Jaquar uses its bathroom strength to tell the lighting story

The bathroom and lighting solutions brand’s IPL ads are humorous takes on its bath category dominance. A chat with Sandeep Shukla, head of marcom.

Leading bathroom and lighting solutions brand Jaquar Group’s Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 ads are humorous takes on its bathware dominance, while creating awareness about its lighting product range.

Conceptualised by Enormous Brands, the films highlight the Manesar-based brand’s lighting products for homes, offices and outdoor spaces, while reminding the audiences about its bath and sanitary ware range. Without making it look like a catalogue, the IPL ads show the complete range of bathroom products.

Speaking to afaqs!, Sandeep Shukla, head of marketing & communication, global operations, Jaquar, says that this diversification is a natural progression to move ahead in the brand journey.

“Jaquar, as a brand, is synonymous with bathroom. There is a very strong association between Jaquar and bathroom products. So, the biggest challenge was to become popular in some other category, when there is such a strong identification with a particular category.”

Highlighting the reason behind investing in IPL, Shukla says that cricket is one of the biggest media activities in the country, in terms of reach and impact. “If there is a property through which a brand can make its presence felt across India, it is cricket.”

The campaign’s media planning is managed by Crescent Communications. Jaquar is advertising on both OTT as well as TV during IPL. When asked about OTT versus TV spends, Shukla mentions that brands today can't ignore OTT platforms because of the kind of impressions and reach that they generates.

“OTT makes sure that the brand is not over-exposed to the audience and, at the same time, its reach and effectiveness is far better. In terms of percentage, Jaquar will be spending 20 per cent of its media mix on OTT during IPL.”

Unlike the FMCG category, where the consumers will see an ad and go buy the product, for the bathware and lighting category, one only tends to buy a product when the need arises.

Over the years, the bathroom and lighting category has evolved to become a lifestyle purchase. The role of advertising is to create the right expression and brand recall. However, the brand comprehension part is generally handled through platforms like websites or retail counters.

Shukla believes that the role of advertising in such a category is limited to creating brand recall and awareness. Once the brand has achieved this, the next stage is to convert the customers, while they are renovating or rebuilding their homes.

Jaquar’s website helps consumers to select and make the right purchase decision. It helps the users know the product in detail before their final purchase. This way, they're much better informed and able to make the right conversation with architects, contractors, plumbers and dealers, who are selling the products.

Over the last two years, during the COVID pandemic, people started giving more importance to their homes, as they were spending more time indoors. “Home is now becoming a wellness sanctuary, where people are investing more. Bathrooms are no more a utility space and, hence, there is an increase in demand for fine bathrooms,” Shukla signs off.