The Business of Durga Puja

The Navaratri festival is round the corner making people more excited and geared up for the nine day celebration. But did you know that the nine day festival will actually make fortunes for many businesses in India? Large business industries target for high profit during the festival time

Right from small business vendors to hypermarkets like Big Bazaar; everybody has business strategies for the festive season and their offers are simply tempting. But they aim at consumers goods. Did you know that even corporate and PR hubs are banking on the festival days to do their CSR activities and to make business?

Take a look at the list which makes The Durga Pooja festival a business hub.

1. PR Agencies:

Professionally managed PR (public relations) agencies are stepping into this festival which has made it a more professional activity.

According to Public Relations industry sources, PR activities start either a month before the festival or from Mahalaya (the day of invocation of the goddess). Payments also vary accordingly, on an average payment ranges between 30, 000 and 1, 00,000 depending on the work. 

2. Social sites bag more

Social sites collection is huge during Durga puja . People send lot of scraps, greeting cards, graphics and designed images to their friends and relatives during this time. Lack of time and long distance make people to send their wishes on these sites. In this way these sites are churning more money. 

3. Travel Agencies

Working people get long leaves during the Durga feast which helps them travel and go on long vacations. Some travel agencies even offer a package tour for visiting pandels, idols of Devi Durga in different parts of the country. The packages are called as Puja special package. Since the packages are exclusively made during the festive season they are pretty expensive and have limited offers. 4. Sarodia Utsav in Big Bazar

Big Bazar announced the launch of 'Sarodia Utsav', a large scale shopping celebration for Durga Puja . Sarodia Utsav' will allow Big Bazaar to share the festivity with their customers by giving them exciting offers during their shopping. The shopping bazaars are all decked up with the essence of the festival.

Fabulous gifts and prizes and a wide range of new collections will be an excitement for an entire family which will bring the aura of festivity even before the actual festival starts. Customers will also be able to enjoy mouth watering delicacies at the food joints placed in front of the stores. 

5. Free Callertunes

Reliance Mobile is offering special callertunes for millions of customers across the nation during the occasion. Navratri is celebrated with religious fervor by millions of devotees across India. Reliance Communications is celebrating this year's festival of music and dance with free callertunes and unique Bengali devotional content. 

6. Talk more during the festive season

Uninor has announced the launch of its special Puja Campaign called 'Kom Damey Besi Kotha'. As part of their campaign they offer more talk time, more value for money for Uninor's customers in this festival season. 

7. Home Theatre Combo Offer

Sony plans to offer alluring items to customers on purchase of their products that includes digital photo frames, Sony Clock Radios, 4GB pen drives and Airtel TV subscription for 2 months with Bravia TV sets, 4GB memory cards with Sony Cybersot cameras and carry bags with both Cyber-shot and Handycam range of products.

Apart from the free gifts there is a 'Home Theatre Combo Offer' with discounts extending upto 4000 along with 0 percent interest schemes for easy payment of price money. The company plans to generate a sale of 245 crores, leading to a 48 percent growth over last year, 

8. Gift Vouchers

Lenovo India has announced a special Durga Puja offer for a fortnight for its customers in the Eastern Region. Lenovos special Durga Puja offer provides an exciting opportunity to win free Titan Gift vouchers worth up to 4,999 with a minimum assured value of 1,000 on the purchase of any Consumer Desktop and Notebook at key select retail outlets. These vouchers come with a validity of 6 months and are redeemable at World of Titan outlets. 

9. New Clothes to poor children

Durga Puja seems to have become the target for CSR activities by corporates. Singapore Airlines has decided to distribute garments to poor school children. As part of its CSR activity during Durga Puja this year, Singapore Airlines chose Bess Crawford Seva Niketan, a school in the Howrah district of West Bengal. It distributed shirts and skirts to 135 students, all of whom were in the 3 to 15 age group. 

10. Prizes

Durga Puja dhakis (drummers) come to Kolkata from various corners of West Bengal to add cheer and music to the festivities. Shalimar Paints, the third largest paint company in India, and Mysore-based N R Group, owners of the Cycle brand of incense sticks, are promoting dhakis through competitions in the city. The winners are given cash prizes. Cash awards will be given away to the three winners of the dhakis competition and the winners will be appreciated through big cash prizes.

Though Durga pooja has lot of Indian cultural and mythological links, all these new business strategies created a new trend and become a delightful occasion for the people who want to make best in business to enjoy perfect wealthy power.

Why Chidu is Silent?

