How to build an enduring brand: 5 lessons from Boroline

Since its launch in 1929, Boroline has steadily grown to become one of India's most enduring brands.  That brand awareness is high is evident from the fact that many of the students in my class all born post 1994 are aware of the tagline "khushbudaar antiseptic cream Boroline", which translates into fragrant antiseptic cream Boroline.  While Boroline enjoys recognition by Indians all over the country, it has strong penetration in East Indian markets. How has GD Pharma, the manufacturer of Boroline built such an enduring brand?

Here are 5 lessons I have taken from the Boroline story-

1.    1.   Keep it simple- as marketers we have learned that the product is the core of our offering to the market.  Boroline exemplifies this important tenet, the formula is simple and unchanged.  A blend of essential oils, paraffin, boric powder and zinc oxide, the formula is no secret, yet it has been difficult to replicate it's success.  The cream accounts for about 60% of the company's revenue and has remained it's flagship brand.  While venturing into brand extension is the path to organic growth for most companies, GD Pharma has kept the boroline brand limited to skin cream. A sensible and practical decision.

Source: https://www.boroline.com/products/boroline.html

2. Stay relevant - as a solution to a common problem faced by people - dryness and skin problems, cuts and bruises, Boroline, is relevant as a healing cream.

3. Clever positioning- a tagline or slogan helps you create brand awareness and enhance recall value while positioning your brand.  In this respect, Boroline has adopted a clever approach.  The following is a summary of a timeline, changing slogans and positioning strategy-

50's -Tender face cream- a cosmetic face cream

60's- Boroline for the skin. The skin needs Boroline. - from a face cream to a multi-purpose cream , cure for dryness

70's- Boroline has no substitute. - an aggressive approach sending a strong message to competitors and wanna be brands

Early 80's- the hardworking cream that protects your skin- going beyond a cosmetic purpose

Late 80's- In a world full of surprises, thank goodness you can count on Boroline - a reliable brand

Early 90's- the original- a bid to counter me-too products

Late 90's- Boroline skin. Healthy skin.- skin care cream (repositioning)

Early 2000- Boroline works wonders- highlighting therapeutic and healing properties

Now- wake up to happy skin with Boroline- building an identity as a night cream

4. Consistency- the brand has been consistent with its packaging.  Its green and white packaging and logo (the elephant signifying steadiness, strength and its quintessential connection with the deity, Ganesha) have largely remained unchanged, making brand recognition quick and easy.  The only major change perhaps is the introduction of a small 10 gram container, a travel / convenience pack. Another respect in which it has been consistent is retaining it's form as a thick skin cream, a concerted move and deliberate attempt not to turn into a skin lotion or hair oil.

5. Sensible diversification - GD Pharma has undertaken diversification and introduced the following products -

Eleen hair oil in the late 90's, suthol antiseptic liquid in 2003 and Penorub pain relieving ointment have all been added to the basket of offerings by the company.  Preceded by “Boroline” the attempt is to associate but not overshadow each of these brands with the Boroline name. 

Why Study Influential Advertisers and Influential Advertising Campaigns?

Why Study Influential Advertisers and Influential Advertising Campaigns? A question that must have definitely come to the mind of my students when I decided that was what we would be doing in class through December, 2016. 

Why Not? Was my way of answering that question.  

The syllabus we have for the Advertising Management paper lacks depth and content not to forget a contemporary twist.  As my students would probably enter the work force after graduation or choose to study further, I felt that no employer will ask them things like- what is the definition of advertising or what are the advantages and disadvantages of print/audio/audio-visual media?  

Too basic and trivial in my opinion.  But that is exactly what the third year syllabus comprises of and I want to empower my students to know a thing or two about the nitty-gritty of advertising.  I want to sensitize them to advertising in such a way that no matter what they see be it a hoarding, print ad or TVC that they look at it critically, examine it, learn from it, appreciate it/criticize it and remain students of advertising for a long time.

With this end in mind I zeroed in on studying Influential Advertisers and Influential Advertising Campaigns.  Which campaigns were known to be high impact and memorable? Who were the creative geniuses who masterminded these campaigns? As an advertising student, definitely some things I would really like to know. 

So here’s what I devised:

I would share Influential Advertising Campaigns and my students would share information on Influential Advertisers.

The result was a whole lot of reading and preparation on both sides, all of us were learning, students and me….it became our journey of discovery and sharing.

A Social Awareness Print Advertisement Campaign to Generate Awareness about the Declining Numbers of Cheetahs

We usually work around a theme for our advertising class.  This month we are focusing on art and advertising.  The challenge I have thrown to my students this month is to create a print advertisement campaign to highlight the declining number of the Cheetahs in the wild. 

It is a challenge because they have to come up with a print ad which is completely handmade.  The use of illustration, lettering and typography in the ad is a condition I have imposed on them.  While it may look like something really strange I am asking of them, I think it’s an effort to sensitize my class to the idea of working with their hands to convey an idea. 

I know that everyone cannot draw and paint but fine art is not really required to achieve good results in this task.  A little bit of imagination, ingenuity and conviction is really enough to create an advertisement on this topic. 

