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<ul><li>There is a growing sense of empathy seen across the board after the pandemic. </li><li><keyword id="3056481" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nidhi-Sinha">Nidhi Sinha</keyword>, Head of Content, <keyword id="11533368" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="mintel-reports-india">Mintel Reports India</keyword> writes why it is important for brands to take the empathy route in their communication to connect with their consumers better during a pandemic. </li></ul>The onset of the pandemic has brought about a paradigm shift in consumer behaviour. From consumption of nutritious food to fitness routines and saving funds for emergencies – Indian consumers’ lifestyle has changed. One of the key sentiments that have emerged due to the pandemic is the fact that people are more and more concerned about their environment, their community and how they can help those around them. This growing sense of empathy is seen across the board – right from leaning towards local products to support local artisans, preferring organic food and supporting local farmers, to opting for sustainable products to help the environment. This highlights the desire among consumers to contribute to society, and in turn presents an opportunity for brands to capitalise on this sentiment through adequately focusing on the ‘empathy value’. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Care for community and environment" text="Care for community and environment">Care for community and environment</cmsannotation> The last few years have witnessed a spike in products that focus on claims related to human values and ethics such as education, gender equality, care for the environment and support for farmers. Brands have been looking to incorporate ethics through claims like ‘Fair Price’, ‘Support for local farmers’ and ‘Empowerment of women’ across product ranges. In fact, the pandemic has accelerated consumers’ concerns towards community as a whole. <keyword id="172902" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mintel">Mintel</keyword>’s latest research highlights that since the COVID-19 outbreak, 59% of consumers are giving higher priority towards the environment and 41% towards local community. Brands like Cadbury have been quick to respond with its ‘Thank you’ campaign on its packaging to show gratitude towards frontline COVID-19 warriors and the campaign by ID Fresh highlights how a student is worried about his teacher are examples of brands understanding the need to showcase a softer side in their narratives. Association with such emotions can help brand to connect with consumers and make them feel that they are part of a movement towards the betterment of society. With the worsening impact of the pandemic on consumers and their livelihoods, brands that offer assistance or showcase empathy towards those impacted resonates with consumers. In turn, consumers are happy to support and endorse these brands as they feel good about contributing towards the welfare of the society, thereby, offering them emotional solace. As per Mintel research, 9 out of 10 consumers have said that the pandemic has encouraged them to focus on their emotional health. The penetration of technology and social media have made it easier for brands to bring stories about the the efforts taken by brands in helping communities to the forefront. Brands like Khadi and Vahdam Teas explicitly talk about sustainable farming and how they contribute to the growth and development of their farmer community through the products sold. This cater to the emotional need of consumers as they feel their support to the brand is helping these communities. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="What it means" text="What it means">What it means</cmsannotation> Consumers are looking for ways to help community, environment and humanity at large. With COVID-19 driving a greater shift towards empathy and kinship, people will become more receptive to the needs of their community. Wider penetration and adoption of digital and social media platforms will help brands to reach out to a wider audience, thereby enabling them to make more of a difference than ever before. Today, consumers are not only are they looking at the back-of-packs to understand the ingredients but are concerned about the source of ingredients, the people involved and the impact on environment. They are basing their decision on all these factors as they assign a high score to the moral value of brands. Brands which are able to talk about their care for environment, their commitment towards people involved as well as how their stance on social issues will stand out from the crowd.

How can brands take the empathy route to reach consumers?

