CLIENT BRIEF

Panasonic Lumix is the Digital Camera segment of Panasonic, a premium Japanese consumer electronics company. In 2009, India as a market had a swiftly growing demand for digital cameras. The digital still camera market size in India was expected to increase by 20% by 2015. The Point-and-Shoot (P&S) camera category was estimated to grow at a CAGR of 30%, the DSLR camera category to grow at a CAGR of 63% and the overall India digital camera market to grow at a CAGR of 32% in terms of units over the period 2010-2015.

Reasons for this meteoric growth were factors like increasing disposable incomes and lifestyle changes. A digital camera was compact, portable and convenient, matching the evolving Indian consumers' taste.
Market Scenario: Sony, Canon, Nikon and Kodak were the important brands in the point-and-shoot digital camera space, where Sony led with 24 per cent market share, followed by Nikon (21 per cent), Canon (16 per cent) and Kodak (14 per cent). While in the SLR digital camera market, Nikon and Canon were the dominant players in India, with Nikon having 55% and Canon chalking up 32% in the DSLR category.
The challenge was that Panasonic Lumix was a new entrant in an organized market with dominant players in both P &S and DSLR categories.

IDEA & EXECUTION

By Design (then known as IBD) partnered with Panasonic Beauty for Branding, Business Opportunities, Product Lines, Market Communication collaterals and Channel-led communication.
Insight: Communication for cameras is season-led, occasion-led, feature and model specific. Major communication happens in waves, centring around holidays and festivals when demand for cameras is highest.
Objective: To create a preferred and differentiated brand image.

The Campaign 2010 – 2011:

The launch campaign was titled Power-Packed Performance.

Lumix cameras have features and technology on par with established brands. Lumix cameras have superior technology which enables the users to have the best digital photographs.
The communication focused on the features of the Point & Shoot Digital Cameras and featured eminent cricketers and footballers.

To cater to a wider audience, Lumix then decided to convey a more universal image and positioning leading to the Picture Made Perfect campaign launch.

People always want their photos to be perfect because it is a matter of their public image. Lumix has several features which allow the user to make the most optimal settings and get their perfect picture.
The communication centred around the functionality and features of Panasonic Lumix’s Point & Shoot Digital Cameras range.

The Campaign 2011 - 2012

In 2011, the communication focus ranged from the occasion to the latest product features. It occurred in waves, featuring around major holidays and festivals while also focusing on features and functionality.

The HD camera, Beauty Retouch feature & Smart Camera functions were in focus this year. A TVC was filmed, highlighting the Beauty Retouch feature. To engender better consumer engagement and brand recall, Lumix signed on three brand ambassadors to represent Lumix to all regions of India - Jacqueline Fernandez, Kajal and Koel Mallick. The film also featured celebrity photographer, Atul Kasbekar.

The Campaign 2012 – 2013

In 2011, it was observed that consumers did not know Lumix was a sub-brand of Panasonic, thus not garnering the expected credibility.

That’s where we conceptualised the Adding More to Photography proposition.

Lumix cameras have such superior technology that they enrich the experience of photography. This campaign highlighted Lumix's pioneering aspects and was visually represented as being affiliated with Panasonic.

In 2012, an alarming trend was growing - consumers were preferring high-end smartphones over compact digital cameras, which was losing relevance and declining as a category. Other categories like DSLRs, Bridge cameras, and MFTs were gathering ground and the Indian consumer was also evolving, viewing photography as a passion to be taken seriously.

To match this rapidly evolving market scenario, Lumix pioneered the new category called MFT or Micro Four-Thirds. Lumix MFTs were the perfect camera models in-between simple compacts and sophisticated DSLRs.

This insight gave birth to Only for Passionographers. It was the opportune moment to craft a brand positioning for Lumix as the brand was set to be positioned for those camera users who were passionate about photography. This consumer set was labelled as "Passionographers" – those who were more than the amateur photographer but not completely professional either. The communication introduced Lumix MFTs as the perfect choice for the growing group of passionate photographers.

RESULT

• From 2009 to 2013, Lumix, which had been a late entrant, rose to the sixth position in the ranking and a 6% market share in an industry dominated by players like Nikon, Canon and Sony.
• Lumix, the digital camera brand grew by over 200% to garner a market share of 2.9% in just one year.
• The beauty products category garnered a market share of 18% in one year, bridging the gap with the leader who currently has a market share of 22%.