Brands can handle a situation in two ways, including a pandemic such as Covid-19 – either reduce ad spends or increase. Interestingly, Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd, the manufacturer of dairy products under the brand Amul claims to have doubled its marketing spends in March. “We diverted our advertising budgets from general entertainment channels (GEC) to news channels owing to the increased consumption of these channels during the outbreak,” R S Sodhi, managing director, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (GCMMF) said.
Moreover, the brand has re-released retro advertisements on Doordarshan every Sunday alongside the popular reruns of Ramayana and Mahabharat on the channel. “On popular demand, we are pleased to share with you the classic Amul advertisements in the epic shows Ramayana and Mahabharat,” the brand wrote on its Twitter handle. According to Sodhi, the decision to telecast old advertisements from ’60s onwards on DD National as well on the digital platforms was considered due to an increase in demand from consumers as well as growing conversations around the brand on social media platforms. “The retro ads have helped in creating a connect with consumers as well as establish brand recall amongst different age segments simultaneously since family viewing has become the new norm,” Sodhi told BrandWagon Online. For the brand, these advertisements helped garner a massive appreciation as conversations around these advertisements started trending on Twitter.
Interestingly, GCMMF, which spent just one percent of its overall revenue on marketing prior to the lockdown, doubled its spends in March on the back of increasing viewership and changing consumer sentiments. According to BARC, the re-telecast of Mahabharat and Ramayana resulted in nearly 40,000% jump in viewership in the evening and morning bands in the week ending April 3. The two epics garnered maximum eyeballs making Doordarshan the most-watched channel in India. “Consumers are not living in the present. Past and future escapes are how the consumers are dealing with the lockdown,” a study conducted by Tonic Worldwide stated.
GCMMF, which posted a 17% growth in its revenue at Rs 38,550 crore in 2019-20, expects its turnover to grow 15% this fiscal year. According to Sodhi, the rise in household consumption of dairy and related products will compensate for any temporary loss of sales caused due to the closure of hotels, restaurants and cafeterias during the lockdown period.
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