Strategies for Brand India

President Barack Obama bows in the East Room of the White House in Washington on
Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009, after lighting an oil lamp in observation of Diwali.

BUSINESS SCHOOL AFFAIRE Brand India –Strategies & Perspectives

Details
Team Members Sandeep Aggarawal, Vedant Bagri, Anandita Bakshi

We School (Welingkar Institute of Management
Institute Name
Development & Research)

Lakhamshi Napoo Road, Near Matunga (Central Rly.),
Mumbai- 400 019.
Institute Address
Tel.: 91-22-24178300
Fax: 91-22-24105585

Email vedantbagri@gmail.com

Phone +91-9960560935

Contest BUSINESS SCHOOL AFFAIRE 2010

Theme “Brand India –Strategies & Perspectives”

Maximum Words 2500

WELINGKAR INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT & RESEARCH
2


Table of Contents

 Introduction to Brand India

 Brand India Assets

 Branding Strategy

 Insights & Conclusion

 Bibliography

3


1. Introduction

In spite of the phenomenal strides India has made in the last 63 years it is still viewed as a
land of snake charmers, elephants and rope tricks. Branding or re- Branding India is the
only way out!

India as a Brand

Brand India Image:
Image is considered as how one perceives a brand, having
successfully launched numerous campaigns for branding
INDIA, right from Incredible India to India poised there is
still lot needed to be done.
As a branding strategy it is of utmost importance that Brand
identity and Brand image must coincide as much as possible.

Brand Identity:
Identity is what we want to create for our Brand India. There
are both positive and negative perception exists in the minds
of people both outside and within India.

4


2. Brand India Assets

MOOD BOARD OF BRAND INDIA

5


Indian Assets:

Culture:

“AtitihiDevoBhava”: We believe in treating guests as god and so we serve them and take
care of them as if they are a part and parcel of our family itself.

“Aadar”: Respect all is another lesson that is taught to every Indian. Also whenever any
elder is present we always believe in seeking their blessings before going ahead with our
work.

“Saahita”: We believe joy and happiness when distributed amongst people tends to have
a multiplied effect and we also share our sadness and pain with near and dear ones. We
believe in lending out a helping hand to people and believe in the spirit of togetherness.

6


Spirituality and Divinity:

India since ages has been a very religious land. Even though the mediums of worship
differ to a great extent what binds all of Indians together is the faith in God. Chanting
shlokas and mantras i.e. chants that can evoke positive energy in life are a commonplace
here. The rich culture of yoga as a part of life and the goodness of ayurveda has now got
an universal lifestyle approach. Our roots are strong and despite the westernization and
access to technology. We still celebrate festivals like Diwali or Eid with complete rituals
so the Indianness is intact. Indians are extremely secular and especially in the metros you
will find people belonging to different castes coexisting peacefully and happily.

Indian People and Religion:

The language, dance, religions, music, various customs and architecture form the rich
culture of India. Religious culture of India is one of the most diverse in the whole world.
It has been the birthplace of various religions of the world, which include Hinduism,
Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism. Some other important religions like Christianity,
Muslims, Jews, Parsis are also representative of the religious culture of India.

India is a land of various languages. Every state of India is representative of the
respective language culture. One of the oldest languages of India is Sanskrit, which dates
back to 1500 BC.

Industry:

The major economic sectors in India are the Agricultural Sector, Manufacturing Sector,
Financial Sector, Services Sector, Industrial sector and infrastructure. Agricultural sector
is the mainstream of the Indian Economy and it accounts for about 20% of our GDP.
While the Financial Sector is doing a great job of supporting the Indian Economy in all
spheres, the manufacturing sector is taking the Indian Economy to new heights.

7


Agriculture

India is seen as a land of agriculture though we also want to convey that through
scientific innovation we have revamped the entire agriculture landscape, revolutions like
green & yellow revolution to the current genetically modified seeds.

 India ranked 10th when it comes to arable land of about 330 million hectares
 India is the largest producer of coconuts, mangoes, bananas, milk and dairy
products, cashew nuts, pulses, ginger, turmeric and black pepper.
 World’s second largest producer of rice, wheat, sugar, cotton, fruits and
vegetables

Manufacturing

India is poised to become one of the largest
manufacturing hub. The Industrial Production (IIP) index
quick estimates data for April 2010 shows a growth of
19.4 per cent in the manufacturing sector as compared to
April 2009. The cumulative growth during April-March
2009-10 over the corresponding period of 2008-09 is 10.9
per cent, according to the Ministry of Statistics and
Programme Implementation.