<ul><li>Covid-19 has changed the way we buy, it has changed the reasons we buy certain products and brands too. There is an increasing focus on brands that are sourcing locally, helping the community and are transparent about everything that goes into making them.</li><li>Also, brands that are trying to help the environment, are sustainable are finding more and more takers, according to a recent study by <keyword id="172902" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mintel">Mintel</keyword>.</li><li>We look at this trend of an increased focus on <keyword id="9220437" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="localism">localism</keyword> and talk to a few brands that are gaining from it.</li></ul>Covid-19 has brought about a huge change in how and what we consume. Over the past one and a half years, people have become more and more conscious about where their products come from, the kind of ingredients that are being used, how closely brands are working with local communities and help benefit them and how serious they are about helping the environment. According to findings of Mintel’s recent ‘Attitudes towards Localism –Indian Consumer – 2021’ reports, consumers have been showing heightened interest in local products due to COVID-19. And no, it is not just Gen Z’s who are giving this trend a push. The pandemic led consumers across all age groups to lean towards traditions in foods, beauty regimes or health and wellness. The study, which took into account opinions of 3000 people across the country states that 39% of people aged 35-44+ expect brands to offer traditional ingredients in packaged formats. The pandemic has heightened concerns around product quality, and 48% of men aged 35+ look for products which offer transparency about use of local ingredients. The study also reveals that there is an increasing affinity for brands that give back to the society and are trying to support communities as 46% of 35-44 year old women are keen on products that support social causes. Moreover, around 45% of Indians switched to buying locally-grown produce since the pandemic, a trend highest among women aged 35-44 (58%). This same group of women also led the switch to buying more organic products. The report suggests that this is an opportunity for local brands to talk about their sustainability efforts by calling out how they source their products and how this impacts the environment. Speaking about some of the key factors that have led to people leaning towards localism, <keyword id="3056481" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nidhi-Sinha">Nidhi Sinha</keyword>, Head of Content, Mintel Indian Consumer said, “The pandemic paved the way for local products to come to the fore. With challenges in the supply chain coupled with the need for familiarity, consumers increasingly took to local products. With the health halo at its pinnacle, people were inherently looking to increase their immunity, improve their health and also deal with mental health issues. The answer to these was in the usage of traditional, ayurvedic ingredients like giloy, ashwagandha and so on. “Another sentiment which led to consumers leaning to the localism pillar is the fact that these products help local communities. As people struggled to meet ends due to the imposed lockdown restrictions, consumption of local produce helped consumers to pass on benefits to local artisans, farmers and communities. 34% of consumers prefer products that support local communities. Technology enabled small time local setups to reach consumers. Usage of apps like WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook helped connect consumers to producers thus making concepts like farm-to-fork easy to take to.” The need for comfort and familiarity has been one of the biggest factors in this trend. “With 37% of consumers looking for products that are aligned to local culture, consumers have been seeking familiarity and comfort especially in these tough times. The launch of products like thandai from paper boat and ubtan from Mama Earth are proof of how consumers look for familiarity in line with a global consumer trend of Culturally Connected,” shared Sinha. While Indians have been increasingly focusing on health for the past few years, the pandemic just gave this trend the right push. “Around 43% of consumers today expect products to have ingredients which provide added benefits. Also, the affinity towards online shopping as well as better last-mile-delivery means that traditional setups can reach consumers, thus, making local products easy to use,” added Sinha. <keyword id="9450009" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="wow-skin-science">WOW Skin Science</keyword> is a brand that has witnessed good growth in the past few years. A lot of its growth has come on the back of its usage of natural ingredients in its products. It has also been actively working on making its products and packaging more eco-friendly. On whether its focus on local ingredients has helped it attract consumers, <keyword id="4759349" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="manish-chowdhary">Manish Chowdhary</keyword>, Co founder, WOW Skin Science said, “There has been a greater preference for natural plant-based local products in recent times. Using high-quality local ingredients has been one of the factors responsible for our growth. Our product formulations are nature-inspired, science-backed and safety-tested, sourcing the best ingredients to create effective products that are also affordable. We’re completely transparent about the ingredients that go into our products and we stay true to our claim of being paraben, sulphate and silicone-free.” Just 7-years-old, this year, the brand aims to achieve revenues of around Rs 800 crore. Even when it comes to brands selling home décor, people are leaning towards brands that are intrinsically Indian, in terms of its designs and offerings. “We not only engage in sourcing our materials locally but also are actively collaborating with local artisans to introduce traditional arts and craft forms into the mainstream market. This includes products in our home décor and accessories range along with the addition of beautiful face masks made of Maheshwari fabric. As a brand that respects the value of tradition and heritage, we felt that this pivoting was a necessary step to keep our traditional crafts alive during the COVID-19 crisis. This range garnered quite a lot of attention, in fact, we sold out the range within a week of its launch and have placed repeat orders with these artisans for the products,” said <keyword id="3212292" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Krsnaa-Mehta">Krsnaa Mehta</keyword>, Founder &amp; Executive Director at <keyword id="3212293" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="India-Circus">India Circus</keyword>. The brand has witnessed over 2x growth over last year with products in decor and dining categories leading the chart. For <keyword id="9095287" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="slay-coffee">SLAY Coffee</keyword>, that sources its beans from the mountains of Chikmagalur, growth was consistent through the pandemic. “In the context of the pandemic, consumers are increasingly preferring brands that they can trust where the experience is consistent, predictable, and of course safe. While there has been an increase in the number of ‘Made in India’ labels, Indian customers are witnessing a more subtle and a good change. Likewise, we are giving our customers products that are not just made in India but that are made for India. The pandemic outbreak has left a significant impact on the export and import industry. Amidst the labels like ‘Made in India’, we've been seeing a lot of domestic commodities and local manufacturers come into the light and such initiatives are producing profitable results and this is also good for boosting the Indian economy,” shared <keyword id="2754555" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chaitanya-Chitta">Chaitanya Chitta</keyword>, CEO &amp; Co-founder, SLAY COFFEE. Whether this trend is here to stay, only time will tell. But for now, it is refreshing to see more and more brands listen to their consumers and offer them exactly what they have been wishing for.

