Seeing marriage between performance marketing and AI: Castrol’s Jaya Jamrani

Years ago, Castrol launched a TV campaign featuring two characters with contrasting names and personalities -- Sukhiram and Dukhiram. In the commercial, Sukhiram stressed upon the idea, ‘CRB nahin daaloge to mehenga padega’.

Sukhiram and Dukhiram are making a comeback -- this time with the ‘Badhte Raho Aage’ campaign, highlighting the benefits of Castrol CRB Turbomax.

"The current campaign, ‘Badhte Raho Aage' recognises the importance of truckers, and it plans to empower them with this superior 3X protection so that they continue to progress, and ride the economy forward," says Jaya Jamrani, vice president, marketing, Castrol.

In a conversation with Storyboard18, Jamrani touched upon the genesis of the campaign, the evolution of the advertising and marketing strategies, the revamp of the brand logo, expectations from the campaign and a lot more.

Edited excerpts:

Could you explain the genesis of the campaign?

The campaign is for the brand Castrol CRB. It is one of the most iconic brands when it comes to commercial vehicles and truck drivers. Our last campaign was around the health and wellness of truckers. This time, the campaign is the backbone of a product launch. We have a new product proposition on Castrol CRB, which is basically around 3X protection from the destructive cycle of heat, deposit and wear.

These three things impact the life of the engine and what Castrol CRB does is to give protection against all these three for a longer engine life. When a truck is protected and has a longer engine life, it means progress and prosperity for the truck driver. At Castrol, we made sure that the campaign was not just about giving the best protection to the vehicle and the engine, but also about playing a larger role in the life of the consumer.

We all know that truck drivers are indeed the backbone of transportation and logistics, and, hence, our economy. The current campaign, ‘Badhte Raho Aage’, recognises the importance of truckers, and it aims to empower them with this superior 3X protection, so that they continue to progress, and ride the economy forward. This is also one of the many ways in which Castrol’s re-ignited new vision of accelerating progress comes to life.

In the past, we had a very iconic ad film on Castrol CRB called Sukhiram Dukhiram. So, we decided to bring back the legacy of Sukhiram Dukhiram, but in the current context and economic setup. So, we have Sukhi, who is a young progressive trucker who constantly choses Castrol CRB, and Dukhi, who basically experiences a lot of engine failure and repairs due to inappropriate engine oil choice.

With this very quirky narrative, the television ad demonstrates how Castrol CRB Turbomax empowers truckers to forge ahead in their businesses while emphasising on the importance of the right engine oil. That will be the first leg of the television ad. We will very soon come out in regional languages as well.

Once we have the television commercial (TVC) breaking, we will have a very extensive on-ground activation as well. We are also looking at establishing strategic partnership with entities that provide essential resources to enhance the growth and success of truckers. It will be a national campaign and will be amplified through television, digital, on-ground as well as out-of-home (OOH) advertising.

How different is the marketing and advertising, media plan and on-ground activation for this campaign from the rest of the campaigns executed at Castrol?

The core fundamentals of marketing, about being relevant to the consumer, playing a role in the life of the consumer, and adding value as a brand – always remain.

Whether we are working with cars, bikes or with truck buyers, that insight is constant. The difference here is that it is about truck consumers. The progress of the truck and the progress of the trucker is interlinked. That is why engine oil plays a very important role in helping the trucker progress, and hence ‘Badhte Raho Aage’.

It is different from a bike consumer who is probably a commuter or an avid bike rider and is looking for either protection or performance, or from a car consumer who is looking for safety and security on the road when he or she is driving.

The insight is very different from the two categories that we work in. But what is common is that it is relevant and plays a very important role in the life of the consumer.

Recently, we activated our brand partnership on IPL digital. The second part why it is different is that, for example, car consumers and their media choices are around Connected TV (CTV) and digital. Bike consumer is basically a mobile, digital, and content consumer.

In the case of truckers, the media choices are very different, since they are a fragmented community and are on-the-go. So, while television still plays an important role in terms of reach and impact, we feel that in the case of truckers, on-ground activation and finding them at transport nagars and pit stops on roads are important. Strategic partnerships with other companies and players in the trucking industry also help to reach out.

So, depending on the segment of consumers we are talking to, the media as well as the insights tend to be different. CRB, as a brand, has always stood to make an impact in the life of truckers. This is the way where India is growing, and it will be very interesting to be a part of the growth journey through the trucker and through Castrol CRB.

How have the marketing and advertising strategies at Castrol India improved over a period?

I would answer the question as to how it has evolved over a period. For a marketer, it is very important to think of insights, and the role she will play in the lives of the consumer. I think, over the years, how it has changed for us is that we believe that our consumers are looking for a larger role for a brand to play in their lives.

We have done a lot of activation around Castrol Activ, which is our product brand for bikes, around making their vehicles and themselves as ambassadors of change, whether it was during the elections when we did the vote for democracy campaign (in 2019) or, generally, around youth which is standing for a larger cause, and the insight is very different. For truckers, over the years, we have realised that their health, and well-being, both physical and emotional, and now their progress are very important insights. How we have evolved is that we have made sure that with changing times, with the audiences becoming different and their needs becoming different, we make sure that our campaign, and the impact of that campaign add value to the consumers.

The media choices have also changed. The consumer has become more progressive. For example, IPL this time was totally digital and looking at the kind of numbers we saw on IPL, it has democratised the way people consume IPL. With time, we make sure that we are at the right media vehicles.

Today, Generative AI is the buzzword. How does Castrol plan to incorporate Generative AI in its advertising and marketing strategies?

