Oil pulling & Consumer Need Recognition



Prof. Ravi was talking about the discussion they had at home about Oil pulling and its medicinal effects. The discussion had followed a commercial on TV by the Sesame Oil brand, Idhayam, which was advocating its practice.

What Idhayam's looking for is takers to this practice. Its a way of piloting increase in sales. What makes such a consumer pitch interesting is that they have identified novel ways to increase consumption of their brand of oil by finding new uses, ones other than the traditional cooking one.

One of the most difficult of propositions faced by the marketer is trying to evoke recognition of a need or a problem in the consumer. Idhayam's tried to do the same with Oil pulling. What could be dangerous for them is the fact that this need recognition may not necessarily result in a consumer response in favour of their brand. I mean, if Oil pulling's good for my cavities, why should I only buy Idhayam? Won't other oil brands do? The answer is, of course, Yes; other brands may do. But my gut tells me, because Idhayam's now identified with the practice, in all probability, the consumer'll stick to the brand and not go with others around.

Smart going.

Comments

Unknown said…
Creating the realization is a tough job as you said. Acceptance level in creating a novel use is tough too and could misfire. But as the ad says consumers would try out and see if it works. About the medicinal qualities I would be getting by using it.. guess I would be have to see. If Idhayam meets my expectations in the first use chances are I would stick to it. Other brands have to wait unless u pitch on something else, a different flavor, taste.. may be.

Popular Posts