 India is ranked 9th in Industrial production by
UNIDO.
 India’s Exports from SEZ grew by 122% to
US$49.5 billion as per ministry of commerce.
 India is the only country after Japan which has the
largest number of companies that have been
recognized for the excellence in quality by Japan
Institute of Plant Maintenance (JIPM) committee.

8


Services

India is hardly pausing for a breath when it comes to services; India is now proudly the
capital of IT.

Services sector (financial and non-financial) attracted foreign direct investments (FDI)
worth US$ 4.4 billion between April and March 2009-10 while the cumulative FDI
between April 2000 and March 2010 has been US$ 23.6 billion, which accounts for 21
per cent of the total FDI inflow.
 India is now the world IT capital.
 Fastest growing telecom market with over 630 million subscribers and growing at
a rate of 26% year after year.

Infrastructure

Post liberalization India is one of fastest growing economies, a mature government at
center with a clear focus on development.

 Outlaying 173552 INR in the union budget of
2010 for infrastructure development.
 Vision of increasing capacity of major and
non-major ports in the country to 1.5 billion
tones by 2012.
 India stands 9th largest civil aviation market
in the world and poised to be the 5th largest in
next five years as per The Union Minister of
State for Civil Aviation, Mr. Praful Patel.
 Railways reported an increase of 9.69 per
cent in its total earnings at US$ 1.62 billion.
 Approval for converting 10,000 km of state
roads to national highways has been given by
the Empowered Group of Ministers (Ego).
estimated expenditure on the project is
around US$ 3.3 billion.

9


Space Technology
 Successfully developed satellite launch vehicles like PSLV series.
 Developed cryogenic engine for rocket propulsion, putting India in the elite club
of only five nations having the technology.
 Most coveted mission chadrayan- The unmanned lunar exploration program.

Fire Power
 World’s 3rd largest standing military
 Nuclear triad capability
 Development of missile shield
 Successful homegrown missile technology of all categories surface to air, air to
air, water to surface, underwater. Nag, Prithvi, Agni, Brahmos to name few
 India in the elite club of nations having Nuclear capable submarines

10


3. Branding Strategy

Prior to designing the brand strategy India must choose the markets and the segments in
which to compete. The branding strategy is about marketing to promote India’s image,
products, and attractiveness for tourism and foreign direct investment.

To establish India as a global brand, the communication needs to
go out first to each and every Indian. Campaigns like Bharat
Nirman, India Shinning, India Poised are examples in this
endeavor.

It also have to include a series of
coordinated marketing initiatives like
Incredible India that will use
conventional methods like advertising
and must be an integrated marketing
and communications campaign. It is a
long-term, cumulative effort and relies
on the competitive advantage of India.
The primary channel for these tools is
advertising in the press, airline and
travel magazines, television, etc. It is
necessary to integrate and coordinate
these communication channels to
deliver a simple, coherent and
compelling message on the country.

11


Country branding efforts should be an engaging partnership between the
government and the private sector. To build positive economic perceptions of
India globally as a primary objective India Brand Equity Foundation
(IBEF), a public-private partnership between the Ministry of Commerce and
Industry, Government of India, and the Confederation of Indian Industry was
formed.

Brands are perceived differently indifferent countries and region adapt its
strategy for different target markets. Visual images, symbols or a logo
helps in building brand awareness.

On domestic front we have to maintain
consistency by coordinating and
integrating city and state brands within
our larger goal of branding India.
Strong partnerships between the
representatives of state and ministries
will drive alignment and coherence in
brand communication efforts.

“Kerala Tourism” bagged several
international, national & state awards
which made a super brand in tourism
and hospitality.

“Incredible India” is an example of umbrella
logo used to leverage everything together in the
eyes of the country and the world.

12


The four dimensions of country branding will underpin the umbrella concept while
ensuring a consistency in overall Brand communication.

Tourism Branding
Tourism branding should be based on segmentation which can be made based on regions,
consumer needs, attractions, areas, seasons etc. Different aspects of Indian culture and
history like yoga, spirituality were showcased via this campaign. Also the fact that in
spite of attracting only a fraction of number of tourists that China managed to lure India
was able to earn around half of what China could thus indicating the importance of
targeting and segmenting.

