Pre Reading material for analyzing role of advertising and communication process in building the brand

Rasna Communication in building the brand

Rasna was first launched under the brand name Jaffe in 1976, then relaunched as Rasna in
1979, it failed to make any significant impact on the market. At that point of time soft drink
concentrate was a littleknown concept in India. To most people, soft drink meant aerated
drinks marketed in bottles and consumed mostly outdoors.Branded soft drinks consumed at
home were made from squashes and syrups. The non aerated soft drink market in India in the
early 1980s was estimated at Rs. 130 million. Kissan, Roohafza, and Dippys were the major
brands of squashes and syrups dominating the market. They accounted for about 74 percent
share of the non aerated drink market.
In 1983, the manufacturer Pioma Industries took over marketing and distribution from Voltas
and shifted the account to Mudra Communications (Ahmedabad) which was not considered a
topnotch agency at that time. Preliminary investigations by the agency suggested that
consumer awareness for the Rasna Brand name was conducted by the agency to judge the
awareness level and understand consumer perceptions about brand, ascertaining the areas of
dissatisfaction, if any. The agency also wanted to know consumer opinion on Rasna after trying
out the brand for a new days. Research threw up valuable information. It was found that
aerated soft drinks were perceived as costly and were not recommended for children. Squashes
and syrups were also costly and had limited range of flavours. Homemade sherbets, besides
being inconvenient to prepare, fell short of consumer expectation in taste and aesthetics. On
trying Rasna, there was near unanimity in favour of its taste and ease of preparation. The brand
was therefore positioned on the features of taste and convenience. It was also felt that the
brand had not been very successful in the past mainly because of ineffective advertising.
The strategy therefore focussed on reawakening consumer interest in the brand and
persuading them to try it at least once. Housewives in the age group of 20 plus and with
household monthly income of Rs. 750 and more were targeted for the ad campaign. Children
are usually the major influence in the purchase of eatables and beverages. The child route was
therefore taken to promote the brand. To avoid the product being perceived as expensive, a
decision was taken to highlight economy without mentioning price. This helped in building a
better image for the brand.
Press and cinema were identified as the principal media for advertising. In 1984, it was decided
to use television as the main medium for advertising because the television network in the
country was rapidly expanding after the Asian Games. Two 30second commercials a day on
Doordarshan turned out to be so effective that within one year, the consumer offtake shot up
from Rs. 14.4 million in 1983 to Rs. 31.8 million in 1984.
Pre Reading material for analyzing role of advertising and communication process in building the brand
By the mid 1980s Rasna became a household brand name in India. A research study conducted
at the end of the summer of 1984 revealed that the spontaneous recall rate for the Rasna
brand name amongst the target group was 80 per cent. Its share in the nonaerated drinks
market increases from 6 per cent in 1982 to 17 per cent in 1984. Between 1983 and 1987 Rasna
sponsored every relevant television programme such as Spiderman, Ek do teen char and
Contact Quiz to further strengthen the brand equity. By 1987, Rasna captured a 40 per cent
share of the total nonaerated soft drank market in the country.

Source: Universal Teacher Publications