Brand Update : Thums Up wants you to live the thunder
This summer , the iconic brand in the Indian soft drinks industry has
made a significant change in its positioning. Thums Up, rightly said as
India's most resilient brand, is now running a campaign which marks a
significant change in its positioning.
Over the last few years, Thums Up has been promoted on the theme where
the protagonist ( celebrity) would do anything for his Thums Up. In all
the campaigns, the protagonist would do unbelievable stunts to get hold
of this Thums Up. The brand lived up to its reputation of being a Macho
drink was further reinforced by its powerful tagline " Taste the
Thunder".
This summer, the brand owners decided to change the winning formula. The
entire brand's communication platform has been changed. The protagonist
now does not chase Thums Up. But rather, he gets so excited after
having Thums Up that he begins to do the stunts. The brand although
retains the tagline " Taste The Thunder" now has another slogan " Aaj
Kuch Toofany Kartey Hain ".
It also seems that the brand has dropped Akshay Kumar as the brand
ambassador. The new ad features the Telugu super star - Mahesh Babu for
the all India campaign.
What is significant in the latest campaign is that the brand's
definition of context has changed. The protagonist now possess Thums Up
and now he is seeking excitement outside the brand . In my opinion, now
the brand is no longer the major focus or the goal in the plot. The
ultimate goal of the celebrity is now something other than the brand (
like shortcut /time saving etc) . This is a very significant change in
the brand's communication strategy and not a good idea. While the
earlier theme of chasing a Thums Up was unique, the idea of doing stunts
after consuming a soft-drink is an old idea. For example , Mountain
Dew's campaign of Daar Ke Aage Jeet Hain has the similar concept. I
don't understand why a brand like Thums Up chose to ditch its unique
communication platform and adapt a also-ran communication theme. Who got
bored with the old positioning ?
The only solace is that the brand still carries the iconic tagline " Taste the Thunder "
Amit Pratap Singh
PGDM 2nd sem
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