#OpinionsThatCount: Patanjali has hit the sweet spot in advertising

Much of the brand's communication is about how their products are natural and 'purer' than the others. Has this mode of communication worked for Patanjali? If yes, why?

Roshni Nair | Mumbai| December 5, 2016

The advertising world has lived through the Cola wars. The anticipation of how will so-and-so brand react to the brand new burn (in today's parlance) inflicted by their rival was consuming. While most, on the surface 'tch-tched' on the practice, there was undoubtedly a morbid fascination associated with the very public bickering. Soon, others picked up on the 'trend' and there were more toeing the line. Lo and behold the detergent wars, the biscuit wars (do your biscuits have fibre in them? Oats maybe?) But it couldn't last long and like all good (bad) things, this too came to an end.

But history has a nasty habit of repeating itself and there is a new player out in the playground following old house rules. Patanjali, the brand that has captured India's imagination, has waded into the murky waters of comparisons with its ad communication. While most of the ads that come out of its stable might not be very pleasing on the eye, they have a very strong message – 'Ours is good, ours is pure'.

So, does this kind of ad communication work in today's day and age?

It can if you get your basics right, says Harish Bijoor, CEO, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc.

Harish Bijoor

Giving the simple example of chalk and cheese, Bijoor explained, “It works because it depends on which category you live in. If you really look at Patanjali, it is in the category of ayurveda and the clear differentiation is the fact that ayurvedic products are natural products whereas non-ayurvedic products are chemical and unnatural products. So, that distinction is the one that gives Patanjali the right to say that I am better than you. It is not a relative comparison but a gross comparison. It clearly talks about the fact that I am a different category altogether. If you are chalk, I am cheese is the philosophy. It is not saying that if you are chalk, I am a superior quality chalk.”

Both Prathap Suthan, Managing Partner and Chief Creative Officer, Bang in the Middle and Sandip Tarkas, President, Customer Strategy, Future Group hint at a changing consumer.

Prathap Suthan

“There is a general feeling among most of the buying population of this country that most of the things that you buy are artificial and that they have chemicals. On the side you have this big organic revolution that is happening, where people are paying more to buy organic things. There is a large part of the population that doesn't consider economy as a reason to shop, they shop for health reasons. So you have the upper class who are opting for such products where most of the middle class India is struggling with regular brands. Now Patanjali comes in with the offer of organic stuff in the middle class market. Obviously, Patanjali is not a very aspirational brand, it is not a global brand, it doesn't have international pedigree. People are really used to a lot of western gloss, western product window and packaging, people are raised on that. Now all of a sudden there is a local Indian brand that has come in and what they are saying is that they are bringing you stuff that is natural and non-artificial. Now that is a good space to be in. What they have on offer for middle class India is a natural, non-artificial, organic range of products which makes a lot of sense because you don't really have that kind of a brand in that space. All the competition is multi-national. It is a wonderful niche that they have got. Dabur had the chance but they did not have the scale of Baba Ramdev,” said Suthan.

Tarkas also attributes much of Patanjali's success to a consumer who is now looking for a healthier option but puts emphasis on the fact that the brand has been able to deliver on their promises with products that match up.

“There is growing feeling over the years that all these products in the market, while they are useful, they are also harmful. They all have side effects. I think Patanjali hit that sweet spot very well. There was an inherent anti-chemical and anti-artificial feeling and when Patanjali comes in with a communication like this it is a win for them. The good thing is that the products have also been decent. So, you don't have to compromise. Earlier, if you wanted to go pure it obviously meant a compromise, Patanjali came in with a credible alternative where you did not have to compromise. So it hit that sweet spot,” said Tarkas.

Asheesh Malhotra

Asheesh Malhotra, President and Head of Mumbai, Bates CHI&Partners, is of the view that whenever there is any negative coverage in the media on a particular product it almost always gives way to comparisons from other brands.

“In case if there is any negative reportage on any product, it can trigger off a comparative sort of a story. The cola war was not about the products but with Patanjali it is a complete product comparison. Coke and Pepsi was just a media rivalry. But here they are saying that all the other products in the market are not based on natural products. This approach has risen based on media reports on how personal care products and food products are using certain ingredients that could cause harm in the long run,” said Malhotra.

To further explain his point, Malhotra chose the example of everybody's favourite two-minute instant noodles Maggie, “Let us take the example of Maggi. The moment it was declared there was something wrong, so many other brands came in. Even Patanjali came up with their own instant noodles. They were all banking on how their products do not contain XYZ ingredients. So they did that entire comparison without actually naming the brand. It is not just a rivalry between products but it is about people's belief and that is what Patanjali has done.”

Is Patanjali all about being in the right place at the right time with the right ingredients in its noodles? Not all of it, agrees Malhotra.

“It is not like natural products did not exist before Patanjali. There were brands like Ayush, Dabur, etc. Patanjali hasn't worked because they are natural, it is all about spiritual marketing. It is about religion and spiritualism in their advertising which no else had the gravitas to do. It is also because of Baba Ramdev's stature, his reputation and his association with yoga and ayurvedic products. He had distribution of ayurvedic products and medicines in place a long, long time back. It has been in the market for long, it might have not been big time in the media and we might not have seen ads but if you go to a small town, Patanjali stores have been there for 10 years. Their marketing strategy is a combination of nature, spiritualism and religious sentiments.”

Kiran Khalap

Kiran Khalap, Co-founder and Managing Director, Chlorophyll, also believes Baba Ramdev has a big part to play in Patanjali's success.

“Patanjali's strength comes not just from their product and product chain. It comes from 15 or 20 years of Baba Ramdev attempting to gain the high ground in ayurved. There is no other brand in ayurved which has this kind of an authority figure associated with it and Patanjali has. So, people are not buying into the product story so much as they are buying into the brand story. The brand story is about unique credentials in ayurveda. Baba Ramdev, their brand ambassador, has built this brand for nearly 15 or so years. So Patanjali is merely an expression of the equity he has built,” said Khalap.

How long can Patanjali keep playing the 'Holier than thou' card?

“Just as long as they are talking only about that their differentiation in the context of natural and ayurvedic products, they can get away with it because consumers like such distinction. The brand of Patanjali stands for a unique selling proposition and that USP is all about being ayurvedic and different,” added Bijoor.

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