MASLOW AS MESSIAH FOR MARKETERS

BRAND ANNA WAS DEFINITELY A COMPELLING IDEA AND PROMISED TO FILL A NEED GAP – ROOTING OUT CORRUPTION

To those familiar with the craft of managing successful brands it came as perhaps a surprise that Anna Hazare found no place in India Today’s 2013 compilation of the most powerful people in India, even though the social activist had topped the list for 2012. A careful analysis would throw up many factors that could be responsible for this. In the first place, those who promoted the brand (media, corporates, et al) and crafted a halo around him had their own agenda which did not match the philosophy of brand Anna.

Incidentally, before brand Anna was catapulted into the national market he had very limited regional aspirations confined to the constituency of Maharashtra. Yet, suddenly he was elevated as a pan-India brand with mass appeal. While his commitment to the cause cannot be doubted, one needs to admit that he exhibited individual situational appeal. The brand could gain mindspace of the target audience, even if for a while, because the need gap did exist; the moment was opportune, providing an apt backdrop to the launch of the brand. The need – sounding a bugle against corruption and steering a movement against it – was manifested in national frustration, particularly among the middle class, the most eager consumer. In its desperation to pin responsibilities on to someone for his globally induced economic miseries aam aadmi was willing to trust the unbelievable promise from the brand Anna: A Jan Lokpal will make all the corruption go away (as if by a magic wand), and this would mean an end to his miseries.

The Anna campaign was never a long term movement; it was perhaps not meant to be. Those who fanned the fire included media personalities on one hand whose limited agenda was to get a TRP booster shot for their channels and the corporate bigwigs providing advertising support on the other – not withstanding the fact that many of them were themselves embroiled in various issues, or was it precisely because of this reason – who too wanted a limited jugalbandi. So it was not very long before some of those who had responded to brand Anna’s call shifted away. The Hazare sales pitch was predicated on the target audience’s weakness for seeking magic potions for a terminal disease, something that had proved to be the undoing of even a wise man like Steve Jobs.

To be sure the energy and frustration that sustained brand Anna and all that was linked with him has not disappeared, but the sober thinking of the high involvement purchase kind has returned; the customer is no more an impulsive buyer and wants more mettle behind the strategy that promoted brand Anna.

In the beginning, brand Anna worked because it was perceived to be a solution based offering. Indeed, building brands and communicating with the public at large needs this singular trait most of all. He was and is still very largely seen as a simple, honest, old, frail man who owns nothing and has only asked for public support. He was fire, light, hope. Most importantly he was “me”. He inspired the target audience.

Moreover, the brand focussed on a single issue – corruption. If a brand hypes ten good things about itself, the target buyer remembers none. But if it talks about only one thing that satisfies people’s need, it is etched in buyer’s memory. Of course, this was also ensured, at least partly due to influence on public emotions and mass hysteria, through media support. In the first half of August 2011, the Jan Lokpal Bill hogged 77% coverage on the top 10 TV news shows. In the beginning, Anna built a good team by taking in people whose skills complemented what he required. The brand was imbued with passion and purpose. It even used social media networks very effectively to reach out to the younger generation. And the brand was authentic.

The brand managers for Anna also used Gandhi – our national sacred symbol for all things puritanical – to market his movement. The strategy is somewhat akin to the one used to market Bollywood sequels, wherein an initial successful brand (say, Golmaal) is used as a springboard to attain success for the subsequent launch. At the same time, although he tried to rebuild and reenergize the Gandhi brand, while building and strengthening himself, the Indian civil society overall could not perhaps reason out his thoughts and word, nor were they devoid of a feeling of animosity towards those who would not subscribe to their cause or disagree with their perspectives. His campaign managers started calling his campaign as the second freedom movement. It built a large amount of expectation around the movement, something his followers might have been hugely disappointed in when the Jan Lokpal did not actually fructify.

This is a classic case study of branding where a purpose instead of a proposition was sought to be marketed. The campaign was enormously successful too, since it was based on a larger cause, a purpose that was both current and real; it promised attainment of an immediate milestone – the Jan Lokpal; it was woven around distinct symbols, role models, and rituals; it was an integrated campaign, online and on ground; and it chose media as the target audience too. And yet, the brand seems to have faded into oblivion because the campaign was made around an unsustainable model, a fact that was revealed before the target audience not before long. The cause is not to be doubted, but the fact is that the Indian civil society is not alien to rising up one day to fight for a cause and sleeping the next; one big reason for the whole movement slowing down in speed.