He has been in the shadow of doubt ever since the 2G spectrum scam broke out, which was repeatedly denied by all and sundry around him, a probe against whom the Centre and CBI opposed. Now a firestorm of controversy is set off by his cabinet colleague Pranab Mukherjee as a recently released note 'seen by' him says that the 2G resource could have auctioned in 2008 if the then Finance Minister P. Chidambaram had "stuck to his stand".

Pranab Mukherjee and P Chidambaram are often rumored to be the powerful rivals in the Congress party and their rivalry has once again come out in public when the formers' ministry issued a letter to the PMO in 2008 alleging that Chidambaram had a chance to prevent the illegal spectrum allotment by Raja. The two powerhouses of the Congress party are often seen vying for the top post in the party by the next general elections in 2014. However, the UPA government that is reeling under a series of corruption scandals, is now at a difficult juncture desperately hunting for damage control options. 

The allegation says that Chidambaram had a chance to intervene into the spectrum allocation to bring in more revenue to the government. The airwaves were allegedly sold at a very lesser price than their real value resulting in a loss of around 176,379 crores to government exchequer.

The note apparently sent at the approval of Pranab Mukherjee came to light as Janata Party President Subramanian Swamy presented it before the Supreme Court to prove a direct involvement of Chidambaram in the spectrum pricing. It was originally accessed by the RTI activist Vivek Garg from the the Prime Minister's Office. The letter was prepared by a deputy secretary in the finance ministry and sent to the PM's office on March 25. It reportedly quotes Chidambaram, after a meeting with A Raja, as saying, "He was for now not seeking to revisit the current regimes for entry fee or revenue share" of spectrum. A strong critic of the Congress party, Swamy has been fighting the legal battle for a CBI probe into the Home Minister's role in the 2G scam. 

Even after this serious allegation and the following hullabaloo, the Congress party decided to firmly back Chidambaram and said there is not rift within the party over the 2G scam. The Union Law minister Salman Khurshid strongly spoke in support of him saying, "We have no reason to put a question mark on Mr Chidambaram's conduct. We stand by him." He rubbished the media buzz about the possible differences between the key ministers and said, "We cannot comment on the paper till court takes it into account. It is just one sided presentation of documents."

The main opposition BJP was quick to react and demanded the Home Minister's resignation over the letter. BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said, "It was very clear from day one that Chidambaram agreed to A. Raja's formula for 2G spectrum allocation. If he had stuck to his position that spectrum should not be allocated at 2001 prices the scam would not have taken place." CPI National Secretary D. Raja said "Chidambaram's position, morally speaking, is increasingly becoming untenable. His role as the then finance minister needs to be examined and questioned."

LOVE ME OR HATE ME, BUT YOU CAN’T IGNORE ME

This is a brand that has made the world sit up and take notice, for not only is it worth millions, but it also teaches us important lessons in Brand Building. The day she changed her name from Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta and rebranded herself as Lady Gaga, a star was born, both for the music world and the business world. Single handedly, this ‘Lady’ has shown the world how to build a brand and how to do business in today’s crowded market place.

A BUSINESS MODEL OF THE FUTURE

Lady Gaga is not just a singer, she is the way of doing business in the future. If you want to ensure that your brand will survive in 2025, it’s time to learn some quick lessons from the Lady. She understands the system the best.

The business model of the future has some new rules now. However, some ground rules never change. For starters, your product has to be good. Everything depends on this. Like all good brands, she first ensured that her product is good. Yes, her music is good and she can sing. She works hard on her lyrics, writes them, conceptualizes the music, the video and the costumes. Working on her piano, she ensures that her “core product” i.e. her music is of great quality. We all know one simple fact; no amount of brand building will do you good if your product is not world class. Secondly, you need to understand your audience very well. You need to keep a finger on the pulse of the audience. No one has been able to understand the market the way she does.

She knows what excites them and what intrigues them. Many may find her costumes outlandish, but they work for her and her fans wait for her next appearance, just to see what it is that she would wear next. Whatever she does, she has them eating out of her hands. The third lesson one learns from this entertainer is the benefit of staying “in-the-news” all the time. This is not an option, but it’s a necessity of today.

In today’s market place, if you are ignored, you are doomed. That is one thing this Lady has mastered. She cannot be ignored. Every appearance of hers is well thought of and crafted. Be it a bird’s nest, a model of the solar system on her head, or be it her meat dress, she never fails to grab attention. In fact, she will go to any extent to grab attention. In one of her interviews, she recalled an incident where, during her early days of struggle, she was playing at a bar (in USA) filled with drunken NYU students and no one paid a hoot to what she was playing. She says, “I started playing in underwear at the piano,” and suddenly everyone was looking at her and listening to her song.

