On Brandsa n d

branding

Can India Lead the Way in Branding?

Indian branding might be a force to be reckoned with.
By Heidi Schultz

C U R R E N T LY , much branding atten-

tion is on China, with brand pundits and trade press asking many questions. What will be the impact of product recalls on the involved brands? What about product piracy, which is directly related to the lack of intellectual property protection? Is Brand China damaged, perhaps beyond repair? But, maybe the real branding story isnt in China. Instead, I argue that its being developed slowly but surely in India. And it might well be that India and Indian organizations are rewriting the ways brands are considered, planned, developed, and managed. While the Chinese have mimicked many of the traditional Western approaches to brands and branding, India seems to be marching to a different drummer. Many of the approaches have clearly evolved from Western origins. The interesting thing, though, is that some of their methods clearly challenge Western brand traditions and the hoary brand principles that accompany them. Indeed, some of the Indian branding approaches I saw seem to be a better fit for the 21st Century push-pull marketplace than what is currently in place in the West. Western branding experts, however,
12

seem to be ignoring developments in India or are suggesting that these are minor isolated incidents from an emerging market. Many argue that once the Indian market is fully developed, and is as sophisticated as the West, Indian firms will fall into lineeither reverting to traditional Western methods or adapting them as the Chinese seem to have done. Evidence is the development of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) market concept, which lumps large, emerging economies into a single unit and then treats them as a group, sort of like women ages 18 to 49. The common wisdom is that at some point, these huge markets will ape or mimic what has developed in the West (i.e., the United States, Western Europe, other developed brand markets). I argue that this might be a major fallacy in our thinking. Yes, India is an emerging market, it has growing pains, and it is somewhat like Western countries. But then again, its totally different. Its certainly different from China and Russia, which evolved from planned economies where brands meant nothing. India has adapted and adopted some Western approaches, but in spite of being the

worlds largest democracy, the Indian approach to government, business, and society is totally different from the West. Similarly, Indian business approaches are unique. Although Indian companies have adopted some of the Western business models, theyre also developing some totally different concepts that might well rewrite the traditional Western brand and branding rules. Here are some branding changes I encountered on a recent trip to the subcontinent. Brand and branding mental models. Indian businesses seem to be increasingly Westernized. Indian managers can, and will, argue the latest marketing concepts at the very highest levels. But they also have a different view. As many anthropologists, linguistic experts, and neural psychologists can attest, Indian thinking patterns are different from the West. Instead of linear, sequential, categorization mental models, Indian cultures are holistic, networked, and dynamic. Much is derived from the various religions: Hindu, Islam, Buddha, Jain, and the like. Everything is connected, everything is related, and everything is continually changing. Western thought patterns, which have dominated brand thinking, are based on categoriza-

MM January/February 2008

tion, isolation, and separation. The difference becomes clear when we consider the basic bedrock of a Westerners view of brand equity and the models weve developed. All are linear, all are sequential, and all are categorizationsstepby-step formulas for success. Indian models alternatively are networks, associations, affiliations, and dynamic interactions. This is a very basic difference in the two cultures. A service-based business model. Indias rapid economic growth has come by providing services the rest of the world wouldnt, couldnt, or didnt want to do at a reasonable cost. Call centers, service bureaus, systems developers, and computer code writers are all stock in trade of Indian companiesas Wipro Technologies, Infosysis Technologies, and Tata Group demonstrate every day. Service orientation has forced Indian companies to develop different branding concepts than the goods-based approaches found in the West. Goods branding has dominated Western thinking for the past 100 years from fast-moving consumer goods organizations, such as Procter & Gamble, Unilever, ColgatePalmolive, Kraft Foods Inc., and others. The firm creates the value, and then delivers it to customers and prospects. Service organizations are radically different, with value being cocreated between the buyer and seller. Outcomes and final value are often initially unknowngenerally emerging from the interactions that then naturally turn into ongoing relationships. Services are intangibles. They dont show up on organizational balance sheets, but they do generate huge cash flows, and often substantial profits. Because of this service nature, many Indian firms are focused more on creating value, rather than on distributing value that has been previously developed. Family-owned, managed, and controlled brands. Many of the leading Indian brands are family owned, managed, and operatedsome by third or fourth generation relatives of the founders. And these family-controlled

businesses have become global powerhouses as witness Tata Group, Bajaj Auto, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd., Arcelor Mittal, and others. The family name must be protected and public trust maintained, come what may. That enables Indian companies to take a longer-term branding view about how brands are. It also allows them to aggregate seemingly unrelated activities under the family name. For example, Bajaj produces a wide range of seemingly unrelated products and services ranging from motor scooters to sugar refining to household appliancesall of which are accepted by marketplace consumers. And because the family is known, recognized, and respected in the community, new products and services

ability to stretch the brand far beyond what Western organizations would consider. For example, Kingfisher is one of the leading beer brands in India. Kingfisher is also the name of a new, high-quality, high-service, budget domestic airline. Is that brand infringement? Not on your life. Both brands are owned by the same man, Vijay Mallya. People like and trust Mallya (sort of the Richard Branson of India) and they trust the brand, so why not use what people know, like, and trust. Would any branding guru in the United States ever suggest developing a Budweiser Airline or a Heineken Airways approach in Holland? Probably not, but it works in India because people trust Mallya and the Kingfisher brand.

It might well be that India and Indian organizations are rewriting the ways brands are considered, planned, developed, and managed.
can be brought in under the family corporate banner with relatively low brand communication investments. Importance of internal branding. Seemingly, Indian companies have a different view of how and where brands are built over time. Although they develop strong consumer brand programs using the traditional Western forms of advertising and marketing communication, in many instances Indian branding starts inside and not outside. For example, recently the Tata Group introduced a new corporate communication program in several selected markets around the world. But before launching the global branding program, Tata tested it in South Africa for nearly two years to make sure the program was right. And interestingly, it started the program inside the firm, getting Tata employee and business associate input and support before taking the program public. Stretching the brand. Perhaps nothing epitomizes the unique Indian approach to branding more than the India is a different market and a different marketplace. But, one should consider that many of our Western brand concepts are based on goods, not services. If one thinks about the value of the family name and the importance of trust and dependability, and if one believes that brands are here for the longer-term and that they should build relationships and not just short-term sales, maybe the Indians are on the right track. At the rate Indian companies are growing both domestically and globally, theyre obviously doing some things rightmaybe branding is one of them.

About the Author

Heidi Schultz is Executive Vice President of Agora, Inc., an Illinoisbased consultancy in brands and integrated marketing communication. She also lectures on brands and branding in the Integrated Marketing Communications department at The Medill School at Northwestern University. She may be reached at hschultz@agora-imc.com.
MM January/February 2008

13