K J SOMAIYA INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES & RESEARCH VOL V | ISSUE X | MAR’15

TWEETS

Vogue Campaign >>Page 17 BRAND MARKIVE

Harley Davidson >>Page 07

FAUX PAS

Groupon>>Page 16 16

MARKSMAN The

Cause Marketing

COVER STORY

MARCH 2015 01

EDITOR’S NOTE

Dear Readers,

With the summers setting in and days getting hotter, we present to you yet another

edition of marksman to feed you with the freezing and latest buzz in the world of

marketing. This issue's Cover Story comes with a cause - with it being title CAUSE

marketing. It unfolds to you all a special type of marketing which is used to sell ideas

for a cause while promoting your normal products. Don’t be fooled by The Special

Story of the month !

Brand Markive takes you on a road trip with one of the most famous and reputed

brand in the world of bikes - Harley Davidson. This month pioneer reflects brand -

Besides this, don't forget to read our most favorite and regular sections - it's all

about Ad-itude, tweets, faux pass, hallmarks and lots more.

We would also like to congratulate this month's CFA winner Simran Pradhan, IIM

Kozhikode and Sanket Jain , NMIMS

We thank you all for your enthusiastic response and hope you enjoy flexing your

reading as well as writing muscles! As always, we welcome all your suggestions and

queries. You can find various ways of connecting with us on our website --

www.interfacesimsr.com/the-marksman

Hope this issue proves soothing enough to your brains in this scorching heat. We

will soon be sharing with you'll our summer issue before we wrap up with this year.

Stay cool and enjoy the sunny days.

Happy Reading

Team – Marksman

The Interface, The Marketing Club at SIMSR

@marksmansimsr

02 THE MARKSMAN

TWEETS

BRAND MARKIVE

BOOKWORM

SPECIAL STORY

COVER STORY

Cause Marketing

MARKETING FAUX PAS

22

BUZZ

IT’S ALL ABOUT AD-ITUDE

Hall-MARK CAMPAIGN

19

16

14

09

07

05

03

34

C O N T E N T S

PIONEER

17

SQUAREHEAD 33

TWEETS

Volkswagen #Three #Old

#Wives #Hashtag Trust Volkwagen to come up with

brilliant marketing ideas to support

their equally brilliant technology. In

this video, of #Three #Old

#Wives #Hashtag, three ladies

are seen driving around in a

Volkswagen car. Two ladies are seen

speaking in hashtags to each other

about the features of the car, its

fuel efficiency, its clean diesel

engines, its German engineering.

Now, what better way to say that

“We’re here to stay” than this. Who

said technology was only for the

young and the restless?

OLX #LetWhatYou LoveLive We all had hopes and aspirations from the

time we could think. Some of them were

fulfilled, while some of them got lost in our

everyday struggle to survive. So how does an

online classifieds marketplace feature in all

this? OLX, with its #LetWhatYouLoveLive

campaign, depicts the story of a man, who, like

so many others in India, gave up on cricket for

reasons that are beyond his control. The

essence of the ad is that even if we aren’t able

to live the life that we may have hoped to live,

we can ensure that our dreams live on

through someone else.

MARCH 2015 03

TWEETS

Vogue #MyChoice Recently, Bollywood actress

Deepika Padukone shared the

story of how she battled

depression. In #MyChoice, Deepika

teams up with director Homi

Adajania and Vogue magazine to

voice the opinions and concerns of

99 women from the city (Mumbai),

telling the world why they should

stop stereotyping women and take

notice of what makes each woman

special.

Maggi #MomsMaggi One of our most favourite snacks of all

times decided to be a part of the

World cup fever by launching its

#MomsMaggi campaign. Participants

had to send in their mom’s maggi

recipe and win Team India’s jerseys.

This campaign was a great blend of

customer engagement and building

customer loyalty by giving each of

them a chance to cheer the Men in

Blue in their own style.

.

04 THE MARKSMAN

“kanna keep calm..” said the last year’s

IPL’s Star Sports campaign and got itself

embedded in the vocabulary of young

India-not as a word, or just a phrase-as a

tone, a rather impactful usage of a string

of words. If you reach that kind of

audience engagement, you know you’ve

made it. And they literally had. Now,

they are back with “watch Pepsi IPL on

Hotstar…”, promoting their latest

mobile app, Hotstar. And it’s a bang

they’re back with.

It’s the eve of the year’s biggest stage,

the World Cup, of the country’s biggest

passion (read: religion), Cricket, and

their broadcasting partner is not only

supposed to come up with a massive

campaign but is obliged to. IPL is known

for its massive marketing by the event

itself as well as the sponsors involved

and Star had to live up to this

expectation.

The ad explains through funny situations

in daily life of how watching the sport

on Mobile can help one with profits in

all spheres of life. The lyrics are chirpy

and includes enough cricketing terms

with frequently-used names and terms

in a perfect mass-appealing blend.

IT’S ALL ABOUT AD-ITUDE

Television Ad

The HOT-Star

MARCH 2015 05

The music is kept the same as last year

only the tempo is slowed down,

perfect Brand Recall technique!

Though the star cast used is fresh but

by now is already making the rounds

and unlike last year, the campaign is

expected to rope in big names as the

countdown progresses. However, for

the moment, it is doing the job-making

people shift the meetings’ note in their

smartphones’ calendar-by syncing it

with the IPL schedule on Hotstar.

The picture shows 10 prints out of the

whole campaign, if you see the rest of

them, you’d be equally intrigued. With

the summer being round the corner

and a new packaging in the offering,

Frooti was due to come up with flying

colors and so they do, flying ‘on’ colors.

