Campaign: Gaon gaon mein hero

Client: Colgate Dental Crème

Agency: Group M

Background: Colgate was the first toothpaste in a collapsible tube, introduced in 1896, when it had previously been sold in glass jars since 1873. Present in India since the 1930s, Colgate is almost synonymous with toothpaste in the Indian market. It is accepted well both in the rural and urban areas. When a brand rules the market for more than 100 years, it surely knows the need to evolve and update itself in order to deliver to the target audience. After extensive research, Colgate found that the rural market vouched more for smaller packs as spending an amount of approximately Rs 50 on a commodity like toothpaste did not sound attractive to them. Most of the competitors had already entered the Rs. 10 category which was a growing category in rural markets and small towns.

The Challenge: Colgate was the last entrant in the Rs. 10 category; therefore, the challenge was to create top of the mind recall and push Colgate Dental Crème as the product of choice. Another challenge was to make the consumers understand what the ‘Rs. 10’ new commercial was about so as to achieve the desired results. It was important that consumers not only watched the TVC but also understood it.

The Strategy & Execution: Kaun Banega Crorepati is probably the most popular game format with the urban and the rural audience. The format played the winning card for Colgate Dental Crème. Consumers in the target rural areas were asked to watch the ‘Rs.10’ commercial on the basis of which 3 questions were thrown at them and each winner was gratified instantly. Close to 400 customized temporary hoardings were put up in villages creating “Goan Goan main Hero” (Local Brand Ambassador).

The Result: The campaign sold about 1.3 million Rs.10 SKUs. About 946 villages across 7 States experienced 1.4 million footfalls during the campaign. And, 10000+outlets were seeded with Stock and Colgate Dental Crème 10 POP. All this led to an increase in the market share and the result was high awareness about the Colgate Dental Crème 10 POP. The objective was achieved and Colgate gained popularity in the Rs 10 category.

By Gunjan Verma