Don’t lose your focus

Brand extensions may be a quick way of appealing to a loyal customer base, but beware, such short-term measures can harm the flagship brand..

I left the corporate world many years ago — about 20 years ago. In a way I am glad I did so. I look at decisions made by senior, sensible, experienced managers and often wonder why they do what they do. It often amazes me that time and again they miss the obvious. I then wonder whether I would have also been like this had I continued in the corporate world. Which makes me glad I left it!

There was once a very nice television ad by a leading newspaper that depicted a person not recognising an opportunity staring him in the face. This seems to be the situation in many companies. In today’s world of severe competition and very little differentiation between products and services, it is not very common for brands to hold on to customers or grab customers from other brands. When one gets such an opportunity, one must grab it. But in this world of short-term gains, such opportunities are sadly missed.

Let’s consider the example of how a strong and loyal customer base can be eroded when a company loses focus on what its brand stands for. I have been an unabashed fan of Jet Airways. At least till recently. (Disclaimer: I am neither a shareholder nor any form of consultant. I have always been a regular fare-paying customer.) I believe its standards of service delivery and consistency have over the years been outstanding. Jet Airways has always been my first preference for domestic air travel — in fact even for international.

But today when I want to travel domestic, I am confused. And I think Jet is also quite confused. Which is why I am confused. If the company is not clear about its brand and what it stands for, how can it expect its customers to be clear about what it stands for?

The anatomy of a lost customer

Let’s get into the mind of a loyal customer – ME – and see what happens when he wants to continue to be loyal to a brand. I always (used to) go to the Jet Airways Web site to do my bookings. Today, when I visit the site to book my ticket, I am given three options — Jet Airways, Jet Konnect (with a K) and Jet Lite.

I am told that Jet Konnect and Jet Lite are no-frills carriers and we can buy our breakfast and snacks in-flight if we so desire. I am also constantly reminded that even as a Jet Privilege member, I will get none of the lounge and other privileges on these flights. Which is fine with me — as long as I have the option to travel Jet Airways as conveniently as I used to last year. But that is not the case as I discover.

I try to book a Bangalore–Hyderabad flight and interestingly, as on date of writing, I find there are no Jet Airways flights on that sector. When I want to fly Bangalore–Mumbai, there are no conveniently timed Jet Airways flights on that sector.

Let us see what Jet Airways has done through this strategy and what do I, a loyal customer, do under these circumstances? I say that if there is no Jet Airways flight that is convenient — not just any “Jet” flight mind you —I might as well scout around for other flights. So I either take the Kingfisher option if I am looking at a full-service carrier, or I go to one of the travel portals to select the most economical and convenient low-cost option.

What happens now? I choose Kingfisher on one occasion as I want to fly a full-service carrier and my favourite carrier has cut back on its flights and does not offer convenient flights any longer. Remember, I am not a promiscuous customer — Jet Airways has forced me into this mode.

I fly Kingfisher for the first time. Lo and behold I find that it is as good as Jet Airways, if not better. So the next time I need to travel, I am no longer particular that it has to be Jet Airways. I then become a member of the Kingfisher Kings Club programme and over a period of time, I move over to Kingfisher and become a loyal Kingfisher customer and an indifferent Jet Airways customer.

The interesting point is that the airline forced me to do this; I did not choose this on my own. (I have to travel to Mumbai next week — I am booked on Kingfisher!)

On the other hand, if I want to make a low-fare trip, I go to the portal and choose from one of the many available options. I also gradually find out, as generally happens with customers for many other products too, that in the no-frills airlines segment ‘Jet’ is not necessarily the best. There are others as good if not better.

There is also little incentive for me to travel Jet as it also keeps reminding me that though a Jet Privilege customer I will get none of the privileges when I travel their other ‘Jet’ flights. So why should I be loyal to the Jet name?

The brand extension trap

So where is Jet in all this? What has branding and focus got to do with loyalty? I think there is a disconnect (not Konnect) between Jet Airways and me. As I see it, Jet Airways thinks that customers are loyal to ‘Jet’. The answer is NO. I am a loyal Jet Airways customer. Not Jet Konnect. Not Jet Lite.

I believe what the airline has done is built an extremely strong brand in Jet Airways and is successfully diluting the brand through Jet Konnect and Jet Lite. It is falling into the brand extension trap. If I have to choose a no-frills carrier, Jet Konnect or Jet Lite are not necessarily my first choices. I have many other options.

As a loyal Jet Airways customer, I am now confused about ‘Jet’ and its extensions. I do not know if Jet Airways is a higher-grade version of Jet Konnect and Jet Lite. Or is Jet Konnect a lower grade version of Jet Airways? I do not know what one should expect from any of these airlines now.

Jet has lost focus — I am not sure what it will do to its bottomline in the long run. In the short term, it appears to be posting positive results though its customers may not be as loyal anymore.

I certainly am not. I may be biased but in my last few travels on Jet Airways, I also found that the old energy levels were missing. Remember the same Jet Airways crew that offers high class, personalised service is now peddling snacks on trolleys on their Jet Konnect flights. Same people, same uniform, same appearance but different roles all together. Not easy, is it?

Brand extension seems a very attractive proposition for marketers to ride piggyback on strong brands. History has shown time and again that the success of a good brand lies in its focus and promise to the customer. Strong brands do not necessarily carry their equity to extended products.

In today’s competitive world, it is extremely difficult to build a strong brand. It would be extremely myopic and foolish to lose the brand equity for short-term gains. In the ultimate analysis, as we see above, the company may be responsible for customer promiscuity and not the customer as we often believe. Companies beware!

(The writer, Ramesh Venkateswaran, is the Director, SDM Institute for Management Development, Mysore.)