New York agency Sagmeister & Walsh

with help from Aaron Duffy's agency

SpecialGuest and animation house

Stoopid Buddy Stoodios have provided

the TVC with the needed impetus

through the print ad.

Though the main attraction is still the

video, the print thoroughly supports it

by doing the intended job- as a trailer

does to a movie.

The vibrant and joyful colors are so

much a hero to the ad that the brand

ambassador, Shah Rukh Khan, does not

even appear in the prints. This, says it

all.

"The goal was to introduce the new

packaging in a fresh, bold, and playful

way," says Sagmeister & Walsh of the

rebranding. "We introduced four bold

colors to the brand which complement

the yellow colour of Indian mango and

add a sense of playfulness across the

imagery."

As perfect in the words, as in the sight.

PRINT AD

IT’S ALL ABOUT AD-ITUDE

06 THE MARKSMAN

Fruitfull colors!

Their very first workshop was a 10X15

feet work shed and it is from here that

they sold their very first motorcycle

under the Harley Davidson® banner.

In consequent years the company took

part and won various racing and rally

events and by the end of its first decade

was exporting to Japan and had a dealer

base of over 200. Furthermore, its tie up

with the US Army and foreign contracts

by Allied powers helped keep the

company gain major acceptance through

the course of World Wars I and II, and the

Korean War. The company also was one of

the two motorcycle manufacturers which

survived the Great Depression.

In 1969 when American Machine and

Foundry bought the company the

resultant streamlining and slashing of

workforce brought the whole company to

its knees. On the brink of bankruptcy the

company was sold to a group of thirteen

investors headed by Vaughn Beals and

Willie G. Davidson for $80 million; hence

beginning a long track of revival. Today

Harley also owns the sports bike

manufacturer Buell Motorcycle Company

and in 2014 recorded a ground breaking

$482 million in income.

BRAND MARKive When a Harley Davidson revs up…

Throughout the American history there

have emerged iconic brands like Coca-

Cola, Nike, and McDonalds who have

gained such a position through incessant

and in-your-face marketing efforts. But,

occasionally a brand comes along which

makes itself known through its continual

deliverance of value. For such brands,

recognition comes from its quiet, behind-

the-scenes effort of selling its products

primarily on merit.

Even though its products are loud and

their ‘Thudding’ roar can be heard from a

long way off, this iconic brand’s path to

success has laid down the ground rules

for Cult branding. The brand in question

here is Harley Davidson; which even

though being over a century old is still

one of the most relevant labels of

modern times. Today it isn’t just another

marquee but a way of living for its

patrons. Despite coming close to

extinction on two different occasions and

taking a major hit on its reputation in the

1960s, its intriguing how this motorcycle

giant, with close to zilch advertising, has

become one of the most recognized

names in the world.

Birth of a Giant…

The company came into being in the first

decade of the twentieth century, in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin when two young

men, William S. Harley and Arthur

Davidson were working on their plans of

a motorized bicycle.

MARCH 2015 07

BRAND MARKive

This ideology of making it the centerpiece of a

lifestyle has kept the brand going even in its

darkest days. The senior executives at Harley

are so viscerally connected with the brand that

it’s difficult for any other boardroom to match

through the world. All senior executives own

the bikes and ride alongside their customers

when it comes to rallies and celebrations. "We

are committed to motorcycling," Richard F.

Teerlink, Harley's chairman and former chief

executive, said in a recent interview. "It's not

hardware; it is a lifestyle, an emotional attachment.

That's what we have to keep marketing to."

The ‘Literal’ Road Ahead…

Following Just-in-time production and keeping

inventory in strict check the company has

managed to revive the quality it was previously

known for. But, on the flip side it has also led

to very long lead times and in many situations

loss of orders. However, it does not deter the

top management as they strongly believe that

their quality is the only survival tool that they

need.

Looking at how brands are going digital, Harley

is making no efforts to do the same. With

literally minute presence on platforms like

twitter, facebook and Instagram, the company

is sticking to its roots. Then again, the target

group of rugged riders is hardly one which

would relentlessly check and update their

virtual profiles.

Whatever said and done, the ruggedness and

pure muscle of a Harley leaves all onlookers

drooling for more. It has inspired generations

to live the extraordinary and never settle for

just so much. Just like its motorcycles and as

avid dreamers we continue to wish this brand

the smoothest journey ahead.

The cult of Harley…

With a minuscule marketing budget of

$20 million (out of which $1 million is

dedicated for advertising) the brand

still manages to hold and engage its

patrons and loyalists like no other

company can do. The painful decline in

quality (mentioned above) did lead to

many loyalists migrating in favor of

foreign counterparts but it also

opened a newer avenue of clean cut,

white collared customers who shared

the same level of excitement as

Harley’s prior hell’s angels.

The biggest seller for the label is the

emotional connect it creates and that

its patrons hold in their minds. Harley

owners worldwide have a sub-culture

of their own. HOG or Harley Owner’s

Group is a ownership club formed in

the year 1983 by the company itself.

Also, as an initiative to connect with

its members, the company gives tours

of its museum and production facility.

Every five years it also holds an

anniversary celebration where riders

from all over the world join in at

Milwaukee. The top management at

Harley strongly believes in creating

such a strong loyalty in its consumer

base that it proves to be contagious

enough to attract thousands of new

buyers by itself.

08 THE MARKSMAN

COVER STORY Cause Marketing: Making a Difference One

Product at a Time

Everyone is aware about

the problems that people

face all around the world,

we share pictures, like

videos, tweet, re-tweet

messages and express

strong views and

opinions; but what do we

do to solve or minimise

MARCH 2015 09

It has crossed the $2 billion mark in 2013

itself and still is growing at an exponential

phase. A lot of major companies, with the

increasing use of internet and consumers

preferring online shopping, a lot of the

marketing strategies have been designed

to penetrate the online platform along

with the offline strategies. The shift in

trends seen from offline to online has

witnessed a lot of cause marketing

strategies being implemented to increase

revenue.

