Creative strategy: Surf excel

One of the key reasons for Surf to capture the Pakistani market successfully is its focus on Niche.
Instead of targeting the whole market, it targeted the middle-income group and the householders
and housewives. However, in terms of promotion, Surf Excel made some miracle in the Pakistani
market. The outrage had such a strong root that, the whole name of detergent powder has been
restored by Surf.

From the beginning, it has focused on the TV screen. Perhaps they presuppose it to be the future
knowledge box of the middle class and lower class. One after another, it telecasted important
creative messages as taglines. On the same time they also introduced some easy techniques to
attract the middle class towards their products.

Elements of creative message/copy platform:

Issue addressed:

Surf Excel is well known and popular brand for its renowned tagline “Daag tou achay hotay
hain(Dirt is good)’’. But this is much more meaningful than mere a tagline. It is a foremost
philosophy that the brand lives by, with a natural and deep-rooted passion to guarantee child
development through physical learning. For many years, the brand is working hard to create
awareness on the importance of child’s experimental learning. As we all know dirt is a natural
and integrated part of the process of children experiencing life and developing gradually. There
are little rights that permit children to live fully, such as playing in a park without the fear of
getting dirty/stained or painting a flower pot or drawing a page without a care about paint stains.
All these small but crucial and very important experiences that help nurture creativity, and build
confidence in child’s personality.

Although child development and growth is the core of Surf Excel's message strategy, this would
not be possible without the superior and loftier stain removal properties of surf excel. Its
potential to remove a wide range of stains effectively and efficiently is what gives Surf Excel’s
consumers the ability to break free from the unpleasant events and become feel free from the
stain related concerns. Because Surf Excel is so good at cleaning the dirt, users don’t have to
worry about getting dirty, therefore people can give their kids the freedom to explore the world
through experiences and truly engage with happy life while grow and develop simultaneously.

Target audience:

This brand has used mothers as target audience allowing their kids enjoy their freedom without
worrying about staining their clothes.it also target the middle-class house wives who are price
sensitive and searching for value added product at lower prices. As their one campaign clearly
stated that “surf ki kharidari mai hi smajhdari hai”.

Major selling idea/key benefit:

Surf Excel marketing strategy initially concentrated towards positioning itself as a brand which
gives value against money. In one of the early advertisements, a woman asks the target audiences
that “Surf Excel ki Kharidari Mein hi Samajhdari hai”. This phrase affect a chord with value
conscious housewives and this campaign helped Surf Excel to become a household brand name.

The idea of depicting different values seems to be working excellent with people and build a
connection between a detergent powder and a sense of freedom and liberty. Detergent
advertising was usually considered quite annoying and boring in the past, while the all Surf
Excel ads did the reverse in an emotional and entertaining way.

“Daag to Ache Hain” campaign run smoothly which contradicts with other detergent brands’
campaign that normally talks about cleanliness and whiteness factor in their advertising.

Ad campaigns:

Here are some famous campaighns run by Surf excel;

 Agar Daag Lagne Se Kuch Acha Hota Hai Toh Daag Ache Hain
 Naiki nahi ruky gi
 Roz ik choti si naiki
 Madad ik ibadat hai
 Haar ko harana hai
 Colors bring us together(Holi ad)
 Surf excel ads/campaigns and advertising appeals

Ad#1 madad ik ibadat hai:

Ad’s storyline: In 2016, surf excel released a Ramadan ad #madadekibadat, this cute ad display
a little young boy wo want to help an old hawker by selling his Ramadan food stuff and in doing
so his new kurta got stained. This ad clearly show the virtue of this holy month and tell us that
helping someone is also an act of goodness and faith. This TVC shows how small efforts go a
long way and the brilliant performance of all the characters memorialize the unique essence of
the month. The campaign was appreciated by the masses because of its interesting unique
storyline and the emotional connection.

Following appeals used in this ad

 Emotional appeal: in whole advertisement they did not highlight the product attributes and
why we should buy and use Surf Excel. Distinctly, the main goal of this advertisement is not
to highlight the product. This ad show the power of little, helpful deeds seems to be the ad’s
main goal, and this is what this ad was little distinguish from Ramadan promotions. Helping
others is the main purpose of this holy month and surf excel portray this massage very
emotionally, and if our kids stained their clothes in helping others then these stains are good.
 Music appeal: this ad convey its beautiful message of helping others by using music appeal.

Ad# 2 rang laaye sang:

Ad’s storyline: Surf Excel’s one-minute Holi unique ad ‘Rang Laaye Sang’ (colors bring us all
together) features two kids, a little young Hindu girl and a Muslim boy. The girl, dressed up in a
white t-shirt, decides to become stained in different Holi colors to save her Muslim friend who
has to go to a neighboring mosque. It states that agar kuc achaa karnt mn daagh lag jaye, to
daagh achy hy. This ad showed that one cannot forget the true spirit of this holy festival. The
#RangLaayeSang campaign from Surf Excel beautifully and unique way captures how the colors
of Holi can be a cause for good, dissolving differences and bringing all human regardless of their
religion together.
  Moral appeal/religion appeal: “Apnepan ke rang se auron ko rangne main daag lag
jaaye, toh daag acche hain (Stains that come as a part of a good deed are good stains)”,
attempted to promote religious unity with the advertisement. in this era all Brands often
stay away from stories and ads that have religion submerge in them, it’s good to see surf
excel break that self-imposed restriction. Surf excel has done well to capture the
innocence and playfulness of kids regardless of their religion.

