low in the media for a while. The brand
has already become generic to the category. Being generic has
its share of problems also. When the customer uses the brand as
a generic name for the category, the retailer can offer him any
brand in the category. The company is mainly facing
competition from players like Handyplast and Dettol. Although
the Indian wound care market is estimated to be around Rs 512
crore, the domestic adhesive bandage category is small at Rs 25

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 crore. The brand equity of Band-Aid still going strong and is
preventing new entrants.

4. Brand; Close Up (Company. Hindustan Unilever Limited

This product was positioned by the company as the "Youth

Brand". The product was launched in the year 1975 and was the
first gel toothpaste in the market.

When the product was launched, the market was dominated by

the Colgate Dental Cream and this product changed the entire
market scenario. It also gave a run for its competitor and
compelled the competitor to also adopt some new strategies.

The insight for this product was that people are conscious about
their breath and want to get close with each other with
confidence. Based on this insight the brand was positioned on
the Fresh Breath platform. The campaign was executed showing
"Happy couples having fun together". Even film Theatres had
corners called as "Close-Up Corners". The brand had the
aspirational persona in it.

The product was again re-launched in the year 2004. At that

time both Pepsodent and Colgate were very close competitors to
each other. Close Up launched a huge number of varieties most
of which failed in the market. The variants like Oxy fresh and

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 Eucalyptus Blue failed in the market. HLL decided that only the
Lemon variant will continue. The reason behind the failure of
variant is because Close Up is a sensorial brand. And in such
kind of brands, variants will not work. In categories which are
more rational, variants will work.

The toughest competition for the product was from that from
Colgate with their gel variant. Close Up had to reinvent to keep
the category that it created. This is a brand which created
awareness among the traditional and not so beauty conscious
Indians to think and concentrate on how they look and also
make them understand that how their teeth look also is very
important.

5. Brand: Funskool (Company: MRF)

The company was launched in the year 1988 which was pioneer
in the Indian Organized toys market. It created a new beginning
of high quality toys in an industry which was very fragmented.
The toy industry in India is huge. Some reports estimate the size
of the market to be around Rs 2500 crore (others estimate it to
be over Rs 1000 crore).

The market is dominated by imports from China. This is the

biggest threat in the market of unbranded toys from China. In

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the year 1987, the company was created as a joint venture
between the World's largest toy manufacturer Hasbro and the
Indian tire major MRF. The company has evolved as a complete
toy manufacturer and is also exporting to other markets.

The major competition for the company is from Mattel and Lego.
Funskool have a market share of around 25% in the branded
segment. The company is facing a lot of issues in the market and
most of them are environmental in nature. The most important
issue is that of availability of unbranded toys and the market is
very sensitive to price and hence it is difficult for the branded
toys to give the premium value what their customers pay.

The company is facing a problem that the Indian parents are

unaware about the safety of low priced cheap quality products.
The other issue is that of creative plagiarism or piracy. The copy
right issues are not very strong and are not executed correctly.
Thus the branded players are not able to sustain the
differentiation based on characters or range. Everything can be
replicated in this market without much fuss. Funskool was
perfect in creating and marketing new games and toys. The
brand is churning out 70-80 new varieties every year. Positioned
on the platform of safety, variety and education, the brand
already have a huge equity in the Indian market. The major
competitor for Funskool is Mattel. Mattel has its range of Fisher
Price'brand of toys taking on the Funskool range.

The challenge for Funskool is to encourage the Indian consumers

to look at toys at a broader perspective than just an
entertainment.

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6. Brand: Monte Carlo (Company: Oswal woolen mills)

This brand is a premium knit wear brand in India, which was

launched in the year 1984. The brand is a market leader and is
dominating the Mass and the Class segment winter cloth market.
Oswal has around 50% market share.

The company invests in the advertisements and its product

promotions. The popularity of the brand is so high that the
company is using the same advertisement for the past two
decades.

MONTE C A R L O S

The company is making a lot of effort to bring the premiumness

in Its campaigns. The brand is diversifying into various segments
of apparels under various names. It has launched various new
products like the T-shirts and everyday apparels for both men
and women. The maximum competition for the brand is from
Van Heusen and Louis Philippe. The market presence of the
brand is huge but the company has to continually keep
innovating so as to be the leader in the market.

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7. Brand: Fevistik (Company: Pidilite Industries)

The brand is an extension of Fevicol. Tliis is one of the products

with very good customer centric innovation. The brand is the
market leader (with 9 0 % share) in its segment of the 35 crore
glue stick market in India, The brand was the first to introduce
the glue stick product form in the country.

Although a small brand, Fevistik is an example of customer

centric innovation. This brand has changed the dynamics of this
product category and changed the way customers use this
product.

