-B Swaminathan
Rajasthan-based leading food product manufacturer Bikaji has gained maximum momentum, thanks to their widely-seen advertisements on various media formats. The company which is predominantly in the snacks segment had made use of the ‘Big B’ of the Indian film industry. Shevam Sood who heads the branding of the organization speaks exclusively to MediaNews4U on the campaign.
How it started:
“We were visibly present everywhere. However, any brand needs a bigger identity for a better push. Thus, we were discussing creating a brand identity. Thus we were keen on going a 360-degree approach with a massive campaign”, says Shevam who also says that to appeal to their customers, Amitabh was the first choice. Brand Bikaji, known for its quality and long-lasting product, wanted someone who could replicate the brand identity. “Thus we approached Amitabh and we started this campaign exactly before COVID-19 pandemic. We had an opportunity to brand ourselves when DD channel started retelecast of their successful shows”, he says.
Why Amitabh?
Asked about the acceptance of Amitabh among the young crowd, Shevam counter-questions, “Why an infant baby brand has him while the target audience are millennial parents?” According to him, Amitabh as an individual has the charisma to appeal to everyone. Shevam also says that Amitabh has a clean image and for a food brand like Bikaji, he is the best person to take it forward. Bikaji uses the Bollywood actor in their print, television, social media and other BTL campaigns. While the snacks leader had completed their campaigns few had gone on-air and few are likely to get released soon. “We had done our campaigns in various formats and for their product-specific [like bhujia, sev, rashagulla and various occasions [Raksha Bandhan]. Thus, we are likely to telecast the remaining campaigns soon”, Shevam says.
The brand appeal:
Shevam says that in any general campaign, the brand ambassador is shown sharing the product to everyone which might not be the case in their campaigns. By saying ‘Amit Ji Loves Bikaji’, it shows that the brand icon is very possessive about the product and is keen on what he has. “This creates an urge in the minds of the customer to make them feel that if Amitabh likes a product, I should also like that product”, Shevam avers.
Media Spend and patterns in Bikaji:
Bikaji as a brand believes traditional media still has value and their target audiences still access their brand through the traditional formats of media. “Of course, we cannot disagree the power mass media has. We will be increasing the spend on digital media, thanks to the measurement tools present in that”, Shevam said. So far the biggest spend of Bikaji is majorly on TV channels. Hindi TV channels get maximum share with the GEC segment plays the key role. “We prefer non-fiction shows as we want our brand in a place where the viewers’ mindset is fit to consume our advertisements. Similarly, they do release campaigns in the news channels”, he says.
Market challenges and expansion plans:
According to him, some of the market challenges are the way Indians are made to believe that Indian foods are unhealthy. “Not necessarily it needs to be unhealthy. Our snacks, if made in the right way, can be good for health. For instance, let us take Rashagulla. One can easily let the sweet content out of it and can consume it according to their sugar needs. Like that there are plenty of good things which we can tell. However, for every marketer in the food product, this might be one big challenge”, he concluded.
The key domestic market for Bikaji are Rajasthan, Bihar, and Assam, they have their international presence in the US, Canada, and Gulf. Bikaji Foods is a packaged foods FMCG company that sells popular snacks such as bhujia, namkeen, papad, among others, under the Bikaji brand name.
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