Just creating a buzz is not enough; you need to know the right places to create the buzz. The audience of the future will be spending a lot of time in cyberspace. Whenever Lady Gaga makes an appearance, she does it with one intention – to create the maximum buzz there. With over 145 million blogs in cyberspace, more than 50,000 new blogs being created everyday and over one million new blog posts being posted each day, the internet is a very crowded place today. To get noticed, to be written about by maximum people, requires a very sharp marketing mind. Gaga has her moves scripted so well, for she knows exactly how to get talked about. Just a great product will not get you noticed. You need to get the tongues wagging. Gaga cares not whether or not you like her, all she cares aboutis the degree of buzz that every act of hers will generate. While she works on her music, she meticulously works on how to make clips that would be lapped up by YouTube, how to dress and what to speak, so that the twitter world will start chattering! Brands too have to ensure that if they want to survive, they must have a strong presence in the cyber world, for the audience of the future is going to be here.

Her every act is a practiced, well prepared and well targeted marketing gimmick, to help build the Lady Gaga Brand. She obsesses about every little detail and it pays. Businesses of tomorrow have to remember, that if their products are not being talked about, they would disappear soon, however good their quality.

CHANGE YOURSELF AND YOUR CUSTOMERS

To be constantly talked about, you need to keep doing new and different things. Your brand needs to keep innovating all the time to grab that “top-of-the-mind” awareness in the consumer’s mind. Be it Madonna, or Kishore Kumar, or Lady Gaga or Big B. They all kept experimenting, kept changing, kept reinventing themselves and dared to do things others would not. They survived. Probably a lot more talented artists didn’t.

There is no perfect recipe for success. In today’s market place, brands need to move quickly. They need to know what’s cool, what’s new, and change themselves accordingly. At Cannes 2011, in June, Publicis & Contagious introduced a new concept called the “Five Percent Club”. They urged brands to take risks and invest 5 percent of their media spends into something different, something creative, outrageous and not just depend on the mundane, 30 second advertising commercial to build their brands. Heineken found a new way of engaging viewers during a football game. No, they did not just advertise, but introduced an interesting iPhone application, which rewarded viewers with points (that they could redeem later) every time they guessed the winner correctly before the game ended.

To survive, one needs to change their way of thinking. The companies of tomorrow will only be those who are willing to scrap conventional ideas, who are willing to try out new stuff and most importantly, who are willing to fail – just like Gaga who has never been spotted in an ordinary pair of jeans ever. She is always dressed to suit her image, for every second she is doing some different stuff – with just one purpose – to be noticed. Your marketing plan too should be such that every penny spent is for the purpose of making your brandstand distinctly apart from the competitor. Get noticed, you will get customers.

Until now, it was the job of the advertisers and marketers to change the audience. Before 1948, diamond rings were not synonymous with engagement or marriage the world over. Then came a campaign, “A Diamond is Forever,” and changed our thinking forever. Even in India, marriages used to be traditionally associated with gold jewellery, but De Beers, with its intelligent advertising changed that too. By linking the eternity of a diamond (it’s the hardest substance on Earth) to the eternity of a bond, it changed cultures. While everybody in America was manufacturing, marketing and selling long, sleek cars, the VW Beetle changed the people’s perceptions with the help of its “Think Small” ad campaign. Santa Clause used to be depicted as a skinny, stern, and scary figure, until Coca Cola created the chubby, cute and cherry Santa, and changed the perceptions of the world. All sports shoes were more or less similar until Nike changed it all. It is impossible to differentiate vodka on the basis of mere taste, but Absolute differentiated its product on the basis of its unique advertising and created a niche market where none existed. Marketers have changed audiences and their perceptions, but this new generation of customers is different & marketers need to change their ways to adapt to this audience.

Times are changing fast and so are the rules of marketing. Today, you need to stand out, shout out, and look out (for new trends) or else be prepared to be shut out (forgotten) by the consumers. The biggest fear for a brand is if it fails to get attention. Lady Gaga and other shrewd marketers know only one success principle, “Love me or hate me, but you can’t ignore me.”

THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE INDIA

We all love ‘Anna’! He seems to have united India and its youth. But is India really one, especially when it comes to business? This is one country where all the laws of marketing will fail, because it’s so diverse. If you have just one theory, then it will not take you anywhere. India changes every 200 km. Yes, a few basics remain the same across India, but a lot changes too. For starters, language changes (we have 192 official languages and dialects), culture changes, traditions and festivals change, food habits change. If this is not enough, think about it – even the geography and political views change. Yes, it is vast, but it is not an easy market. Only the hardy marketers will be able to survive and thrive here.

