Bang on Target – Bingo

On 14th March 2007, ITC launched Bingo, targeting a market share of 25 percent of the 2000 crore branded snack market, in 5 years. Within a span of 6 months, Bingo captured a market share of 16 percent cutting into Pepsico Fritolay’s market share by 50 percent. With Business Standard's Annual Brand Derby selecting Bingo as the most successful brand launch of 2007, the brand seems a winner.
This was not the first time ITC had tried entering snacks market. They failed earlier with Bischips in 2003-04 when the product was rolled back in months. ITC was new to the food market and the failure of Bischips was due to lack of advertisement, product not catering to consumer wants, and a failed distribution strategy.ITC was careful not to repeat its mistakes.
What went to the launch of Bingo:–
1. Bingo was the outcome of a comprehensive research done by a cross functional team of 8, travelling to 14 cities to find what the consumer was looking for; which was found to be novelty and excitement.
2. The recipe was prepared by the chefs of ITC hotel.
3. 5 Rs and 10 Rs packs were launched in 16 flavours
4. The target segment was people of age group of 16-30.
5. Five commercials which had humour and which was irreverent was aired on youth channels like MTV, mass hindi channels like Zee and Star and new channels. They advertised through hoardings, radios and national dailies. The company also created a website “www.bingeonbingo.com” with offers, games, etc.
6. ITC distributed more than 4 lakh large racks for display at all points of sale and it also fully leveraged its strong distribution system. ITC now distributes Sunfeast in addition to cigarettes in the country.
7. The timing of the launch coincided with World cup where ITC Foods was an associate sponsor.
When Bingo was launched, it was not just another Lays; it was a new and innovative snack with Indian flavours. A case in point is the product Mad Angles (a combination of Khakra and tomato flavouring), with an innovative shape. The ads didn’t have any movie stars but made a mark with consumers.
Learning from the past mistakes, ITC got the basics right. It covered all the 4Ps in launch and had bingo bang on target.