Three things make a great brand: a compelling idea, a need gap, and convincing communication about brand’s capabilities to bridge the gap. Anna was and definitely remains a compelling idea as projected by the media. He represents something – angst and anger against corruption and economic misery – that the whole of India was and is up in arms against. With no resources and nothing to lose, he remains an antihero. And he promises along with Arvind Kejriwal to fill a need gap – rooting out corruption. He was supposed to be an enabler. But this is where perhaps Arvind Kejriwal, with his eyes on mastering the system – by taking part in elections – is gaining mileage and brownie points.

From brand promise to brand action, from what a brand says to what it actually does (because it has the capability), Anna Hazare gave a call for action. Alas, he failed to convert his promise into action not because of anything else but because the time duration in which the change was promised was too less, something the team could not manage. The brand failed to deliver what it promised. As a brand, Anna was packaged to perfection. As a sustainable movement, perhaps it will be the Aam Aadmi Party that will achieve much more.

MASLOW AS MESSIAH FOR MARKETERS

BHAJI WITH BAK CHOY AND BATHUA

INDIAN MARKET IS HIGHLY COMPLEX, VARIED, YET ENTICING. NURTURING FOOD BRANDS HERE IS EVEN MORE TAXING THAN REARING A CRANKY BABY

Recently UK based pizzeria Metro Pizza landed in Mumbai with its trademark meter-long pizza. The menu retains similarities to that of its principal counterparts, yet some items have been added on to suit the Indian palate and product mix. When Lavazza entered India in 2007 it decided to reflect its Italian origin by drawing inspiration from all things Italian, including art, culture, fashion, etc. To establish a unique identity it decided to go beyond merely retailing food and coffee. But, at Starbucks in India each store takes inspiration from local culture. The chain has retained certain Starbucks iconic offerings like chocolate muffins and cakes, but has introduced other food items that would please the local palate. Since the brand counts India among the top five global markets, it is willing to make locally relevant innovations in product and processes. In fact, the latest store at Delhi showcases examples of Indian craft of weaving and sports handicrafts made by local artistes.

So there are no universal guideposts for food chains. But are there any rules to break? Let’s examine if we become wiser by reading what follows now as ‘A morons’s guide to hospitality marketing 1.0’.

The first poser, should you, a foreign brand, enter India? This is a clear no brainer. India is the biggest consumption market in the world. Urban Indians spend 11% of their income on eating out. Nuclear households, rising affluence, more and more working women, food shows on TV and social media, increasing international travel, a very large young population – all these factors have ensured that by 2015 the Indian restaurant industry is likely to become Rs.62,500 crore plus, up from Rs.43,000 crore currently. If Indian restaurants industry hits the same percentage of GDP as in US, then this figure would be a stupendous Rs.1,80,000 crore. The untapped potential is really mouthwatering. Average bill per person in a quick service restaurant (QSR) ranges between Rs.70 and Rs.300, while for casual/ fine dining it is between Rs.750 and Rs.3,000. QSR business returns 15-25% margin while the other segment enriches the owner at 20%-40%. One dampener, however: High rentals.

Second, have you studied your market in terms of its occupants and their profile? It must be realised that nearly 45-48% of Indian population is vegetarian. More importantly, the remaining population too is non-vegetarian only occasionally. Hardcore carnivores are very few in India. Prudently, therefore, Yauatcha, a London based Cantonese cuisine chain included vegetarian dishes in its menu at Bandra- Kurla complex, Mumbai, since the area is a hub of the business community, dominated by Jains and Marwaris. Hakkasan did the same, using not even onion, garlic, or root vegetables. In Gujarat, which has majority population being vegetarian, KFC, Pizza Hut, Domino’s, McDonald’s, and Subway have some pure vegetarian outlets with special Jain counters. Not only this, regional variations in taste abound. While Satrbucks offers ‘Mutton Seekh in Roomali Roti’ in Delhi, it sells ‘Elaichi Mawa Croissant’ in Mumbai. Even celebrity fine dining spaces succumb to the dictates of local taste buds. Le Cirque at Leela Delhi, bowing to Indian predilection, offers both French and Italian dishes. Starbucks also hawks tea at its outlets. Due to dominance of youngsters all the coffee chains are positioning themselves as a ‘fun place to be at’, a hangout spot. And since most Indians like to munch with their beverages, Dunkin’ Donuts has positioned itself as a food café, the sweet spot between routine cafes and QSRs. Besides, it offers salty donuts in India. Costa Coffee too uses brighter colours and lights, tailoring to Indian preferences in its properties, along with a lot many ‘coolers’ on its menu due to tropical Indian climes. While the usual European style is maintained, alterations have been made in terms of tastes. All Domino’s outlets have ‘dine in’ facility now, which bring in nearly half the total cash.

