Every brand needs to reinvent itself from time to time to stay relevant and prosper with the market forces. Heritage brands are faced with a dual problem - their heritage value can either be a baggage or equity for them, depending on the way they make changes in favour of their consumers. The Femina magazine is one such brand, which has remained relevant over the last five decades by altering itself according to the tide and staying focused on the needs of its target audience. Femina recently rolled out its ‘Be Unstoppable’ campaign with the ‘My Body, My Rules’ July issue, which salutes women who have chosen to go beyond convention and refuse to be straitjacketed into someone else’s definition of perfection. Tarun Rai, CEO, Worldwide Media, believes that Femina has changed the game in the last five decades, succeeding and growing in stature because it has continuously changed itself and stayed relevant to its readers. In a sense, Femina epitomizes the journey of the modern Indian woman in the last five decades. “Our new tagline – Be Unstoppable – captures Femina’s belief that the modern Indian woman has the confidence today to live her life on her own terms and achieve more,” Rai adds. The ‘Be Unstoppable’ campaign is a hat tip to the spirit of the modern Indian woman, who is bold and optimistic, unafraid of embracing change, ready to face any obstacle and prepared to overcome it, to shun set rules and make her own. In a conversation with Saloni Dutta of IMPACT, Rai elaborates on the new tagline and the company’s plans going ahead
Q] How has Femina evolved in the last few decades? How has it turned its heritage into strong brand equity?
Femina has managed to convert its heritage into strong brand equity by constantly evolving. By not taking its heritage for granted and neither its readers, Femina has led from the front. It has been a beacon both for young Indian women as well as for the magazine industry.
Q] Femina has moved from ‘Femina Believe’ to ‘Be Unstoppable’. What insights led to this change in brand proposition?
Femina has moved from our current campaign line ‘For All the Women You are’ to ‘Be Unstoppable’. We do a lot of research with our readers. Our editorial team is also very closely connected with young Indian women. We knew that our previous campaign where we encouraged women to be ALL that they wanted to be resonated with them. We wanted to take that campaign a step further. We wanted young women to feel and believe that they are unstoppable in whatever they chose to pursue. We wanted to inspire them not to let anything or anyone stop them.
Q] How do you leverage talent in your company? Do you share resources between your magazines?
Our backend resources are shared. We also share resources to some extent for ad sales. However, magazines by their very nature need very specific editorial teams to produce content for their audiences. As a result the editorial resources are dedicated to specific magazines.
Q] How does WWM plan to stay ahead of competition in the magazine market?
The last few years have been tough for the magazine industry. However, we have managed to do well with annual revenue growth numbers of up to 30%. We have consciously built up a strong portfolio of magazines across genres. We cover women’s interest, fashion, celebrity, films, auto, travel, food, architecture, interiors and even education. There is no other magazine group that has the kind of diversity we have. We have also built up our strengths beyond the printed magazine. Today, our magazines and content reach out to audiences through the web, mobile, social media and on-ground events. We are format agnostic. We are content and community experts. We use our knowledge and community relationships to build properties and events which are amplified through a host of media vehicles. It is this 360 degree community approach that has enabled us to work with and find solutions for a lot of clients.
‘My Body My Rules is a call for true body positivity’
Soela Joshi, Brand Publisher, Femina elaborates on the finer nuances and marketing plans around the new campaign.
Q] What is the philosophy behind the new issue of Femina, ‘My Body My Rules’?
Body image has been one of the longest prevailing obstacles to women’s empowerment. Women have beauty ideals thrown at them from every direction. My Body My Rules is the call for true body positivity.
Q] What are the challenges that you see for the reinvented product, looking at new audiences, new advertising?
In an always on world, a consumer’s experience with the brand is the single most important driver of whether they will grow old with you. Building intimate relationships with our consumers, increasing the connection across every touch-point and inviting them to be active participants in what we stand for and where we are going will be the biggest challenge and opportunity.
Q] Is there a new marketing strategy for the new Femina and what are the new Brands and Brand categories that you are targeting? What is your new target group for Femina? Which age group will read the new Femina?
Femina has been a part of the Indian woman’s journey for more than 50 years. The magazine is widely read by Sec A and A+ urban women between the ages of 20 and 29 years. But these women are changing. This generation of women is bolder, more confident and knows what it wants. They are glued to the Internet and always connected. They are open-minded about relationships and careers. They have strong opinions and most importantly are not afraid to share them. These women are constantly challenging the status quo in every possible way.
Q] Tell us about the role of digital and social media for the new positioning.
Social media is going to be the game-changer. The ‘My Body My Rules’ and ‘Be Unstoppable’ campaigns are going to reach out and communicate on a personal level with the target audience on a daily basis through our various social platforms. Also, the social media campaign is being integrated with all our other marketing activities and PR initiatives.