Here is my advice on this:

1.      Pay attention to color, lettering or a very good illustration to convey the idea. 

2.     Keep the message simple and clear.

3.     You don’t really need too much text to make an impact.

4.     Look up some facts about the Cheetah and weave them into the message. 

5.     Choose One Fact/Idea and create your ad.

Here are some pointers that I find interesting to work with:

·        The cheetah is the world's fastest land mammal and is vulnerable right now possibly sprinting towards extinction.

·        A cheetah can go from 0 to 60 miles (96 kilometers) an hour in only three seconds.

·        In 1900, there were over 100,000 cheetahs across their historic range. What are the numbers today?

A study published in Dec, 2016 by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and wild cat conservation group Panthera reveals that just 7,100 cheetahs remain in the wild.

Cheetahs have been driven out of 91 percent of their historic range, according to the study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Hardest hit are cheetah populations in Asia, where fewer than 50 individuals remain in one part of Iran.

·        Threats to cheetahs include overhunting, habitat loss, illegal trafficking of animal parts, and the trade in exotic pets.

·        Historically cheetahs were found throughout Africa and Asia from South Africa to India. They are now confined to parts of eastern, central and southwestern Africa and a small portion of Iran.

Art and Advertising- Exploring the Connection

Are art and advertising different?  Are they connected?  If so how?

One way of looking at advertising is the art of communication and persuasion, a means of using words, pictures, music and drama to get your message across to customers.  Art in advertising is sometimes glaringly obvious, at other times subtle. 

Let us look at how art is used in advertising:

Color: Color and psychology, color and marketing, color and brand identity, color and its connotations all have a role to play in marketing and advertising.  Color impacts people, advertising impacts people and that is the biggest connection between color and advertising.

Color and its connotations are well known: yellow stands for happiness and all things bright and sunny, blue stands for peace and calm, green for health, nature and the environment, red for excitement, boldness, danger, power, love, sacrifice, revolution, purple stands for luxury and royalty. 

Now make the connection between color and brand identity.  Brands have distinct color associations: Red-Levis, Cocoa Cola, Red, Blue and White-Colors of Pepsi, Green- Tropicana, Animal Planet, Blue-HP/Dell, etc.  In a way the colors they choose have a strong reason why, they bank on the power of color to communicate their core values.  Of course brand identity is much more than just color but color has a definite role to play. 

Illustrations: An illustration is much more than just a drawing.  It is a decoration or visual interpretation of text, concept or process.  It finds its place in, magazines, books, posters, flyers, animations, video games and films. Illustrations are significant in advertising for the print media because they add to the visual appeal of print advertisements.  Illustrations are used to create logos. 

Hand Lettering: is a form of illustration in which one draws letters.  In times when all signs are hoardings and posters used to be hand painted, illustrations and lettering was done by hand and had wide scope.  Even today artistic, neat lettering is used to paint signage and wall paintings for advertising.  Graffiti is an art form that comprises lettering and illustration. 

Typography: Typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make the written word look appealing, legible and readable.  The arrangement of type involves choosing typefaces, determining spacing between words and lines.  Typography is practised by typesetters while typefaces are created by type designers.  Lettering and typography may be used in brand names and brand marks. 

Music- Music is an intrinsic part of radio, TV and film advertising.  Played in the background or in the form of a jingle, it makes the advertisement appealing and entertaining.  Jingles are a form of sound advertising.  They are short songs or tunes used in advertising.  

Drama- the element of drama in advertising is introduced through actors, music nad suspense in film and TV advertising.  

5 Endearing, High Impact and Outstanding Indian Advertising Campaigns of 2016

As the year comes to an end, my resolve to create content that will help my students to master advertising has only become stronger.  Coming soon my blog devoted to the world of advertising through which I will capture and chronicle insights and imagery behind some influential campaigns.  While my focus will be on advertising in India, I hope to share some views on global ad campaigns.

To kick start my endeavour, I present a look at 5 of what I consider the most Endearing and Outstanding Advertising Campaigns of 2016:

Amazon #AdjustNoMore

In July, 2016, Amazon India came out with their latest campaign titled #AdjustNoMore.  An integrated campaign which is spread across press, outdoor, radio, television, outdoor and digital media, it encourages us to let go of our habit of making do with the second best.  The campaign weaves simple stories around common people to highlight its wide range of accessible products which are within our reach with the Amazon app on our phones.  Positioning Amazon as the enabler who with a flick of a mobile phone screen helps consumers get what they want, when they need it, the campaign is something consumers can easily identify with.  

Kindle E-Reader #JoyOfReading

In a bid to drive the sales of the Kindle E-Reader, advertisements highlighting the joy of reading have proved to be endearing.  Whether it was the nosy mother trying to get a peek at what her young daughter is reading or a little girl trading places with a strange boy in a bid to do a random act of kindness, all the TVC’s of the brand have focused on how joyful the reading experience can be with the Kindle E-Reader. 