Ad# 3 naiki nahi ruky gi:

Ad’s storyline: Surf Excel’s Neki Nahi Rukegi starts with a father having a discussion with his
little son about doing good deeds for other people. When his son ask regarding the current
environment and show the concerns about how to help others in such hard times when it is
mandatory to stay indoors, then his father tells him that when there is a will, there is a way. And
the child find a way to help others while maintaining social distancing, the little kid send a
basket, full of food, tied with a long rope down the window for his security guard, as well as
another girl painting a picture for her neighbor who is a nurse to show her appreciation for the
nurse by sending her a thank you card. Boy also left some food for another one of his needy
neighbors, hiding himself behind a wall to see his precious reaction. Another child helps out in
cleaning up a room where a policeman sits for his daily duty.

 Emotional appeal: Surf Excel’s advertisements are a must watch in Ramadan, as they
always display good deeds that can be done in this month. Even with the social
distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Surf Excel’s ad display that neki nahi
rukegi in Ramadan 2020. The company has always used little cut child actors to highlight
the impact of children on society as a whole.
 Music appeal also used in this ad. The background song “Rahmat Ki Baarish‘s “sung by
Shafqat Amanat Ali,this song was the perfect inclusion to this beautiful TVC by Surf
Excel.

Ad# 4 Daagh ghar pe rahy gy

Surf Excel's first quarantine related ad tells us that 'Daag' will stay at home. So, it was amazing
to see the Unilever detergent brand modify its catchphrase(Daagh to achy hoty hy) in a new ad
#DaagGharPeRahenge, meaning now the stains will stay at home, is ad is about how all the
things we are used to do outside will wait for us, while we're indoors. In this ad Surf Excel
neither used portable devices nor stock footage to shoot the ad. Instead, it used previous shots to
capture the theme of staying (inside) at home.
 Imaginary appeal: The theme of the ad is all about the future and how "Surf Excel
believes that these tough times will surely pass”. In the whole ad, we see an empty swing
and a garden, a cricket bat and wickets, but there were no players, a cycle in the park,
small toys in a muddy play area, and a school uniform hanging on a rack. Suddenly, we
hear a voice talking about these things and staying where they are, these things waiting
for us, while we and all the stains and dirt we bring, will remain at home, temporarily. It's
a joyful ad that talk about the future with optimism approach.

 Fear appeal: in this ad fear appeal is also used to learn kids and all people to stay at
home if they wanted to get rid of this deadly virus so they have to quarantine themselves
for a time. This intelligent addition to the campaign is a nice way to keep the brand
pertinent among the target group, even while nicely telling kids that this is the time to
stay indoors.
 Fun appeal: at the end, this campaign offer some options for parents to keep their
children busy, with the closing line: To learn smart and clever activities to do with kids,
visit Surf Excel on Instagram and Facebook.

Ad# 5 Haar ko harao:

Ad’s storyline: it was another inspirational campaign run by surf excel #HaarKoHarao. This one
minute-and-a-half-long ad features a team of young cricket players in conversation with their
coach after losing their fifth following cricket match When a cricket coach gives up and decide
to surrender after his team loses again and again, suddenly the kids get all dirty and try, in their
own sweet and unique way, to convince the coach that they can be winners in the future, and that
the match they lost wasn't their last one and the success is waiting for them if they don’t give up
as giving up is not at all a good option.
 Social appeal:The campaign revitalize and takes forward the brand’s decade-old tagline
‘dirt is good’ philosophy by realizing parents that if kids get dirty or stained in learning to
 defeat a failure, then that dirt is good. This campaign used social appeal to deliver a
message in a modern parenting challenge of helping kids to cope and manage with
failure. In a society that is so achievement and accomplishment oriented, a lot of kids
fight and struggle enough when they are faced with failure in their life. As a society, our
patience for failure is very low. Through this campaign Surf Excel want to develop a
movement to change the view on failure to a learning experience.
Ad#6 Surf excel taiz solutions:

This campaign include a series of advertisements which shows quick and easy solutions to the
problem. Like Surf excel tez/ biryani ad and many more ads that create easy and quick solutions
for mothers and kids on youtube and Facebook.

 Rational appeal:

The campaign is intend to create awareness among customers about changes in the formula
of Surf Excel. The formula has been buttressed in order to remove stains in half the time it
takes ordinary detergent to do the same. Surf Excel, which is initially designed for use in
washing machines, previously came in a low lather formula. The new formula has high foam
amount which is intend to help washing machines take out stains easily. Additionally, the
formula has also taken into account the fact that the northern areas of Pakistan generally get
hard water and the product works well even in that case.

Despite these value additions properties, the price of Surf Excel remains the same because
the brand wants to remain competitive.

 Reminder advertising:

The advertising campaign for the new Surf Excel used the word tez across all its communication.
While maintain the ‘Dirt is Good’ philosophy which cultivates that children should be free to
enjoy and experience life and get dirty for their physical, mental and emotional development, the
campaign focuses on giving quick and easy solutions to daily problems faced by our mothers.
 SWOT Analysis of Surf Excel

Strengths
 Good image in the market
 Well-known brand name
 Higher market share
 Effective advertising
 Strong distribution channel
 Economies of scale
Weaknesses
 Weak spending on research and
development
 Internal operating problems
 Huge inventory stocks

Opportunities Threats
 Increasing market grown  Low profit margins
 Can increase product line further  Tough competition in detergent
 Changing customers’ needs and wants industry
 Corporate social responsibility  Increases in taxes
 Market expansion  Increased prices