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How to succeed in the BRICs
by Matthew Carlton
More and more companies are looking to Brazil, Russia, India and China to drive growth. Matthew Carlton asks what lessons they can learn from local advertising.
In 2001 Goldman Sachs coined the term “BRIC” to highlight the economic potential of Brazil, Russia, India and China. This year many multinational companies have become much more overt about their desire to gain market share in one or more of these four countries.
Faced with static or declining economies in their traditional markets, they are looking to growth in the BRICs as the solution to their business challenges. With GDP expected to grow much higher in these economies than the developed world, advertising spend is also following suit. And with more advertising, we are also seeing more creativity and innovation, from both local and those international brands that understand the intricacies of these, often complex, markets.
Brazil: Melissa – Power of Love
The brand used the side of retail outlet Galeria Melissa in Sao Paulo as its canvas and encouraged locals to scribe messages about love on different coloured Post-Its before adding them to the building’s wall.
It took 25 animators more than five months to create the effects for the “Power of Love” campaign that included an effervescent heart flower, dancing elephants and a flying balloon.
The initiative not only captivated the passing public but it has generated considerable online buzz, particularly on Orkut, Brazil’s leading social network platform, and enhanced the reputation of this eco-friendly shoe brand in both Brazil and internationally.
The lesson: Understand the nuances of local digital usage. Orkut is serious player in both Brazil and India.
Russia: Kozel – Beers for Friends
The campaign: Alcoholism is a huge concern in Russia and as a result no TV adverts can be broadcast before 10pm. Content must also ensure drinks are not portrayed as being innocent and fun.
SABMiller-owned beer brand Kozel embarked on a crowd-sourcing campaign to promote its positioning as a quirky, embracing beer with a sense of community. The brand printed codes of each bottle-top and consumers were encouraged to collect them via poster and POS activity.
After they’d collected eight tops/codes, consumers could send off for two free beers. However, the beers were not for them, but were sent to friends along with a personal message – helping Kozel to update and expand its customer database while also demonstrating the brand’s embracing character. Kozel aimed to target 120,000 people with the campaign, but actually reached more than 170,000, including 116,000 new “friends”.
The lesson: SABMiller understood that local legal restrictions could also allow Kozel to be distinctive. Such strategies only work if you have a deep understanding of the regulations.
India: Cadbury Dairy Milk - Shubh aarambh
The campaign: Indians tend to believe that “things that commence on a sweet note have sweet endings” – such as before exams, before starting a new venture and before setting out on a journey.
Rather than gate-crashing tradition, Cadbury Dairy Milk highlighted some contemporary occasions of its own – such as a boy asking a girl out for a first date, or a traditional, sari-wearing, middle-aged lady, trying on a pair of jeans for the first time. These were known as “Shubh aarambh” (auspicious beginning) moments, which became the campaign’s tagline.
The message was conveyed to consumers in a number of imaginative ways, including via mobile with all new customers on a leading network receiving a greeting SMS with the “Shubh aarambh” message. The brand also had a heavy presence on websites associated with new beginnings – such as marriage, travel and jobs – and days of the year connected with starting fresh starts, including Diwali, Onam and Dussehra. The expression was widely adopted and the campaign saw brand share increase, with 41% of teens and 29% of adults now saying they would consume chocolate “before starting something new”.
The lesson: Cadbury didn’t just piggyback on a local custom but adapted it and made it more contemporary. International brands need to be careful about simply claiming ownership of local traditions.
China: Dove – Better Than Milk
The campaign: In 2010 Dove was a small brand in China but it quadrupled its market share within four months through an integrated campaign designed to “liberate Chinese women’s beauty potential”.
Extensive research into the beauty habits of Chinese women, revealed that bathing in milk was viewed as the ultimate way of caring for skin and Dove took this as the central message for its campaign.
The brand targeted women via QQ, China's largest social media site, with video content showcasing the product’s attributes, while a ‘Dove vs. Milk’ game allowed women to invite friends to play.
An accompanying “Milk Bath Test” TV commercial demonstrated the product’s superiority against milk, contributing a market share that increased from 2.1% to 7.6%.
The lesson: Advertising in the BRICs needs to be as sophisticated as any other market. Integrated messages such as that adopted by Dove will always be more successful than one-offs.
Matthew Carlton is Head of Insight at Ebiquity.
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