Tata Steel looks to align the brand more closely with consumers
The steel giant highlights the role of its brand in the daily hum drum of existence, focuses on consumer facing products in its new campaign
The country’s oldest steel producer is calling attention to its product brands, highlighting the brand’s invisible presence in major infrastructure projects and training the lens on new materials and solutions under its banner. In its new campaign #Wealsomaketomorrow, the 111year-old company is using its legacy to craft an identity that appeals to a new generation of consumers and extends well beyond steel.
“The future strategy of the company is get into services and product solutions. It would be more consumer facing and hence a lot of communication is needed,” explained Sunil Bhaskaran, vice president, Corporate Services at Tata Steel.
This is not the only steel company casting a wide net for its brand. JSW Steel with Rukna nahi hai (Never stop) and public sector SAIL with its tagline of ‘There’s a bit of SAIL in everybody’s life’ have done the same. For Tata Steel, the new campaign looks to build on its earlier ‘ We also make steel’ campaign that sought to emphasise the company’s credentials as a good employer and responsible corporate citizen.
“What is less known is Tata Steel’s high-tech, innovative product category,” said Bhaskaran adding, “The idea is to focus on these lesser known aspects.”
Does Tata Steel need to refresh its brand, given its indelible association with steel?
Tata Steel may be a behemoth but it still needs to build a brand that speaks the language of the times, is the expert view. “The Tatas cannot afford to sit on their laurels,” said Ambi Parameswaran, brand strategist and founder of Brand-Building.com. He believes that the brand needs to keep reinventing itself as the competition is getting younger and more aggressive by the day.
Tata Steel is keen to reposition the brand too. From a B-to-B category supplier, the company wants to be seen as a B-to- C player. The company has 21 product brands. Within these product segments, it has built a comprehensive 'services and solutions’ division under four brands. Pravesh (steel doors), Artifurn (wardrobes), Steel-n-Style (furniture) and Nest-In (portable cabins, toilets and such other modular construction solutions). For Tata Steel India, the branded products contributed to around 46 percent of total sales in 2017-18.
The company is keen to build its presence in this category and wants to de-commoditise the brand. “We are working to increase revenues from the solutions and services segment so that we are not as much in steel as a commodity and can move up the value chain,” said Bhaskaran.
By moving more aggressively towards consumer facing products, the company also wants to break the cyclical nature of steel. And it has decided to adopt a differentiated approach for rural and urban markets. “For rural markets, we use the physical network like distributorship,” he said. The most effective way to reach out to the rural consumer is by providing a touch-and-feel experience, sometimes even vehicles or walls become efficient ways to get the message across, said Bhaskaran.
To get maximum mileage out of the current campaign, Tata Steel decided to launch it during the festival season. “This particular campaign has been in the works for the last two years. We thought it would be best to do it before the upsurge that typically happens ahead of festivals,” said Bhaskaran.
For the campaign and the company’s overall repositioning efforts to make a long term impact on the image of the brand, Parameswaran said that the company must be consistent. “Hopefully this is the first step towards branding. It has done a lot on ground in terms of product reach and innovation but has not used mass media to the extent it should have,” he added.