IMC PROJECT

REPORT ON
COMMUNICATION
STRATEGIES ADOPTED
BY PATANJALI AYURVEDA

ADITYA PRUTHI
15BSPHH010735
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Overview of Patanjali Ayurved

2. Objective

3. History

4. Integrated market communication and distribution

5. Strategy of patanjali

6. Patanjali key to success

7. Strategies and challenges ahead

8. Conclusion

9. Suggestions

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Patanjali Ayurved

Prakriti ka ashirwad
Patanjali
Type Private Ayurved
Industry Consumer goods
Patanjali Ayurved Limited is
2006 an Indian FMCG company.
Founded
Manufacturing units and
headquarters are located in the
Founder Acharya Balkrishna industrial area of Haridwar while the
Baba Ramdev registered office is located at Delhi.
The company
manufactures mineral and herbal pro
Headquarters Haridwar, India
ducts. It has also manufacturing units
in Nepal under the trademark Nepal
Area served India and Nepal Gramudhyog and imports majority of
herbs
.
Key people Acharya Balkrishna (Founder and in India from Himalayas ofNepal Ac
cording to CLSA and HSBC,
MD)
Patanjali is the fastest growing
FMCG company in India. It is valued
Products Foods, beverages, cleaning at 3,000 crore(US$450 million) and
agents and personal care products some predict revenues of 5,000
crore (US$740 million) for the fiscal
201516.Ramdev baba has stated in
Revenue 5,000
his interview with CNN-News18 that
crore(US$740 million) (2015-16) profit from Patanjali Products goes
to charity.
Number of 200,000 (201112) [1]
Objective of this project
employees

Slogan Prakriti ka ashirwad

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Website www.patanjaliayurved.net
patanjaliayurved.org
To develop and analyze strategies for launching products in B2B and B2C
markets.

History
Balkrishna established Patanjali Ayurved Limited in 2006 along with Ramdev Baba with the
objective of establishing science ofAyurveda in accordance and coordinating with the latest
technology and ancient wisdom.[9][10][11]

Revenues

Revenues
Year
(In crore Rs)

2009-10 163
2010-11 317
2011-12 446
2012-13 850
2013-14 1,200
2014-15 2,006
2015-16 5,000
2016-17 10,000 (Target)
2017-18
Future Group which has tied up with Patanjali sells about 30 crore (US$4.5 million) worth
of Patanjali products every month.

Production
Patanjali Food and Herbal Park at Haridwar is the main production facility operated by
Patanjali Ayurved.[15] The company plans to establish further units in India and inNepal
In 2016, the Patanjali Food and Herbal Park was given a full-time security cover of 35
armed Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) commandos. The park will be the eighth
private institute in India to be guarded by CISF paramilitary forces. Baba Ramdev is himself
a "Z" category protectee of central paramilitary forces

Products

A successful product by Patanjali Ayurved.

Patanjali Ayurved produces products in the
categories of personal care and food The company
manufactures 444 products including 45
types of cosmetic products and 30 types of food products. According to Patanjali, all the

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products manufactured by Patanjali are made from Ayurveda and natural
components Patanjali products are cheaper (yet good) than alternatives in the market due to
lesser production and marketing costs. Patanajali has also launched beauty and baby
products. Patanjali Ayurvedic manufacturing division has over 300 medicines for treating a
range of ailments and body conditions, from common cold to chronic paralysis
Patanajali launched instant noodles on 15 November 2015. Food Safety and Standards
Authority of India slapped a notice on the company as neither Patanjali nor Aayush, which
are the two brand names under which Patanjali got licenses, have got any approval for
manufacturing instant noodles

Sales and distribution

Patanjali Ayurved sells through nearly 4,700 retail outlets as of May 2016. Patanjali also sells
its products online and is planning to open outlets at railway stations and airports. ] Patanjali
Ayurveda has tied up with Pittie Group and Kishore Biyani's Future Group on 9 October
2015 As per the tie-up with Future Group, all the consumer products of Patanjali will be
available for the direct sale in Future Group outlets Patanjali Ayurveda products are also
available in modern trade stores including Reliance retail, Hyper city and Star Bazaar apart
from online channels Defense organization DRDO entered into licensing agreements with
Patanjali Ayurveda for transfer of technology. Patanjali Ayurved, co-founded by yoga guru
Ramdev, is targeting Rs 10,000-crore revenue in 2016-17, after sales grew 150 per cent in the
previous financial year to Rs 5,000 crore.