Indian consumers are increasingly buying local products, brands that help benefit local communities and economies and focus on environmental issues after Covid-19

<ul><li><keyword id="31174" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="brands">Brands</keyword> have seen early signs of recovery during <keyword id="126295" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Akshaya-Tritiya">Akshaya Tritiya</keyword> and <keyword id="6385850" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Raksha-Bandhan">Raksha Bandhan</keyword> and their businesses are approaching normalcy. </li><li>After surviving the storm during the lockdown, brands have a lot of hope resting on the festive season to bring in cheer and profitability in their businesses. </li><li>With Ganesh Chaturthi around the corner, we decided to speak to a few brands across categories on how they are preparing for the festive season and what kind of expectations they have pinned on the latter half of the year for recovery. </li></ul>Brands are pinning a lot of hopes on the festive season this year to help them bounce back. They have started working on their advertising campaigns in full swing to win back consumer trust and help shape the <keyword id="29547" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Market">market</keyword> sentiment. The festive season, which begins in August and continues till January, often results in a disproportionate increase in demand of goods and services, marking an important period for most consumer brands. However, the pandemic this year has made consumers frugal and the current market unrest has taken a sharp toll on the total spends. As per Madison’s report, AdEx collapsed by as much as 65% because of COVID-19 in Q2, indicating how badly the economy has been performing so far. Last year for Television, the Indian Premier League (IPL), ICC World Cup and Elections in Q2’19 contributed around Rs 3,000 crore (34% to the TV AdEx in Q2’19). However, the pandemic removed both these money-spinners from the AMJ quarter this year, which has added to the decline. This year, brands are trying to come up with innovative solutions to reach out to their consumers at their door steps and are optimistic about seeing a stable growth in the next few months. Fashion e-commerce giant Myntra has seen early signs of recovery and <keyword id="1549018" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="consumer-sentiments">consumer sentiments</keyword> picking up during Raksha Bandhan as it witnessed a surge in demand for women's ethnic wear, men’s occasion wear, kids wear, and accessories such as watches, handbags. It also saw 3.5 million customers shopping during the June edition of EORS, a testimony of how consumer sentiments are getting back on track. “The festive season, followed by winter, is the most exciting quarter for Myntra. This year we are expecting a massive scale and growth in festive buying as consumer sentiment continues to be strong. Myntra is already operating at a pre-lockdown scale, and this upcoming festive season will definitely help us in boosting our growth further. Our focus will continue to be on enhancing customer experience by providing high-quality merchandise in a curated and personalized store, along with safe and fast delivery. Our new customer acquisition is at an all-time high and we are ensuring we help them in all their lifestyle needs. We are witnessing a spike in our Tier II and Tier III customers and orders as well,” said Ayyappan Rajagopal, Head of Business, Myntra. Another new-age brand Melorra that specializes in modern jewellery, has managed to avoid the losses incurred by various other businesses during the pandemic months. It saw a 400% growth in the last financial year, and is confident of matching that level of growth with a strong performance in the upcoming festive season. “The festive season this year is expected to be even more impactful than the past for Melorra. Firstly, the lockdown that started in March slowed down the jewellery purchase due to disruption in the delivery logistics, and most of the people are looking to buy jewellery now that the deliveries have resumed. Given the pandemic, all festivities in the first 2 quarters of the FY was a washout, hence there could be a trend reversal during festive season – but not at the previous levels. Since the prices are also at an all-time high, customers would opt for lightweight and trendy gold jewellery that is not only stylish but also easy on the pocket. Melorra caters to women who live in the moment and do not keep gold stacked away in lockers like before. Hence, it is definitely a key period for the brand and the jewellery industry at large,” said Sharat Krishnan, Head of Marketing, Melorra. The festive season has always been the most important part of the year for the jewellery business. Titan has already seen 80% recovery because people are celebrating their milestones with their families at home. It has a campaign and launch of a new collection lined up for October. Ajoy Chawla, CEO Jewellery Division, Titan Company Ltd sees no reason why the festive season shouldn’t be as good as last year. “It would be as good as last year or slightly lesser. The most optimistic expectation is that it should be as good as last year. Even if it is 90% or 80% close to last year’s performance, that’s good. We’re currently seeing 80% recovery and this is my best estimate. We’ve seen this recovery because people are still celebrating milestones like anniversary, birthdays, etc. They understand that the reality is grim but how long can you keep your life on hold? They want to feel good. Also, Q3 is wedding season but the festive season is delayed this year so the season may start a little slower unless there are massive rebound cases. Some markets also take two steps forward and three steps back, there is always some fluctuation. However, after October, we are hoping to see more stability. We will also launch a new collection and campaign around October,” shared Ajoy Chawla, CEO Jewellery Division, Titan Company Ltd. On what the consumer sentiment would likely be this festive season, Nidhi Sinha, Head of Content, Mintel India said, "One of the most important