How many times do we see advertising that makes us want to watch it again and again, that draws out a chuckle from us, or becomes discussion points at the water-cooler? Quite frequently. And how often do you come out of watching an ad feeling you know exactly why that product is a great one, and with a substantially better proposition than others? My guess is, not very often. This is the age of clever and breakthrough marketing. As technology gets replicated at unheard of speeds, and product development (innovated or copied) can be done in any corner of the world, more and more brands are able to launch products that are similar to yours or even better than yours. Breakthrough products are fewer than breakthrough advertising ideas. The challenge for many marketers, therefore, is how to communicate the product, its benefits and its relevance to the target consumer better and more memorably.
The danger is when a product’s marketing starts overshadowing its value proposition. Indeed, in the case of certain services, the marketing might even start making changes in the product proposition so that it can be sold more easily or to more people. Consider the case of premium apparel brands that have gone into a spiral of discounts of “Upto 60% off”, “Buy two get the third free”, etc. Granted, these are predominantly clearance sales before the onset of the next season. But these have become so common and so frequent, that for the common man, the product proposition is irretrievably modified to mean that he can buy quality branded apparel at low prices. The proposition then is no longer about the material, the cut, the exclusivity; it then becomes about low cost accessibility of a branded product.
Similarly in the consumer electronics space, marketing has created such layers on top of the product proposition that you invariably hear the shopper asking the floor salesman, “Yes, but what is the offer with this brand/product?” whereas he should be ideally checking for how durable the product is, how well designed it is, how much better it performs versus other brands in its class and does it match the price-value equation he has in his mind. This is also the culmination of a decade of offer bombardment to induce sales.
The crux, therefore, is to continue to incrementally improve the product constantly, and make that the hero of our proposition. Especially if we’re in a market scenario when taking up prices result in trade and consumer backlash, the only way to generate more value for the company is to make products that are distinctly superior and based on real life consumer insights. Brands need to make their products so finely interwoven into consumer lives that they cannot imagine not using that product/brand or switching back to what they used earlier. Among the foremost exponent of this strategy was Gillette with its razors and blades.
From G II to Contour to Sensor to Sensor Excel to Mach3 to Mach3 Turbo to Fusion, you name it. The usage experience and its result was so superior that a man could just not go back to his previous Gillette razor even if he tried, leave alone switching to a competing brand. Gillette is not among the highest advertising spenders, but its marketing works hard to ensure that consumers appreciate why they are the superior product. Always does it.
For a few years, Nokia was that brand that got users hooked to its feature phones’ user interface. There was a time when people would just not try another mobile phone because they were so used to their Nokia phone and the way it fulfilled whatever need they had from their mobile. Till it all fell apart for Nokia when it failed to see the larger growing trend of connectivity and new emerging needs. Even though it remained among the largest ad spenders, market-share fell steadily because consumers could see demonstrably better products in the market.
If consumer is king, product is the king-maker. From a consumer packaged goods company to a mobile maker to an Internet giant, you can see this principle working everywhere. How does Google get 80%+ share of consumer eyeballs in search and video? Why does half of ad revenues go to Google? The answer – a whole suite of great products. You take the web or Android devices, the seamlessness with which Google services have permeated our lives is unparalleled in the history of mankind. The availability of information, communication, work management, entertainment and even advertising is so well linked with Google that you couldn’t give it up even if you tried. Sometimes, I feel scared and creeped out about how this company and its services could potentially control a lot of our lives and the economy. But there it is – great products made with deep consumer insights. That is why Google is the Gillette of the Internet, only bigger, stronger, more all-pervasive.
Marketing exists to facilitate the bringing of products to the consumer and enable adoption. Let’s be clear, marketing cannot, MUST NOT become the product or change the proposition of the product to enable sale. And when marketing does overshadow the product, that’s the day consumers start finding less value and relevance in what we have to offer.
(LK Gupta is Chief Marketing Officer of RedBus)
Feedback: lkgupta610@gmail.com