THOSE WHO MISUNDERSTOOD INDIA

A lot of multinationals have come into India but failed – not because their products were not good, but because they failed to understand India’s culture. Globalisation has been the new trend, but ‘standardisation’ will not work always. As a marketer, you need to be sensitive to each culture’s identities and its unique regional preferences and customise your product offerings.

Our local markets are not barren as many multinationals thought. There are very strong players in almost every local market. Take the case of Kellogg’s. Apart from the taste not really matching the Indian palette (we like to put warm milk with sugar in our cereals, unlike the west that has it with cold milk), it under estimated the presence of local competitors like Mohun cornflakes (priced lesser than Kellogg’s) and Champion (whose price is almost half as that of Kellogg’s). Retail chains may never be able to understand the bonhomie that people share with their local kirana shops or the Mom & Pop stores as they are popularly called in the West. They share a bond and enjoy a mutual level of trust (giving things even on credit to their favorite customers) that big retail chains will never be able to enjoy. CavinKare challenged the multinationals in various segments. Earlier, it was Clinic shampoo and Fair & Lovely fairness cream (both from HUL) that were touted as the only good options. But homegrown brands like CavinKare are giving them a tough fight. CavinKare used sachets to sell its shampoos. It understood that the consumer was not willing to buy a whole bottle. But a small sachet was a luxury she could indulge in. [Today, 40% of the shampoo market consists of sachet buyers.] It used India’s weakness for ayurvedic products and ensured that its fairness cream Fairever – with saffron and milk – promised not just fairness but also good skin, and quickly cornered a significant chunk of the market share from the giant HUL and its brand Fair & Lovely. So strong has been this positioning that it made Fair & Lovely change its positioning from “badle aap, badle zindagi” to “gorepan se kahi zyaada, saaf gorapan”, meaning “not just fairness but a clear skin too”. CavinKare understood the Indian consumer and her changing needs, and this homegrown brand has become a formidable competitor today.

Going the ayurveda way, Emami too has managed to keep the biggies out of the way with unique Indian brands like Boroplus, Navratan oil and Fair & Handsome cream, that command a significant market share today. Marico’s Parachute oil is way ahead of HUL’s Nihaar. Agreed. Products like hair oil are distinctly Indian and MNCs may not have an edge here, but even when it comes to products like toothpaste and hair color, our Indian brands are doing a pretty good job! Dabur toothpaste is giving Colgate and HUL a tough fight. In the hair color sector, Godrej still has the largest market share (more than 30%),with L’Oreal coming a distant second (a market share of 19%).

Just because a brand has a foreign tag is no guarantee that it will be perceived as superior. It needs to match the local sensibilities too. KFC entered India with its American menu of chicken wings and wraps in Bangalore. The Indian consumer did not identify with it and it had to pack its bags and leave. In 2004 when it did come back it had a vegetarian menu, rice meals and Indianised chicken recipes. It survived.

Tupperware designed a beautiful ergonomically sound, rectangle spice box for the Indian housewife. It bombed. She was used to a round one for years and however good the rectangle box it did not work for her.

Marketers with a keen sense of observation have succeeded here. Maybe not many people can afford an Omega or a Rolex, but people love to own a good watch, and no one grabbed this opportunity better than Titan. It realised that the only watches available in India for the low-end were poor in quality and lacked after-sales services or even warranties. Today, Titan dominates the watch market and offers very good quality watches with warranties and service networks for not just the consumers at the low-end but also, pure gold watches for the ones with deeper pockets. This local hero is a big, dominant player.

These local champions have overcome all obstacles and have made their own roads. If Indian roads were not good, then Tata Motors came up with cars and trucks that had a strong and rigid suspension system. Not state of the art, but its vehicles had easy maintenance. Poor infrastructure could not deter Amul from going ahead and conquering the market. If farmers could not reach out to the company, then the company decided to go to them. Amul is an amalgamation of more than 13,000 cooperatives. It installed Automatic Milk Collection Systems in the villages, where farmers went and deposited their milk. It was immediately measured for volume and fat content and the farmer was paid instantly. It worked well for both the parties, and till date, Amul rules the Indian markets. Open your refrigerator and you will find the Amul butter packet there too!