Third, so should you be stubbornly authentic, adapt, or Indianise completely? The simple answer would be: While you stick to your expertise, you also need to strike a fine balance adapting to local taste and flavour. Rara Avis, a single cuisine restaurant, offers authentic home-cooked rustic French food having (like original) even rabbit and escargot on the menu. So does Chez Mariannick at Banglore. But Rara Avis offers 18 vegetarian options too, absent in the original menu. Sufiserves authentic Persian cuisine but with some north Indian dishes to appeal to a larger customer base. When Bagels Café opened its doors in 2008 it decided to serve bagels in authentic European style, but was soon forced to include options like ‘paneer tikka’ and ‘masala omlette’ variants. So you can only hope that gradually the customer will move to the ‘original stuff;’ but initially she will not be very adventurous. Remember, food consumption is dictated by cultural norms too which are rather inflexible.

Fourth, what should you adopt – hands off approach or personalisation? Now, since the chefs themselves are redefining the concepts and restaurants (at least at fine dining properties), many of them are hired not merely for their cuisine based skills but also for their marketing acumen. They are expected to design and innovate menus, come out of the kitchen and sell their food to the customer, explaining their signature dishes. At Kunafa, Delhi, Naseer Barakat, the proprietor, personally acquaints customers with the many varieties of confections available. In 2002, lebua offered even a limousine pick up for the customer from his home to the hotel.

Fifth, local sourcing, or global? Worldwide all luxury hotels are following the localisation mantra. At Intercontinental, a brand manager brings in local culture by hiring 10-15 designers who prepare alternatives. Feedbacks then are taken from local partners, and then only the final nod. Not so necessarily when it comes to sourcing talent, or ingredients, though. Quality issue then is the guidepost. So Kunafa imports ‘halwais,’ celebrity chefs are hired from abroad on fancy salaries, and ingredients may be partly/fully imported if not available locally or do not meet quality standards. While QSRs, which have to be necessarily cost conscious, increasingly work towards indigenisation, speciality restaurants in star properties offering international cuisine often import heavily.

Finally, the process of delivery. Mc- Donald’s keeps track of the products it sources from 40 different suppliers across India. Tracing the movement of 8,500- 9,000 buns, 3,000-3,500 kgs of tomatoes, 2,000 kgs of iceberg lettuce, and 5,500 slices of cheese constantly (on a daily basis) ensures consistency in taste of food and observance of international levels of safety standards. Each burger undergoes 40 separate tests throughout the chain. Similarly, many expat chefs while procuring locally, personally visit markets to buy vegetables. Another important fact is that in India, a QSR is expected to serve fast, but the customer is likely to hang around. So, turnover is likely to be relatively lower. And people prefer combos because they are akin to ‘thali style’, besides sounding ‘economical’.

In short, Indian market is exceedingly complex, varied, yet enticing. Nurturing the food brands here is even more taxing than rearing a cranky baby. Neither initial setbacks nor early endorsements of a brand should be read as a thumbs up sign from the market. Most importantly, constant innovation and adapting to local needs sure will help. For instance, Pullman, a luxury hotel in Gurgaon from Accor Group, gets its crockery from Auroville in South India just to cement French connections. Even Hyatt at Delhi has a full floor for Japanese where electric controls are at relatively lower heights keeping in mind the shorter heights of the Japanese.

There are some cardinal rules that must be followed, but others can be reinterpreted. reed.

BHAJI WITH BAK CHOY AND BATHUA

HAVE YOU LOST YOUR SCRIPT?

The U.S. coffee chain Starbucks opened its 7th store in the country on 6th February this year. It said that the brand counted India among the top five global Starbucks market in time to come. For this it was willing to make investments in aggressive expansion and locally relevant innovations (in its products and processes). Thus the store at Delhi showcased examples of Indian craft of weaving and sported handicrafts made by local artists. For its menu also the company has kept the Indian palette in mind; it includes items like Murg Makhni pie and mutton seekh roll, besides also offering Tata Tazo Tea ,a rarity at Starbucks worldwide. Will it do well? Well, sure it can provided the marketer does not try to sell frame as painting. In which case the warrior may not emerge the winner; the devil will devour the hindmost.

Way back in 1999 use of Barista brand name, an Italian word for a cafe, in India was rather an adventurous christening. Barista had opened its first outlet at Basant Lok, Vasant Vihar, one of the most happening places for test marketing youth hang outs. Barista, meaning brewmastersomeone who prepares and serves coffee-was chosen since all smart evolved coffee lovers are expected to know that Italy is the cradle of coffee. The brand wanted to recreate an authentic Italian coffee experience. Indeed, it wanted to present them a true blue coffee culture evoking a feeling, mood, and ambience symbolizing ‘brio’ (energy) reflecting ‘verismo’ (truth) adding to a matchless ‘virtuoso’ (a mastery touch) performance befitting a real cognoscenti.