Cause marketing is not a recent

phenomenon, it has been existing for a

very long time.

One of the greatest campaigns done was

in the year 1983 by American Express.

The statue was urgent need of

restoration and they got associated with

it and started the cause marketing trend.

They ran a campaign for three months in

which they said that with every swipe, i.e.

use of the card, they will contribute one

cent towards the restoration. If you buy a

new card, then they will contribute a

dollar for the same. They ran this

campaign successfully and raised $1.7

million.

those problems. We are well aware and

we want others to be aware regarding the

grave situations faced by many individuals;

but how much do we really participate in

helping them. Talking about it and actually

doing something to solve the problem are

very different. Some say they really want

to help, but don’t really know how. But if

we say just buy these shoes and the

company will provide a one-time meal to a

needy or buy a certain body lotion and

one-third of its profit will go towards

providing shelter for the homeless, then all

you need to do is shop and you are

helping the needy through it. This type of

strategy is nothing but Cause Marketing

or Cause-Related Marketing.

Cause marketing is nothing but the

cooperative efforts of a for-profit

organization along with a non-profit

organization to come up with a way to

mutually benefit each other. The use of

cause marketing has been increasing

continuously in the last couple of years.

COVER STORY COVER STORY

“Promise, large promise, is the sol of an advertisement. “

- Samuel Johnson.

10 THE MARKSMAN

If you buy a new card,

then they will

contribute a dollar for

the same. They ran this

campaign successfully

and raised $1.7 million.

The percentage

increase in the use of

the card and new cards

being brought was 28%.

Hence, this campaign not only benefitted

American Express to increase revenue but

also helped a cause on the way. This success

resulted in a series of cause marketing

campaigns in the future by American Express.

One of the biggest cause marketing

campaigns that spread all over the globe was

the Live Strong Bands. This campaign was

started by Nike along with the Livestrong

Foundation which was previously known as

the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Lance

Armstrong is a cyclist who has been world

famous for his dominance in the sport for

quite a long time. He is a cancer survivor and

started the foundation to help and provide

for the treated of cancer patients. His

association with Nike stated in 2003 and in

2004 they came up with the Live Strong

Wristbands. You buy the wristband and the

money goes to charity. Nobody knew that

this small band would become the fashion

statement of the decade. People from all

walks of life were seen sporting the yellow

band. Celebrities, athletes, presidential

candidates, everyone was seen wearing them.

In the 2004 Tour de France saw a lot of the

contenders wearing the yellow band to

honour Lance Armstrong. The campaign has

been running from 2004 to present and the

production of the bands was stopped in

2014. More than 80 million bands have

been sold worldwide and more than $500

million has been raised for the foundation.

This is one of the most successful

campaigns in the history of cause

marketing and gave rise to the production

of other bands for different causes from

different non-profit organizations.

COVER STORY

MARCH 2015 11

Yoplait is an international brand of frozen

yogurt. They have franchisees all over the

world and dozens of yogurt flavours to offer.

In 1999, Yoplait decided to form a

cooperative cause marketing strategy with

Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

What it did was, ask the consumers to mail

back the lids of the Yoplait yogurt cartons to

the company. The company would donate 10

cents for every pink foil lid that they

received. Initially people were not sure

whether the consumers would take part in

such an offer. But the response was

overwhelming, as the , customers were ready

to mail the sticky lids to the company to

help support the fight against breast cancer.

The company then had to limit that in a year

it would only donate a maximum of $2

million.

The campaign has been successfully

implemented from 1999 to present. A

total of $26 million has been donated till

date to the foundation. This has been the

longest running cause marketing

campaign till date. Cause marketing has

spread all over the world. India has been

no exception. There are many cause

marketing campaign carried out in India.

P&G’s “Padhega India Tabhie Toh Badhega

India” campaign is one of the biggest

cause marketing campaigns. They started

the Shiksha campaign along with CRY

where when a consumer buys any of

their products like Tide, Ariel, Pantene,

Pampers, Duracell, etc. a part of the

money will go towards the education of

children. This campaign was quite

successful and a lot of other companies

followed the same strategy. Nihar Shanti

Amla under Marico also followed the

same strategy and got associated with

CRY to help raise money for education.

Classmate notebooks under ITC also

followed the same trend. For every

Classmates notebook purchased they

would donate a rupee for the education

of children. There are many more

campaign that support the same cause

and have been going on for a long period

of time. Education is something that India

can easily relate to and therefore is

something that most companies want to

highlight.

COVER STORY COVER STORY

The newest cause-related campaigns are

revolving around hygiene and cleanliness.

The Sani Fresh ads regarding the lack of

toilets has highlighted a major problem in

many parts of India. Dabur, the parent

company of Sani Fresh, came up with this

campaign on World Toilet Day. They aim

was to tackle the problem by contributing

a rupee for every bottle of Sani Fresh

brought. This would reduce the travel of

people in the rural areas for toilets from

700 to just 7 steps and therefore they

have aptly named this campaign “700 se 7

kadam.” This lack of toilets has been

highlighted in other campaigns as well. The

Domex ad campaign regarding the lack of

toilets focused more on the health

problems that are faced because of it.

Children without proper toilet facilities

are easily susceptible to diseases like

diarrhoea. Diarrhoea is a major cause for

death of a lot of children in India.

Therefore, the requirement for proper

toilet facilities is a must. They also pledged

to contribute a rupee for every bottle of

Domex sold. These campaign are working

towards a cleaner and better India and

are seeing a lot of support from the

general public.

