Since 2019, all the beverage companies have increased their marketing budget.
After such a big disaster in the past pandemic year 2019 -20, 2021 is going to be one of the biggest growth years for Parle Agro as it is influenced by high impact campaigns Frooti, Appy Fizz, and for B-Fizz at the same time. Its aim is to dominate the beverage category and is planning to spend Rs. 240 crore.
Nadia Chauhan, Joint Managing Director and CMO, Parle Agro tells us how the brand aims to beat the cola category with its strong marketing strategy. With the yellow alert by the Indian Meteorological Department about heatwave due to the hottest recorded day of the season, Parle Agro takes this opportunity to beat the heat by refreshing the citizens through their cool products
For Parle Agro that manufactures fruit juice like Frooti, Appy Fizz, and B-Fizz, points to be noted are that 40% of its overall annual sales come from the heat-driven summers. Last year, the beverage industry’s business plummeted due to the lockdown. Parle Agro decided to curtail its 360-degree media spends until October and started working on its comeback marketing strategy. Hence 2021, looks promising for the company.
Expecting higher summer 2021, Nadia Chauhan, Joint Managing Director, and CMO, Parle Agro said, “The summer months alone from March to May account for approximately 40% of our overall annual sales. We have witnessed a higher consumption of mango drinks over the Fizz category in summers because Mango is a seasonal fruit hence, a higher intake over the Fizz category which is evenly balanced out year-round.”
Parle Agro launched an innovative product ‘B-Fizz’ and expanded its market share strategically. It is now aiming to grow by 50% over 2019.
“Looking at the past year, the lockdown had an immense impact on the beverage and FMCG segment as a whole. This helped us gain an 8% market share within the category. We avoided a 360-degree brand campaign during the summer months of 2020 as it would not serve the desired purpose due to mobility restrictions. Subsequently, we invested in a strategic marketing strategy in September 2020 when we launched B-Fizz. This year, for 2021, with increased mobility and rise in temperatures during summer months, we are expecting a boom in consumption and are targeting a 50% growth in 2021 over 2019 across all brands,” said Chauhan.
“We have witnessed a consistent increase in consumers moving away from synthetic beverages and more towards fruit-based beverages. Along with that, we also see a demand in products under the good-for-you category”.
Parle Agro has launched its summer campaign starring brand ambassadors Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Jr. NTR for B-Fizz. With marketing investments of Rs. 120 crores for the Fizz portfolio this summer, Parle Agro plans on generating tremendous buzz with a multimedia campaign. The TVC will be aired across national and regional channels
As a new summer campaign for Frooti starring Alia Bhatt, Allu Arjun, and Varun Dhawan aims to accelerate growth and strengthen brand equity.
Chauhan shared, “Our overall marketing spends for 2019 amounted to Rs. 220 crore while our summer spends for 2021 is Rs. 240 crores”, and pertaining to the media she added that, “we have an aggressive multimedia campaign charted out for 2021 with the objective of boosting consumption patterns, gaining substantial market share and driving significant growth for Parle Agro in the beverage industry. Our plan includes using strategic mediums and touchpoints to ensure impactful reach and visibility for our brands through the right audience that includes Television, Digital, and OOH mediums.”
“Frooti is the official on-air sponsor for the big event of the summer season – IPL, beverage partner for IPL on Disney+ Hotstar. “IPL has been a game-changer for Frooti and our FIZZ range. We started advertising with IPL for Frooti in the summer of 2014 since most of the investment for the brand happens in this season has helped propel visibility for Frooti during this period, ever since we started advertising with the property. The year 2021 is a big year for Parle Agro. To further drive high SOV for our brands during the high consumption summer season, we have associated with IPL. Frooti shall be the on-air sponsor on TV on Star Sports Network. While in the digital space, B-Fizz will be the associate sponsor for IPL on Disney HotStar. If we go by numbers, just these two platforms will drive a reach of over 500 million people,” cited Chauhan.
Having collective spending of Rs. 240 crores for Frooti as well as FIZZ portfolio campaigns, Parle Agro is set to dominate the drink market this summer. It has the lion’s share of fruit plus fizz category and Frooti, too, ranks among the top two mango drinks in India.
Explaining on the company’s expansion strategy and current market share, Chauhan said, “For Frooti we have 28% market share in the mango drink category. In the apple-based drink category, Appy holds the largest share with 61% and in the sparkling fruit drink category, our FIZZ portfolio i.e. Appy Fizz and B-Fizz combined, holds the highest market share of over 90%. We are looking to grow market share and aim new consumers by increasing our reach and market penetration. We are already witnessing a massive boom in consumption this season after a slow 2020. Frooti is part of every household, for every social occasion, these indications instill confidence that the product will become a dominant player soon. And with our aggressive plans for Frooti and FIZZ portfolio this year, we aim to further boost consumption and drive significant growth for Parle Agro in the beverage industry.”