Patanjali Ayurveda was founded by Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna in the year
2006. The latter owns 94%of Patanjali Ayurveda. Patanjali is the fastest growing FMCG
company in India. It has grown more than 10 times in revenue in last five years, an
unprecedented feat in Indias FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) industry. In 2015,
Patanjalis sales grew by 150 percent to Rs. 5000 crore and now the company is targeting
for Rs. 10,000 crore revenue in 2016-17. They have 4000 distributors, 10,000 stores and 100
mega-marts. They have also tied up with retail chains like Future Group and Reliance
Retail. The company is in talks to raise around Rs. 1000 crore in project loans so as to set up
four new manufacturing plants.

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Integrated marketing communications & distribution strategy of patanjali

1. 2. Introduction Revolutionary Approach Comprehensive Plan Globalization Synergy Effect Goal

fulfillment
2. 3. 4 Ps of Marketing mix Product: Indian belief in Ayurveda/natural remedies Price: Discounted at 20 30%
compared to competition. Place: Distribution: Ayurvedic pharmacies, franchisee , tie- up with Future Group,
tie-ups with online retailers and virtual store. Promotion: Reinforced by its brand ambassador.
3. 4. 4 Cs of Marketing Customer Cost Convenience Communication 7 Cs Compass model Commodity
Cost Channel Communication Marketing mix Co-marketing Integrated Marketing Communications
4. 5. The symbol of Om- Hindu religion and Indian traditions forms the core of Patanjalis logo. A picture of a
yogi next to the Om, represents Baba Ramdev- the face of the brand (It makes easier for Patanjali to win the
trust of people- through Ramdevs fan following) A sapling , indicates herbal and natural products of Patanjali
The strokes of green, white and saffron colours depicts Indian flag- stand for - Swadeshi i.e Being Indian.
LOGO
5. 6. SOCIAL MEDIA YOUTUBE TWITTER BLOGGER FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM PLAYSTORE
APPLICATION GODREJ - NATURES BASKET MALLS Online shopping portals WEBSITE Patanjali
ayurveda.net
6. 7. A Personality- Led Brand Baba Ramdev is the brand - "The difference between him and regular brand
ambassadors is he lives the brand. Bharat Swabhiman - a social organization run by Baba Ramdev
7. 8. Latent message (which exists but is not famous) Message of YOGA was seeded deeply in the
subconscious mind of the consumers over the years by making people aware of healthy life with swadeshi
products. Hence, a Psychological latent need was created well years before in consumers mind for such
products to accept Patanjali hence movement of consumers to purchase the same. Pre launch Latent
preparation
8. 9. Importance of yoga then launched patanjali Instilled Feeling of nationalism in the minds of consumers
people experienced emotional satisfaction and a feeling of pride on purchasing Patanjalis products (i.e. we are
using our own product / we are using natural product / we are contributing for our country /culture by non
purchasing MNCs Products). Swadeshi wave revolution in India this revolution promoted people to shun the
products made by international companies and use the products made Indian industries - to help the countrys
economy grow. Foundation of its IMC Strategy

