Projective techniques to our rescue!

Task at hand…
The arena of ready to cook snacks was ruled by a single well known brand for quite a while. Many tried to make a dent after understanding some of the weaknesses of the brand, which seemed to be on the lines of its fuddy-duddy image and lack of newness. A new brand tried to lure the customer base by weaving a very modern outlook around the brand. In communication, the mama’s boy got replaced by a cool teenager who took decisions independently. The mom was also done away with. All this because a research indicated that, the market leader was being perceived as fuddy-duddy, boring & kiddish.

The ad agency’s interpretation led to the portrayal of the brand protagonist symbolising freedom & an independent lifestyle, free from the parental intervention (especially mothers’) as opposed to that exemplified by the category leader.

The new positioning and storyboards were put into research and everyone waited excitedly, almost certain that this new funky image would find high appeal amongst the kids. And through the kid’s pester power, the brand would enter homes and replace the category leader gradually.

Our approach…
We carried out mini focus group discussions with kids so that we could keep the discussion tight and in their limited attention span, use some of the projective techniques much needed to understand the entire gamut of issues.

The outcome…
Prima facie, the new communication and positioning seemed to appeal bringing a big smile onto the kids’ faces. The enjoyment quotient of the storyboards was high but was that enough?
Usage of some key projective techniques like the conceiver’s technique and the world view technique revealed that even though the new brand was inviting to the kids and seemed more fun & exciting, but it did not feel like home! They felt this new brand world was good to take a holiday in but not good for residing in permanently.

Our research analysis revealed that the weaknesses of the key competition brand did not have to be taken literally or become the key point of focus. Someone needed to draw the line on how far to go when offering that aspirational imagery of a young kid. Also could one afford to bypass the gate-keeper of the house i.e. the mother, who was the centre-piece in all communication for the leading brand? And most importantly, could the brand sell only on imagery and afford to ignore the key benefits that the product was meant to offer? Could we assume all those benefits of the ready to cook category like easy to make, quick hunger gratification, mouth-watering product shots and take a leap bypassing these key product offerings?

The new brand catered to the higher order need of self actualization (Maslow’s theory) without satisfying the basic physiological needs of hunger.

Even though having hit upon the chink in the armor, such a huge transition in the image failed to move down the consumers’ gullets. In a bid to differentiate itself from the market leader, it lost out on the essence of the ingrained core values, so much a part of the Indian set up. The ‘very contemporary’ image could have been painted a few shades higher from the one being show- cased by the category leader- but given the present stark gradient, it was bound to fail. The core values of a mother nurturing a child synonymous with the Indian culture and traditions could not be ignored.

Highlights…

Usage of some apt projective techniques & rigorous analysis brought to light some very pertinent aspects about this product category, the TG and the kind of communication that needed to be developed.