Challenger brands

Redoxon: Be new normal ready – #CesBeforeCus

Case Study • MMA Smarties, Indonesia, Silver, 2021

Redoxon, the vitamin brand, reinforced itself as the most trusted brand offering the most effective immunity protection in Indonesia.

Allegheny Health Network: Creating #LivingProof of its care quality credentials

Case Study • WARC Cases, January 2022

Allegheny Health Network (AHN), a healthcare provider in western Pennsylvania (WPA), increased its share of patients by proving its approach to individualised care through its extensive ad campaign.

Pandemic prism lights brand success

Opinion • Naeiri Zargarian, December 2021

Interbrand’s Naeiri Zargarian details how remote living and working and an increased focus on wellbeing has resulted in a fertile business environment for brands across a range of sectors.

Similac: Touch

Case Study • Gilad Kat, Guy Melzack, WARC Media Awards, Gold, Effective Use of Tech, 2021

Infant formula milk brand Similac turned to touch to help boost sales by becoming mums' brand of choice in Israel.

Lincoln: Lighting up Guangzhou

Case Study • Nicholas Short, Steven Shen, WARC Media Awards, Bronze, Effective Use of Tech, 2021

Auto brand Lincoln harnessed two innovative technologies to ensure the eyes and attention of China's affluent were completely focused on the launch of its new Nautilus model in an extremely cluttered category.

Google Pay: Changing the game

Case Study • Jaspreet Naurath, Deepankar Grover, Richa Kohli, WARC Media Awards, Shortlisted, Best Use of Data, 2021

Digital wallet platform and online payment system Google Pay leveraged product data to drive media effectiveness and become the number-one UPI payments player in India.

Vedantu Innovations: Meteoric climb to a top EdTech brand in India

Case Study • SABRE Awards, South Asia, Gold, 2021

Vedantu, an online tutoring platform, launched a strategy in India to establish itself as a challenger brand in the EdTech space and an EdTech leader that sustains India's learning needs.

Naselin: Prajapati, the sleeping night watchman

Case Study • Manisha Sain, Devanshi Saha, Bushra Halim, WARC Awards for Asian Strategy, 2021

Naselin, a nasal decongestant spray, launched a campaign in India to stand out despite being a 'me-too' product.

Unilever: The Vegetarian Butcher

Case Study • John Dawson, Annie Chen, Nicholas Short, WARC Awards for Asian Strategy, 2021

Plant-based food company, The Vegetarian Butcher, overcame product perception barriers for its launch into China through a partnership with Burger King.

Nautilus: Lighting up Guangzhou

Case Study • Nicholas Short, Steven Shen, WARC Awards for Asian Strategy, 2021

Car manufacturer, Lincoln, successfully launched its domestically manufactured luxury SUV using a 3D projection and drone constellation in China.

Standard Chartered: The fable of egg fried rice

Case Study • Michele Bouquet, WARC Awards for Asian Strategy, 2021

Banking brand Standard Chartered increased engagement and consideration in Singapore using a TV, digital and social media campaign that focused on global trade.

CreditorWatch: Mapping the health of the Australian economy

Case Study • SABRE Awards, APAC, Gold, 2021

CreditorWatch, a digital credit reporting agency, achieved significant media coverage of its Business Risk Review report in Australia.

BetaShares: Introducing ETFs to everyday Australians

Case Study • SABRE Awards, APAC, Gold, 2021

BetaShares, a financial brand, achieved consistent and widespread coverage via four campaigns in Australia.

Libresse/Bodyform: WombStories

Case Study • APG (UK), Gold, 2021

Libresse/Bodyform, a menstrual hygiene products brand, launched a global campaign to position themselves as the brand that understands women's intimate lives and build penetration to a wider audience.

Dacia: Ingenious Productions - Lessons in selling cars from a living room

Case Study • APG (UK), Entrant, 2021

Dacia, Renault's budget car brand, launched a campaign in the UK to challenge the negative perceptions that its cars are cheap by reframing itself as ingenious.

2021 Pandemic Brand Playbook: Decoding (and leveraging) the “disruptor” gene of challenger brands

Article • Matt Kleinschmit, WARC Exclusive, Spotlight US, September 2021

Discusses why changing US consumer attitudes and behaviors during the pandemic have made this a perfect time for the rise of challenger brands.

The US bread-baking fad is over, but other COVID-induced consumer behaviors remain

Opinion • Cathy Taylor, September 2021

Cathy Taylor, WARC’s US Commissioning Editor, introduces the latest installment in WARC’s Spotlight US series, which offers insight into US consumer behavior during an uncertain year shaped by COVID-19 and economic challenges.

ManipalCigna Health Insurance: Health insurance for the healthy

Case Study • Rajesh Sharma, Akhilesh Nath, Arushi Chak, WARC Awards for Asian Strategy, Shortlisted, 2021

Health insurance brand ManipalCigna improved its equity scores, digital engagement and sales through a digital and social campaign that encouraged behavioural change in India.

RIO Pads: India! Periods are red, not blue

Case Study • Manisha Sain, Devanshi Shah, WARC Awards for Asian Strategy, Silver, 2021

Rio Pads, a sanitary products brand, launched a campaign in India to promote its more absorbent pads and challenge taboos surrounding periods.

Oatly: The New Word

Case Study • Marketing Society, The Marketing Society Awards, Highly Commended, 2021

Oatly, a producer of alternative dairy products using oats, created a new Cantonese word for plant-based milk to start a conversation about sustainability in Hong Kong.

Little Caesars: Big pizza

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Strategy Lion, 2021

Little Caesar's, a pizza brand, launched the Big Pizza campaign in the US to drive sales and increase brand awareness.

Varo: Democratized dollars

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Strategy Lion, 2021

Varo, a financial services company, launched a campaign in the US after becoming America's first digital bank, targeting low-income earners who had been left behind by traditional banks.

Jawwy: The Fairness Show

Case Study • Mario Morby, WARC Prize for MENA Strategy, Entrant, 2021

Mobile telco brand Jawwy focused on fairness to increase brand equity and grow sales in the cluttered Saudi telecom category.

WaterWipes: Early Days Club

Case Study • SABRE Awards, EMEA, Gold, 2021

Waterwipes, a brand of baby wipe, launched the Early Days Club to support new parents in the UK and Ireland during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Embracing the underdog: The Australian challenger brands disrupting their categories

Article • Josie Tutty, WARC Exclusive, July 2021

Challenger brands are not necessarily small or niche but can be any brand that is ready to disrupt by bringing something new to a category.