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 9. 10. Meaning: Attracting consumers to our product, not by bombarding them with incessant ads but by
educating them on the general sphere where we operate Content Marketing
10. 11. Someone forces us to try some thing we term it as overselling. But here no-one was pushing anything,
only an environment was created where consumers wanted to see if the alternative was usable. So thats
how the Patanjali brand had a willing consumer But was this enough? Obviously not, they still had to deliver.
And how did they do that? By delivering through Brilliant product quality at cheaper prices (exactly what a
typical Indian customer looks for- Value For Money) Non-Pushy communication strategy
11. 12. Other FMCG brands used: TV ads, newspaper. Baba Ramdev opted for direct interaction with
consumers during his yoga shivirs in different parts of the country. promotes Patanjali products during his
yoga sessions Aastha channel Advertising and at the same time, not advertising
12. 13. Other companies spend heavily to persuade people to buy their products. We simply want to inform
them about our products, Believes in the policy of informative campaigns, not commercial campaigns.
Patanjali restricts ad spend to a maximum of 2 % of its turnover Going Traditional Finally
13. 14. Advertisements: The advertisements are short, strictly informative and the storyline has a traditional,
family-oriented backdrop to promote Patanjali as a Swadeshi brand, deeply rooted in Indian culture. Special
campaign during the 2012 elections - aired on various news channels. Launched 4 new product lines:
chyawanprash, dental care, hair-care and body cleansers, Used this media to popularise them. Business
campaign
14. 15. Online portal: Promotion of products on online shopping portals franchise based model to traditional
retail based model Target: Old people but now also target youth. Organizing yoga shivirs and releasing
DVDs in collaboration with Bollywood actresses Modernising Strategies with Time
15. 16. Content has been consistent and the company has always been persistent despite a number of ups and
downs. The best part about the companys strategy has been that it has gained customers by affecting their
core beliefs- and this is the ideal way of gaining long-term customers So how successful has the strategy
been so far
16. 17. Distribution model
17. 18. Distribution Strategy They provide sale of products through: website with online payment facility these
products can be procured through post also by sending the required amount through demand draft etc.
Patanjali has opened Patanjali Chikitsalayas and Patanjali Arogya Kendra a doctor is available. Patanjali
herbal products are also available at Post offices across the country. A shop is established for sale of
products wherever a yoga camp is organized. Patanjali has prepared disease specific CDs which they sell
through their various outlets.
18. 19. Direct communication is far more effective than to put a convincing impressions in consumers mind
because an emotional feeling can be transferred and felt by communicator and consumer both resulting higher
degree / chances of consumer tending to act for communicated message.
19.

How Is Patanjali Different From P&G And HUL?

Patanjali follows a Branded House strategy whereas other companies in the consumer goods
sector like P&G and HUL follow a House of Brands strategy. That is the biggest difference
why Patanjali was able to capture a huge market share in such a short span whereas it took
decades for P&G or HUL to reach to this point.

The Branded House: In this strategy, the company is the brand. All the products produced
will be promoted under one brand. For example, Apple! Apple has various products like Mac,
iPod, iPhone etc. Though all of them are different and perform different functions but they
are all branded as Apple products. Users go crazy for their products because they want to
own a product of that brand. Similarly, Patanjali is following the branded house strategy and
is launching various products under one brand, i.e., Patanjali Ayurveda. Even if you look at
their advertisements, they dont promote individual products (say a toothpaste). Instead, they
promote the entire brand which helps them save marketing and advertising costs as well.

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The House of Brands: In this strategy, the focus is on development of sub-brands rather than
one parent brand. This is primarily done to remove the dependency of the company on one
single brand. So, in case if one brand doesnt do well, the company can still earn revenues
from other brands and the failure wont hurt the company badly. For example, P&G. Under
P&G, there are dozens of brands, including Pampers, Duracell, Gillette, and Tide to name a
few. However, the name P&G gets very little prominence, and adds no real credibility to any
of its products. You will never see P&G promoting its company in an advertisement. It rather
focuses on the individual products.

Patanjalis Key To Success

Increasing Number Of Health Conscious People: In recent times, people have become
more health conscious which is evident from the fact that many companies are investing
money in organic and Ayurvedic products. According to Nielsen , the health and wellness
segment is worth a sizable Rs. 33,000 crore. It grew 6% over 2014. Patanjali, with its
Ayurvedic product line, is able to somehow capitalise on this changing consumer behaviour
and hence capture more market share.

Less Price: Patanjali products are available at an attractive discount as compared to

their competition. The company sources products directly from farmers and cuts on
middlemen to boost profits. Hence, they are able to reduce their raw material procurement
cost and are able to produce goods at a much cheaper price. Currently, Patanjali is making
20% operating profit which is higher than the industry average.

