Andar se solid. This is the new tagline for Jaypee Cement’s brand new campaign launched on April 14. To reinforce the point, India’s third largest cement player has roped in batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar to endorse its products.
Jaypee is the latest in a series of high-voltage brand promotion efforts by India’s leading cement companies. So, if you have M S Dhoni asking you to buy Lafarge products, Amitabh Bachhan is lending his name to the cement industry’s wannabe Big B -– Binani Cement.
So, why is the cement industry in desperate search of brand ambassadors? The answer: they are all tired of being perceived as regional commodity players and want to grab a pan-India mindspace. “Cement is no longer just a commodity. Prices have remained unaffected even during monsoons,” says Anil Singhvi, vice-chairman of Reliance Natural Resources, which wants to set up two cement plants with a capacity of 10 million tonnes each.
The domestic cement industry has nearly doubled its production capacity in the last 10 years to 212 million tonnes and newer players are becoming bigger with manufacturing units across the country. So, you have to scream to be heard in a crowded market that already has over 50 players.
That explains the association of Aditya Birla group company UltraTech with Rajasthan Royals and India Cements with Chennai Super Kings during the second edition of the Indian Premier League.
There is another important reason: individual home owners now account for almost half the number of cement consumers. “That’s an extremely brand conscious section, and we have to pamper the retail consumer,” says J DattaGupta, head - commercial services of ACC, which enjoys a market share of 12 per cent in the domestic space.
Earlier, ACC had different sub-brands like Super, Samrat and Suraksha. However, market research showed that consumers placed more trust on brand ACC. In 2006, the company switched from multiple product sub-brands to the mother brand. The commercials focusing on company executives talking to individual home owners is the cement maker's attempt to connect with its target consumers. The company will spend over Rs 50 crore on its brand promotion efforts this year.
Amid rising competition, many companies are also looking for a unique product positioning through strong brands and are creating separate marketing teams for their different categories of products.
For instance, Shree Cement, a dominant north-based player, has three brands — Shree Ultra Jung Rodhak, Bangur Cement and Rockstrong Cement. Harimohan Bangur, chairman & managing director of the company, says, "The market is tough and brand building is crucial. Each brand of ours has separate marketing teams and separate advertisement themes for product differentiation.” Shree enjoys a market share of 18 per cent in the northern market and gives tough competition to the big boys such as Ambuja, Grasim and ACC.
Shree Cement plans to increase its advertisement budget for the current year by as much as 25 per cent to Rs 25 crore. And Bangur says he won’t mind spending more if the situation so demands.
"Brand is a key value driver for Lafarge," says Ramakrishna Maganti, regional vice president - marketing (East & South West Asia), Lafarge. The company, a dominant player in the eastern market of India, has two sub-brands — Duraguard and Concreto — under the umbrella brand Lafarge.
Maganti attributes the premium that Lafarge products enjoy to its high decibel brand campaigns. “M S Dhoni is a brand ambassador for Concreto and the success of this association is reflected in our strong brand equity,” he says.
Vinod Juneja, managing director of Binani Cement, which has more than doubled its capacity to around 6 million tonnes, agrees. “Nothing sells without branding. Example: sales have zoomed ever since Mr Bachhan started endorsing our products,” Juneja says. The company’s advertisement & branding spend is around Rs 45-50 per tonne of cement. This will be increased by around 5 per cent in the coming years.
Some companies, however, have avoided the brand ambassador route. Take Ambuja Cements. The company spent over Rs 54 crore on brand promotion in the last financial year, but didn’t have any high-profile ambassador.
Ajay Kapur, head - commercial & marketing of Ambuja Cements, says brand ambassadors are more suitable for lifestyle and luxury products. “We prefer our customers to be our ambassadors,” he adds.
