iB&W wins Valvoline lubricants business

Valvoline Cummins Ltd (VCL), the 50:50 joint venture between Valvoline International and Cummins Diesel Sales and Service (India) Ltd, (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cummins India Ltd) has awarded the creative and media business of its lubricant brand Valvoline to iB&W Communications, Delhi.

Information available with agencyfaqs! indicates that besides iB&W, there were two more agencies in the fray. They were Everest Integrated Communication and Confluence Communication. iB&W won the estimated Rs 4-crore lubricants business on the basis of a creative-cum-strategy pitch. Prabha Shankar, vice-president, marketing, VCL mentioned that the business would grow with time.

Since VCL was appointing an advertising agency for the first time, it had decided to go for a mid-sized agency. For over three years, the company had been aggressive on below-the-line activities with absolutely no mass media advertising to speak of. In order to reach out to the ‘brand decision-makers' (vehicle owners, mechanics etc) effectively as part of its market expansion plan, the company feels it's time to tap the mass media. Talking about the brief given to the agencies, Shankar says, "So far, VCL's presence had been in the retail market; now the objective is to capture the mind space of the consumer."

The criterion for selecting the agency was based on two factors. While most important was the creative presented by the agency, the second factor was that that the agency should have an all-India presence. "iB&W fulfilled all the parameters," says Shankar.

The challenge before the appointed agency is to build brand salience and the ‘character' of the company in a market dominated by big spenders like Castrol and Servo. "Internationally Valvoline is known for its cutting edge technology. And this is what we intend to communicate through the entire range of the Valvoline products," says Devraj Basu, COO, iB&W Communications, Delhi.

To put things in perspective, VCL started operations in India in 1998. And in three years it has grown from a Rs 37-crore to a Rs 100-crore-plus company. Currently, VCL's product range in India comprises diesel engine oils, mixed fleet engine oils, two-stroke oil, general-purpose engine oils, gear oils, greases, brake fluids and various types of industrial oils. Besides having a wide range of industrial and automotive lubricants, VCL is also present in the passenger car care segment.

VCL recently launched Eagle One a car care product in India. The product range includes car wax, car polish, dashboard cleaner, leather upholstery cleaner, spot remover, scratch remover, glass cleaner, tyre cleaner and windshield rain repellent.

In its advertising, the company plans to highlight its SynPower and DuraBlend range of synthetic lubricants for cars, Eagle One's above-the-hood car cosmetics products, and the 4T and 2T lubricants for two-wheelers. "The purpose obviously is to build awareness for these products. Next time when a car owner goes to the mechanic he/she would know which lubricant to ask for or which car care product to buy. Similarly, the mechanic too could suggest the vehicle owners buy Valvoline products instead of others," explains Prabha Shankar.

With the commodity-driven lubricant market getting increasingly brand conscious, a well-orchestrated communication plan seems imperative. iB&W is clear about the brand strategy for VCL. While the focus will be on building the Valvoline corporate brand, individual brands of Valvoline too will be showcased. "Taking the umbrella branding route, the positioning of Valvoline is going to be in sync with the international positioning ‘Valvoline and the power of V'. But it will be modified to make it more relevant to the Indian lubricant market," says Ravi Perti account director, iB&W Communications.

The media usage would be skewed towards print to begin with. The company does not rule out the possibility of using television in future. VCL will continue to be aggressive on below-the-line activities, owing to the nature of the business. © 2002 agencyfaqs!