Marketing Funda : Brand Refresh

This post is inspired by  my learned Twitter friend @vijaysankaran when he queried about my opinion about the brand refresh by Raymond. I was more familiar with Re-branding and not refresh which lead to more learning about this term. 

Brand refresh is a term that signifies slight modification of the brand ( or brand elements). Radical modification or change of brand elements implies re-branding. 

Refreshing of brand usually happens under following conditions 

• The brand is perceived to be old.
• Brand is trying to appeal to a new segment , for example younger crowd.
• When there is a change in the brand positioning.
• When there is a shift in the characteristics of the TG.
• When the brand elements need modernization . 
• When the brand launches products in other categories ( Brand Extensions)
• When you feel consumers are bored with the brand.
• When nothing else can be refreshed !

Brand often do these refreshing by slightly tweaking the logo/color/tagline /positioning etc but as per the theory , radical changes in the brand elements are entitled to be called as Re-branding. Hence there is only a thin difference between re-branding and refreshing.

As the term implies, refreshing brand make sense especially when one cannot make any radical changes in the product. For example, for products like softdrinks, the product attributes remains the same and only thing that can be changed are the brand related attributes like taglines , slogans etc. 

Brand refresh can be done by 

• New campaigns 
• Changing taglines and slogans ( or introducing a tagline )
• Introducing or changing imagery
• Changing the protagonists in the campaigns
• Introducing brand extensions
• Introduce a brand element which was not there before .
• Re-positioning 
• Re-targeting 

My take on this term is that what ever activities that marketer undertake to make brand fresh without radically affecting the brand elements can be termed as brand refresh. One article rightly compared  Brand Refresh to a Makeover. ( source ).

Brand Update : Raymond formally enters into ready-to-wear segment

Although the reports of Raymond entering into the readymade segment was there since 2007, I feel the brand has only now fully launched itself into this category. The " Complete Man" now has become readymade !

The Indian men's wear market is around Rs 97000 crore and the formal menswear market is estimated to be around Rs 15000 crore ( Source TOI) . Raymond has brands like Park Avenue, Parx, Color Plus and Notting Hill in the segment.

The addition of Raymond will further strengthen the company's portfolio but at the same time would cannibalize the other brands like Park Avenue. Having said that the move has to be seen in the larger picture where the trend is moving towards the ready-to-wear segment.

Raymond is now running the campaign for its ready-wear push. The brand retains the tagline " The Complete Man".

Watch the ad here : Raymond Readymade
The ad is well crafted - simple and elegant.
As long as the brand moves with in the positioning of " The Complete Man ",  the readymade push would be well accepted by the consumers. But Raymond has to create a separate space for its brands with distinct identity to avoid cannibalization.  I think it will be interesting to see how Raymond will be affecting Park Avenue .

Marketing Funda : The cost of Hype

October 6 ,2014 could have been a historical day for Flipkart but in reality, that day proved to be more of a PR nightmare than a marketing success. It may be true that on that day, the company would have emptied its inventory of many products but at the cost of a lot of goodwill .

The huge hype created by Flipkart and the subsequent backlash forces us to refresh some basics in managing expectations. 

One of the classic theories related to expectation and subsequent satisfaction is Expectation-Confirmation Theory ( ECT) . The theory is no rocket science . It simply states that during the pre-purchase stage, the consumer forms expectations either by the conscious act of the marketer or through other means. After the purchase or service encounter, the consumer's satisfaction is decided on the perceived performance of whether the original expectations are confirmed.

Because of the equity established by Flipkart, the consumers expected that on that day 

• They would get a fair bargain .
• The site would work perfectly.
• Orders would be fulfilled.
• Deal would be fair.

Getting a big bargain is a game. Consumers know that and wouldn't mind if the deal is taken by someone else - its a competition. That's why for many consumers, getting discounts is an ego-satisfying process. But when there are news about price tampering and deliberate price increases     preempting the sale, the issue of fairness becomes dominant. It's here that Flipkart got the stick. Consumers were furious not because they didn't get the deal, they felt cheated because of the fairness- factor. 

