The End of Marketing Mafia - How D2C Brands Disrupted The Hegemony of Global MNC Brands & Forced Them to Be Relevant & Localise

Sanjai Srivastava is Global Business Lead, Team IPG -UNILEVER, Singapore .Sanjai talks about how the new age D2C brands disrupted the 'Marketing Mafia' of global MNC brand management . The MNC brands controlled the narrative by pumping lot of money on television and  controlling distribution. With internet ,digital marketplace and digital marketing the barriers of entry for D2C brands have gone down and they have created a havoc in MNC Global Brand Management.

The MNCs have been forced to dismantle the 'Big Mother Ship' and break into small, agile ships. They have re-oriented their structure and re-deployed global brand teams to markets where the centre of gravity of the brand is. They have focused their senior marketing leadership to grow and work where the customer is , not just geographically but also attitude-wise. The big durbar where the global heads used to sit, and preside over the world has been dismantled.

Also arrogance of global brands has given way to an effort to 'be real' and humility in talking and listening to consumers. Earlier they  would tell  the consumer 'why you should buy me' but now the discourse is 'why am I relevant to you' . The rise of nationalism, and the diminishing fascination for global/international brands, have forced MNCs to take pains to say that 'we are off the land' and 'we are off the people' . They are open to changing their positioning statements based on needs of local market. Unlike the past (where it was one positioning fits all) global brands are  okay in meaning one thing to people in France and something else in Indonesia.  

The conversation is facilitated by Jasravee Kaur Chandra, Director- Brand Building, Research & Innovation at Master Sun, Consulting Brand of Adiva L Pvt. Ltd. Jasravee has over 20 years experience as a Strategic Brand Builder,Communications Leader and Entrepreneur.