Olympics’ brand lessons

Indian participants at the Paris Olympics may have won only a few medals, but they have been able to impart many brand lessons. It would be interesting for brand marketers to learn from these medal winners, who brought honour and glory to India at the Paris Olympics.

First brand lesson: Win young. Aman Sherawat became the youngest Indian to win a medal for India in the Olympics. He taught a lesson that Indians could use in brand strategy: ‘win young’. He had a tough childhood but, with his grandfather’s help and his own dedication and effort, he started young. Helped by his sister, he went about in a determined manner, practising and putting in an effort – all the time keeping alive his dream. He was unlucky to have lost his parents at a young age but did not lose his hope.

Winning young is a lesson that would be useful in brand marketing, because you would then get the advantage of a long career and a lot of time to build a future. Sherawat has many more Olympics to participate in and would get many more opportunities to get more medals.

Zomato is an excellent example of what happens when you win young in brand marketing. When you start early and win young, you get multiple advantages. You are able to play a long innings. You are able to correct course as you go along, without being rushed into anything. You also have the option of fresh acquisitions and enhancing your company’s growth, topline and bottom line. If you win young, you are in a position to get a head-start against your rivals and be able to build a company in the prime of your youth and go on to build a strong brand.

Second brand lesson: Focus on the process, not just on the result. Manu Bhaker, the young shooter, became the winner at the Paris Olympics, winning two medals in the item, shooting. Despite the setbacks in the previous Olympics, she moved on and focussed on the process and not on the results. She said later that she regularly meditated and got inspired by the Bhagavad Gita to do her best and not worry about the results. Training, practice and, above all, a focus on the process and not on the consequence fetched her two medals. You cannot focus simultaneously on both processes and results. It would help to concentrate on what was in your hand and what was in your control. She did that and won. Many of the best FMCG companies in the country focus on the process. It is not that they do not desire results, but the process is more important because that yields results. She and her partner Singh also won a medal at the team event, using the same approach.

Hindustan Unilever, ITC and many other FMCG companies strongly focus on processes and systems, which make them take a professional, system-oriented approach and enhance brand discipline. Therefore, in these companies, while professionals put in a lot, processes contribute even more. The best results are achieved, when you focus on the process and not just on the result. Ultimately, the right process gets you a bright result.

Third brand lesson: A champion is always a Champion. Neeraj Chopra, the gold medalist at the Tokyo Olympics, had to settle for a silver medal in the javelin throw at the Paris Olympics. But his mindset was still that of a champion. He now looks forward to the next Olympics, his sight firmly set on gold. In other competitions, he has also been regularly winning gold medals. The mindset of a champion is what makes a champion; his physical training, technique, practice, attitude and belief in himself makes him a champion.

There will be ups and downs in the history of a brand, but a champion brand will always bounce back, sooner or later. Parle G Biscuits is a brand that has been a champion for years and, despite various challenges, it continues to be the market leader, growing from strength to strength.

Neeraj Chopra has been an inspiration for the whole country. His achievements as a champion have inspired many youngsters in the field of athletics, where Indians had not performed well in the past. A champion thinks and behaves like a champion and inspires others to become champions. A champion brand does the same thing.

Fourth brand lesson: An integrated team wins again and again. The Indian hockey team had won a medal at the Tokyo Olympics. It won a medal at the Paris Olympics too. The team won the hearts of millions of Indians and brought hockey back to the forefront of the sports arena in India. This Indian hockey team brought back a glimpse of the golden days when India was unbeatable in hockey, with players like Dhyanchand leading us to glory. This Indian hockey team is integrated, works together and plays together. Led by Harmanpreet, who was one of the highest top scorers, guarded by Sreejesh at the goal and supported by the entire team, this integrated team, which worked closely with a tremendous amount of taal mel, is a classic example of an excellent winning team that would go on to win again and again and again. Similarly, an integrated brand marketing team that works closely with each other in a well-knit manner is bound to win many a competition. Many brands have done well in India because the entire team – not just sales, marketing, production, finance or HR – has worked in an integrated manner, closely with each other, and done wonders in succeeding. An excellent example, which has gained both in top line and bottom line as a major brand, is Indigo Airlines, which has won again and again as an integrated team – at the ground level or in the air, as a stewardess or a pilot, at the front end or at the back.

IndiGo Airlines is a truly integrated team brand, which has been able to grow, become the market leader and continue as the market leader, with over 60 per cent market share and with great topline and bottom line results from the brand.

Fifth brand lesson: It is not important where you come from, but it counts where you intend to go. Swapnil Kusale comes from a small village in the Kolhapur district in Maharashtra. He made India proud by winning a medal at this Olympics. He has been winning medals in many championships and events but, this time, he won an Olympic medal. The brand lesson is that it does not matter where you come from. It does matter where you intend to go. Many brands have gained national recognition, growing fast, their origins being from small locations in various parts of India – whether it be a consumer-durable brand like Ajanta Clocks from Morbi, Gujarat, huge tea brands from Assam or food brands from a small town in Punjab.

In short, Indian winners have taught us many brand lessons through their performance in the Paris Olympics. Olympics and the Indian winners, truly teach us lessons that can be used to win in the marketplace. If one understands the attitude of the winners, their technique, their practice, their preparation, their mindset, their ‘never say die’ attitude and their hunger for success, our brand marketers can learn a few lessons and go out and do wonders in the market place. Our Olympic medal winners have taught us how to win at the market place, how to be real market share brand winners.