12 THE MARKSMAN

COVER STORY COVER STORY

Cause marketing has a lot of potential and

can be implemented for all kinds of

products. Some say that this Robin Hood

kind of philosophy is not really a

philanthropic gesture but just another way

for big companies to increase their sales.

They say that the amount actually

contributed is negligible in front of the

profits they earn through these campaigns.

Therefore, they are not really supporting a

cause, they are just using it to project a

better and caring brand and manipulate

people to spend more on their products.

Whatever the reason maybe, people who

support it or who are against it, both have

to agree that these campaigns work really

well and are some of the best campaigns

that these brands come up with.

Consumers feel better to know that they

contributed in some way or the other to

an important cause. This is the sole

reason for the success of these

campaigns.

The trend of cause marketing is on its

upward trajectory and is most probably

going to grow exponentially and the

companies who can leverage on it will

benefit the most and the cause will also

be given some contribution to fulfil the

needs of the people.

So it is somewhere a win-win situation

for all and therefore is a great marketing

strategy. Every product sold will make a

difference in someone’s life somewhere.

MARCH 2015 13

Special Story

APRIL FOOL HOAXES

“In an effort to help the national debt, Taco

Bell is pleased to announce that we have

agreed to purchase the Liberty Bell, one of

our country’s most historic treasures.” Thus

went an ad in six major American

newspapers on the 1st of April, 1996.

By noon, Taco Bell ‘confessed’ in a press

release and called it “The Best Joke of the

Day”. It also pledged $50,000 for the Bell’s

upkeep.

Clever marketing? Light-hearted way to

connect with consumers?

Thousands of Americans called up the

National Park Service in Philadelphia to

register complaints. Many hundreds took to

its outlets to protest.

If the PR agency, Paine and Associates, is to

be believed, the publicity helped Taco Bell

generate the equivalent of $25m in

advertising expenses, while its actual

expenses were only about $300k.

Almost exactly ten years later, the National

Park Service was once again in the spotlight,

after ProShade proposed to give $4m to

Mount Rushmore in exchange for being able

to put its logo visor on each of the

president’s heads.

14 THE MARKSMAN

The history of April Fools’ Day Hoaxes

even in corporate and business contexts is

long and colourful. Some of them – such

as Burger King presenting the hoax “Left

Handed Whopper” burger – have even

managed to significantly increase sales.

Others – such as Google’s famous Pacman

in Google Maps this year or Google

Translate for Animals a few years ago –

have even succeeded at endearing

consumers.

But this does not mean everyone has

been following suit – Amazon’s home page

has since a few days featured Dash

Buttons, brand label carrying Wi-Fi

enabled buttons that one can keep in

cupboards, drawers, racks or shelves and

press when one is nearing end of supplies.

It has garnered curiosity because of its

fortuitous timing. Amazon has responding

to April Fool suspicions by curtly

admitting that “indeed it is real”. The

confusion generated has proved of great

advantage to Amazon, not only because it

got a wide range of people talking about it

but also because it impressed the point

that the fact that it was suspected an April

Fools’ Day hoax makes a strong case for

its success.

Central to success on every year’s other

1st of April challenge is to have all the

ingredients of folly in the right amounts --

just the right mix of funny, smart and

sensible.

MARCH 2015 15

SPECIAL STORY

16 THE MARKSMAN

MARKETING FAUX PAS Struck the wrong chord-(think ‘cause’): Groupon

Super Bowl XLV

Tugging on your audiences’ emotions is not a

taboo in the marketing & advertising arena.

But, this risk should be taken with much

afterthought before the actual plunge in the

market. The repercussions? – Offended

customers and a tidal wave of negative social

media backlash.

An estimated 100 million people were

witness to Groupon.coms’ Super Bowl XLV

debacle. Their 30 second spot which was an

attempt at humour, fell flat and blew their

Chinese dream to smithereens.

So, if you are wondering what possibly could

go wrong in 30 seconds then here is how it

went- the ad opened with a picturesque

coverage of Tibetan landscape while a

voiceover gravely announced, “Mountainous

Tibet, one of the most beautiful places in the

world. This is Timothy Hutton. The people of

Tibet are in trouble. Their very culture is in

jeopardy.”

And abruptly the next moment the scene

shifts to him seated in a lively Chicago

restaurant, relishing Tibetan food &

announcing happily, “But they still whip up an

amazing fish curry,” and boasting of the 50%

discount he got on the meal thanks to

Groupon.

Tibet is one of the most sensitive issues in

China, plagued by tensions related to religious

freedom, human rights, development and

political sovereignty. The ad not only came

across as insensitive but also as seeming to

trivialize the plight of Tibetan people.

The lesson? - Whatever you think about its

political & social situation, you should not

touch it as a foreign company if you want

to run a business there. Groupon sure did

learn it the hard way and the only thing

that was funny about the ad was that they

did so at a whopping cost of $3 million!

The catastrophic ad was conceived by ad

firm Crispin Porter + Bogusky, known for

their viral marketing.

The site's founder Andrew Mason, further

fanned the fire by defending the ad as a

parody of celebrity narrated PSA style

commercials that have a social cause

attached to them. Groupon itself being

associated with fundraising for the Tibet

Fund and plans to match up to $100,000 in

donation for it. But sadly their televised

ads made no mention of the website or

the charity drive.

Whether Groupon hurt itself bad enough

or did this bad publicity too did them

good, can be debated. As there is no

denying that the publicity generated by the

reaction to the ads, made it known to

many more people than it had before the

Super Bowl.

Hall-MARK CAMPAIGN Gone Girls - #NotThere

What would be a world without women?

