At a seminar organised by agencyfaqs!, Alchemist Brand Consulting and Businessworld yesterday in the capital, Matthew Ragas, Mark Tully and Samit Sinha explored what it takes to move a brand to cult status
• Is it possible for company brands to build legions of loyal followers like religious cults that attract thousands of devoted disciples?
• Can certain products take on magnetic characteristics and galvanise die-hard customers who become walking, talking viral marketers?
• Can your company harness the power of cult branding without blowing a fortune on advertising?
These and many more such questions were answered yesterday by Matthew W Ragas, co-author (along with Bolivar J Bueno) of "The Power of Cult Branding", at a seminar organised by agencyfaqs!, Alchemist Brand Consulting and Businessworld at New Delhi's Radisson hotel. Besides star speaker Ragas, the seminar also featured the legendary Mark Tully, probably the most respected BBC hand in India till date, and Samit Sinha who heads Delhi-based brand consultancy outfit Alchemist Brand Consulting. The seminar will be held in Mumbai on February 21.
The choice of ‘Cult Brands' as a subject may have raised quite a few eyebrows. But the reason we chose it is simple: India is nearly unrecognisable from the India we knew just 10 years ago. When change comes so rapidly to an ancient society, it brings excitement and tremors of apprehension. It is the very climate in which cult brands flourish.
And we couldn't have had a better speaker to lead than Ragas, co-author of "The Power of Cult Branding". The book has been widely discussed and appreciated in America and Ragas has been invited to speak at both MIT and Harvard since its release. Though young, Ragas has packed in a lifetime of varied experience in his years. He is president and chief analyst of Matthew Ragas & Associates, an Orlando, Florida-based strategic advisory and venture development firm. He is also editor of The Ragas Report, a weekly investment newsletter, and the founding partner and president of iBrand Marketing Inc, the leader in call to action marketing strategies.
At the Delhi seminar, Ragas said one need not look much farther than a Harley-Davidson rally, a Star Trek convention, or a Jimmy Buffett concert to see the cult branding phenomenon at work: thousands of passionate, faithful fans spreading the good word and spending lots of money. Not all brands have the dash of edginess, the devoted fan base, or the niche positioning to be cult brands though. But those that do tend to share similar characteristics, what has been referred to as the Seven Golden Rules of Cult Branding in his book.
At the end of Ragas' presentation, Mark Tully, quite aptly, spoke on "Cultism in India". He said among the so-called real cult brands in India are religion, religious gurus, politicians and the network of trains. Yes, the network of trains, in which anyone can get a glimpse of the real India, he reiterated.
Tully would know! Over his 22-year tenure as BBC's India correspondent, through his broadcasts and writings and his extensive wanderings across India, Tully became the principal interpreter of India for British audiences. His association with the broadcasting corporation was so complete that even now when any BBC correspondent visits a small town, chances are he may be referred to as Tully sahib!
On his part Samit Sinha unraveled how brand cultism works, and identified what he termed as "Indian cults". These included Khadi, Ajit, Thums Up, Old Monk, Ambassador and Bullet.
We would take up some the key ideas thrown up yesterday regarding brand cultism in India in a related story tomorrow (February 20). © 2003 agencyfaqs!
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