The reason some Indian brands have become so strong is that they have understood this country and its problems well, and have found innovative ways to work around them. ITC (which began operations as an MNC in India in 1910, but whose ownership has progressively Indianised over the years) – has been in India for close to 100 years now and has understood its problems like no one else has. It realised that farmers had no access to markets or any information about markets. So it installed a PC in the house of the largest farmer in the village, providing him and the rest of the village, a window to the world. This not just improved the knowledge and awareness of the farmers, but made them fall in love with ITC. Any competitor would find it tough to break this bond. It also ensured that ITC got a steady supply of good quality soybean for its processing plant.

It takes just one strong homegrown brand to shut out a huge multinational. Only those have got it right can do so.

THOSE WHO UNDERSTOOD INDIA

While many MNCs faltered because some assumed the Indian market was behind their home market, or thought it was not yet ready for superior products, other failures thought that the “foreign” tag would be enough to attract the consumers. Thus they became myopic and failed to adapt or innovate. Such brands failed or were forced to leave the Indian market, even as so many local brands filled the void. However, there have been a whole lot of MNCs who have kept their eyes open and survived. They realised that the product could be made in any part of the world but it was important that the product be “Made FOR India” for it to succeed in this market.

McDonalds knows that food is the most culturally sensitive product, and everywhere it has gone, it has ensured that its menu is customised to suit Indian tastes. Pizza Hut has a full-vegetarian restaurant in places like Gujarat et al, where the population is mostly Jains. Nowhere in the world will you find another only vegetarian Pizza Hut. LG believes not just in localisation but micro-localisation. Its microwaves have an idli mould for the south- Indian market, and a plate for heating kulchas for the north. It sells bright colored refrigerators in Punjab, for it does not get stained easily with the strong spicy and oily cooking of that region. Samsung’s phones now have an Indian calendar too. Perfetti Van Melle knew its old distribution system was weak, so it created its own network of 5000 distributors, did not give up on the rural market and today, is way ahead of competitors. Hyundai saw that most foreign car manufacturers were selling their old models in India. It entered with new models. It even customised the Santro to suit Indian roads. It used its technical expertise, which the local manufacturers did not have and today, it holds the number 2 spot in the automarket – just behind Maruti, which has been in this market for 25 years.

THOSE WHO WILL BE THE NEW MNCS

As these homegrown brands learnt the hard way to survive in developing markets like India, they found a whole new set of business opportunities opening up for them in other developing markets. These markets had similar problems and opportunities. So Tata Motors found that its vehicles were in demand in many African countries where the infrastructure was not good either. ICICI Bank and many others too saw an opportunity to do business in the emerging markets of Sri Lanka, Africa, China, Bangladesh, Indonesia et al. They have mastered the art of functioning and adapting in difficult markets, and are thriving like never before in these places. These new emerging markets are the future of business, and with markets of the developed world shrinking, it is only those companies who can do business in these very markets that will survive and thrive. The MNCs of the developed world are suddenly realising that the companies they once brushed aside as small homegrown brands, have become the new and powerful multi -national giants of the emerging markets.

India is diverse and difficult. But it has proven to be an apt training ground for its homegrown brands, to prepare themselves for the future. Those who have succeeded and survived here, will be able to survive anywhere, after all there is no place in the world like India!

MAINE KAROO TO CHARACTER DHEELA HAI!

What makes this song so entertaining? Is it Salman or is it the lyrics or both? Probably both. The words were as important as Bhai’s unique style in making it such a big hit. Mind it, the language you speak can change the fortunes of your brand, your company and your movie!

MUNNI AND SHEILA, TO MCDONALD’S & SONY

Language has the power to attract and this new language has taken everyone in its grip & its here to stay. From Bollywood to the business world, from babes to brands, everybody is using it. Hinglish is the language of today. It’s trendy, young and happening and it’s keeping the cash registers ringing for all who use it. Today’s most popular songs – from “Munni darling” to “Pappu can’t dance saala” to “My name is Shiela” and the current craze “...Character dheela hai” – have Hinglish lyrics. It makes the songs catchy and very entertaining and the audiences love them.

Not just Bollywood, smart businessmen the world over have realized that it’s this “street English” that works like magic to attract the consumers, so much so that even foreign brands are speaking it. Pepsi now says “Youngistaan ka wow!” Cadbury says it is not just a chocolate but “meetha” to be had after meals (a typical Indian custom). Domino’s for years has been asking “Hungry kya.” Lehar says “Control nahi hota,” and they all have successfully managed to connect to their customers! The verdict: The one who speaks the language the customer loves, rules.

