Challenger brands

Are big brands really doomed? How big brands can adapt to the threat from small insurgents

Article • David Taylor, WARC Best Practice, October 2018

Explores insights from new research into the threat to big brands of attack by small 'insurgent' brands.

Article • Nick Geoghegan, WARC Best Practice, July 2016

This article explores the position of a brand as challenger - a state not necessarily conferred by not-market-leader status; traditions won't do so the rules must be re-written.

Business banking switch - business unusual for RBS

Case Study • MRS Awards, Winner, MRS Award for Financial Services Research, 2019

RBS (Royal Bank of Scotland), a banking brand, launched real-time customer communication research in the UK to understand how it could get consumers to switch banks.

How TSB Bank used the face of adversity to transform into a challenger brand

Case Study • MRS Awards, Finalist, MRS Award for Financial Services Research, 2019

TSB Bank, a bank, used a new measurement tool tailored to retail banking to help senior TSB executives navigate through an IT crisis to a brighter future in the UK.

Booking.com: Data-proofed social campaign

Case Study • Camille Lin, Linda Qin, Doris Xu, Nicholas Short, WARC Media Awards, Shortlisted, Best Use of Data, 2019

As a newcomer in China, Booking.com sought to build strong audience connections in what is a fiercely competitive online travel industry.

Google Translate: The Secret Menu

Case Study • Leslie Yu, Mimi Lu, WARC Media Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Use of Tech, 2019

Amid a highly cluttered and competitive mobile app market in China, Google Translate succeeded in driving downloads of its app and increasing brand awareness.

Three successful marketing trends in Asia

News • 13 November 2019

Adopting a challenger mentality, using AR and VR to create new consumer experiences and reframing brands using cultural insights are among the successful marketing trends being used in Asia, according to a new WARC study.

Asian Strategy Report: Lessons from the 2019 WARC Prize for Asian Strategy

Article • WARC Exclusive, November 2019

Examining the trends in marketing strategy in Asia, with lessons for marketers drawn from an analysis of the entries to the WARC Prize for Asian Strategy 2019.

bubly launch campaign

Case Study • MMA Smarties, Gold, X (Global), 2019

Bubly, the sparkling water brand, successfully broke into the sparkling water category by partnering with a set of celebrities and social media content platforms to drive a mobile led campaign that engaged US consumers.

Why more brands need to collaborate

News • 04 November 2019

Collaboration is a potentially powerful strategy to enable marketing to scale its impact but few brands use it, says Adam Morgan of eatbigfish; he has a framework to help change that.

Finding our X: A strategic framework for collaboration

Article • Adam Morgan, Admap, November 2019

A central strategic capability of key war strategists from Genghis Khan to Winston Churchill is the ability to form alliances and coalitions.

Level: Levelling the playing field for long-haul travellers

Case Study • Account Planning Group - (UK), Entrant, 2019

Level, an airline brand under airline holding company International Airlines Group (IAG), was successfully launched through OOH, DOOH and the unveiling of a new design.

Managing experience in a crisis: Five lessons from TSB

Article • Anna Hamill and Dom Boyd, Admap, October 2019

Looks at how, in 2018, TSB Bank – one of the UK’s leading challenger banks – experienced the most challenging year in its history and the lessons it learned from this experience.

Future of retail: how DTC is going mainstream

Article • Sam Peña-Taylor, WARC Exclusive, October 2019

DTC brands are coming for retail – or so we hear; research from the IAB explores the characteristics that set these brands apart and what incumbents can learn.

Huddle’s Kanga Cover

Case Study • SABRE Awards, Asia-Pacific, Consumer Products, Gold, 2019

Huddle, the insurance company, built strong brand awareness in Australia when it launched its Kanga Cover feature to protect drivers from animal collisions.

Ovaltine: Empower kids' happy exploration

Case Study • Tin Le, Yen Tran, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Milk flavouring product Ovaltine used an omnichannel strategy, based on putting its rival's advertising under the spotlight, to re-establish its brand credentials and boost sales in Vietnam.

Shan Foods: One Biryani, One Family

Case Study • Jahanzaib Qureshi, Zahra Fatima Ali, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Food mixes brand Shan Foods ran a TV-led campaign promoting progressive values to appeal to young Punjabi women in Pakistan.

Geneco: Power The Change

Case Study • Elissa Wong, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Singaporean energy company Geneco ran a digital and OOH campaign to attract customers in Singapore's emerging energy market.

Yoodo: No stores? No problem

Case Study • Stephanie Caunter, Nirali Bhukhanwala, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Digital-only telecoms provider Yoodo used Facebook and Google to attract new subscribers in Malaysia.

Dainik Bhaskar: Creating India’s first socially curated newspaper

Case Study • Nikhil Pillai, Yousuf Rangoonwala, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Hindi language newspaper, Dainik Bhaskar, grew subscribers by covering content that their readers wanted, in the Indian state of Bihar.

Cadbury Fuse: Due to hunger

Case Study • Beenu Kurup, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Chocolate brand Cadbury's Fuse took an integrated approach to increase brand affinity and share and overtake its rival Snickers in India.

Pond's Men: Bodybuilder

Case Study • Nayantara Atal, Sumegha Rao, Benoit Wiesser, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Bronze and Research Excellence Special Award, 2019

Skincare challenger brand Pond's Men leveraged a new way of thinking to shake up a tired category and reverse declining sales in Indonesia.

Livfast Batteries: Stating the Obvious

Case Study • Varchas Sinha, Yousuf Rangoonwala, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Automobile battery manufacturer SAR Group created an unconventional and striking commercial to cut through in a cluttered category and showcase its new Livfast brand in India.

ALDI: Good Different Phase 2 – Questioning the cult of loyalty

Case Study • The Communications Council, Silver, Australian Effie Awards, 2019

Aldi, a supermarket chain, launched a TVC and Loyalty Calculator to show Australian customers the benefits of shopping at Aldi over using other supermarkets' disappointing loyalty schemes.

Fintechs pursue a platform strategy

News • 29 August 2019

Fintechs are seen as disruptors to traditional banks, but the potential of the question they are asking has far deeper implications for the financial sector.