Barista had a simple and focused vision of “offering consumers a never before experience while they sipped coffee of the highest intangible quality in an ambience powered by innovation and designed to offer heightened experience levels at every turn as they go along….experience that is not stagnant or likely to erode with time but ever rejuvenated and enriched by creativity, imagination taste, and style.” To deliver this experience the brand opted for serving limited but diverse and exotic range of coffee, food, music, games, decor, indeed the overall ambience of an authentic coffee bar. By year 2010 (they began in early 2000) Barista wanted to become top of the line global player with a minimum of a thousand outlets in India.

Café Coffee Day was dismissed as a competitor for ‘the highly experiential and premium’ brand. Barista wanted to position itself within the competitive arc of starred restaurants, snazzy upmarket coffee and other outlets, cine-multiplexes, malls, and plazas-any place inhabited by cool, sophisticated, and young at heart people doing time out.

Barista’s USP then was being customer driven, connecting with two specific moods that would largely colour the drinker as he steps inside, relaxation and recharge. The experience inside was expected to serve the customer well, additionally because the coffee served was hundred percent ARABICA served through Italian coffee machines. Porcelence (no styrofoam cups, please) was the serveware since it retains the heat, flavour, and aroma of coffee, as no other material does. The brew masters were trained to decipher and connect with their customer’s preference and choices. Little wonder, in absence of effective competition, the brand recorded a healthy 25% annual increase in footfalls, that too through only word of mouth publicity and viral marketing. Not a paisa spent on mainline advertising.

Further, sound of Barista (the customized music tracks played during different times of the day in sync with the mood and sensibilities of different set of customers), loyalty programs, special games, diverse food items in league with the season and customers preferences, and then some more wowing techniques went a long way to deliver the real, true blue Barista experience.

Barista had been mighty successful in introducing a defining coffee culture, in a warm and friendly ambience. It opened out a ‘whole new world of coffee drinking experience by offering Capuccino, Latte, Caramel, Mocha, you name it, alongwith fusion meals, so as to transform a commodity into a culture by creating value that refreshed the body while stimulating the entire being and enriching the soul.’

Alas, the experiment started floundering after a very promising start even though the experience was still nothing to complain about. Some where the brand lost its script. So what went wrong? Well, we hardly have the space here to unfold the subsequent chain of events. Suffice to say nurturing the brand is more taxing than rearing a baby. Starbucks needs to keep this in mind; it should not take early endorsement of a brand by a limited set of coffee afficianados as being a sign of thumbs up by the entire market.

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P.S: We at Theory i are of firm conviction that management cases don’t admit of one single ideal solution. Depending on the context multiple-and equally potent-approaches may be perfectly justified. Hence your magazine does not append ‘solutions’ to these cases.

HAVE YOU LOST YOUR SCRIPT?

POWER PLAY

“Hello, is that Mr. Srivastava?” asked the lady’s voice on the other end of the telephone. “Mr. Chopra will speak to you.” A pause and an interminable hold for 2 full minutes before Mr. Chopra decided to address me. This tiresome telephonic power play is common enough. Important people don’t dial numbers (or press the keys on the mobile, for that matter), and the lesser mortals are required to wait to be spoken to.

What was different about this call last Friday was that this gentleman was not even important to me. He wanted to invite me to address a gathering of senior managers at a workshop he was organizing. Even if there was a half a percent chance that I would have accepted his invitation, after this brief encounter I declined.

Later that day I went out to meet the chief executive of a Gurgaon based company where I had a prefixed appointment for 3:15 PM (his secretary had sternly warned me not to be late for the meeting). I turned up at the office at 3:10 and announced myself at the reception. I was asked to wait, which I did. And then waited some more. After an interval long enough for the CEO to perhaps have had a con-call, written a couple of mails, made a phone call, and gone to the rest room, he made his appearance looking neither apologetic nor hurried. He too was playing “I am more important than you,” and once again I seemed to be holding the losing hand.

For the rest of the week I decided to consciously look for power games being played by people. Academic in me having got activated I realized that rules of the game broadly fall into two categories: Those which people use to make them feel big, and those which they deploy to make others feel small. For your benefit, dear reader, I outline them below.