The other competitive advantage for this product is that it is not

manufactured in India and is imported and thus it is cost
effective and also the brand has become a global brand. Since
there is competition from other serious players like Camlin, the
company has to keep a strong distribution and a healthy
inventory at the retailer end.

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8. Brand: Onida (Company: Mire Electronics)

Onida has launched its new campaign which is aimed at

repositioning and rejuvenating the brand. The brand is trying for
a comeback after years of uncertainty which made this (once)
iconic brand lose its share in the market.

ONum
It is researched that, Onida's real problem is not branding but
marketing. The brand desperately needed break-through
products and embrace new technologies. The brand is trying to
launch products with new features, which is the right thing to do.
The brand is now repositioned on the basis of "Customer
Oriented Design". The brand is promoting that its products are
designed for the new-age customer.

The most important task is that the company has to convince its
customers that its products are better designed and have good
technology. Onida needs to work hard on creating and nurturing
new perceptions about itself in the mind of the consumers.

9, Brand: Act II (Company: Agrotech Foods (ConAgra))

Act II is an interesting brand story. The brand is from the global

agro-foods major ConAgra Foods. Act I I was launched in India in
1999. This brand has successfully created a new sector in the
Indian market for popcorn.

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 It is the first largest selling popcorn brand in the world. It came
into the market in many variants lil<e Act (I) and then a more
popular Act (II). The Act (II) popcorn was an innovation which
was well accepted by the large middleclass market.

Apart from these product centric developments, the company

also is into aggressive promotion strategy. The company is
focusing on acquiring customers but it should focus on two main
factors:

a. Promoting Popcorns as a regular snack.

b. For this the brand has to find a compelling reason for
consumers to buy Act I I , It can highlight the taste, nutrition
etc.

10. Brand : Ambassador (Company: Hindustan Motors)

This product has a British legacy, but is usually regarded as the

definitive Indian car.

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The product was born in 1958. The design and technology is
from a British car model - l^orris Oxford which was built by
Morris Motor Co at Oxford UK. Ambassador was officially
launched in 1958. The product was the market leader from the
year 1958 to 1980's. During that time, its only competitor was -
Premier Padmini. The company faced its competition in the
yearl983 from Maruti Udyog Ltd who launched the Maruti 800.
The largest section of the market which is the family section was
ruled by Maruti. Even in that situation, Ambassador was
preferred by a few people due to two main reasons:

a. It was the only Indian car with diesel option.

b. The space and sturdiness of the car.

The main reason for the fall of Ambassador is a classic case of

marketing myopia. The company for almost four decades had
catered to the customers. But it failed to change and respond to
competition. The brand failed to change with times. The major
drawback was the high price but with less or almost nil product
innovations.

The competition is fierce with various variants in the market. The

competition is immense and the quality of cars has also gone up.
Consumers now have new set of purchase considerations like
quality, brand, drivability, luxury, cost of maintenance etc. In
the value proposition domain. Ambassador is never in the radar
of the consumers. The narrowing price difference between petrol
and diesel also eroded the value in investing in an old dated
Ambassador. The company failed to invest in the brand through
product innovation or competitive promotional strategies.

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11. Brand : Asian Paints (Company : Asian Paints)

This company has been the leader in the Indian Paint Industry
for quite a few decades. The company was founded in Bombay in
the Year 1942. Today the brand is Rs 1000 crore company and
has occupied a premium position in the Indian Paint Industry.

The paint industry in India can be divided into two broad

categories:

- Decorative segment which constitutes the wall paints;

exterior and interior, wood paints etc.
- Industrial segment which consists of automotive paints,
and paints for industrial sector.

Decorative segment constitutes around 75 % of the total paint

industry and Asian Paints is the marl<et leader with around 4 4 %
share. In the Industrial segment, Nerolac is the market leader.
In its sector of operation, the company has changed the buying
process. The company realized the need for brand building in a
product which largely would be chosen by the building
contractor. The main focus of the company has been that on
product innovation, service network and managing quality
proposition.

asianpaints
The brand mainly focused on mass and rural markets. The
company has been repositioning it as a premium brand by
launching various innovative campaigns like:

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 - Corporate campaign, "Spectrum of Excellence" which mainly
aimed at increasing the salience of the brand.
- The campaign "Celebrate with Asian Paints". The campaigns
were carefully crafted and there were different campaign for
different regions.

These campaigns effectively enhanced the brand equity of Asian

Paints and established itself as a premium brand. The consumers
changed their intentions and were becoming less seasonal. From
a low involvement category, paint has increasingly becoming a
high involvement category. The company went an extra mile to
bring in freshness when it changed its logo also. From then on,
there was no look back for the company where it created a
wonderful positioning strategy.

The company's tag line says "Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai". This
campaign is a perfect example of a brand laddering up and
connecting to a higher level in the mind of the customer. The
campaigns reinforced the brand as a premium emotional brand.
Asian Paints is a classic branding story and the brand is still
exploring and gaining control over new markets from its
competitors.