This International Women’s Day saw a

glimpse, or rather didn’t. On the 8th of

March, New York City woke up to empty

billboards, magazine covers and ads. The

women on all these promotional materials

were replaced with white space carrying a

URL reading Not-there.org.

The campaign, a collaboration between the

Clinton Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates

Foundation and the ad agency Droga5,

essentially meant to draw our attention to a

new report from No Ceilings: The Full

Participation Project. The initiative seeks to

raise awareness that though progress has

been made when it comes to full

participation of girls and women, but when it

comes to gender equality, women are ‘not

there’ yet.

Major marketers and media companies viz.

Unilever, Condé Nast, H&M, Vogue,

HarperCollins, Under Armour, Diane von

Furstenberg, Refinery29, iHeartRadio and

Snapchat, came out in full strength to

support the cause.

The campaign also released a 90-second

video on the social media with celebrities

like Amy Poehler, Cameron Diaz, Jenny Slate

and Sienna Miller talking about the need to

continue fighting for gender equality. In

keeping with the theme of ‘not there’, the

women were just audible, not visible. The

video showcased their voiceovers in the

background of empty rooms and chairs.

MARCH 2015 17

HALL-MARK CAMPAIGN

This media stunt has surely lifted the veil and made the gap visible. Citing the report, here

are some of the areas where women still need to catch up:

• Though there are a plethora of laws to protect women, but they are not properly

enforced.

• The gender workforce gap has remained constant since the past twenty years, and

women are underrepresented in political office and management ranks.

• U.S. is one of nine countries in the world that does not guarantee paid maternity

leave.

• And women spend up to 5 more hours on unpaid domestic work than men.

It seems we have a long way to go till we actually reach “there.”

18 THE MARKSMAN

PIONEER

Warren Edward Buffett, an

American business magnate, investor and a

philanthropist

Warren Buffet, probably the name is

enough to make any reader’s eyes pop! Always

among the world's wealthiest people, he has

been a pioneer in the investing industry. He is

the CEO and largest shareholder of Berkshire

Hathaway,an American multinational conglome

-rate holding company and has also been

considered as one of the world's most

influential people in the world. He is our

Pioneer for this months issue.

Warren Buffett was born in 1930

in Omaha. As a child itself, Buffett was

keen on making and saving money. He

sold chewing gum, Coca-Cola and

weekly magazines door to door. He

worked in his grandfather's grocery

store. While he was still in high school,

he made money by means of delivering

newspapers, selling golf balls and stamps

and detailing cars, among other means.

This mans interest in the stock

market and investing activities started

during his schoolboy days where he

spent time in the customers' lounge of

a regional stock brokerage near his

father's own brokerage office. An

amazing fact is that at the age of 11, he

bought shares for himself, that’s right

ELEVEN!

WARREN BUFFET

MARCH 2015 19

PIONEER

Buffets professional career has

mainly revolved around the investing and

the finance industry where between the

1950s and 1970s, he worked in various

roles like investment salesman, as a

securities analyst etc. Also, he had a lot of

partnerships in his journey and eventually

became a millionaire because of his

partnerships.

And being associated with

Berkshire Hathaway he became a

billionaire. In 2008 he was ranked

by Forbes as the richest person in the

world with an estimated net worth of

approximately US $62 billion.

Something that Buffet is also well known for

is the amount of charity that he makes!

Recently he donated $2.8 billion to the Bill

and Melinda Gates Foundation and several

other charities as part of his annual giving

pledge, breaking his own personal record of

$2.6 billion, isn't that a huge amount for

charity? He also plans to donate all his

wealth when he and his wife die. That’s how

humble he is.

We have a very good collection of some of

his truly inspirational quotes and some of his

amazing facts, for you on the next page!

20 THE MARKSMAN

PIONEER

Amazing facts about Warren Buffet:

99 percent of Warren Buffett's wealth

was earned after his 50th birthday

Gold is a bad investment with no real

value, according to Buffett

Warren Buffett carries an ancient

Nokia flip phone, not into

smartphones.

He has donated a total of $25 billion

to charities

Buffett actually bought Berkshire

Hathaway so he could fire its CEO

MARCH 2015 21

Bookworm Building Brand Value

Ambi Parameswaran

The book begins by disclaiming promise of

‘revolutionary’ breakthrough in brand

building – it is consciously an attempt to

synthesise previous work in branding and

marketing. It is aimed at the young marketer

as well as the middle manager, belonging

specifically to the Indian context, poised to

make a mark in the field – both in terms of

creating brand value as well as

nurturing/developing it.

Parameswaran begins by providing a

multifaceted description of what exactly

brand (the noun) and branding (the verb)

imply. He calls the synthetic model he’s

developing the Brand Building Pentagon,

after the five stages it comprises. The first

step, Appraisal, is about fishing around –

recognising opportunities and identifying

potential. The second, Definition, involves

analytically elaborating on the product and

pricing. The third, Articulation, is all about

implementation – enabling visibility and

interaction with potential consumers. It also

features a discussion on gestation periods

and the inherent uncertainty. The fourth,

Measurement, is about calibration, control

and correction. Any brand has to deliver on

the investment and has its own metrics that

cannot be captured merely through financial

ratios.

The last step is that of Expansion – not mere

growth but the ability to expand by buying

or by selling, thus in a way becoming larger

than the organisation and yet remaining tied

to the organisation’s interests.

The final chapter provides practical insight

by expounding on Execution – the arduous

struggle to not just create a brand that

connects with consumers but also

maximises shareholder wealth.

The book features valuable detours into

areas such as positioning and brand audit

and also contains four appendices containing

everything from quick checklists to sector-

specific data sources, although a

consolidated and specific bibliography (as

opposed to the generic one) would add even

more value.