HINGLISH – FOR SURVIVAL

“Kitne aadmi ko text karna hai?” Wondering which company’s tagline this is? Not Airtel, Aircell, Vodafone or even Idea. It’s the tagline of Rogers, Canada’s leading telecommunications company. Foreign brands too are using Hinglish to reach out to the Indian consumer in foreign lands. Bell Canada called on its consumers to “Put some bang in your Bhangra” as it celebrated Baisakhi with them in Canada. Across the border in America, McDonald’s sent small cards to various Indian households asking them to taste its ice-creams and shakes, with a tagline, “Taste ki baat hai.” And the Indian- American population loved it.

Wells Fargo used Hinglish too, on its hoardings in America to reach out. “Safalta aapki, solutions hamare” was the tagline plastered on various billboards.

Hinglish today is a global language and even the Brits have accepted it. Demos, an influential British think-tank, came out with a report stating language blends like Hinglish were the way forward, adding, “With non-native English speakers set to top two billion in as little as five years, Britain’s influence, relationships and access to markets across the globe are at risk unless we change our outmoded attitude to language.” It’s no more the Queen’s English; rather, to survive, one needs to master “The Queen’s Hinglish,” the new language of the new culture. This is the new law of survival. This is the way to reach out to your customers.

CHANGE YOUR PRODUCT, NOT JUST YOUR LANGUAGE

A famous Indian proverb says, “If you live in the river, you should make friends with the crocodile.” The one who adjusts best, wins. The one who understands not just the local language, but the local culture and way of life too, beats competitors. When Whirlpool launched its washing machines in India, it realized they were not suitable for washing saris. It immediately redesigned them to suit local preferences. KFC today has a vegetarian thali. An outlet that gained popularity because of its fried chicken, has removed chicken from some of its dishes to suit local tastes. Smuckers Foods of Canada has a ‘Golden Temple’ brand of atta, for the brand name – leaving the political incorrectness of it aside – plays a big role in motivating NRIs to reach out for it.

Intelligence is not measured by IQ scores, but by one’s ability to adapt. The most intelligent species are those that have found ways to adapt, and no one has adapted better than humans, who have learnt to adapt to almost any situation, any climate – so have some of the most successful brands. Nokia made dust resistant keypads for the Indian market. Sony built dust resistant TVs for India. HLL understood the rural consumer and introduced shampoos in sachets priced at Re.1, which became big money spinners for the company. Subway serves no beef in India.

The biggest of global brands with the best of products had to think local and even change some of their best strategies to succeed in foreign lands. The ‘Dell Dude’, a know-it-all, speak-fearlessly-to-strangers, kind of character was used by Dell on American TV – and he was a big hit. But this cool guy was not featured in Japanese ads for they would not appreciate a character like that.

Unilever launched coconut ice-creams with fruits in Bangkok to suit the Thai palette. Wall’s ensured that its ice-creams tasted different in Asia; no wonder in 2000, its share of the Asian market was 41% as compared to 15% of Nestle’s. Disneyland realized that if it had to make money in Hong Kong, it had to lower its prices, change its decor and settings to suit local tastes. Starbucks is making sure its outlets blend with the culture of the place and look less foreign. Just because it worked in one place is no guarantee that it will work everywhere, and brands should be ready to discard even their best ideas if they don’t match the local market’s choices.

Maxwell House Coffee was one of the first to realize that it pays to understand local culture. It was one of the first to pitch its coffee directly to the Jewish consumers. Nine years back, it noticed that sales of coffee fell drastically among Jews during ‘Passover’, a Jewish festival. It quickly hired an Orthodox rabbi who declared coffee was a berry (a fruit) and hence was totally acceptable to be had during the 8 days of Passover. It even came out with a booklet, ‘Passover Haggadah, Brought to you by Maxwell House’. This instantly made Maxwell an integral part of the Jewish community and its traditions. Today, anybody who wants to get instructions of how to celebrate Passover reaches out for Maxwell’s booklet, which can be picked up for free from the ‘Passover aisle’ or the ‘coffee aisle’. The very same coffee aisle which some years ago no Jew looked at during Passover, adapted and survived.

The ‘Dirt is good’ campaign of Unilever started in UK, but the company took extra efforts to ensure that the campaign was adapted to suit the local cultures of different countries; and it become a hit the world over. ‘Daag ache hai’ was just as loved by everybody in India.

Nike, Coca Cola and many other MNC’s entered India with their best global advertising campaigns. None worked and succeeded like the ‘Bleed Blue’ or the ‘Thanda Matlab Coca Cola’ campaigns, which instantly made the brands a part of the local culture.