12. Brand : Pulsar (Company: Bajaj Auto)

The brand is one of the most popular brands in the Indian biking
industry. The product was launched in the year 2001 and is the
market leader in the 150 cc+ performance bikes. It is the
product which changed the fortune of Bajaj Auto limited.

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 S^ B/VJAJ

The Indian bike market is made up of three sectors namely:

Economy Segment
Executive Segment
Performance Segment

Pulsar came and gave a new life into the Performance segment.
Although not a pioneer, Pulsar made the Performance segment
one of the fastest growing segment in the two wheeler market.
One of the major contributors for the high success of the product
is its strong advertising. Its campaign of, "Definitely Male" is
very interesting, The company knew that it had to cash on the
product and hence pulsar got absolutely undivided attention
from the company which led to its success.

In 2003 another milestone event happened in the product

lifecycle of the brand. Bajaj launched its new technology DTSi.
DTSi stands for Digital Twin Spark Ignition which delivered more
power and efficiency. The increased performance of the brand
took Pulsar to greater heights, 2004 and 2005 saw some
cosmetic changes in the brand which excited the customers and
thus cementing Pulsar's position in the market.

Pulsar came in two variants: 180 cc and 150 cc where 180 cc

excited the performance bikers, 150 cc was for the mileage
conscious ones. The 150 cc variant took lot of customers away
from the executive segment to the performance segment. The

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 brand also has its quota of mistakes when the positioning of
"Definitely Male" was changed to "Digital Biking"; the ads though
successful could not appeal to the customers much.

After ruling the premium bike segment, Bajaj is taking their

brand to another level. Bajaj recently launched Bajaj Pulsar 220
DTSi to take on the competition from Hero Honda and the like.
The new Pulsar boasts of spruced up engine, new digital console
and new style. Pulsar is definitely getting better.

Pulsar 220 is being launched with a new campaign revolving

round the concept of Free Biking. Free Biking is all about tackling
obstacles. According to company it's about how you ride. What
made Pulsar a super brand was its ability to come out with
different disruptive campaigns. Now the market is waiting for the
new Bajaj 250 cc which will redefine the bike segment again.
Sadly Bajaj is no longer using its blockbuster tagline "Definitely
Male" but instead is using the corporate brand tagline "Distinctly
Ahead". This brand shows the power of brand equity where
customers buy, irrespective of variation in the advertisement
campaigns.

13. Brand: Allout - Yamraj of Mosquitos

(Company: Karamchand Appliances Ltd (subsidiary of SC

Johnson Co))

The product is an interesting example of a pioneer who

developed a new category and also for a brand which showed
the importance and effect of aggressive marketing.

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 AUOUTI

The product was launched in the year 1990 by a snnall company

called, Karamchand Appliances Pvt Ltd. The market during those
times was dominated by mosquito coils. The company wanted to
venture into the making of this product and it entered into an
agreement with a technical collaboration with a Japanese
collaboration Earth Chemical Co. Along with manufacturing of
mats, the company also noticed a new product, vaporizers. It
consisted of a heating unit and a container containing repellent
liquid. Vaporizers had more advantages than the mats. The
mat's effectiveness used to weaken over time. But vaporizer had
the advantage of consistent effectiveness since there is a
continuous flow of liquid to the heating element.

Karamchand appliances launched the vaporizer in 1990. The

brand name was kept as "Allout". The name was easy to
pronounce and understand and further the name was self
descriptive about the product. Allout was launched with
aggressive brand promotion. The product was priced at a
premium and at the time of the launch, the brand was retailing
at Rs 225 for the main Vaporizer. Allout soon attracted the
attention of the consumer. Because of the high price, the
product was limited to the high income households. On the
marketing front, the company started off advertising in a big
way but with little success. Then came the famous trademark
advertisement of Allout featuring the animated frog. The ad

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showed the Allout machine like a jumping frog eating all the
mosquitoes. The ad was a big hit among the consumers. The ad
was simple and communicated the brand purpose effectively.

At one point of time Allout was one of the largest advertisers in

the visual media. Soon Vaporizers began to gain popularity
among the users. Sensing this shift, the market leader Godrej
also extended the Goodknight brand into the vaporizer segment.
The entry of Goodknight expanded the market much to the
advantage of all the players. The increased competition also
rationalized the price of vaporizers. Companies began to lower
the price of the vaporizers (captive product pricing) and gain the
margins by selling the refills. The interesting fact about the
marketing of Allout is the strategy of using animation in their
advertising. Besides the consistent using of the jumping frog, the
brand also used animation extensively in their advertising.