things people are looking forward to once the restrictions of the pandemic are lifted is meeting friends and family. However, according to research from Mintel’s Global COVID-19 Tracker in August, 42% of Indian consumers are looking forward to meeting family and friends in person compared to 34% of consumers in early July. This desire has accelerated due to the onset of the festive season." Mintel's research data indicates that consumer sentiment is improving and there is more willingness to spend on luxury items and good brands in the market. Sinha added, "Ganesh Chaturthi, which is round the corner, would be one such important festival that would entail celebrations in a different way so as to be in line with the pandemic protocols. As people continue to be under restrictions due to the pandemic, this festival is expected to be low key compared to regular times. However, Mintel research highlights that 30% of Indian consumers are planning to spend more on clothes and accessories, presenting an opportunity for brands. This is indicative that people are planning to spend on indulgences despite a negative economic outlook. Brands like Gemini oil, Ferns and Petals and Cadbury have been very agile in talking about the changing face of the festivities and how it is an opportunity for people to spend such festivals at home with their loved ones.” Festive season is an important period for the retail industry. It is a time when consumer spending is at an all-time high. One of the leading sportswear brands PUMA has multiple new launches planned throughout the season to cater to increasing demand. Telling us how the consumer sentiment changed in retail, Abhishek Ganguly, General Manager, PUMA India and Southeast Asia said, “As we’re witnessing right now, online channels will continue to be a convenient option for consumers to shop. Given the precautions around health and safety, we are seeing people shop online or go to a store where they are confident about the hygiene measures being implemented. Having said that, as lockdown continues to be relaxed across the country, we are seeing a steady week-on-week increase in footfalls with consumers visiting our stores to buy fashion essentials.” On festive expectations, Ganguly added, “Over the last 3-4 months, we have been seeing steady growth across both our offline and online channels. The conversions have increased substantially from pre-Covid times as people exactly know what they want to buy and are shopping with a clear intent. Given the trend of how things are continuing to improve compared to the previous months, we are very hopeful of a strong September and October. We hope this trend continues through the festive season and beyond.” Electronics giant Philips has launched a few new products like Smart Hair Dryer, Eyebrows Trimmer this month to ride on the improving consumer sentiment due to the festive season. Gulbahar Taurani, Vice-President, Personal Health, Philips Indian Subcontinent, Philips India, said, “The trends indicate that this is going to be a good season. We will have our challenges in terms of supply chain, partial lockdown, movement of products because the number of COVID cases are going up. From a demand standpoint, we see a very positive sentiment. I believe that this is going to stay, which will drive the festive season. As a part of the festive season, we had a couple of new launches last month itself.” The furniture segment, which was on complete halt during the lockdown as it did not fall under essentials, is also gearing up for the festive months. Given that individuals are spending more time at home due to the lockdown, home-grown brand Pepperfry witnessed an uptick in demand for WFH furniture and décor. In fact, Pepperfry is already at 100% of its pre-lockdown sales volumes. Kashyap Vadapalli, Chief Marketing Officer &amp; Business Head, Pepperfry is now anticipating to see this trend boost their sales further as people continue to focus on making their home spaces better equipped for everything. The brand is upping its digital media game and has launched a new campaign called ‘Swadeshi is Great’. “Given that household products and celebrations at home play such an important role during the festive season, consumers are constantly looking to revamp/renovate the space such that the home category witnesses a natural upswing in demand during festivals. With this combination of consumer adaptation and brand innovation, we are positive about the consumers’ outlook and demand for categories like home décor and furniture. As consumers have become apprehensive with regards to shopping offline or even stepping outside, they are increasingly adapting to buying online. Our online business is already at 120% of pre-COVID levels. As we move along, we plan to keep innovating with digital tools to enhance our consumers’ buying experiences,” said Vadapalli. The sudden outbreak of the pandemic brought a lot of businesses to a standstill. However, one of the few sectors that have seen an upturn amid the nationwide lockdown is EdTech. Now, to evolve with changing times and to prepare for the upcoming festive season, upGrad is looking at altering its marketing strategy. It is shifting its spends towards TV as consumers would want to spend more time together, while supplementing it with digital. Telling us what kind of changes EdTech has gone through lately, Arjun Mohan, CEO-India, upGrad said, “Given the current scenario, consumer priorities are being re-calibrated. They are now undergoing a behavioral shift which is directly reflecting on their spends. Unlike earlier, individuals today have ample time and money to spend on upskilling options, which otherwise, was parked for a later date. upGrad has seen a big behavioral shift in the mindset of parents too towards learning online, as they have seen their kids benefiting from it in real-time. This is one of the major drivers that has created a massive demand for our specialised online programs, which not only enhances the domain knowledge, revise skill sets, etc. but also help professionals achieve desired career outcomes.” All brands voiced their confidence that the worst has passed, and the markets will only move towards normalcy hereon.

