Is competitive the way to go?

Last week, whenever I went for a client meeting, one common question everyone asked was, “As a planner, do you think we can do a Rin?” everyone is excited by what Rin has done. At the very least, it has generated a lot of discussion. Some consumers I spoke to were scathing about the piece of communication, while others were bemused, and even pleasantly surprised by HUL’s courage.

I personally think it is a masterstroke, provided the client is ready to face the litigations that are sure to come. HUL broke the ad on Thursday. Even if P&G had framed their response by Friday, they could not file for a stay till Tuesday (it was an extended weekend, Monday being Holi). The ad had already achieved its desired effect by then, HUL swamped the 4 days with the ad.

Although rare in India, competitive ads are nothing new. For example, Sun has been running the following ad for the last 2 months. It makes sense if you have a provable advantage over the competition. However, there are risks that we as advertisers should be aware of.

The first risk is resonance & believability. The advantage must be important enough and the proof solid. The key is that it must be quantifiable. Otherwise it would not stand a chance in court. Rin did well on both counts.

A second threat comes from a third party – what Subaru did when BMW & Audi were fighting each other. They hijacked the conversation and took the fight to a different level. In the case of Rin vs. Tide, for example, Ariel can come forward and say something like who cares about white clothes, Ariel helps you preserve colour best!

In sum, competitive advertising can be a double-edged sword. It just depends on how much risk you are willing to take. As always, more the risk, greater the return.