Ankit Agarwal of PepsiCo India speaks about their latest AI campaign and the role it plays in generating brand familiarity while sharing integral FMCG marketing trends.
Last month, Doritos launched an Instagram filter, Doritos Bold Choice, that lets the audience watch the latest Doritos TVC, record their reaction, and choose their version of the campaign ending. The idea was to make the consumers a part of the storytelling journey, leaving the decision of the end in their hands. The filter was launched by brand ambassador, Kartik Aaryan.
In the background of the campaign launch, Social Samosa got in conversation with Ankit Agarwal, Associate Director, Brand Marketing – PepsiCo India Publication – Social Samosa.
Speaking about the insight behind the campaign, Ankit Agarwal tells us, "We know that the Gen Z audience is increasingly relying on their smartphones for entertainment. Thus, to deepen our connection with them, we applied these insights to our new #ForTheBold Campaign and harnessed the power of augmented reality and social media to create this filter."
Keeping up with cricket season, Kartik challenged Ravindra Jadeja and Chris Gayle to join the campaign. According to the brand, the content created by the celebrities lead to over 8 Mn views on their Reels.
Additionally, Doritos roped in over 3000 micro and nano influencers from the lifestyle, sports, fashion, dance, music, and arts space to participate in the campaign. Ankit shares that the Instagram filter has attained an engagement of 31 million in the past month.
Driving Brand Familiarity
Ankit informs that the tortilla chips market is one of the fastest-growing in the salty snacks space. Further statistics say that the Indian tortilla market is expected to show steady growth in CAGR during FY2022 – FY2027 basis their increasing popularity seen in 2020.
With the AI campaign, Doritos wanted to drive familiarity for the brand among its core target audience - the youth.
"Due to the evolving taste and consumption formats of millennials, the tortilla chip industry has become
one of the fastest-growing categories within the country’s salty category. We aim to not only familiarize Doritos with our targeted consumers but also strengthen our connection with them through brand resonance that is both positive and inspiring," he says.
Kartik Aryan's association with the brand comes in line with the connect he strikes with the youth. Ankit shares how Kartik's presence in the campaign has strengthened their engagement with consumers and built greater visibility for Doritos across the country.
"Kartik’s regular engagement on social media through posts, stories, and reels has also attained over
million views. Moreover, with the pan-India connect that Kartik has, we have been able to build stronger
engagement and influence over the consumer – leading to over 1 lakh calls across 24 states for the
‘Doritos BoldLine’," he adds.
FMCG Marketing Trends
In line with the evolving consumer behaviour, Ankit highlights FMCG marketing trends that have been seen in the space.
Convenience and in-home snacking on the rise
An internal PepsiCo India study suggests that with increased time spent at home, there continues to be
an uptick in at-home snack consumption, which leads consumers to look for convenient snacking options
– not only for self-consumption but also for the many in-home experiences planned with friends and family. This manifold increase in at-home consumption is also fueling demand for large packs significantly, resulting in the stocking up of one’s favorite snacks.
Increasing investment in Digital Customer Experience
Digital engagement and innovations have seen a significant boom, with technological advancements
playing a pivotal role in helping brands reach consumers – both in terms of e-commerce as well as social
media. Thus, by continuously adopting an innovative, solution-led approach, FMCG brands can ensure
that they pivot and enhance their customer’s digital experiences.
Surge in E-commerce
India’s e-commerce industry has been on an upward growth trajectory and the pandemic has only fast-
tracked it further with technology-enabled innovations such as digital payments, analytics-driven
customer engagement, and digital advertisements which will support the growth in the sector. FMCG
brands will continue to push into the burgeoning e-commerce market and at the same time remain
focused on the physical retail business model to ensure uninterrupted access to their products.
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