The PunchLine Expert

Pfizer: Corporate Branding “Life is our life’s work” Pharma companies are traditionally sales driven with little scope for marketing activities. This is especially true for prescription drugs where the final consumers of drugs have no choice regarding which drug they have to use. It is all based on recommendations of doctors. But with patents expiring, generics posing stiff competition and sales efforts saturating, pharma companies are looking at branding in a new light. Another reason is that if a drug is branded well, its sales would be protected at patent expiry. Hence the interest in branding and marketing activities from pharma companies. New concepts like DTC or Direct to Consumer advertising are being used by pharma companies. DTC means directly reaching out to the end users of medicines, i.e. the patients, and making them aware of disease conditions, treatments ect. The problem with DTC is that advertising to patients about prescription drugs is banned in most countries. So, ho

Bank of India: "Rishton ki jamapunji-Relationships beyond banking." Headline: How long does it take to know someone?Is a day enough?A fortnight, perhaps? A decade?There really are no rules in a relationship.Sometimes it can take a lifetime.Sometimes all it takes is a glance.Subhead: We understand relationships. Which is why, we're ensuring that our relationship with you will always stay special. Looking at the spectrum of advertisements by banks, the ICICI Bank ad shows Shah Rukh Khan, going around the world, with the tagline saying “ICICI: The global choice of the global Indian”. HSBC stresses on the fact that they understand local cultures well by saying “Different points of view are welcome here. HSBC. The world’s local bank”. ABN AMRO focuses on their ability to understand customer needs by saying “Every day personal bankers from ABN AMRO change the way people think about what to expect from a bank”. IDBI bank ad talks about fulfilling people’s dreams by sa

The Emotional Connect: Thailand Post When was the last time you sent a handwritten letter to someone? With the advent of emails, sms and cheap long distance calling, many of us have stopped sending letters to each other. That’s good for us because technology has enabled us to send our messages and mails across instantly and get the response back at the same time, a thing just not possible with snail mail. But there is one small problem with this nice arrangement, its puts the postal companies out of business. What do handwritten letters have by which they can compete with emails and sms? Well, the very fact that they are handwritten is their biggest USP. Don't we get happy when we receive a handwritten letter? The warmth, love and affection which a handwritten letter implies are things which the impersonal emails and sms can never have. You tend to delete old messages and emails, but a letter, specially from a very loved one, is something you like to keep forever, hidden maybe in t

Perfect Advertising The Ad Headline : "My greatest award! My coffee cup, it says 'world's greatest mom. Subhead: Annual reports and report cards. Conference calls and PTA meetings. CEO and part-time cricket coach.Paperwork and homework. Ten-hour work days and overtime on Sundays on the pitch. Struggles and recognition. Success and sacrifices. Accolades, trophies and a coffee cup." An instantly attractive woman, in black business formals in the foreground with a pleasantly light background, is what first successfully gets ones attention to the ad. Then, you see the details, she is on one hand holding a cricket bat, and at the same time there is a travel bag and a sleek car in the background. Finally, you read what is written below the main heading. The picture of successful business women, who is adept at managing both her work and her children, falls into place. It is this image which appeals to women across categories who form the primary readership of Femina. It is

Going up... in Smoke Compare these with the boring "Smoking is injurious to health" lines printed on Indian cigarette packets. I mean, who reads those? Even if someone did, would he be deterred from smoking from a silly "Smoking is injurious to health" poser on cigarettes? I think not. Moreover, these lines reinforce the macho image associated with smoking. Like you are being a real man if you smoke. Sissies think about small things like health. Macho dudes do not. Maybe they will if the Government of India followed the example of some European countries by printing “smoking causes impotency” or for the women, “smoking causes breast cancer”. Being specific never harmed anyone. Waiting for the time when the supposedly “macho” dudes would be “man enough” to realize the perils of smoking. Till then, have a look a this ad. Shock value, like being specific, very often drives home the point. Care for a smoke?

The Marketing Checkmate The picture above just goes to show that you dont need an expensive budget or an expensive brand ambassador to be one up on your competition. All you need is some creative and original thinking. Also, keeping and eyes and ears open for the the perfect moment surely helps. Just, by putting up this one bill board, Pepsi goes one up on Coke, just like they did in the 1996 Cricket World Cup, when they stole the thunder from the "Official Sponsers" Coca Cola with their "There's Nothing official about it" campaign. Coming back to the picture above, Coke is in a strange predicament. Should they remove their hoarding?They are dammed if they do, and they are dammed if they dont. A perfect Marketing Checkmate.