Here Flipkart simply took the billion day offer to stratospheric levels that even to the best of the intentions, it cannot be matched. Then in reality the entire sale became a nightmare. 

The lessons learned has to be that marketers need to set realistic expectations ( common sense !). But some times common sense need to be emphasized. 

Does Your Lack of Creativity in Packaging Reduce Profits?

In theory, marketingis about the science that builds brands, but in practice, it is often something simpler—getting the packaging right. In a grocery store, a customer is unlikely to be aware of a company’s latest promotional events, but he or she will be acutely aware if the company’s product appears to be attractive and affordable as it sits on the shelf.

Sometimes marketing is more about humble common sense than exciting theories about emerging trends. Consumer interests are often stirred by simple questions.

Describing A Product
Seth Godin once described marketing as “a contest for people’s attention.” Good packaging can make it easier to win that contest.

The questions consumers have about the value of a product on a shelf can often be answered by the package the product is in.

Packaging is much more than putting products in the right-size box and sticking on a label. Packaging should not be underestimated. Sometimes good packaging may be responsible for millions of dollars in sales figures. You can get entrepreneurial and creative even in your use of cardboard boxes. In fact, it would be quite easy to develop a full semester’s worth of information about the best practices around highly-attractive packaging.

3 Common Features

Here are the common features behind good packaging.

1. The package protects the product. Before the product reaches the consumer, it passes through many hands and stops at many destinations as it travels by air, sea, or land to get to the store or the customer’s mailbox. Damaged products will not result in repeat business or referrals.

2. It should make a good impression. For instance, through the careful use of shapes, colors, images, and copy an ordinary box of crayons can fill a child with instant delight at the possibilities of art. Packaging has the power to excite the needs, interests, and desires of the buyer.

3. It should differentiate itself from products provided by competitors.It makes a difference to the consumer if their package comes in a plain cardboard box or one with a few design elements. For some products, plain boxes without printing will suffice—for example, it is a waste of money to have a colorful box for computer printing paper because customers are unlikely to get excited about reams of paper. For others, packaging is very important. For instance, in MLM shipments, consumers always look forward to their monthly shipment of health care products.

An Art and Science
Remember the words of SethGodin: marketing is “a contest for people’s attention.” Good packaging can make it easier to win that contest. In some ways, packaging is a science. Packages have to have the right blend of size, strength, and weight for product protection and reduced storage and distribution costs. Manufacturers are also able to offer direct printing and a choice of one color, two colors, or lots of colors. In other ways, packaging is a science. A box of cereals, for example, in an attractive design will outsell another brand of cereals on the shelf right next to it many times better even if the contents are similar. 

Brand Update : Wagon R Teaches How to Manage Product Lifecycle

The festive season of 2014 saw the launch of  limited edition Wagon R Krest. Wagon R which was launched in 1999 is still the 4th largest selling car brand in India. The product is a classic example of how consistent performance + value-for-money positioning will achieve long-lasting success in Indian market. 

Wagon R has become a success because it is one of  the most practical car in the Indian roads. Be it space, comfort or reliability, Wagon R has delivered consistently over the last 15 years.

On the product front, Maruti has been very smart in ensuring that the product and the brand is kept relevant to fit the changing consumer needs.

The brand went for relaunches and modifications in 2003, 2006 and 2010. 

In 2013, Wagon R launched another variant- StingRay with a new positioning to attract the young consumers. 

This year, the company is keeping the PLC rejuvenated by launching a limited edition product branded as Wagon R Krest. The new variant has new front grille, audio system, reverse parking sensors, new seats and some sticker jobs. The new limited edition is priced at a premium of Rs 22000 over the original Wagon R. 

From 1999 to present, the brand has sold around 1.3 million units and counting.  In the branding front, the company had tried to maintain the brand's visibility . Earlier it used the actor Madhavan as the celebrity endorser effectively. More than the brand's campaign, it is the practicality of the product that has made it a best-seller.
Maruti has plans for a diesel version and an AMT version for this brand. This brand will be here for a long time for sure.