Similarly, Dove’s ‘Real Beauty’ campaign succeeded in the West, but failed in China and Japan, where traditional views of feminine beauty still hold strong. Wizard of Oz, the wonderful children’s book has been translated into 40 different languages but adapted to suit local cultures. The Tin Woodman was replaced by a snake to suit the Indian culture; in the Russian version of the book, a man-eating Ogre was introduced.

Motorola launched a phone for the young in India and named it Moto-Yuva, and its key feature was a Hinglish T9. With SMS catching up, the company ensured its brand was in-sync with the language of the youth. Brands that adjusted, stayed; others vanished. Bollywood has adjusted too. More than 30 films released this year have Hinglish titles. ‘Always Kabhi Kabhi’, ‘Bhindi Bazaar Inc’ to ‘Short Term Shaadi’, all are riding on the popularity of Hinglish to make their films sound young, trendy and interesting. It’s the title (much like the tag line in advertising) that matters too – not just the stars.

It’s said the wise are like water, which moulds itself according to the pitcher. Shakespeare never hesitated to modify theEnglish language and coined almost 1600 new English words, borrowing freely from French, German, Latin etc to help him describe better and make his narratives more engrossing and effective. Even though a lot is being debated about whether Hinglish is good – for eventually it distorts both Hindi and English – but as marketers, we need to know the pulse of the audience; and he loves this language. So do not hesitate to change and adapt to make your marketing plans more effective... Even Shakespeare did it and no one questioned him!

Adapt to the local language, the culture, to sell your goods and ideas; and if anyone points a finger, well, sing in Hinglish, “Shakespeare kare to OK, maine karoo to saala character dheela hai!” Change your language, adapt your products and you will not only survive, but lead!

Constitution, Democracy, Parliament, Parliamentarians vs. the Public

Espousing a right cause in public interest and fighting to the finish for the same adopting non-violent means is not illegal in democratic form of govt.; however, in a country which prides herself on being a sovereign democratic republic, fundamental right was abrogated by the present govt. illegally by fabricating intelligent logical explanations in the façade of criminal procedure codes and maintaining of law and order problem etc which did not convince even the reason-tossed minds of intellectual maturity, let alone the AAM ADMI. The government took suicidal steps by encroaching upon fundamental rights of peaceful protest and demonstration by the social activist. In the process, the worst damage has been done to ruling party which has lost its credibility in the eyes of the general public and the people have become skeptical about the party, its intent and its ideology. Had the flexibility as displayed in the last minute been shown earlier, the stand-off might have been avoided and then the ruling party could have been credited to have ensured the tabling and passage of the Jan Lakpal Bill. This image of the party would also have paid richer dividends in the forthcoming elections. But no credit now will go to ruling party even if the bill is passed either in original form (which does not seem possible in any circumstance) or modified form.

With parliament and other governmental institutions having been subverted by politicians and bureaucrats, democratic form of government undermined by allowing the criminals to contest and win elections and become parliamentarians, nexus between criminals and politicians having strengthened even after continued discussions in the parliament some years back, scams after scams being brought to the fore, parliamentarians being bought to support the ruling party during no-confidence motion, the public have therefore completely lost faith in the parliament, the government, institutional mechanisms and even in democracy. The democracy has lost its sheen and so has the parliament been robbed of its supremacy and sovereignty. That is why the public want to have their complete say in governance affairs.  

The parliamentarians are under the deluge that the parliament belongs to them. The parliament does not belong to them but to the public. The democracy has been chosen as the form of government not by the parliamentarians but by the public. And the constitution has been framed not by the parliamentarians but by the public. Therefore, our parliamentarians need not live in oblivion and rather accept the hark reality that they will remain parliamentarians as long as they think and work in public interest or public welfare; and once they think and work against public interest or public welfare, they will cease to remain parliamentarians and be wiped out by the public from the political lexicon.

The democracy is not the form of government by the few, of the few and for the few; the parliament is not the fiefdom of parliamentarians where they can legislate anything even if detrimental to public interest and public welfare. The supremacy of parliament is not above public interest or public welfare. And even the constitution is not above the public interest and public welfare. The people’s power can change the parliament, the elected representatives, the government, the form of government and even the constitution. Today’s parliamentarians should not be unmindful of these hark realities else it will be nearly impossible for them to face the public wrath and ire in their own constituencies

Nothing is above the ‘public interest’ and ‘public welfare’ – neither parliament, nor democracy, nor government, nor constitution. Parliamentarians, Parliament, Democracy and Constitution are all just means to achieve the only one end i.e., ‘public welfare’. Therefore, parliamentarians are duty-bound to serve the public and not just only enjoy the privileges given to them by the public.

