Introduction: Case synopsis
The shampoo market in India had grown exponentially due to customers placing a high degree of importance on their physical appearance. Herbal brands and synthetic brands are widely used, however coming from a tradition of using herbs, Indians tend to prefer the herbal brands more than the synthetic ones. Himalaya shampoo is among the herbal brands of shampoo that had to compete with established and successful conventional and ethnic brands such as the Nyle, Meera, Gamble, and Unilever India. The challenge for Himalaya was to formulate a positioning strategy so that it can be able to reach out to consumers who strongly prefer herbal shampoos. This would require a deep analysis of the consumer beliefs associated with the non herbal offerings and the herbal offerings. Essentially, Himalaya shampoo needed a differentiation strategy to strengthen its brand image among consumers. It needed to use insights from the responses provided by consumers
Analysis of the market
Shampoo is a fast moving product in India and it has been projected to continue growing over the next few years. The consumer market is growing with the increase in number of consumers with high disposable income. The Indian market is divided into three segments including herbal, anti dandruff, and cosmetics. Himalaya shampoo is among the known brands offering herbal products for complete hare care. However, the market is highly competitive due to the threat of competition, new entrants, and substitute products. In the herbal segment of the shampoo market alone, Himalaya faces stiff competition from companies such as Vatika and Meera. Other top brands in the market include Garnier Fructis, Head and shoulders, Pantene, Dove, Clinic plus, and Sunsilk. The Indian market is led by Unilever India. The other top brands control 44 percent of the market Procter and Gamble as a single entity controls 25 percent of the market share. There are also numerous other brands dealing in herbal shampoo products.
It is also easy for new entrants to penetrate the market. Penetration of the market in urban areas is at 100 percent while the rate in rural areas is 20 percent. These rates of market penetration are an indication that the new entrants pose a significant threat to the already established brands within the market.
The threat of substitute products is relatively high as there are non herbal products that consumers can select over the herbal products. Furthermore, there is a little bit of processing involved in the herbal products. Customers can opt to choose synthetic products over the herbal ones however there is more inclination towards herbal products than towards synthetic products. Consumer preference in India helps to reduce the threat of substitute products. The Himalaya Branded products contain words such as ‘protein, anti dandruff, and anti hair fall’ in them. These words provide an edge for the company’s products over other synthetic products. Most of the non herbal products are anti dandruff and cosmetics used for personal hair care. The herbal products are comprehensive and offer complete solution for hair care.
The promotion and innovation of product are a common strategy used by marketers to protect shares and sales. However, these strategies are sometime expensive to maintain. From the case, Himalaya shampoo utilized a strategy that focused mainly on a feature of their product, the herbal nature of their shampoos to market itself. This is common among many organizations, especially the ones dealing in business to business marketing. The mistake that is commonly made is to focus primarily on a feature of a product and neglect the corporate brand. It is a consumer belief in India to use herbal shampoos compared to the non herbal products. The belief was borrowed from the traditional practices where people relied on herbs for personal hygiene and personal care. The analysis of consumer insight on the company’s branded products was as important as the analysis of the company’s corporate reputation and trust among consumers.
Consumers in India are inclined more towards herbal shampoo than non herbal shampoos mainly because of the Ayurvedic system of healing. The system provides a wholesome approach into the diagnosis of diseases. It uses herbal remedies for the treatment of body ailments. Himalaya Shampoo would therefore use this information to improve their service innovation as a strategy for brand differentiation. This however would require the company to deeply understand its competitors in order to improve services delivery in a way different from its competitors. Service innovation implies going beyond the traditional focus on after sale support, availability, and price.
Himalaya Shampoo’s focus of differentiation was limited to availability of their products and the critical product features. The market is almost saturated with many players seeking for a share. Majority of the players are also using the idea of product feature to promote their products and differentiate their brands. Succeeding in such a situation requires innovation and adoption of new and effective strategies for differentiations. Service innovation transcends the differentiation strategies since the product itself is usually not enough to secure sales and to improve the performance of the company.
The Himalaya Drug company is involved in the distribution, marketing, and manufacturing of several products including personal care products, health care products, animal care products, baby care products, and pharmaceuticals. It has a global operation with presence in more than 90 countries worldwide. It positioning targeted the high end market and the mid market segments. In order to penetrate the Indian market, the company had to brand its products using the Ayuvedic concept which forms a support basis for personal and healthcare products. This was important to survive in this market. According to O’guinn (2008) branding differentiation best occurs when a service or a product performs well using an important and specific customer benefit. For instance, from the case of Himalaya Shampoo, the Indian consumers are characterized by an inclination towards herbal products based on the Ayuvedic system. The Ayuvedic system is the customer benefit because consumers value this belief as part of their traditions. Himalaya Shampoo brands its products differently in other markets. The Concept of Ayuvedic may not be practical in US market or the European market.
A company that intends to be a leader in a particular category of a customer benefit offers a brand image that enables consumers to think of it once they feel the need of that particular benefit. For instance, some companies are known for their low prices and whenever a consumer wishes to purchase a product at a low price, he or she will first think of the company’s brand. The concept of Ayuvedic as a customer benefit in India helps the company to position itself in the market. Therefore when customers think of herbal shampoos, they can easily recall the company’s brand.
However, the need to rethink and improve the branding strategy is based on the fact that Himalaya Shampoo is not the only company focusing on differentiation using the concept of Ayuvedic. Key competitors such as Unilever India and Procter and Gamble utilize similar strategies to strengthen their positioning. Branding strategies such as experience, service, and price can be utilized to strengthen its brand image in the market. The company and its rivals may use the concept of Ayuvedic however distinction can be created to enable customers to experience Himalaya’s products differently. Product packaging, slogans, and advertisements are among the various ways in which consumers experience a product. Some companies go a step further to associate a character with a product to give consumers a different experience from their rivals. A consumer tends to see a product and an iconic character as inseparable when the two are associated together.
Conclusion
The company, Himalaya Shampoo faced the challenge of competing against cosmetic competitive offerings and herbal offerings in the Indian market. The main focus was on how to further differentiate its imagery among consumers in order to remain competitive and improve its share of the market. The use of different strategies of differentiation was essential because it provided the company with the answers it sought to get. As a recent entrant in a widely competitive market, the company needed to rethink its positioning strategy based on the results of the market analysis. Critical strategies such as product packaging, slogans, and advertisements are important to connect with consumer a deeper level than what product feature offered.
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