Well, what is that one aspect which comes into your mind when you think India spices? Without much of thinking, it will definitely be that old man from MDH advertisement, “Asli masala sach-sach, MDH!” Similarly, India has been consuming Parle-Gs, Marie biscuits and Dairy Milks for ages now and these brands have also been ruling the markets for over decades. Time has showcased that people have changed, but not these brands of FMCG giants. So, what do you consider as the mantra for their sustenance in market? In today’s times of disruptions, brands like Patanjali may not be doing as good as those days when they began to conquer the markets, but the core takeaway remains the same that, a semi-clothed monk selling ‘Ayurvedic products’ and being able to create a ₹10,000 crore brand at a fractional marketing cost.
The evolution is the new trend in market as people want variety but don’t want to lose the trust factor with certain brands. Scaling any business successfully totally depends upon doing the fundamentals and having the stamina to run it efficiently. Even for startups and small medium enterprises there are many learnings which they can imbibe from these FMCG giants learn their successive mantras to be loved by people in market. Some of these learnings are as follows:
- Not hiring outside Models for advertisement purposes: the clear example for this can be Mahashay Dharampal Gulati ji’s MDH spice brand. While interviewing this iconic man, he gave out his success mantra that his face has been the selling point of this brand and therefore he never hired any models for the advertisement purpose. This is what he even wishes to convey that your brand is your own baby and no outside person can perform your brand with a similar diligence as the owner himself. Therefore, as part the marketing gimmick one should never invest much to grab in outside glamour, rather the individual should stick to their brand value.
- Customer centric packaging: the packaging of the product should be such that it helps strengthening a customer connect. Today we all recognize the Parle-g biscuit or Kisme toffee branding with their age old packaging. Seeing that dancing girl on pack of biscuits, a kid, adult or an aged person can clearly make out the name of this biscuit brand. Morover, for over ages the packaging and quality has been kept same and this goes as another learning for these SME brands to not play around with product’s packaging quite often.
- Employment retention: Employer should always make extra arrangements to retain that employee lot which has been associated with the brand since the inception days, because they were the ones who made your brand what it is today. They has seen and faced all those hardships while building this brand. Just like the brand Himalaya, the corporate communication manager Byas has been with the brand for over many decades now. He has become the face of this brand and whenever anyone wishes to know the ‘inns’ and ‘outs’ of their brand, people straight away reach out to Byas. This shows that how happy the company has kept its employees they the employees are not in favor of leaving this brand. This way they get married to the company’s culture and stay on for decades.
- Quality Control: The basis of such long existence of FMCG products in market has direct relation to uncompromised quality. Let’s face it how many of you use salt of any other brand than TATA. This ‘desh ka namak’ has conquered all hearts and people when it comes to one trusted brand. In today’s fast paced world its very important to eat healthy and stay healthy and therefore people have become extra conscious of their intake. People blindly trust TATA ‘namak’ for their daily usage and because of its impeccable quality standards, this brand has never let down consumer’s faith.
- Contain your cost: Lastly, cost does matter. In a country like India where according to the recent census, 92% of men and 94% of women are jobless, its very important to maintain decent price of various necessities. Today if a packet 8 glucose biscuits is made available at Rs. 4 and filling stomachs of many then that product will automatically be a chosen choice of many over other satiety eateries
The FMCG biggies’ next leg belongs to these smart and sharp SME owners who are on the stance of developing and innovating great new products targeted towards the current generation. As a matter of fact, why do you think these SMEs need to be bought out strategically by an old laggard, when they can self-sustain themselves and create sustainable business all by themselves? The answer lies in their successful existential years in market. More and more SMEs should look up to the successive mantras of these giants and follow their footsteps for acquiring a safe place in the minds of consumers. Buyers shouldn’t even think twice before buying out your products. We wish to create many such sustainable brands within the fast moving good’s portfolio.