Most of us have hummed the catchy ‘Jab Ghar ki Rounaq Badhani ho’ Nerolac jingle when the ad first hit television screens 20 years ago. That’s perhaps why Nerolac has decided to give the jingle a royal comeback through its new campaign. Anuj Jain, Director, Decorative Paints at Kansai Nerolac Paints Limited tells us why the move was important for the brand
By Neeta Nair
The Nerolac jingle is one of the most successful jingles in the Indian ad industry, but what made the brand go back to it after so many years?
The jingle is one of the most memorable aspects of our brand and is a property which we have built over the years. When we asked the consumers, they said they would love to listen to it even today. Moreover, in the past we were focussing on the product campaigns but this time we wanted to combine the product campaigns with the corporate campaign ahead of the festive season which is all about enthusiasm and celebration. We thought our jingle would go very well with the theme, so why not bring it back?
What is the message Nerolac is trying to convey through its latest TVC?
Our target audience till date needs a very strong reason to paint their house and a festival always provides this much-needed trigger. Also, Durga Puja and Diwali is the time for people to buy gifts for each other. Through this ad we wanted to convey that their house needs a gift to, so transform it by gifting it a coat of Nerolac paint.
What kind of BTL activities are you planning this festive season?
In BTL, activities we have van operations where we reach out to the target audience so that they can experience our products and offerings before they make up their mind to purchase it for their house.
Nerolac offers professional paint services, but there is hardly any advertising on that front. Any particular reason?
Yes, it is a niche segment, which is available only in select cities. Thus we can’t launch mass campaigns around it and are instead focussing only on city specific campaigns.
In 2013, Nerolac launched an app which gives people a virtual demo of what their house would look like if they use the brand’s products. What kind of response is the app receiving?
The response is good, though when one compares it to the kind of traction fashion apparels get on the digital medium, it still has a long way to go. The Nerolac app is slowly picking up and is getting good downloads. Paint was earlier considered as a category where the consumer involvement was low, but with time we see the engagement levels going up.
Two years ago, Nerolac spent around 2% of their marketing spends on digital. How much more are you spending on it now?
The growth is substantial and in terms of percentage, we spend between 5-7% now. This is because, earlier when a consumer decided to get his house painted there were limited choices so TV ads were enough to give him an idea of the products. However, today with so much variety he needs to have an option to check out all the products himself. I think in the next ten years, the digital medium in paints will become more important than all the other forms of media.
What trends have you seen in marketing for Nerolac paints over the years?
Five or ten years ago, for paint companies most of the marketing budget was used around festivals. Nowadays it is more spaced out across the year. While the festival season is still a good time to invest in marketing, people are getting their house painted even otherwise. So roughly, I can say the marketing spends nowadays would be just 10% higher during the festival period as compared to the rest of the year.
While Nerolac is the largest industrial paint company in India, in the decorative segment it is still at Number 3 position. What is holding back the brand?
It is not the question of holding back. This industry is growing but it is a very habit-based industry. Per capita consumption is still low here. So we don’t look at individual share in the industry; our focus is how to ensure more and more paint is getting consumed and everybody is getting a benefit out of it.
What’s the USP of Nerolac and how has Shah Rukh Khan added to the brand appeal in the long association with him?
We were the pioneers in making paints safe and Nerolac stands for healthy home paints. That is our USP. Shahrukh Khan’s superstar status helps us largely because he has acceptability across genres and age groups. His image helps the brand every time we are trying to expand to a new sector; he gets the eyeballs and has been doing that for five years since our association.
Many of the products use terms like eco-friendly paint and HD paint. How difficult is it to weave technology around your product ads?
A 30-40 seconds ad is inadequate to really explain the technology used in the making of the product which could play a big role in differentiating it from the rest. And that is the challenge - how do you take the technology to the consumer along with the paint? That is why we started the Nerolac Impressions HD campaign making the comparison with HD (high definition) TV, to tell our target audience that with the use of HD paint their walls will look brighter and clearer. We have realized that technology is a very serious word for the consumer but it has to be explained simply so that it also makes an instant connect.
ABOUT THE BRAND
With a nine-decade long presence in the paint industry, Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd is the leader in industrial coatings and has a significant presence in Sri Lanka and Nepal as well. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kansai Paints, the sixth largest paint company worldwide. Kansai Nerolac manufactures a diverse range of products ranging from decorative paint coatings for homes, offices, hospitals and hotels to sophisticated and high performance industrial coatings.
Marketing tip
360-degree marketing is in vogue now, but spending on everything without knowing the implication of the activities is a waste.
CMO FILE
In his current role as Director, Decorative for Kansai Nerolac Paints, Anuj Jain has been responsible for giving Nerolac the desired focus in sales and marketing processes to strengthen Nerolac’s position in the market. Having risen through the ranks over a period of about 25 years in the company, he has brought innovation in Nerolac’s marketing strategy, plans and has made remarkable contributions to the company’s growth.
Facts
CREATIVE AGENCY: FCB ULKA
MEDIA AGENCY: LODESTAR
SOCIAL AND DIGITAL MEDIA MARKETING AGENCY: INTERACTIVE AVENUES
BTL/ACTIVATION AGENCY: NA
PR AGENCY: MSL GROUP
Feedback: neeta.nair@exchange4media.com