Although the synthesis is well explicated –

with decent explanations of all the models

he brings under consideration – there are a

few errors of historical accuracy that need

to be ironed out (such as referring to Kotler

as having introduced the 4Ps). On the whole,

however, Parameswaran brings multiple

innovations to the table that are otherwise

not to be found in the traditional works on

branding he builds upon.

22 THE MARKSMAN

Brand Kejriwal takes Delhi by storm to win the elections

FEATURED ARTICLES

Simran Pradhan

IIM Kozhikode

“A Revolutionist is not the kind of man

who becomes a Pope, and that man who

becomes the Pope has no wish to be a

revolutionist”

-AV Dicey

How one man could mold the mindset of

a collective to ring in “change”. How one

man, despite obstacles both internal and

external, was able to defend his position

and defeat the more experienced and well-

oiled political machinations. This is the

story of Arvind Kejriwal- The Brand that India

has loved to consume.

To deconstruct Brand Kejriwal, let’s get into

the first principles. STP analysis is one of

the first exercises a company performs

before launching a product. That the Aam

Aadmi party is the medium of politics for

the brand Kejriwal must be set in place.

Kejriwal segmented the masses into well-

defined voter groups such as women,

rickshaw drivers, conservancy workers,

etc. The common thread uniting these

groups was the attribute of them being the

“Aam Aadmi” and more importantly the

“dukhi aadmi”. He carefully crafted a

targeting strategy for each of these

segments. While housewives were

troubled by rising food and commodity

prices, women in Delhi were harassed by

safety issues and the middle and lower

income groups were facing the wrath of

electricity politics and water shortage.

Arvind Kejriwal is

neither a revolutionary

nor is a he a Pope. Yet

his influence is as

mesmerizing as either

of the two. Kejriwal

rode to a sweeping

victory in the Delhi

elections with a record

margin of 67/70

assembly seats.

No mean feat for a party in just its fourth

year of existence. Actually, if viewed in the

prevailing context, it’s a remarkable feat

considering that the party was facing major

crises post it’s previous government debacle

and the massive infighting threatening to

derail its election chances. So, how then did

the AAP win so handsomely? The answer is a

no-brainer but the interesting part is how it

was achieved.

MARCH 2015 23

FEATURED ARTICLES

Kejriwal championed all these causes deftly

under the umbrella slogan of Anti-Corruption

and thus focused on a single themed

positioning strategy to market corruption as

the panacea of all ills facing Delhiites and the

country at large.

The STP done, it was time for him to define

his marketing strategy. “Change” was the

single word that resonated throughout. But

unlike the obamanesque histrionics of “Yes

we Can” , Kejriwal adopted to follow the age-

old Indian marketing adage-“Jo Dikhta hai

who Bikta hai” and to resounding effect. TV

exposes, public dharnas and regular public

interactions signaled commitment to the

cause. Additionally, in this second election, he

was more accepting of his own flaws and

apologized for the previous election debacle

to the citizens of Delhi. This projected a

more human side to the leader in him, a

refreshing change from his political peers for

whom saying sorry was an anathema.

For top of the mind brand recall, he created

his own identity with the muffler and

Gandhi cap which was accentuated by the

muffler during the winters. Products like

wall clocks with this image of Kejriwal

served well. This gave a much identifiable

symbol to the masses as he looked like one

of them.

24 THE MARKSMAN

FEATURED ARTICLES

Much of a brand’s success depends on how it competes with its rivals. For Kejriwal 2.0,

the biggest rival brand was NaMo. Unfazed by Narendra Modi’s nationwide wave of

support and the heavy drubbing that he received at Modi’s hands in the 2014 Lok Sabha

polls, Kejriwal took on brand Modi with a vengeance. He was successful to draw out the

fallacies of Modi’s much touted Gujarat Model of success. He was both critical and co-

operative with the Centre. But what Kejriwal accomplished superbly was to nullify

Modi’s representatives fighting against him. From Amit Shah’s tactics of trying to

discredit him to Kiran Bedi’s hyperventilating antics, Kejriwal’s long term marketing

strategy was sound and swift.

MARCH 2015 25

FEATURED ARTICLES

He had already destroyed the old market

rival; the Congress and decimated the brand

legacy of Sheila Dikshit ,Delhi’s longest

serving Chief Minister. Competitive rivalry

existed within the AAP as well with several

leaders breaking off just before the elections.

Undeterred by this and also unhindered by

his irksome health, Kejriwal stood it out in

the sun to campaign for change. He is also as

astute as he is firebrand. Today’s marketing

strategy cannot be devoid of a digital media

plan. Instead of the going just for the regular

communication platforms like Facebook and

Twitter, Kejriwal and Co. employed good use

of Quora to mobilize public discussion and

LinkedIn to garner donations for the party.

Kejriwal was active on Twitter continuously

updating the masses on his actions and

agendas.

Summarily, it is said. “ There are Brands and

there are more Brands”. But a few brands

transcend boundaries to emerge as

Leaders. Just like in a product brand, its

functional attributes, its customer promise

and quality of delivery define the

cornerstones of its success, likewise Brand

Kejriwal roared to success based on

intellectual honesty, socio-cultural amity,

personal integrity and above all the

differentiating factor of being a soldier of

the Aam Aadmi always and every time.

26 THE MARKSMAN

Minimalistic designs: The new trend in advertising

FEATURED ARTICLES

Sanket Jain

NMIMS

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is

nothing more to add, but when there is

nothing left to take away.”

-Antoine de Saint-Exupe

Minimalism, a philosophy of life, finds its

origin in the Japanese traditional design. It

emphasises on living life only with things

that add value and keep the rest away.

Minimalism peeps through various aspects

of life in Japanese culture be it way of

living, architectural design and music. As

the minimalistic culture continues to

fascinate people around the world with its

simplicity and uncluttered form, the trend

has been picked up by various marketers

to market their product and brands.

