Home Grown Brands Harnessing The Power Of Social Media
The internet has revolutionised the way we interact with brands and consume content, especially with the boom in social media marketing. India alone has 574 million active Internet users as of 2019 with 330 million active social media users. This number is further expected to shoot up to 448 million by 2023.
With the internet and social media, businesses are witnessing growth like never before. In the times we live in, social media cannot be denied or ignored if a brand wants to communicate truthfully and honestly with its consumers.
Innovative marketing strategies have taken an upswing, especially on social media platforms. For example, in 2020, when the pandemic hit globally, health, hygiene and safety were the top priorities on everybody’s list.
When COVID 19 hit, cooking and eating at home became the norm. We witnessed family and people living alone preparing home-cooked food, experimenting with new cuisines and recipes. To encash on this, we at Borosil, launched a Home chef contest where people participated by sending us videos of them trying new recipes. This garnered a lot of engagement.
Home-grown brands stopped direct advertising and became more empathetic during the two waves of COVID 19. A lot of brands used these platforms to convey health information and also became a helpline of sorts while imparting positive messages to boost the morale of people. For instance, brands like PayTM, Zomato, and Unilever set up donation drives and launched various initiatives to support communities. Home-grown brands like Urban Company also set up the Mohit Agrawal Covid Relief Fund in memory of a colleague they lost to the pandemic. From Pharma to FMCG companies, everyone altered their communication to become more approachable while keeping the communication two-ways. What this did is increase consumer trust in the brand while conveying the message that everyone is in this together, irrespective of competition.
During the second wave of COVID 19 earlier this year, people across the nation were coping with not only the illness but the huge loss of loved ones. So when Borosil Ltd. Managing director Shreevar Kheruka announced aid and compensation to the families of those employees who had lost their lives to the pandemic, other corporates and companies followed suit. This became popular on social networking site Twitter with companies going the ‘Borosil way.’
As the COVID crisis continues where most people are continuing to work from home, undergoing stress, anxiety and suffering from pandemic fatigue, empathetic advertising comes as a relief to consumers. Everyone wants to associate with a brand that truly understands the customer. This trust between the consumer and the brand can be built further by enhancing the use of social media to communicate this feeling.
Whatever the strategy, content has to be topical, engaging and humorous. A great example of this is Zomato’s tweet on the lines of "Guys, kabhi kabhi ghar ka khana bhi kha lena chahiye” which instantly went viral. Coming from a food delivery app, people found this humorous and this prompted an instant response from many other brands as well who used this tag line in different ways to which Zomato had a witty comeback.
When you think topical, the one name that instantly comes to mind is Amul. Whether it is the IPL, the pandemic or anything going on in India, Amul has the most creative take on the issue, adding
smart punches. The Amul girl of course is adorable and makes the advertisement even more relatable. But Amul’s marketing strategy is more than that. Be it festivals or encouraging the habit of having milk or launching a new product, the brand knows how to connect emotionally with its audience.
Of course, social media strategies also go beyond this to include marketing campaigns that touch upon a social cause and bring people and communities together.
Brands are using social media to raise their voice of concern to support social causes by running campaigns. From supporting child education and the girl child to women empowerment to ending hunger and poverty, breaking stereotypes of colour and beauty, social cause marketing is finding its way with local brands and gaining popularity.
Brands that have a strong purpose are more relatable to consumers who are likely to become converts and stay loyal to the brand.
Other innovative trends brands are picking on when it comes to social media marketing and innovative strategies, is direct to consumer marketing and user-generated content campaigns. From the start to the finish of a product or campaign launch, many homegrown brands are building customer interest by involving them in every aspect. At Borosil, we encouraged people to design their own bottles and asked participants for designs that we printed and disseminated.
Brands also pick up on trends, important dates and festivals. We have seen creativity at its best during Pride Month over the years where products took on rainbow Colours with innovative captions. Logos changed to pride colours and conversations started around this. The Vicks ‘Touch of Care’ campaign and The Times of India's ‘Out and Proud’ campaign were some of the highlights.
Brands are also roping in celebrities and influencers big time to cash on the consumer's interest with WFH giving them ample time to follow a celebrity's life in real-time on social media. This is one of the quickest ways for a brand to identify itself with consumers and reach its target audience. However, this has to be done cleverly and we are seeing ample examples of this with home-grown brands. Direct-in your face advertising and marketing strategies have been replaced by contests, challenges and fun interactive sessions between these stars and the consumer.
The Olympics was another event that brought the country together. India's performance at Tokyo Olympics 2020 was an emotional moment for every Indian. From Saikhom Mirabai Chanu to PV Sindhu to Bajrang Punia, India witnessed its best Olympics performance. Every countryman was thrilled when Neeraj Chopra brought home gold in the javelin. Borosil had the first mover's advantage of making and disseminating quickly creative content on the win which was reposted by Amitabh Bachchan.
What consumers want today is a touch of humanness and connectivity with empathetic marketing that’s also emotional, whatever the need, situation or time.
The Author is Priyanka Kheruka, Brand Head, Borosil
 (1).jpg)
