Digital strategies, Swadeshi push - Marketers look to make the most of festive season

“India’s GDP collapses 23.9% in Q1” is the headline across news media right now. The COVID-19 crisis and the lockdown have adversely impacted economic activity, consumer spending and investment. Data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) reveals the extent of setback to India’s economy due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, the general economic gloom has failed to dampened the spirits of marketers, who are expecting a good festive season ahead and are pulling out all stops to spur demand and getting the consumers to spend again.

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Festive season 2020: How brands are strategising to spur consumer demand

Adgully spoke to a cross-section of marketers to find out about their plans for the festive season and what keeps them optimistic. We found that a significant part of the marketing and campaign strategies encompass digital this year.

Speaking about Bikaji’s marketing strategy, Deepak Agarwal, CEO and Director, Bikaji Foods International, said, “Keeping the health safety in mind, we will be focusing more on delivering our products directly to our consumers’ doorsteps via our digital platforms. We will also target new age channels like Amazon, Flipkart, Big Basket, Grofers, Jio Mart, etc., to explore new territories.”

The conversations of brands will be around the products that will make consumers feel secure and open to adapting to the new normal vis-a-vis just celebration.

Elaborating on their festive communication, Smita Murarka, Vice President - Marketing & E-commerce, Duroflex, said, “In the initial period of the lockdown, we started with a very strong sleep communication, we spoke a lot about how sleep is immunity and awareness about the use of better mattresses, better pillows that will help them sleep better.”

There has been a big shift in consumer spending from offline to online as a result of COVID-19, which has led to brands firming up their digital campaign strategies.

Speaking about digital campaigns, Kashyap Vadapalli, Chief Marketing Officer & Business Head, Pepperfry, said, “For this festive season, we are starting with a big-bang campaign across all digital and ambient media with our Swadeshi Sale. On Pepperfry, more than 90 per cent of the catalogue is from products that are proudly Made in India. In order to support initiatives such as “Make in India” and “Aatma Nirbhar Bharat” as a marketplace platform, we are showcasing the Indian origin products in our marketing campaigns.”

A spokesperson from Snapdeal added here, “Our marketing strategy is aligned with our target audience, a large part of which is from the smaller towns and cities of India. In fact, nearly 90 per cent of our new users come from smaller towns across India.”

Understanding that time and safety are key considerations currently, this year brands have made big strides by creating more digital shopping opportunities through personalisation and gifting platforms to remain unfazed by the current situation.

Anil Viswanathan, Director – Marketing (Chocolates), Mondelez India, elucidated, “Over the years, Mondelez India has come to be an intrinsic part of festivals in the country, with Cadbury Celebrations redefining the joy of gifting. This year, too, despite the challenging times, we will continue to inspire India to celebrate with their friends and family.”