BY SAUMITRA PRASAD
CMO, Kokuyo Camlin
Like millions of us, I too grew up in a school environment where studying was serious business. To get admission into a nursery class, not only did I have to prepare and take a written entrance exam, but also clear the interview with the school Principal. After joining school, it was gruelling hours of studies and equally exhausting homework, with weekly tests and exams to test out if you were any good. And since I was never amongst the top three students, I was no good. With every passing class, I was told that the next standard was going to be tougher and whatever I had done earlier was not serious enough. Somehow, the exam pressure never eased. After passing out from school, it was preparation for professional colleges and so on. Like many others, I always wondered whether I had ever enjoyed my education. For that matter, did even the students who were toppers enjoy theirs?
Perhaps in our growing-up years, we connected extremely well with songs like ‘Another brick in the wall’ and movies like ‘3 Idiots’, and really believed in the maxim that if you can enjoy your studies, you will find it more productive. But I guess there were hardly any supporters for it, at least not amongst the teachers, Principal or parents.
After post-graduating from NMIMS, I became a marketing professional and was in the world of capturing consumer insights. One insight was always fundamental, and that was “When you enjoy doing something, you do it well”. Apply it to your job, sports or studies, it always works. I started applying this insight to work and always found that it worked, and I would feel very productive.
After 16 years of experience in consumer marketing, I took charge as Chief Marketing Officer of Kokuyo Camlin. Camlin always reminded me of childhood memories and days in school. Of course, the world of schools today is dominated by many brands, some of them global, and there are many business challenges. But the big challenge is clearly defining the purpose of the brand, which is a part of a child’s life in all the schooling years. Even today, the one consumer insight which is always top of mind is: “When you enjoy doing something, you do it well”. Even when we did a research, it came out as the winning concept for the brand and the brand stood for “Making learning fun”.
The children connected so strongly with the idea of making learning and education fun, that it was executed in the brand identity, packaging, communication and in every expression of the brand. The brand became wellconnected with the consumers and a rage with children. What’s more important is that it tells us that deep inside, our thoughts and insights are similar and we need to read them well. One of them is that “Passion really makes things work”.
@ FEEDBACK
saumitra.prasad@kokuyocamlin.com
