Parle Poppins is ready to give you one!

The latest campaign has a small kid with a feisty attitude who is ready to give one to everyone he sees. But what he’s ready to give is a Poppins

Parle Poppins has been around for a very long time, but in today’s cluttered confectionery market, the candy is struggling to hold its head above the rest. The brand’s latest TV commercial may help it do just that, for it uses a clever strategy to keep itself in sync with the younger generation.

“Our research informed us that even 8 and 10 year olds felt that Poppins was a candy meant for much smaller kids. This was an assumption that needed reversal,” says Krishna Rao, senior product manager, Parle Poppins. Poppins is popular in Tier 1 cities, but isn’t a hit with the SEC A class. Poppins now wants to connect with this urban and contemporary kid, too.

As a result, Parle was very clear when it briefed its creative agency, Everest Brand Solutions, that Poppins must become a very cool, current and popular product that kids and young adults will seek to consume. Poppins has released its latest campaign without any change in either the product or its packaging. The campaign is sure to hit its target and much above the target.

The TVC opens on a shot of a young boy cycling into a parking spot. An SUV drives in just then. Both of them halt and the kid looks at the older guy in the SUV and tells him, “Doon kya?” The older guy is stumped and gives in. The boy carries on with his aggressive attitude in several other situations, getting his own way by threatening to give the other person something. Finally, he threatens his school bus driver with his infamous “Doon kya?” threat. The bus driver asks him what it is that he is out to give everybody. At this, the boy takes out a pack of Poppins from his pocket and sheepishly asks what flavour the driver will have. (Submit your opinion on this ad.)

“The commercial is the most enacted in schools,” shares Padmakumar, national creative director, Everest Brand Solutions. The kid throws an attitude that takes everyone aback. But you don’t understand what it is that he gives them to make them comply with his demands. It’s only at the end that you get to know that he’s been sharing his Poppins with everyone to get his own way.

The last campaign that Poppins carried out was last year and positioned around the thought that one could buy 10 Poppins candies for Rs 2, but this campaign did not do as well. The campaign prior to this harped on the various colours in which Poppins came.

The present campaign includes outdoor hoardings in some cities and posters. As a confectionery brand, Parle Poppins has associated itself with various school contact programmes. It commonly associates itself with drawing and painting competitions. Response oriented contests have also been conducted.

Ram and Shyam were characters that Poppins created way back in the 1970s. These are two young twin boys who are known for their quick thinking. The characters were a regular feature of various magazines such as Indrajal and Tinkle back then. The selling feature was that the twins always had their favourite candy, Poppins, at hand. In April 2007, the two characters were revived and revamped and are now associated with many children’s magazines such as Balabhumi, Balrama, Chandamama, Phulwari, Champak and Tinkle. Thus, this is also a revival of sorts for Poppins.