Festive Marketing: Brands are optimistic that improving consumer sentiments will help them bounce back and bring in profitability

<ul><li>Last week, Zee Entertainment Enterprises mentioned FMCG brands like Pepsi, Maggi, ITC Dark Fantasy, Cadbury Dairy Milk, Red Label Tea and Amul Lassi in its OOH campaign and a week before that, Lay’s also thanked other brands for their services. </li><li>But it wasn’t just brands from unrelated categories uplifting each other. Brands like Dunzo, Swiggy, Dettol and Lifebuoy have also shown in the recent past how difficult times are about putting competition to rest and working together towards a common goal. </li><li>We reached out to experts to understand how well it bodes for brands to opt for this empathetic strategy. They opined that consumers respect brands that care about things other than business and work together for a single, larger cause. </li></ul>For years, <keyword id="9575066" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="rival-brands">rival brands</keyword> have engaged in ad wars that called each other out on social media or pulled each other down publicly to achieve one-upmanship. However, we are in the midst of a global pandemic and many SMBs and even well-established brands are struggling to survive in this highly volatile environment. Therefore, it is time for big brands to pause, reflect, rework their strategies and most importantly, keep aside competition to prioritise consumer interest. A few brands like Dunzo, Swiggy, Dettol and Lifebuoy that provide essential services swallowed their pride and decided to uplift each other in their brand campaigns. By acknowledging their competitors, these brands reminded their consumers that we are all in this together. With its wit that it is known for, Dunzo had posted a creative on social media saluting those who chose to do the ‘ride’ thing and thanked Swiggy, Grofers and BigBasket. <div type="javascript" title="Instagram" contenttype="Image"><cdata><![CDATA[ ]]></cdata></div> After Dunzo’s post, Swiggy launched a video campaign called ‘Sukhriya Kare’ with leading social media influencers to thank heroes who wear a helmet and drive around on their scooters to deliver essential products -- risking their lives. It also mentions rival delivery partners Dunzo, Medlife and Grofers. <div type="javascript" title="Instagram" contenttype="Video"><cdata><![CDATA[ ]]></cdata></div> In yet another heartwarming gesture, bathing soap giant Lifebuoy released a public service print ad that urged the audience to buy a soap they have access to -- be it Lux, Dettol, Santoor or Godrej No 1. <div type="twitter" handle="ambimgp" handlename="Ambi Parameswaran" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1075309911880421378/egNXy-cA_normal.jpg" favoritecount="258" retweetcount="82" status="⁦@HUL_News⁩ Great initiative to advertise the importance of hand wash ⁦@htTweets⁩. And a big hurray for mentioning… https://t.co/66U8bINm4x" createdat="1580453185000" id="1223135428984725504"></div> But does this really work? Unusual times call for unique solutions. Lloyd Mathias, Business Strategist and Angel Investor said it is a great idea to keep aside competition and collaborate, especially during times of crisis. Mathias said, “The Covid pandemic is a moment of great human suffering as brands coming together – even with competitors – speaks well about our larger need to fight this together. Very early on during this pandemic, Apple and Google came together to partner on COVID-19 contact tracing technology. A positive step by two tech giants signalling the seriousness of the challenge and the need to bring all hands on deck.” Highlighting how this strategy can help brands gain consumer affinity, Mathias added, “At times of any major disruption or calamity, brand wars must take a back seat and rise to the occasion keeping consumer interest in mind. Consumers will see this as a positive and mature