#PaytmKaro

In a bid to position itself on television, Paytm has launched a commercial that showcases a range of areas where Paytm users can make payments. Highlighting the ease with which you can pay for anything ranging from auto fares, grocery bills and petrol pumps through a mobile phone app. While the advertisers are at it they also show you how you can use Paytm to send money to relatives, book movie tickets and pay for utilities and highlights the QR (quick response) code scan feature of the mobile app.  It also shows how Paytm users are now across different age-groups. 

Hero #RagonMeinRaftaar

Hero Motocorp has rolled out the 'Ragon mein raftaar' campaign with a soundtrack titled the same; the TVC shows several young men and women preparing for various endeavours. The message is loud and clear, to drive young India into the future.  The campaign caught my eye because it captures the energy, enthusiasm and passion of an athlete, biker, boxer and dancers alike.  #RagonMeinRaftaar when speed flows through your veins!

Rajasthan Toursim Jaane Kya Dikh Jaye

Another outstanding, eye-catching and impactful campaign is the one by Rajasthan Tourism.  On January 15, 2016 the state rolled out the 'Jaane kya dikh jaaye' multi-year, multi-modal and multi-narrative domestic and international campaign.  Comprising of six films, of which five are named after the protagonists Arya, Meera, Huan, Jane and Binoy who feature as tourists in the videos. The sixth film is a stop-motion animation on sand and reveals the new logo of Rajasthan Tourism which is simple and effective; two birds make the eyes and two camels, a moustache.

What struck me about each of these campaigns was the innovation, simplicity, ease of extension along various media and the ability to connect the brand message with day to day lives of consumers.  

Business Entrepreneurship Assignment

In our assignment that will span three months (August-October 2011) my business entrepreneurship students will work towards making a difference to micro business owners in Pune City.

The assignment includes a series of tasks:

1. Identification of one micro business owner in Pune city such as a vegetable vendor, flower seller, small vendors selling snacks on a cart, doorstep vendors, people selling goods at traffic signals.
2. Working with this vendor over 2 months (Dec '16 to Jan '17) to help him/her/them overcome their business problems
3. Talking to the vendor and listing down his or her problems
4. Working together with him/her to find viable solutions to overcome those problems
5. Monitoring the results of your suggestion and solutions

Methodology: Making a short film on the background of the vendor by getting him or to talk about himself/herself.  The film should include clippings of a day in his/her life.  Before and after responses (relating to problems and solutions suggested by you).

You can make this film on your mobile (as a video) or shoot in on a handy cam (just to validate what you say).

A written report on the project to be submitted by each student in January 2017

We are all connected

Being a teacher by profession, the summer break that lasts 6 weeks is something I look forward to.  This summer my plans for a vacation were spending time with a friend first and then going to visit family.  However, the best plans can be derailed.  The friend had a crisis and did not come as planned.  Family visit too looked dicey.  In the end I decided, instead of twiddling my thumbs waiting for things to happen why not make things happen?

I had some time back connected with Rachna Dushyant Singh, the moving force behind Ankuri, an acronym for agency for non konventional urban rural initiatives.  Based in uttrakhand, a state known for its natural beauty their literacy program and knitting program were of interest to me.  I wrote to Rachna asking if it would be okay for me to visit.  She wrote back promptly and said I should come and see how they work and stay for as long as I like.  The interns from university of Michigan and Clarke university were there and I could help with a summer school they were engaging in Dehradun.  

Tickets booked and en route to Dehradun, I must admit I had mixed feelings.  I didn't know what exactly I was going to do.  Very rarely do I do things without planning and this was one such no agenda project.  However, I had no fear, even as I was charting unknown territory, it was as if a higher force had taken control, the reins were not in my hand and I did not mind that.

Once there I was struck by the beauty of thikana, a rustic homestay, run by Rachna and her family at bharatwala, about half and hour away from Dehradun.  The warmth and care with which her family opened their home and hearts to me was something I will always treasure.

I learned so much from everyone I met there.  In Rachna I found the tireless urge to do something, a single minded determination to work for others, to make a difference and to speak her mind.  She always had a kind word to say to everyone, be it a young village lad who came looking for work at the homestay, the village folk or the knitters who were part ankuri's knitting program.

From the four interns I met I learnt how determined and focused young girls can be( rather they should be).  As young teachers their enthusiasm and energy was impressive.  Together we made lesson plans, brainstormed and worked on posters for the school.  Long chats in the gazebo and after meals gave me insights into the person behind each one of them.  I even ended up teaching 3 out of 4 of them crochet.

Teaching kids in their early teens is something I have not done.  But I enjoyed my time reading from the jungle book, playing games and indulging in craft with my class.  Assisting is different from being in charge and for a change not being in charge was liberating.

Eight days went by too quickly.  But at the end of it, left me richer!

Richer in terms of-

The friends I had made- Rachna and her family and the interns

The children I met and interacted with touched my life with laughter and pranks.

The knitters- women from the village with their faces etched with smiles and the lines that life had imprinted- reinforced my belief in the power of hand work. 

In knowing that we are all connected.  Nothing is an accident.  Everyone who comes in to your life is meant to.  A karmic connection as Rachna called our bond.