Awake & Aware: How Indian coffee brands make the most of Instagram

We take a look at how Indian coffee brands are selling mugs full of warm elixir, one aesthetic Instagram strategy at a time.

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Jagruti Verma
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indian coffee brands instagram strategy


We take a look at how Indian coffee brands are selling mugs full of warm elixir, one aesthetic Instagram tactic at a time.

The Indian coffee industry has expanded beyond giants like Nescafe and Bru. Local coffee houses and farms are now making their way towards larger markets and social media has an integral role in that. Indian coffee brands such as Araku, Country Bean, Sleepy Owl, Dope Coffee Roasters, and more have made their way to the in-roads of the retail sector and Instagram.

Last year, Dalgona coffee recipes found their way into our homes and hearts. They were a manifestation of our collective need for realistically beautiful feeds — that involve food items. This is a sentiment that Indian coffee brands with a presence on Instagram seem to have well integrated into their strategy. They post pictures that make you want to stop a while, engage with and then probably go make yourself a cup before you can truly scroll down and forget about it.

They are leveraging the powers of 'awake' (romanticisation of coffee among hustlers) and 'aware' (curiosity about the beverage). Work from home is only making these factors more intense.

Farms To Boxes

Small businesses tend to have a deeper connection with the people they employ. Their stories are important to the brand's growth and narrative. In the case of Indian coffee brands, a significant amount of focus is often on the people who help make the coffee people love to start their mornings with. The farm-to-box journey is frequently depicted in the posts these brands put up online.

Roasted Beans

There is no dearth as to how much coffee beans can be romanticised. In fact, is it even a coffee brand if their communication doesn't include these brown pearls, to showcase freshness? In this respect, Indian coffee brands are a lot like their global giant counterparts or other local brands elsewhere in the world. Roasted coffee beans are a great asset for these brands — and it shows that they know it.

Also Read: mCaffeine leverages Vikrant Massey’s coffee connect for topical campaign

Values Beyond Coffee

Coffee is just the beginning. There are a host of things people do to alleviate their experience. These include reading a book, enjoying a group activity, or just sipping through while gossiping to their heart's desire. Indian coffee brands have been such instances to expand the scope of their marketing content on Instagram.

Coffee Moods

Coffee is a versatile beverage that is popularly the choice of drink for people who wish to stay awake and those who looking for comfort in a mug. While this can be linked to the amount of milk in the cup, it is also a lot about the way the beverage is portrayed and communicated interpreted. A variety of such sentiments are being leveraged by Indian coffee brands on Instagram.

Influencers & Stories

Coffee is a beverage that is drunk widely, across age groups. This helps brands get a wide range of influencers to partner with. It could be someone who can come up with recipes or a hustler with big dreams. Young influencers, irrespective of their niche, make up for excellent content collaboration opportunities — with a very high scope of personalisation and relatability.

The tactics deployed by Indian coffee brands prominently take into account the local heritage of their work, people, and premises, in sync with the #VocalForLocal campaign. Their storytelling depends heavily on ethical practices and the art and craft of all things coffee — from plantations to mugs.

Since quite a few of these offerings are priced slightly higher than the instant options in the market, an urgent need in the communication can be felt where they are justifying their price points as well as educating people to make the most of the quality and options being offered.

Brands that own cafe premises have been leveraging these spaces to create content to the hilt. A lot is being done in the space, it would be interesting to see how they scale up and compete with each other in the times to come.

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