BURNOL- Case Study
Report Submitted by: Group 6 (Section B) Abhiraj Bisht (B12066) Anuj Kasat (B12073) Jatin Mehta (B12085) Nishant Vageriya (B12097) Saugat Thakur (B12110)
XLRI Business Management 2012-14
What was the biggest dilemma faced by Burnol in terms of its positioning? Can the company do something to prevent the product from becoming generic to the usage category? Please elaborate. POSITIONING DILEMMA Over the years Burnol has developed into a preferred brand for attending to minor burns. It has helda tremendous brand recall value in the Indian market for the past six decades. It was positioned as burn specialist from the day one. This strategy catapulted it into becoming the market leader in this segment. However, there is also another side to this story. The success in this segment has resulted in the consumer perception of Burnol being a specific product for burn injuries and not a generic antiseptic as a result of which it has been unable to penetrate into the antiseptic market. The name „Burnol‟ also has a connotation of something related to burn to it. The colour of the tube and the ointment resembles turmericwhich is an indigenous homemade remedy for burn injuries. The advertising strategy used by the owners of the brand also cornered the brand into specific segment. One of the most recalled advertisements of the brand was that of a daughter who comes into the kitchen and gets splashed with hot oil. After this, the mother applies burnol to the wound with a voiceover saying “Haath jal gaya, shukar hai ghar mein burnol jo hai”. Another example was the ad that was aired during Diwali seasons. In this ad, a kid runs with a burning sparkle and on his way drops it on his feet. Seeing this, the mother comes rushing with Burnol and soothes the child by applying the ointment. This had a stupendous effect on the sales of Burnol which reached a figure of 4 crores in the months of June to September, amounting to 80% of the