First of all, it is a very interesting space. I see it as a great opportunity for marketers to not just create excellent content but also to make their lives simpler. We are looking at Generative AI very closely. I think there is some more time before we find the output of Generative AI so trustworthy that we can use it for our external audiences - consumers and customers.

Currently, I encourage my team to use a lot of Generative AI in Midjourney inspirations, whether that is for internal ideation or for looking at Storyboards, etc. I think it will evolve with time and it is a great place to really look at and observe and learn from.

A few months back, the logo of Castrol was revamped. Could you touch upon this, with respect to its colour psychology and the reason for the rebrand?

That is something we at Castrol are very excited about. The ‘Badhte Raho Aage’ theme is very much in line with the new vision of accelerating progress. So, it is not just the logo refresh. The overall brand positioning has gone through a refresh and it is aimed at reflecting the unique positioning Castrol enjoys in the market, and the opportunities that will come with the changing needs of the customers.

It is the result of a lot of comprehensive work around brand strategy and we worked a lot with our consumers and customers and took feedback from industry experts as well as people who have been in the automotive world, and in the world of lubricants.

This logo is more modern, dynamic and has got a vibrant design. It focuses on the core strengths of Castrol. We feel that because it is so simple and so dynamic, its application is very easy across any media, especially digital. This is because you need agile, nimble designs to be able to adapt.

We have maintained the iconic red, green, and white colours which are very strongly associated with Castrol. It is set to improve the memorability of the brand digitally as well. Interestingly, the brand also has a new sonic identity, which is a new sound of Castrol. That is also being crafted in line with the new look and feel. This is also a very distinctive asset that will drive awareness and memorability.

The intent and the validation we have from research and the input and the feedback from our consumers and customers are that it is a very young-looking, modern and a very dynamic design, and very easy to adapt across different forms.

After the logo's rebranding, how has it improved the standing of the brand?

It is early days but the feedback has been very positive. In terms of packaging, the feedback that we have received is that the shelf throw is very good. It is very easy to do planogramming, and the product land architecture is very simple and easy for the consumer to understand.

With respect to the signages and the look and feel of the brand in the market, we have received very strong and positive feedback from our dealers and distributor communities. If you look at any of the Castrol ads now, they end with the new sonic identity. We have got a very strong feedback in terms of its recall being good and fitting in with the modern and dynamic imagery we want Castrol associated with.

Which concept or strategy of marketing has improved the standing of Castrol, and the connection between the brand and the customers?

I think personalisation is one thing. To my mind, it is also the art of being able to find your audiences and be able to customise content, solutions and offers to them.

The fundamentals are about strong brand-building, upper funnel, as we marketers call it, building a very strong brand with a very strong consumer insight, and a very solid intent from the brand to make a real difference in the life of consumers. A very powerful, insightful, inciseful brand-building will be the essence of marketing. That upper funnel is what will help brands survive hundreds of years, like us. Performance marketing comes in to target the right customers and drive purchases. I think a balance is required and that balance is what generates long- term value for brands, instead of only personalisation or lower funnel marketing.

How powerful is the concept of personalised marketing? How has this strategy improved the brand and consumer connection?

From a brand point of view and from a consumer point of view, each one of us are living in ecosystems where we like content, solutions, and offers to be personalised. That is very much possible. In the case of cars and bike users, personalisation is very easy. This is because you have data cohorts, and you have mirror data that you can look at and clean.

In the case of trucks and tractors, it has been a bit of a journey because you don’t have second party data so easily available for truckers and tractor owners. But, we do have a lot of mass activation and on-ground connect with them.

We have acquired a lot of first-party data. We also have a lot of high-quality, first-party data with mechanics and we do use a lot of Rephrase AI. We have used a lot of celebrities as sponsorship partners to be able to create a lot of personalised content for each of these audiences.

I think it is a fantastic space and also seeing a lot of tools and technologies. AI, being one of them, allows a marketer to do it in a very cost-effective and highly impactful way.

What are the trends you have witnessed in the arena of marketing last year and this year? How have you capitalised on that? Could you provide examples?

Last year, it was a lot about personalisation and personalisation at mass. This is where we used AI with (Bollywood actor) Tiger Shroff to communicate, wish and personalise messages to 300, 400 or 1000s of our mechanic dealer community, and also wish them on their birthdays, special days, etc.

This year, what is interesting is that we are going very strongly behind performance marketing and we are seeing this interesting marriage of AI and performance marketing. I am hoping that very soon, there will be a time when the output of Generative AI will become very trustworthy and become supremely effective.

This year, we have moved a lot to performance marketing, and building the right purchase funnel for our consumers. Solid, strong, good advertising, brand building and making a real difference in the life of the consumer continue to be the foundation stake of a marketer.

Speaking about the recent campaign, what message do you wish to spread and what do you plan to accomplish?

As a marketer, it is not just our job, but also our responsibility to make a real impact in the lives of our consumers. We are not here to sell more, but we are here to create a long-lasting impact with our brand in the life of our consumer. That, of course, will generate long-term value for the brand.

We launched the Castrol CRB Turbomax ‘Badhte Raho Aage’ campaign with a very strong intent to partner in the progress of the life of the trucker.

What are the tips you wish to provide to budding marketers?

The world has endless opportunities. I think marketing has always been a very fascinating space, and people's energy can be stimulating. My tip to all budding marketers is to balance two things. One is to be fearless. There are so many new technologies. There is AI, and there is so much happening around us. Play with it, be fearless, try out new things, challenge the status quo.

Also, balance it out with extreme discipline. Good marketing comes with a lot of fearless thinking, and challenging the status quo. Think fearless, think big, and play with things when it comes to creating ideas. Be fearless when it comes to ideating and thinking what to do, but be very disciplined and extremely focused when it comes to executing it.