Strong Distribution Channels: Patanjali products are sold through three types of medical
centres. These include Patanjali Chikitsalayas which are basically clinics. Then there are
Patanjali Arogya Kendras which are health and wellness centres. They also have non-
medicine outlets called Swadeshi Kendras. The group has 15,000 exclusive outlets across
India. They also distribute through general retail stores. As mentioned above, they have also
tied up with well-known retail chains also. They plan to grow to 1,00,000 outlets in the next
few years.

Strong Brand Association With Health Because Of Baba Ramdev: Patanjali is able to create
a brand perception of health and wellness among the Indian masses, primarily because of
Baba Ramdevs association with the brand who is considered to be a veteran of yoga. Hence,
more people are getting attracted to Patanjalis products and are re-buying products more
frequently.

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Simple Packaging Gives It A Natural Look: If you notice, Patanjali sells its products with a
very simple packaging. Now, many would feel that it is not a good strategy but the truth is it
is working for Patanjali. With a product like Patanjali, where the message is to promote
Ayurveda and Health, simple packaging can be a very effective way of promotion and that
is why the company is able to do miracles with its simple yet effective packaging. With a
natural look (especially with leaves and herbs), consumers get a feeling of health and
wellness and they are attracted to buy the product.

Promotion Through Media: Baba Ramdev is considered to be a veteran guru of yoga across
the globe. He has been very co-operative with press and media and has maintained good
relationships with them. Also, he is known to have good connections with many politicians.
So he used both the facts to publicise his company free of cost. Take for instance when Baba
Ramdev approached Lalu Prasad Yadav and gave his face a massage with a Patanjali face
cream and it was covered by media. Or the Maggi scandal when Baba Ramdev came forward
and gave a statement that he will launch safer and good quality noodles.

Word-Of-Mouth Promotion: Advertising and promotions typically account for 12-20% of

revenue expenditure by consumer goods companies. When a new company gets into the
business, this spending is significantly higher. During the introduction stage, Patanjali
followed a unique word-of-mouth publicity model and the entire revenue was without any
advertising. It was because of the brand loyalty of its customers that the word-of-mouth
promotion proved so successful for the company.

What
Patanjali Can Do

Patanjali Strategies and Challenges ahead

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 Patanjali, Yog guru Baba Ramdevs baby, has gained a huge mind and pocket-
share (lately) with a multitude of new products getting launched (almost) every
month. From their controversial Maggi to Shuddhi, a cow urine-based floor
cleaning solution, the company has jumped into various product categories.
Patanjali, which started selling its products through their own stores in key Indian
cities many years ago, has now partnered with a leading retailer, Future Group
(operator of Big Bazaar) to sell its branded products and appeal to the rural-
urban consumer. It has also started selling its products through traditional mom-
and-pop stores this year to penetrate deeper.

Patanjalis product offering is as diverse as it can get. It spans across various

product lines with a very low product mix consistency. Where have you heard
about a company offering household cleaning supplies, personal care, human
and cattle food, Spices, Ayurvedic medicines, Yoga CDs, et al. To add to the
portfolio, there is news around Patanjali branded apparels, shoes and other
lifestyle categories including baby wear. The brand is eyeing to be one of Indias
largest FMCG companies by 2016 year end and go beyond FMCG giants such as
Godrej, Dabur and Maricos in yearly revenues. So lets take a look at what has
clicked for Patanjali and what challenges could the home-grown
or Swadeshi empire face in time to come.

--> Whats clicked for Patanjali till now?

Loyal consumer base and competitive price - Baba Ramdevs fanatic

consumer base of about ~70 million has proved to be a great head start for him.
This large fan base comes from an Ayurveda-freak nation and years of
conducting yoga sessions. Further, Patanjalis products are priced lower than

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 their key competitors for price sensitive Indian consumers, who now see more
value in Patanjalis products.
Appeal to rural-urban aspiration and conservatism-driven
consumers - Apart from appealing to the above consumer base, Patanjali also
managed to attract rural-urban aspiration and conservatism-driven consumers
by launching modern consumer household products which promised purity with
goodness, on the lines of major players.
Anti-foreign campaigns Time and again, Baba Ramdev raised voices
to boycott foreign products, ranging from shampoos to colas, by showing their
ill-effects. This further created a loyal consumer base that promoted word-of-
mouth advertising for Patanjali and cleared ways for different product categories.
Loyal employee structure It is said that most of their employees are
volunteers and, from manufacturing to selling, most of them do not take regular
wages.
No financial burden and minimal advertising budget Baba
Ramdevs ~40 crore corpus, that he garnered from his Yoga shivirs, satellite
television shows and donations, was utilised to kick start the empire. Further,
Patanjali relies heavily on word-of-mouth advertising, with a few commercials
(such as for cows ghee) to strengthen its brand identity and promise.