Every brand wants to improve its good

brand recall. They want to be remembered

and recognized. For years marketers and

advertising agencies are trying to come up

with innovative ideas to communicate the

offerings of their product or service.

This brings us to discuss about Minimalistic

designs which relies on the concept of ‘Less

is More’. It’s a combination of Arts and

Science. Arts to use the visuals and

language and communicate a message

effectively whereas science to understand

the ability of a viewer to consume the right

quantity of information. Minimalism is

gaining steam in the current market

environment as the new generation

customer are moving away from the heavy

ornamentation of product towards a more

simple, clean and uncluttered product. This

rapid transition is because of the

generation change of the customer, their

lifestyle and time management. Moreover,

more simple a design, more matured

product is thought to be basic Ingredients

of a Minimalistic design?

• Clutter free graphics

• Solid colours

• Few words(with large fonts)

• Powerful message

MARCH 2015 27

FEATURED ARTICLES

28 THE MARKSMAN

Minimalistic advertisements often prove

memorable because the viewer has limited

information to concentrate upon. Many

iconic brands including Nestle, FedEx,

McDonalds and Lego have realised the need

to shift their digital and print media

marketing campaigns to a minimalistic

platform. Let’s us look at some of the

brands that managed to create a buzz with

their minimalistic campaigns.

Volkswagen, a German multinational

automotive giant, has mastered the art of

minimalism and it often comes up with eye

catching and more importantly heart

winning campaigns. The first image conveys

the exceptional mileage whereas the second

one signifying the swift electronic gearbox.

Steve Jobs was inspired by Zen philosophy, a

minimalistic way of living and then it was

later ingrained in the company, work culture

and the products. It was so embedded in the

design and functioning of the product that

Apple didn’t provide with a user manual with

iPhone. Later, all the products of Apple had a

common underlying feature - simplistic

design and ease of use. The minimal white

and black logo of Apple today is popular and

gathers instant recognition.

Durex, an iconic brand of Reckitt Benckiser,

is well known for its cheeky campaigns.

Durex managed to take its campaigns to a

whole new level with the use of minimalistic

ads.

FEATURED ARTICLES

Applications of minimalism are more than

just in advertising. Recently, their use has

been extended to product packaging and

design. Look at the below examples to

understand how the visuals on packaging

have evolved over time. In both the

examples, the focus is more on highlighting

the brand rather than anything else.

In order to keep pace with the changing

times, Nike entered into minimalistic design

in footwear range by introducing Nike Free

to attract new age customers. With the Nike

Free, Nike was a leader in the minimalist

running category. Minimalist sales increased

30% in 2013. Adidas also entered the fray by

launching ADIpure. However, the Five

fingered design shoe was didn’t connect with

the masses and as the design didn’t fit into

the ‘traditional’ shoe concept that people

had in their minds.

Recent trends have shown use of

minimalism in variety of fields. Minimalism is

a big hit in web and mobile app designing.

Developers are using minimalistic route to

create a user friendly interface and provide

a worthwhile experience to their users.

Minimalistic branding does come with its

set of limitations. Creating a minimalistic

message isn’t easy! It’s challenging to

communicate the message with limited

resources. New brands which are not so

popular may find it difficult to use brand

minimalism. Established brands will also

have to check that minimalism is not

making them lose their brand recognition.

Even before entering into this classy field of

minimalistic domain, companies need to be

dead sure of their product and its ability to

meet the set expectations. Companies

should meticulously listen to the talks and

predict a trend that will resonate with the

masses only then the minimalistic

advertising would prove a boon.

MARCH 2015 29

Persuasive techniques in advertising

FEATURED ARTICLES

PushKar Ralegankar

KJ SIMSR The desire, hope, dream, attraction are

some words which relate to advertising.

Henry Ford has quoted “Stopping

advertising to save money is like stopping

your watch to save time.” Advertising is an

art which elevates taste, vision, trends,

ambience, smell to level which someone

imagines and creates an urge to experience

the same.

“Necessity is mother of invention” was

known to everyone but now the days are

invention is mother of necessity. Never

heard before??… But yes, truly felt by

everyone credit goes to advertisements. It

is the capability of advertisements to

create that need in person which was

never present before. Credit goes to the

advertisement writer.

Today we will see how did these advertises

evolved and which are the kind of

advertises and how persuasive advertise is

becoming charm of every product and

service provider. The persuasive strategies

can be divided in three categories as given

by Aristotle in philosophy, they are Pathos,

Logos and Ethos.

The classic ads of Hamara Bajaj, Dettol,

Thanda matlab Coca Cola represent

Pathos, Logos and Ethos respectively. So

to say, these ad try to make connect with

consumer by an appeal to emotion, appeal

to reason and appeal to character. The

consumer is being asked to believe that

these are the products that he should

consumer by tantalizing his different

senses or emotions.

Some brands have started their journeys

by persuasive advertising, some have

moved from informative to persuasive and

some have stayed firm on informative.

30 THE MARKSMAN

FEATURED ARTICLES

For example Lux, Axe, Zatak are into

persuasive; Dettol, Castrol, Servo oil

informative and Bajaj, Colgate, laptops

shifted from informative to persuasive. Bajaj

appealed the customers by stating that their

scooter is Pride of India, and then there was

slump in sales of scooters when they

introduced bikes and the USP was mileage.

Now with new generation considering

power as most important feature Pulsar is

being sold as a desire. So Bajaj moved from

Pathos to informative and then again to

persuasive (attracting some senses).

Lux and Axe were born with persuasiveness,

meant to be sold with help of some

celebrity of sexual attractions respectively. Changing the celebrities and models was the

success formula of these two brands.

