iD Fresh Food doubles down on 'TransparenSee'; CMO Rahul Gandhi explains

When PC Mustafa and his four cousins started iD Fresh Food in December 2005, their friends and family wanted to see where the idli-dosa batter was being made. But they weren't confident to invite people as they felt the 50 square feet kitchen in Tippasandra in Bengaluru was too small to be shown around. 

"That day we had a dream. One day we will build a factory where we can take them inside," the CEO and co-founder shared during its recent live streaming event 'TransparenSee'.

Mustafa inched closer towards making the dream a reality when iD Fresh Food opened an 80,000 square feet plant in Anekal in Karnataka in 2021. Set up at an investment of Rs 40 crore, it is said to be the world's largest idli and dosa batter factory. 

Marking the first anniversary celebration of the Giant Home Kitchen, the food company launched a livestreaming campaign on World Idli Day (March 30) in 2022 whereby viewers from across the world could see iD's manufacturing process for five days.

During the launch of the second edition of the campaign, Mustafa, in a press release, said that it garnered about 25 crore views over a period of five days last year. The brand, which believes that 'transparency is the bedrock of customers’ trust and loyalty', has now decided to make the campaign an annual fair.

The fresh food brand conducted the second season of TransparenSee on March 30 with an hour-long, real-time, no-filters live streaming. This year, Musthafa, along with the chief manufacturing officer, GLN Murthy, also conducted a live Q&A session allowing. Viewers not only had the opportunity to witness the making of the batter but could also ask their questions.

As on April 17, the livestreamed video has 7,115 views. 

Through this campaign, the brand attempts to build trust and credibility amongst the consumers and reiterate that it manufactures chemical and preservative-free products. Rahul Gandhi, chief marketing officer, iD Fresh Food, says consumers have the right to know what their consuming.  

"It should be nothing less than what a mother would cook in the kitchen. We want to prove to everyone that we don't add any chemicals and preservatives to our food. We want to showcase the way we take care of our safety and hygiene standards. We want to establish that iD is best in class," he says.

On why the brand reduced it from five days to an hour, Gandhi says that many viewers had questions like the quality of rice, whether there are any chemicals or preservatives added, etc. So they adopted this format to include a Q&A session with Mustafa. 

"We received feedback that people had questions. So this time we wanted to make it more interactive and answer these questions. Last year when we live streamed visuals of the factory, there was no interaction. It was merely visuals of the machines running for hours," he says.

Does the campaign also help in boosting sales?

Gandhi says the primary purpose of such campaigns is only to build a perception of the brand. Their effectiveness is measured by testing the brand's perception in various parts of the country. 

The campaign was also supported with an innovative 'skippable' print ad in Bengaluru and Delhi on March 30. The front page which shows the 'Skip ad' option takes the readers to the second page which reads 'Don't believe this ad. Question our CEO instead.'

The campaign required a lot of creative preparation as a lot of effort is put into sending out the message to the consumers and ensuring that its proposition stands out from the competition. 

"If there are thousand packets of thousand brands inside a store and you turn them around- you will realise 90% of them have some chemicals or preservatives written on the back. However, in the front of the pack it'll claim to be a 'healthy food'. So we have to stand apart and tell people that we truly mean what we say. That's the kind of challenge iD has and so that's where a lot of creative effort goes in. We have to design the ads, the websites and the copies in a way that they give confidence to the consumers that we are what we show," he explains.

After opening its batter factory in Anekal to the public, it is now considering doing the same for its other factories in Delhi, Mumbai and Dubai. It also intends to do the same for its other products like Parottas and Parathas. "People are asking us 'Why only batter, we want to see Paratha factory also.' Maybe we will do one on 'World Paratha Day' now," he says.