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 --> The road ahead - Challenges

Maintaining quality and brand promise The key to buying any

Patanjali product is quality and purity (possibly, thats why its cow milk ghees
sales forms ~50% of its revenues). This stands as a core brand promise.
Consumers associate Patanjali with these attributes. Without a consistent
adherence to quality standards across all its product categories, Patanjali cannot
shake the boardrooms of FMCG giants. Quality becomes even more important as
the company starts relying on contract manufacturers for newer and
inconsistent product categories. You just cant open an apparel and shoes
manufacturing plant overnight, if you are running a food and medicine plant!
An ever expanding product portfolio with brand extensions Few
brands, such as Virgin Group, have done a tremendous job at brand extensions,
though with failures in many categories. Considering Patanjali has forayed into
categories (such as shoes, apparels, home cleaning solutions, etc.) that are not
directly linked with ayurveda or purity or goodness, ensuring their loyal
consumers do not get confused with what it wants to do with the brand and how
far it wants to stretch, could be a challenge in the longer run.
Absence of a key sub-branded range under Patanjali Umbrella
- Further, most of its products are branded under Patanjali umbrella and are
then linked with generic names such as Patanjali Atta Noodles, Patanjali ghee,
Patanjali Cornflakes. Their communication largely focuses around the name
Patanjali and not around any sub-brand. This could affect sales of their key
categories, if inconsistent product categories do not perform well. It can also
confuse consumers if Patanjali want to increase product depth and launch
variants with minute differences. Parle, a biscuit and snacks company, first
nurtured its hide and seek range to a brand and then launched newer related
biscuit categories within Parles Hide and Seek range. Patanjali can do something
on similar lines.
Image driven branding Consumers don't just buy products to suit their
needs, instead they buy a solution that offers them value with trust. Patanjali
is largely co-branded/co-promoted with Baba Ramdev and his companion
Acharya Balkrishna. Any questions arising on their integrity will surely affect the
brands performance.

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In my opinion, Patanjali should focus on fewer product categories that are
linked and consistent. They should also focus on creating sub-brands for
newer product lines with a solid brand architecture to offset any future risks
associated with umbrella brand Patanjali. This will help them create an even
greater product depth and appeal to different consumer segments. Moreover, a
consumer who uses cow urine-based Patanjali Shuddhi for home floor cleaning
is less likely to buy Patanjali Ghee. So you Patanjali folks, better use market
analytical skills to market Ghee and Shudhi together. Having said that, they
should also, at least slowly, move away from a being a Baba image-driven
company, in case they wish to stay relevant and longer in the Indian market

Conclusion

Patanjali has given a headache to many marketers with its unconventional ways of marketing.
It has disrupted the whole FMCG sector and bought a revolution in the industry in a very
short span of time. A point to note is that many people are buying Patanjali products due to
the hedonic value attached to the products. Hence, Patanjali (unlike its competitors) is
attracting brand loyal customers and not price sensitive customers.

Will Patanjali continue to grow at the same pace and prove to be a dark horse in the race? Or
will it prove to be a water bubble, with this being a temporary phase for Patanjali and strong
players eventually coming up with strategies to recapture the lost market share? Only time
will tell.

Suggestions

More focus on social media : social media platforms should be used to full
potential like facebook, instagram.

More informational ads should be shown

Health magazines with informational advertisements is the best method to

reach target audience

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Growth of fmcg sector-

http://fmcgmarketers.blogspot.in/2008/11/indian-fmcg-journey-so-far.html

patanjali ayurveda-

www.wikipedia.com

companies existed before independence-

https://yourstory.com/2015/08/indian-brands/

sales and promotion and success factor

www.youthkiawaaz.com

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