NEW DELHI: PepsiCo, the food and beverage giant, is looking to utilise co-creation, and to expand its product portfolio, as it seeks to enhance its overall position in India.
Punita Lal, the executive director, beverage marketing, for PepsiCo India, argued it was essential for advertisers in the country to move beyond "monologues" to "consumer engagement".
"A clear shift is happening in brand communication, and consumers should not just be recipients of marketing messages but partner us in creating content," she said.
As part of this process, the soft drinks giant asked young consumers to help create the soundtrack for its latest domestic ad campaign, which is called "Youngistaan ka wow."
More broadly, the US-based firm is considering how best to display nutritional information on its packaging in a way that will help educate shoppers.
It is also developing a new "bottom of the pyramid" product specifically for the Asian nation, alongside using Tropicana, Gatorade and Nimbooz to promote "healthier" refreshment, according to Lal.
"Also, we will be looking at more sugar-free products and we hope regulatory approvals for alternate sweeteners come soon," she continued.
"But at the same time, while the consumer is showing more trends of being health and wellness conscious and there certainly is a lot of talk, she is not walking the talk that much."
While PepsiCo has started to "reluctantly" pass on rising commodity costs to customers, Lal suggested it was simultaneously "enhancing value" in order to "ensure we keep consumer demand robust."
This has included offering one-litre variants of some of its carbonated drinks for just 32 rupees ($0.70; €0.52; £0.47), which represents a "good value proposition" for one of its key demographics.
"We are positioning it as a small celebration for the family, and we've called it the home pack," said Lal.
Similarly, it has introduced a reduced-size can valued at just 15 rupees, as well as glass bottles and 600ml offerings, to cover all needs and price points.
