“Learn all the rules well at IMT Ghaziabad; because only when you know the rules, can you break them in the markets.” says Mr. Debashis Das, Marketing Head, Mother Dairy at the Foundation Module, 2012

The all-new IMT Ghaziabad Foundation Course this year has virtually inundated the incoming batch with the best-known corporate honchos in the country. But if there was one interaction which stood out for its candour and detail, it was undoubtedly that with Mr. Debashis Das. Mr. Das, as the Marketing Head, Mother Dairy, is the man who literally drives the mammoth marketing space when it comes to dairy products in India -although he is best known as the man behind the success of the brand ‘Pril’. It is this success story that he spoke of before the youngsters in IMT Ghaziabadon the 23rd of July, 2012.

“The Pril brand activationgoes down in history as the first ever ad-campaign in India based entirely on consumer generated content. Today, such ads are all over the place, but the ‘Pril’campaign was the first one. It was very city-specific and we did it in two states. We asked people to send us their scripts and the responses poured in.”

Mr. Debashis Das, an IMT Ghaziabad alumnus himself, painted a detailed picture of the entire campaign, substantiating it with videos of the first-of-its-kind advertising blitz that created immense buzz. Not only were the scripts written by the consumers, but they also got a chance to act in the advertisements.

“In one of our ads, there is a shloka from the BhagavadaGitarecited by this lady washing utensils. There is Lord Vishnu with Pril inscribed on his Chakra,” explained Mr. Das along with a video of the commercial. “The lady adds her own line to the shloka, ‘Wherever there is evil, Vishnu is there. Wherever there is dirt, Pril is there’. Those of you who’ve read Martin and Storm will know that a brand should have ‘smashable elements’ that should cater to all the five senses. Apart from describing the ‘smashable elements’ in expressions pertaining to the smell, the squeaking sounds etc., everything else was consumer generated.”

Deliberating on the importance of constantly challenging and conquering new frontiers, Mr. Das then explained to the 2012-14 batch of IMT Ghaziabad how and why ‘Pril’ broke into the ‘liquid category’.

“We created an ad-campaign that was actually ‘de-selling’ the bar category. ‘Vim’had a 72% market share; we had grown to 6%. As a consequence of the ‘de-selling’, we came down to 3%, but we created the liquid category.Pril had a budget of 4 crores vis-à-vis Vim’s budget of 40 crores. If, in this lopsided affair, you are able to create a bigger impact and challenge the market leader – and in the process capture 10% of the market – I guess it’s a job well done. We also launched sachets for the first time. We did a‘tamarind’ drill, we did a ‘neem anti-bacterial’ drill, we did a ‘coconut stubborn’ drill, and we launched a ‘deep-greaser’ad-campaign as well. With all this aggression, Pril is one of the fastest-growing brands today.”

Mr. Debashis Das shared all these with the extra warmth that an IMT Ghaziabad senior reserves especially for his juniors.

“So guys, learn all the rules well at IMT Ghaziabad; because only when you know the rules can you break them in the markets.Think different and walk that extra mile. Get a professional research agency to do your research. From there, get into concept mode - validate the research with the consumers; sit with the advertisement agency, tell them the brief. They conceptualise the creative element and come back to you. Adagencies will look at the execution part; you have to concentrate on the fact that your brand message comes out right. You role is much beyond the advertisements. If you don’t know the transportation - the financials of your brand - you’ll actually sell your product at a loss. Don’t lose the bigger picture. You are the marketing manager; you’ve got to hold it all together.”

Mr. Debashis Das concluded his speech to a thundering standing ovation. It was inspiring for the future managers of IMT Ghaziabad to learn from a Marketing expert who, 16 years ago, had been an IMT Ghaziabad student just like them!