IPL, Nano win BS derby by several lengths

A small car that redefined frugal engineering and a carnival that promises to evergreen the gentleman’s game have won Business Standard’s 13th annual Brand Derby. The Nano and Indian Premier League have been voted the biggest brand launches of 2008 by top marketers of the country.

The results of the Derby have been published in The Strategist, Business Standard’s weekly management and marketing section, today.

Eighty-seven per cent of the respondents — 90 senior marketing professionals from top metros — said IPL was very successful, the best rating amongst the 26 brands that were shown to them. The Nano came second, with 76 per cent calling it very successful. But when separately asked to rank the “very successful” brands, the Nano emerged on top with 27 per cent votes, followed by IPL (24 per cent).

The verdict is clear: Marketers have recognised the resounding commercial success of IPL (two sell-out editions, one in India and the other in South Africa) and the sheer achievement of Tata Motors in coming out with the Nano. The company handed over the first Nano in Mumbai late last week. The evaluation of its commercial success will take place over the next few quarters.

On the third spot is the Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire, the sedan that replaced the Esteem. It might be under-promoted, but the car with the big boot did better than heavily-advertised and -hyped rivals like Apple iPhone 3G and Viacom18’s Colors general entertainment channel.

The import of the Derby result is that companies need to create mega-brands like the Nano and IPL to make a mark in the future. The success of the two brands has raised the bar several notches higher. Mere excellent will not be enough in the next Derby.

Also, brands in product categories that consumers can touch and feel — automobiles, mobile communication devices etc — connect better with consumers and experts alike. Thus, there are five automobiles (the Nano, Swift Dzire, Hyundai’s i20, Tata Motors’ Sumo Grande and Maruti Suzuki’s A-star) and three mobile phones (Blackberry Storm, Nokia 5800 Xpressmusic and Apple iPhone 3G) on the Derby list.

Several fast-moving consumer products, too, have featured on the list: Mother Dairy’s Nutrifit fermented probiotic milk, Maggi Cuppa noodles, ITC’s Vivel soaps, Hindustan Unilever’s Aviaance Men’s Solutions, Garnier Fructis hairspray and Maggi Bhuna Masala cooking paste. The brand that came out the best was Nutrifit, a clear indication that any brand talking of health and wellness will do well.

Entertainment had a strong presence in the Derby with IPL, two films (Ghajini and Singh is Kinng), two direct-to-home television services (Big and Airtel) and one general entertainment channel (Colors). In the previous Derbies, too, this sector has done well for itself.

The study was carried out by Ipsos Indica Research in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad in June and July.