Wild Times in Puducherry

Lillian:

As usual, Pity and her exuberance to help people has landed us a client (are they a client?) that we are not sure we want. When I say Pity, I mean Serendipity, the wild child of our trio. She has this endearing (most of the time) way of bringing up our agency (Goobe) in the most unlikely of conversations. Take this current example, she happened to meet the wife of a third cousin’s friend at a wedding and just happened to wax lyrical about the magical capabilities of our team. The result – here I am, on the way to Pondicherry (Oops, sorry Puducherry) on a discovery meet to understand what ‘help’ the client needs. Yup, you got it, neither Pity nor I know exactly what they want or exactly what their business is. The bits and pieces I gathered from the mumblings Pity made while tearing her hair out on the technical documentation for an  FDA submission for a client indicated that Pavithra (“Call me Pav”) runs a very successful bakery in Pondicherry and has recently branched out into organic ready-to-cook breakfast mixes. I understand that she already works with a team to market her products, so I'm not too sure what we are doing with this.

Wondering what I’m cribbing about? Well, it’s not the trip for sure. I like nothing better than sitting in a car and just daydreaming until something on the road catches my attention. And Pondicherry is a fav destination of mine. I love the odd mix of hippiness mixed with French sophistication enhanced with colourful splashes of India. It’s a heady cocktail that always makes me feel happy and relaxed. 

As we drove into Sitara, the property I was given directions to, I realised that Pavithra Alamanda’s office was in a large property that looked like a resort. The guard at the gate helpfully pointed us to the second red brick building in the driveway. I was delighted because all the buildings seemed to have been constructed in the Laurie Baker style, one of my favourite styles of architecture. While waiting for Pavithra, I soaked in the atmosphere of the old-world elegance of their waiting room. Pav turned out to be an elegant statuesque lady in a beautiful cotton saree. Her pixie hairstyle highlighted her high cheekbones and doe-like eyes. She soon got down to the brass tacks.

Sitara was an art commune her mother started in the late 70s, drawing inspiration from the venerable Mother (They even have an imposing picture of Mirra Alfassa at their reception). Pavithra took over the art commune from her mother in the 90s  and started a bakery because that was her passion. Her bakery, ‘La Petite Pâtisserie’ is one of the best in Pondicherry. Her choco-apricot pastry is to die for! I digress; that’s what good food does to me! Well, Pavithra has now branched out into ready-to-cook breakfast mixes which she markets online. While she has a regular customer base, thanks to La Petite’s popularity, she’s unable to scale up to markets outside of Pondicherry. She has a very talented intern working for her who does her digital marketing and regularly runs Google ads and campaigns on Instagram and Facebook. But she does not seem to be getting the traction she wants. Her primary ask was that we take over all the digital marketing efforts.

I curbed the little voice in my head that urged me to shred the intern’s work to pieces and requested some time to browse through the work that was done objectively. A picture began to emerge and I went back to meet Pav with more confidence than when I started the journey. I felt like a smart doctor after making a breakthrough diagnosis!

I told Pav that the digital marketing efforts done by her team were all great pieces of work independently. The problem was that they were exactly that. Great stand-alone pieces of work without an underlying strategy to hold them together.

The first piece of advice I gave her was that ‘La Petite Foods’ was not a great name for organic breakfast. Yes, the idea to capitalise on ‘La Petite’s’ popularity is great, if you plan to restrict yourself to Puducherry. But not if you wanted to expand out. I suggested that the new brand should start with a new name. I threw around some names I could think of like  Morning Nectar and NutriPetit AM. That caught Pav’s attention and her ears perked up.

I told her that we needed to take a step back and look at her branding. Like a lot of clients before her, this put her back up. Her response was one I’d heard before.“We already have a logo, and we have a name. I think that’s enough for us to start.”

I virtually suited up to combat this question that comes our way quite often. Yes, it’s easier if your digital marketing team can conjure up winning campaigns that magically draw in paying customers. But, the truth of the matter is, there are no shortcuts to success, in marketing or otherwise.

Every business has a story. A ‘raison d'etre’- a reason for existing. Branding helps you identify your raison d’etre and build your story. Branding helps you weave this story into every facet of your marketing so that it all looks like one part of a whole. It’s therefore vital for leaders to make the effort every few years – to introspect on how your brand is positioned, where it’s going and if it reflects your raison d’etre.

Here’s a short list of what you can expect from a branding exercise.

Unravel your identity

A branding team can help you cut through the cobwebs and focus on what your brand stands for. It can help you crystallise your values, mission and vision.

Spotlight your Target Audience

You'll gain a deeper understanding of your ideal customers, their needs, preferences, and behaviours.

Define your USPs

You might think that your business has a million positive points. A branding expert will help you identify unique selling propositions by focusing on your target audience and their wants and needs.

Be easy to spot and remember

Your marketing is a success only if you remain in your customer’s memory. They need to pick your product or solution from the long lineup of similar products and services. A consistent message as well as a visual identity is the most effective way to keep yourself front and centre.

Find your voice

Develop key brand messages and a brand voice that communicates your brand’s voice and values. Like Tata Group’s ‘Leadership with Trust’ or Dairy Milk’s ‘Kuch Meetha Ho Jaye’, brand slogans or messages should speak to your audience.

I left Pondicherry, with the promise to visit again and run a branding workshop.

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Editor’s Note: Branding is an ancient art! The word ‘brand’ connotes ‘marking’ or ‘burning’ one’s insignia onto goods. It’s an age-old practice, perhaps from when Egyptians branded their cattle before setting off to market. Merchants used seals to brand their products in markets the world over.

"Wild Times..." is a story from Clearly Blue's Goobe Guide to Branding, where Maya, Serendipity and Lilian are an intrepid trio of marketers, who go round the country, helping clients set their branding and marketing efforts right.