The public want such leaders as parliamentarians who can deliver to the public thru’ proper governance; want Parliament in which bills are legislated for their welfare and want democracy wherein they have a say in governance affairs. Therefore, parliament, democracy and constitution will have to evolve if they fail to meet the growing aspirations of the public in their present form. 

Now the time has come to audit the works of MPs and review the privileges being given to them? Their salary, perks and privileges may be strictly subjected to their performance on national as well as constituency level. All unwarranted expenditures being incurred on them should be withdrawn.

10 smart tips to manage your money

You never know what’s in store for you! For instance, we cannot control outside events like recession. No matter what you do, it is going to affect all of us in some way or other. However some simple tips like optimum asset allocation, debt reduction, keeping emergency cash will help you tide over the rough times, without much damage.
 

Check your expenses and adhere to your budget

People tend to forget that good times don’t last forever. If you spend lavishly during good times and continue the trend without adapting to changes in circumstances, very soon you will land in financial trouble. Hence to ensure you lead a consistent lifestyle, always draw out a budget and ensure you stick to it religiously. E.g. if you have allocated Rs 500 per month towards your entertainment expenses, don’t spend a rupee more than Rs. 500. It will not only help you handle your finances better but will develop your willpower by delaying instant gratification.

Don’t rely on future income

Depending on future income in order to spend today, is one of the biggest mistakes we make. This has been evident during a job crisis, where youth racked up a huge credit card debt and took heavy loans. But when the salary cuts and job losses occurred, they were unable to pay off their debt. E.g. if your monthly income is Rs. 20,000 always ensure you spend well within  Rs. 20,000 as pay cut or job loss may land you in trouble.

Reduce your debt

Got a bonus? Then pay off any loans that you have taken. If you have multiple loans, first pay off the loans with the highest interest rate, then the one with second highest rate and so on. E.g. if you have a credit card debt, personal loan and home loan, first clear off the credit card debt, then personal loan and finally home loan. For this you will have to plan out your debts and then go on following it systematically and steadily. It will not only save you money but will also give you mental peace.

Opt for strategic asset allocation

Though experts have consistently stated the importance of asset allocation, many investors tend to overlook this fact and invest only in the hottest asset. But remember market conditions do change and what is hot today may be out in the cold later on for a long time. So ensure you divide your portfolio amongst stocks, bonds, gold and real estate to get the maximum returns from your portfolio. Though your portfolio may under perform for some time, it will end up protecting you when the things get rough.

Keep emergency cash

You never know when a crisis can strike your family. Death, disease or job loss can end up upsetting your investments. You might be forced to sell your investments though they have not been given you any profits. Hence it is advisable to keep at least 3-6 months of your household expenses aside as emergency cash.

Sort out Your Finances

Agreed, keeping tabs on and handling your finances closely, may not sound like an interesting job, but it is a necessity. However you can reduce the boredom by putting a system in place. Once it is done, you can spend a few hours a month on this job. E.g. on Sunday, you can spend 1-2 hours to find out how your investments are performing, reading up any news concerning them or talking with your financial planner about the performance of your investments.

Plan in advance

One of the reasons many people land in financial mess is that they don’t plan their finances ahead. So it is imperative to plan your finances properly. Find out your current position, where you intend to go and set up a feasible plan to achieve your objectives. Unforeseeable events may occur and make you stray away from your plan for a short time, but ensure you get back on track at the earliest. Always remain focused and keep a watch on your progress. E.g. you are saving to buy a home and have started investing for the same. But 6 months after you started investing, you lose your job. If that happens, stop your investment, get a new job and again restart your investment.

Invest systematically and gradually

The biggest problem is that most people don’t bother saving till it is quite late. So they don’t have any money to fall back on in case of emergency. Hence it is essential to start small, but regularly and then increase the amounts later on. E.g. you can start a SIP, in which a particular sum is debited from your bank account and invested in a mutual fund. Or you can open a recurring deposit, which acts like a SIP, initiated by the bank. All this will occur automatically, so you have no excuse not to save.

Be in charge of your investments

The markets have crashed, the realty is down in dumps. What do you do? Sell off? Wrong. Unfortunately, this is what most investors do. In this situation, it is advisable to hold on to your portfolio as selling will just end up causing you financial loss. Instead increase your emergency cash reserves and periodically review your asset allocation of your portfolio.

Set a realistic outlook

The days of stocks giving a return of over 40% are over. While it is possible some of them may give you those types of returns, it is setting yourself up for disappointment if you keep your outlook very high. Instead keep a practical outlook of earning 12-15% returns from your investments.