The snake charmers and the elephants-on-the-road have given way to Aishwarya Rai and Ratan Tata, as Indian brand ambassadors world over. It’s no longer the Premier Padminis that rule the roost on Indian roads; SUVs and luxury vehicles have long replaced them. No longer is the Made-in-India tag looked down upon; Made-in-China has certainly taken that mindshare [pun intended]. It was the Toyota’s President who said “Indian made Toyotas are at par in quality with Japanese Toyotas, and are definitely better than their Chinese counterparts”. Certainly a proud feeling!
Hang on! It’s not just quality, India also boasts of something that has got the west queuing up - The Price Advantage. India’s oriental neighbor also boasts of the same price advantage, may be even to a higher degree. However, the pundits feel, price advantage sans quality can only lead to a short term success story [try and read between the lines]. They feel the Indian saga is here to stay. Even in times of this economic slowdown, small & medium Indian brands are busy creating a niche for themselves; thanks to the price advantage and quality they have to offer.
Malcom Gladwell in his book "The Tipping Point", defined the tipping point as a sociological term: "the moment of critical mass, the threshold, at which the momentum for change becomes unstoppable". Hong Kong experienced this in the late 80's, and today India finds itself at that very tipping point, beyond which awaits the exponential growth. Jaguar & Land Rover, Corus, Tetley Tea, Arcelor Steel are just a few examples of the ever ambitious India. Tata Nano has the world looking upto this technological breakthrough; Reliance's Jamnagar refinery boasts of being the world's largest refinery; Indian Telecom industry is adding more subscribers every year than is happening any where else in the world. Never in Indian history has the nation witnessed anything like this before.
Also, technocracy [corporate interests before public interest] which has got US to where it finds itself today, has always been out-stripped by humanism [public interest before corporate interest] in India. The corporate in India has a human face - even in times of such financial crisis, lay-offs are almost unheard of in Indian companies. In India, a private firm cannot run away with a publicly funded research and build a fortune for itself. The public-private partnership has seen Brand India shining more than ever before.
Jack Yan of Jack Yan & Associates aptly puts branding as “The way in which an organization communicates, differentiates, and symbolizes itself to all its audiences”. It seems the Incredible India campaign always had this definition in mind.
It had BBC put up 3 ads of 60 seconds each highlighting India’s 2000 year old science of Ayurveda (Ad: Ayurveda), India as destination for Medical Tourism (Ad: HEAL), and contemporary yet traditional destination for Meeting, Incentives, Conferences & Events (Ad: MICE). It differentiated itself from the rest of the tourist destinations as home to spirituality, peace and fulfillment. The campaign had the President of India back the cause; which in itself speaks volumes about the commitment. Today India is synonymous to cultural heritage, traditional values, tolerance, and probity. The campaign has proved instrumental in changing perceptions world-over. India is slowly and gradually starting to make a mark for itself on world tourism map.Before I end this post, some food for thought:
“Our grandfathers were born in a slave nation; our parents were born in a country that just got freedom and was labeled as an un-developed nation; our counterparts in the US of A are living in an un-developing nation; but, we are the chosen ones who live in a DEVELOPING nation - what is your contribution to Brand India?"
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