India is projected to become the fifth fastest
growing business travel destination from 2010-
2019. Hence services like hospitality and
infrastructure should design their products and
services to meet the needs of this high end
clientele.

13


Medical tourism will generate revenues worth US$ 2.4 billion by 2012. Thus specific
campaigns needed to develop creating awareness of the highly affordable advanced
medical services available and also alternate therapies such as Ayurveda which India
specializes in can be promoted through several campaigns.

Tourism also offers a unique opportunity to turn tourists into loyal customers for India’s
export products and services.

World Recognition
Branding exercise is also to ensure that India will now be viewed in world map in a
manner which it truly stands for and break the myths and perceptions that work against it
currently. In order to gain international influence and respect which India aspires for, it
can leverage its unique classical art to sports to now-so-popular Bollywood to the super-
normal economic growth, the cultural heritage to the world. Signing treaties with
countries will help in leveraging other countries brands to improve India’s global
standing.

Export Promotion
There is humongous opportunity to improve the export image of India .For achieving this
greater role must be played by government and trade associations to coordinate and
promote India’s export products. This is especially important because country of origin
operates in the minds of consumers like a brand name and is a key influencer in changing
a purchasing decision.
India must audit every product to ensure it delivers the promised level of performance. It
can project itself as value shopping destination. To increase awareness trade fairs should
be organized by its network of trade offices overseas on regular basis.

14


Investment Promotion Activities

In 1991, India liberalized its highly regulated FDI regime which resulted in increased
inflows of FDI during the decade of the 1990s. Despite this the volume of FDI is
relatively low compared to other developing countries.

Macroeconomic stability, stable exchange rates, political stability, transparent policy and
a overall stable economic environment are some of the key factors that India has been
able to boast off in past few years. Branding promotions must harp upon these factors and
bring forth India in spotlight it truly deserves!

Social Media and Web
The importance of a one-stop country website is paramount because it gives the reflection
of the country’s commitment to customer service in that internet users only have to visit
one website to obtain all the information they need.

With hundreds of countries competing for attention in consumers’
minds, a one-stop website becomes an essential tool of India’s
branding effort. Website should have an attractive design, ease of
use and user-friendly interface. India should leverage the power of
social media and its large audience to promote its brand.

15


4. Insights and Conclusion

The entire Branding strategy must be well rooted and we must present what we truly are
and not what we aspire to be. A brand audit must be conducted ensuring every piece of
communication going via the campaign is authentic and has a basis.

Successful country branding does not stop with the launching of a successful campaign.
You have to sustain the campaign by monitoring it, checking the Brand equity and then
going for relevant brand extensions as time progresses.

Do not hover around just one asset in fact use multiple hook points in creating Brand
India as a synergic attitude will strengthen the brand.

Nation and departmental brandings have a wide range of stakeholders who use numerous
channels to reach diverse audience. It’s thus difficult to encapsulate a multifaceted entity
into a distilled brand.

Every one of the billion plus citizens is a stakeholder in Brand India so there should be a
strong Brand awareness within citizens before launching the campaign globally.

While launching a new brand into the market is a daunting task, what is further more
daunting is repositioning India as a brand since here we have to change the already
established perceptions in the minds of consumers and make way for fresh new
perspectives.

Consistency is a key aspect of successful branding. We need to ensure that the
communication used in every branding dimension fits seamlessly into the overriding
umbrella concept.

16


While the current scenario of India looks encouraging, we must not rest on the laurels of
limited number of people and companies. Steps must be taken to grab and consolidate on
the opportunities that might present themselves in the near future. We should not forget
that despite the fact that India is attracting foreign investment and scenario is bright, India
still has a huge backlog of economic and social challenges that needs to be addressed.

Brand India with all the opportunities and growing sectors fused with fresh blood seems
to be the next Big thing. All it requires is a 360 degrees Branding effort to revamp it
while keeping its core Indianness safe and intact and make a mark in the Global arena
forever!

17


5. Bibliography

India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF)
Business Week
Business Standard

Websites
http://www.bharatnirman.gov.in/
http://www.incredibleindia.org/index.html
http://www.keralatourism.org/
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/

18

Strategies for Brand India

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

Similar to Strategies for Brand India

Similar to Strategies for Brand India (20)

More from WeSchool

More from WeSchool (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

Strategies for Brand India