sign, recognizing that brands can put behind their differences when it comes to larger concerns of humanity.” In the age of social media, anything that is a little different from regular communications generates a lot of chatter. And emotions go a long way. Lay’s had also launched a digital campaign to express gratitude towards the unsung heroes of India who have brought joy to millions even in these challenging times like Dunzo, Zomato, Flipkart, Whisper, to name a few. One might argue this strategy looks opportunistic but Nidhi Sinha, Head of Content, Mintel India told us that brands who care about things other than their business are not only bought more often but gain their consumer’s respect. Sinha said, “In times of the pandemic, Indian consumers have reflected a strong sense of affinity with the environment and local communities. As brands come together for a single cause, it certainly puts them in a good light as consumers respect the fact that these brands 'care' and are not just focused on their own business. According to a Mintel research conducted in February 2020, prior to COVID-19, 26% of Indians said that they expect brands to support environmental issues. As the country fights the crisis together, these initiatives not only show gratitude but also reflect a sentiment of care and selflessness, much needed in these times of need.” Telling us why inclusive ads would work more than <keyword id="9575064" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="40" keywordseo="competitive-ads">competitive ads</keyword> in today’s environment, N Chandramouli, CEO, TRA Research said, “Empathetic advertising instead of adversarial advertising is what people appreciate, especially in stressed situations like extended WFH, threat of Covid etc. Consumers do not want to be pushed to take sides in such a situation, and they want unadulterated information. Not only are such ads like a breath of fresh air, but they are also non-intrusive and gentle. Which is why they work well.” However, Chandramouli also said that brands will be brands and even in these instances, they subtly show how they have an upper hand over other players. He said, “The competitive spirit of brands comes when you are fighting for survival, market share and mindshare. In some categories, if the category is the beneficiary of this crisis, they may keep the combatant side silent, but soon after the dust of the crisis settles, the pugilist in them will be out with gloves again. Even in these empathetic ads for instance, brands will be brands and they tend to subtly show their advantages against competition. After all, brands exist in a competitive world, and they do not exist to do philanthropy.” Not just in communications, crisis calls for long-term relationships Mathias said brands need to lend each other their expertise and fight the bigger battle together. “The lockdown severely impacted most businesses and in these times collaboration worked as an effective risk mitigation strategy to minimize revenue loss by ensuring supply and fair distribution. Brands may need to collaborate with their competitors in areas that they would normally compete for e.g. combining deliveries and sharing of logistics and manufacturing. Some may even consider doing joint messaging,” said he.

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How can brands take the empathy route to reach consumers?

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Indian consumers are increasingly buying local products, brands that help benefit local communities and economies and focus on environmental issues after Covid-19

Samarpita Banerjee

Festive Marketing: Brands are optimistic that improving consumer sentiments will help them bounce back and bring in profitability

Karuna Sharma

Brands are forgetting competition and patting rival businesses on their back, here is why

Karuna Sharma

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