But Castrol, Servo oil which are used and

given attention by peculiar vehicle enthusiast

are always being told about facts and how by

the use of this oil the engines will run

smooth and remain cool for longer time.

Here the consumer was never targeted by

persuasion as the consumer base didn’t

believe in the same for these products.

Some of the techniques of pervasive

advertising are Avante Garde, Weasel words,

Magic ingredients, Bribery, Bandwagon etc.

Important point in these is that the product

is never sold as in for its qualities but aura

which it creates by its use.

MARCH 2015 31

FEATURED ARTICLES

Avante Garde:

Moving away from status quo and asking the

consumer to try the new innovation which

will push your limits. We have many ads, one

of them is Rupa Frontline where the

innerwear is never talked about but how by

its use the person will always remain out of

trouble and feel courageous.

Rupa Frontline – “Raho duniya se ek kadam

aage”

Weasel words:

Equivocal words which refrain from any

direct commitment. These are similar to that

used by politicians to woo their voters. Eg:

All healthcare ads which they will give to

health cover of more than 99%.

Vicks says it helps in fighting cough, cold and

headache but doesn’t say it will be able to

bring it to complete stop. But this is what

the impression from the advertisment

Magic ingredients:

As we all can remember product connecting

to this word “magic”. Maggie Masala, same

noodle with basic masala ingredients but

described in a way which will stop us from

thinking that it is some ordinary masala.

Creating image of positivity which may or

may not be present in the product.

Bribery:

The simple appeal of for purchase of 4

pizzas you get 5th free. This creates an

illusion that we will get 1 free, but very

few calculate the price they pay for that

extra unnecessary pizza.

Bandwagon:

The latest of all ads “Mauka mauka”, here

the ad suggests that if you miss any match

you miss something which is of prime

importance to whole world. And you don’t

want to miss this action, which will make

you regret.

Persuasive advertising is need of today as

people have very less time to even know

their own needs. Creating that desire and

converting that into need is the prime task

of advertiser and making space for the

product n the minds of consumer. Old ads

were very concentrated on the basic

premise of the qualities of product

because luxury was not even thought of.

Not setting oneself apart from others is

what every individual seeks. It is like

sparkling teeth’s shown in toothpaste ads.

Nothing can be said against persuasion

which is forceful consumption of product

but it is the need of time.

32 THE MARKSMAN

SquAreheaD

MARCH 2015 33

BUZZ

CLUES

PUZZLE ACROSS

For TV commercial of which brand

has Dhanush sung and written a

jingle for Sachin Tendulkar? (5)

Name the celebrity who endorses

Fast track, Flying Machine jeans,

Herbalife, Fair and Lovely for men,

Sangam suitings etc. (5,5)

About what has Ratan Tata said that

it is not a flop but it was a lost

opportunity? (8)

Who is the new owner of men’s

hair cream brand Brylcreem? (3)

DOWN

Which insurance co appears to be

opportunistic and show Yuvraj Singh

talking about his health often in the

TVC? (5,3,4)

Name this women’s cooperative that

has 650 cr sales and exports of 29 cr.

(6)

Who is the celebrity endorsing the

bike Suzuki Hayate? (6,4)

Who had launched a special

Tendulkar edition of a drink to

honour Tendulkar 100th century? (8)

1.

3.

7.

2.

4.

5.

Answers:

Across:

1.Boost 3.Virat Kohli 7.TATANANO 8.HUL

Down:

2.Birla Sun Life 4.Lijjat 5.Salman Khan 6.Cocacola

34 THE MARKSMAN

8.

6.

Call for ARTICLES

CALL FOR ARTICLES SUMMER EDITION 2015

Articles can be sent on any one of the following topics*:

*Please ensure that there is no plagiarism and all references are

clearly mentioned.

The best adjudged article will be given a Winner’s Certificate.

Deadline for the submission of article will be : 20th June 2015

1. One article can have only one author.

2. Your article should be approximately 800-850

words and MUST be replete with relevant

pictures that can be used to enhance the

article.

3. Font Type: Gill Sans MT

4. Font Size: 14.

5. Send your article in .doc/.docx format to

marksman.simsr@somaiya.edu

6. Subtitle line: Your name_Institute

Name_Course Year

7. Kindly name your file as : Your name_Topic

MARCH 2015 35

1. Vogue Empower : a harbinger of change or just

another passing phase?

2. Augmented Reality v/s Virtual reality

3. Is email marketing still alive ?

To subscribe to "The Marksman",

Follow the link:-

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the-marksman.html

OR drop in a mail/contact us at :

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marksman.html

THE TEAM

TWEETS by

Sukanya Remesh

It’s all about AD-itude by

Abhijit Sharma

Brand MARK ive by

Dhruv maheshwari

COVER STORY by

Palak Thakkar

SPECIAL STORY by

Akshay Peshave

HALLMARK CAMPAIGN by

Sankalp Thakur

FAUX PAS by

Kavya Dubey

PIONEER by

Rahul Vanghani

BOOKWORM by

Akshay Peshave

SquAreheaD by

Kavya Dubey

BUZZ by

Palak Thakkar

PROOF READ by

Minoli Sheth

Palak Thakkar

DESIGNING by

Minoli Sheth

Vasundhara Tewari

Palak Thakkar

PROMOTIONS by Kavya Dubey

The MARKSMAN is the

newsletter of INTERFACE, the

Marketing Club at K.J. Somaiya

Institute of Management Studies

and Research, Mumbai.

Images used in THE

MARKSMAN are subject to

copyright. THE MARKSMAN

does not take any responsibility

of any kind of plagiarism in the

articles received from students

of other colleges.

The TEAM

36 THE MARKSMAN