You cannot build a brand by spending money

Today, we are in conversation with Musthafa PC, CEO and Co-founder, iD Fresh Food. A school dropout, who went on to do hisEngineering in Computer Science from NIT Calicut and MBA from IIM-Bangalore, heis the brain behind iD, one of India’s largest fresh-food brands. Musthafa hasbeen lauded with many prestigious awards, such as the Forbes Tycoons ofTomorrow, India Today Make in India Award, JCI National Award, VocationalExcellence Award and Entrepreneur India Award, IIMB Distinguished Alumni Awardand more. He is also part of the Prime Minister’s ‘Champions of Change’ teamwith a vision to build a new Indiaby 2022. He has been invited to share his success story at various esteemedplatforms, including the Harvard Business School,MIT-Sloan and United Nations. 

How did you successfully launch and grow abrand without spending much money?

I think these days youcannot build a brand by spending money. It's extremely important to focus onthree aspects – the product, experience for the consumer and well-craftedstorytelling. And that's where companies like iD have done a great job in creatinga brand without spending money.

What are some of the best ways to connect withand sell to the younger generation?

It is extremelyimportant for us to speak the NewGen language. Words they relate with, like‘Dude’ or ‘Cool’. They would understand the communication much better. But it'salso important for a person like me to understand and sell them the rightproduct. For example, I am selling idly batter and the NewGen may not like it or go forit. But if I bring in the goodness of idly and the importance of having a nutritiousbreakfast in the morning, they are more likely to respond. So, they understandthat language better than the talk about authenticity or tradition. Idly is the most nutritious food in the world -they would appreciate that. But ifour grandma says, “Make idly ,” or we say, “Our grandparents used to eat idly and therefore you should eat it too,” that's not something that will go downwell with them.

How have you takenadvantage of social media to build your brand?

Social media withplatforms like Whatsapp has really transformed the way communication ishappening today. NewGen consumers usually love to do something on their own andthen share it on social media. 

For example, when wewanted to launch our vada in the market, we had the option to take theactual vada to the consumers. We decided against that andinstead launched the vada batter. Everyone started making his or her own vadas .Maybe the first vada in their life and they shared it too, on socialmedia. These types of strategies really helped us to become the strong brandthat we are today. It is extremely important to give an experience to theend-consumers.

What do you need to win in themarketplace - better technology or better ideas? 

First is the product.The product should be a hero.

In these days of cut-throat competition, howdoes one consistently keep consumers interested in their brand? 

In my experience,today's luxury becomes tomorrow's basic need. It is extremely important for youto upgrade yourself, constantly. At iD for example, when we started ourpackaging, it was rated best in the market. But within 4 or 5 years it becameoutdated. So, it was important for me to have a fresh look for the packaging.And about four years ago we did that. And now, I feel the pressure to upgradeagain. So, it's extremely important for you to keep up. Whether it is in termsof your brand’s colours, logo, packaging, overall position in the market oreven the product to some extent, it's important to upgrade. For example, in thecase of idly, as we all know, idly is the mostnutritious food in the world, but then people have become even morehealth-conscious. So, we introduced ragi batter for the more health-conscious people. Itis important for us to give variety as well as an upgrade to the existingproduct. 

What does it take for brands to staycompetitive in today's dynamic economy and market?

Three steps - greatproduct, wonderful experience for the end-consumer and well-craftedstorytelling. These are the three aspects that will build a brand. 

What are the challenges in localisation for abrand?

We created the world'sbest idly batter from rice, dal and methi.  When welaunched our production in Hyderabad,we learned that the idly out there is a bit different, they add rava init. So, I had to create a differentiated product for that market. And ofcourse, I had to create a differentiated campaign for the market. Clearly, itis extremely important to think local as well. But then, I can't end upcreating 'n' number of products for the market. When you are dealing with food,for every four kilometres there's a different taste preference. For example, ifyou look at Bengaluru, idly in Malleswaram is different from the idly in Whitefield, versus idly in Indiranagar. I can't be creating multiplebatters for these markets. So, we create a base and sell that and a Malleswaramcustomer would keep the idly batter outside for eight hours before using it, whereasa Whitefield customer might keep the batter outside for just two hours. This customisation we leave to the end-consumers rather than creating multipleproducts for them. 

How does your brand approach theSouthern market when it comes to branding and consumer engagement?

We are mostly a Southern brand. We have justlaunched our operations in Delhi.It's too early for me to

comment about it. I'm not the right person todifferentiate these two. But what I've learned is, independent of

the state or the country, these three aspectsare extremely important – great product, memorable user

experience and a well-crafted story.

Musthafa says…

a)  One strategic change we plan to execute by 2020

I think, I would trustmy customers more.

b)  My top three marketing buzzwords

Digital, trust andviral

c)  Three words I believe define a hot brand

Cool, healthy and ethical

d)  A powerful ad campaign I liked

I loved the Google adcampaign, the one with the Partition concept. 

This article is partof a brand initiative by The Hindu BusinessLine to profile marketingprofessionals from across India.