In 1998, SC Johnson acquired controlling stake in Karamchand

Appliances. The support from a large parent company like SC
Johnson was crucial for this brand since the competition is
intense in this segment. Aggressive marketing has made Allout a
pioneer in creating the vaporizer segment in India. The brand
also showed that a small company can create and lead a new
category through smart aggressive marketing.

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 4 . 2 . PRODUCT SECTOR - BRAND ANALYSIS

In this chapter, the researcher has analyzed the product sector - oral
care brands in detail. Brand success and failure has been arrived after
discussion with experts from survey panel. Obviously the above approach
can be used to comprehend brand success in other product categories as
well.

TOOTHPASTES

The toothpaste market is about 55,000 tones in size. The leader in the
toothpaste market is by far Colgate with its flagship brand - Colgate
Dental Cream which alone accounts for nearly 50% of the tonnage of the
Indian toothpaste market. In nineties, Colgate has been under sustained
attack from Hindustan Levers' brands - Close-up and Pepsodent. Close-
up launched a 'gel' toothpaste and aggressively promoted it on the
'youth' platform. It holds about one-fifth of the market now. Colgate
launched its own gel version called Colgate Gel to get back volumes.
Colgate also has niche brands under its umbrella like Calclguard, Total
etc. After several relaunches on the part of Hindustan Levers, Pepsodent
is reportedly doing well on the 'toothcare' platform. Together, Close-up
and Pepsodent can mean a formidable challenge to Colgate in the future.
To consolidate its position in the market, Colgate faced tough competition
from Balsara's brands namely. Promise and Babool. Both the brands are
performing somewhat indifferently now.

Most other toothpaste launches did not meet with success of which some
are Signal (Hindustan Levers), Forhans ('Geoffrey Manners) and Prize
(Balsara Hygiene products) because they were 'FLOURIDE' toothpastes.

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Flouride was feared to cause flourosis. Forhans also lost due to
organizational dithering. Vicco-Vajradanti (Vicco labs) is a regional brand
which is possibly not aiming at becoming a national player. Effermint
(Tata Oil Mills) and Ponds (Ponds India Ltd.) lost because they did not
offer anything new. Nirma toothpaste did not meet with success initially,
but it can make a comeback given the traditional strategy followed by
Nirma Chemicals Works which is a combination of low price and
aggressive dealer push.

Success Benchmark

If a toothpaste (national brand) acquires a market share of 5% in two

years and grows faster than the market, it is a successful brand. It is
difficult to attain 5% market share in toothpastes and grow. Toothpastes
successful at one time like Babool and Promise have slid down to this
share. In fact, very few toothpastes have touched double digit market
share. The latest one to do is Pepsodent. Therefore, experts agree that a
toothpaste brand that gains 5% market share in two years and grows
faster than the market is a success.

Key Success Factor

Unlike the case of shampoos and soaps, the initial trail itself is low in
toothpastes. Thus, initial trial was seen by some experts as the key
success factor. It is true that breaking morning habits is difficult and
hence, dislodging a strong brand like Colgate Dental Cream may not be
easy. But trail could be forced through good promotional schemes.
Therefore, trial per se may not be the key to success. For instance, one
important reason for Vicco Vajradanti's poor performance was that its

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taste was not accepted. How the toothpastes tastes while brushing is
important in determining whether the consumer would prefer to continue
using the brand. Also, the benefits offered by the toothpaste should be
relevant. For instance, this is true of Pepsodant's "Germi-check" and
Colgate's "Freshness" benefits. In short, experts opined that while trial is
an important aspect, clear benefits and pleasant in-use experience would
probably better qualify for being termed as key success factors.

Packaging

Sachets have not been successful in toothpastes so far. However, experts

did not agree that sachets are bound to fail. Firstly, many felt that
sachets have been introduced in a limited way and they have been
reasonably successful in the South. Secondly, they might have a role in
rural markets if the idea is communicated well. Besides, sachets are
useful as promotional material or for inducing trial. Thirdly, there is a
possibility of innovation in sachet packaging. For instance, if there is a
dispenser at the top of the sachet, it might be successful (example --
"Indana ghee" has a cork to dispense the contents from its plastic
container. Close-up toothpaste has a sachet version with a cork.)

However, there is also the other side. Sachet is a one-shot consumption

item. Once a sachet is opened, the freshness of the toothpaste is no
longer assured. Besides, there is no incentive to buy a sachet for a
product that is-used every day. For that, a 100 gram pack seems more
suitable. If sachets have been consumed in one shot, the quantity
packaged may have' to be reduced further. This may make the sachet
unviable. Thus sachets may have to be positioned for travelers which
mean targeting railway stations and bus stations. Further, retailers do not

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want to push sachets because of the lower margins they yield. Also there
are problems In filling white toothpaste In a sachet because it dries. There
were reports of an ant infestation as well. In sum, though sachets have
not been successful in toothpastes as of now, they might have a
promotional role to play in the future.

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