The Rin TVC by Hindustan Unilever Limited has been in the limelight for the past week. The TVC did arise a lot of questions in the consumers mind; a) Can a competitor dig at a rivals brand so bluntly, b) Is it legal for a corporate company to avoid all the advertising rules to gain publicity and c) What will be the after effect of this TVC?…Though, we may have to wait and watch for the answers of the above questions, right now what’s evident is that the ad has done what it intended.

The TVC was aired on February 25, 2010 and had the heads turning over the mention of the rival brand Tide Naturals in it. The commercial involved comparison between the two brands. Industry sources also reveal that the ad was released on weekend on purpose, considering the holidays due to Eid-e-Milad and Holi.

The ad featured two mothers waiting at a bus stop for their children to arrive from school. Meanwhile, they happen to glance in each other’s shopping basket. One lady had Rin whereas the other had opted for Tide Naturals. The lady with Tide starts bragging about the product by mentioning about ‘khushboo aur safedi bhi’. The Rin lady just smiles.

When the school bus arrives, both the children come out. The Rin boy’s shirt happens to be more white and shining than the Tide boy’s. The Tide lady is shocked looking at the spotless shirt. The Rin boy then takes a dig at Tide and asks his mother, ‘Aunty chaunk kyun gayi?’ (Chaunk Gaye? is the tagline for the brand Tide).

Though the TVC claims lab results as a proof, the industry believes it’s just a false claim. Meanwhile, P&G has moved to the Calcutta High Court against Rin’s TVC. P&G mentioned that the TVC was “disparaging” against its detergent brand, Tide Naturals.

Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has also received several complaints against the tvc and will reveal shortly its verdict.

Hindustan Unilever Limited, India’s largest FMCG Company has appointed Omnicom Media Group as its digital agency. The agency will handle the entire HUL portfolio including Dove and Ponds. Meanwhile, Mindshare still remains to be the traditional media agency for HUL.

HUL’s digital media account is pegged at about US$7 million. OMG has been appointed after a global review of Unilever’s media buying business.

The company is expected to explore the digital medium through search, display and mobile marketing for more than 10 brands including Dove, Ponds, Axe, Lakme, Kwality Walls and Knorr.

The move emphasizes the need of not only having an online presence but also creating an impact on the minds of the consumers.

HUL blocked the entire Star Network on Sept 17, 2009 as a part of its roadblock campaign for HUL products. The HUL brands that were featured throughout the day were Lifebuoy followed by Dove, Ponds and Fair & Lovely.

Srikanth Srinivasamadhavan, general manager, media services, Hindustan Unilever Ltd, says, “Through this roadblock, we will reach more than 100 million viewers in India at the same time throughout the day. We hope to bring stronger engagement with consumers through this innovation.”

“The first time this was done as a network roadblock was in 2007, when Hutch changed to Vodafone. We are confident that this roadblock with HUL brands, primarily Lifebuoy, will create as huge an impression in the minds of the customers as it did for Vodafone,” said Mr Kevin Vaz, EVP – Advertising and Sales, STAR India.

Kevin Vaz, executive vice-president, advertising and sales, STAR India, says, “We are confident that this roadblock with HUL brands, primarily Lifebuoy, will create as huge an impression in the minds of the customers as it did for Vodafone, cutting across C&S households and delivering high reach.”

The Star Network comprises of STAR Plus, STAR One, STAR Gold, STAR Utsav, STAR Movies, STAR World, Channel [v], STAR Jalsha, STAR Pravah and STAR Vijay. All these channels cater to different audience and with such a strategy HUL surely intends to capture them more than ever.