First, listen only callously. Actually try to monopolize all the opportunity to talk; don’t allow the other person to speak, especially when he is narrating events from his own life. It is fine to ask inane question: “How’s your family?” But the moment an answer is forthcoming start looking over his shoulder or peer into the screen of your ultrabook which may at that moment might actually be displaying the picture of Snoopy, your pet dog. Second rule is about e-mails. Actually there are three sub rules here. Get other people to send your e-mails for you. Do not reply to anything except ofcourse those messages which if unattended may put your job at stake. And, finally, if you do choose to respond, don’t bother checking whether your response addresses the issues raised in the other person’s mail. Third, your alter ego, the latest Blackberry handset. Always keep it on and use it often to interrupt conversations by taking calls and read e-mails. This will establish how hardpressed for time you are; without multitasking you could not have accomplished what all you already have. Fourth, your office. While a corner office with sleek leather bound furniture and your pictures with P.Chidambaram and U.S. Ambassador would be nice, there is a lot you can do with something less too. In a smaller cubbyhole put the visitor at a disadvantage by seating him on that squidgy sofa that is hard to get in and get out. Actually, even if you have no office at all, make sure that your junior answers your phone and starts off: “K. K. Srivastava’s office.” As regards your mobile number, ideally don’t hand out your number even if someone asks for it. Or if you receive a call on your number choose to ignore it. Finally, while talking, choose one of three options. Talk almost in whispers so that the other person has to strain to hear. Or, talk incredibly loudly so that people have to listen whether they wish to or not. Finally (perhaps most appropriately), talk aggressively slowly so that you waste the listener’s time and leave him with an uncomfortable feeling that you think he is too daft to understand normal speech.

I am sure you have not taken the above advice seriously unless you have already built a comfortable nest-egg and wish to retire early! Actually, there is a different, more advanced version of the game too that you must learn about. I recently met the Director, H.R. – a Japanese - of a multinational consumer durables company. When I reached the reception area the gentleman promptly came to receive me and escorted me into his office. On conclusion of the meeting he came out yet again upto the foyer to see me off. While for Japanese this is a part of their cultural fabric, if an Indian high up does this, you can be sure that he is playing, even if subconsciously, a top level game called, “Let’s pretend I am not more important than you.” If you play this well, the world is your oyster. Be warned, however. To be a master of this game, you really have to be dead important already. Else, for example, if I start playing this game, being the editor of a niche magazine, I will sound rather phoney.

There exist definitely superior ways to establish your power. For example, achieve excellence in your chosen field (like Tendulkar or Aamir Khan), create high value (like Naresh Trehan and Yash Raj films), convert potential into possible (like E. Sreedharan and Capt. Gopinath), make human service part of your mission (like Dr. Devi Shetty and late Dr. Kurien), and invent future (like Bill Gates and Mahatma Gandhi) Power is equated with success in all walks of life. If Salman can give five hits in a row, Sachin can decimate the other nation’s team single handedly, and Sonia Gandhi can decide the path that Indian polity and economy should tread, you could be anointed with success too. Only that what works for one does not necessarily work for the other. The ‘real’ you may cringe at the prospect of adapting to the stereotype that you may have originally decided to don to climb the ladders of success. So why should you emulate? The essential thing is to know oneself fully well – the strengths and the weaknesses – to fly high in the cut and thrust world of today. Zero in on your strengths and never wear chinks in your armour on your sleeves. Even if you are street -wise, assertive and blunt, remember it also pays to be sensitive and diplomatic. And before everything else, harbor ambition. Then chart out a plan of action and execute it to taste power and success.

Ambition is essential. Else, how will you become a high flier? But there is one proviso-your ambition should not be of the personal, self centered, conceited type that pays no heed to others’ wellbeing. Acceptable ambition is one where you have awareness of your own good qualities and therefore know that you can do a high-level job well. This should be followed by taking an inventory of your strengths and consciously playing to them – utilize them to the full. You should know equally well what your weaknesses are and try to remedy them, avoid situations which crucially expose these weaknesses, and attempt to get ‘cover’ (Say by asking someone for advice) in situations where you are weak.

This shall be the real power play!

It is for you to choose how you opt to succeed at success, by conning others or by fawning them with your inherent power.

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P.S: This issue carries 7 case studies covering a wide palette. 4 of them are long ones which would need multiple readings to arrive at resolution of issues raised therein. Rest 3 are shorter caselets which can be deployed to provoke an immediate discussion among the participants in a workshop/class/ brainstorming session. We at Theory i are of firm conviction that management cases don’t admit of one single ideal solution; depending on the context multiple – and equally potent – approaches may be perfectly justified. Hence your magazine does not append ‘solutions’ to these cases.

POWER PLAY