‘We connect with audiences as a thoughtful brand’

Brilloca, with its bathware solutions brand Hindware, looks to connect with consumers in the context of the renewed focus on health and hygiene. In this regard, the brand has installed contactless handwashing units at eight sites in the National Capital Region.

Charu Malhotra, Vice President and Head of Marketing, Brilloca Limited points out that while media locations were pivotal to outdoor adverting in the past, today engagement with audiences is what counts most for the brand. The brand calls for more data-driven OOH plans too. Growing integration of OOH media with mobile, digital media, social media, television, and artificial intelligence will be a game-changer.

Edited excerpts of the interview:

Could you share the thought behind installing contactless hand washing units?

Hindware has remained committed to promote health and hygiene in society, and the contactless handwashing system is reflective of our efforts in this direction. As the nation transitions through the Unlock phase, there is a need to stay cautious while we get into our routines. Safety is of prime importance; however, it is not always close at hand when we venture out. With our new initiative, we are aiming to not only bring safe hygiene practices to the masses, but also drive a behaviour change that is imperative in the new normal and so it is appropriately named "Saaf Raho, Safe Raho."

Various marketing theories state that brands need to build convenience and support for customers to gain their confidence in the current situation. Have you introduced this initiative on similar lines?  How will it help in your brand marketing?

Today, it is imperative that brands, with their expertise and knowledge, bring solutions that meet the current needs of the country. Through this initiative, we want to put our efforts where we can build a seamless connect between our products and offerings and social cause. Being an Indian lineage brand, we take it as our responsibility to drive behavioural change in the new normal.

This also helps in our goal to connect with customers as a thoughtful brand beyond being a bathware solution provider.

In the current pandemic situation wherein consumer priorities have changed, is there a change in your branding strategy?

Branding works for the long term and this current situation will eventually end. But today, more than ever, the communication has to be packaged with benefits over and above just product. This is a new time for everyone including consumers. We are seeing a new type of online behaviour. For instance, if we want to quickly tap customers’ purchase journey and make them virtually experience all the key facets for them to make a purchase decision, then that is where our virtual ‘expert assistance’ feature on website comes into picture.

The pandemic has changed audience mobility drastically. How is that going to impact your outdoor media planning? How will OOH fit into the new marketing strategies?

As things are slowly coming back to normal, we would be reaching out to the customers on the go, but probably with a different message. It will be more of an engagement with consumers like our current campaign on ‘Saaf Raho, Safe Raho’. 

Location will play an important role as the consumer pattern for OOH consumption is changing. Locations being visited by consumers become more important rather than the location of the media sites. It can be said that from media-centricity, OOH is becoming more audience-centric.

The growing integration of OOH advertising with mobile, digital media, social media, television, and artificial intelligence should drive the media.

Currently, both demand and supply sides have been affected by the impact of the pandemic. What are your expectations from the OOH industry in this context?

More data driven statistics would be needed to understand the engagement with the audience. Considering the pressure on both ends, I would expect a win-win model that can balance cost and reach, allowing us to leverage the assets for increased engagement. There is a great visibility for our ‘Saaf Raho, Safe Raho’ initiative through hoardings but the main attraction is the booth below the hoarding where consumers get to interact with the idea.