"Companies often do not have a

consumer focus."

SHUNU SEN(1939-2003)

By Group IV (18 C)
Visakh S (FK-1945)
Suriya G (FK-1899)
Chandra Sekhar B (FK-1964)
G.V.K Aditya (FK-2006)
KVP Varma (FN-95)
Naveen Prasad Y (FK-1908)
 INTRODUCTION
 The Indian market has undergone a sea change in the last four decades. And one man who has
seen it from close quarters is Shunu Sen, the acclaimed marketing guru.

 Shunu Sen, ex-marketing director of Hindustan Lever and CEO of Quadra Advisory.

 In fact, in over 35 years of his experience in sales and marketing, Sen helped launch many
brands like Close-up, Pepsodent, Liril, Wheel and Surf.

 He has been a member and office bearer of innumerous professional institutions including
Advertising Club-Mumbai, ABC, ISA and MRSI.

 He also chaired the high power committee appointed by the I&B Ministry to recommend best
practices in the marketing of airtime over Doordarshan and All India Radio.
 CONTRIBUTIONS
 Sen helped launch many brands like Close-up, Pepsodent, Liril, Wheel
 He also made ad campaigns for Lipton and Surf
 The concept of marketing was new to India in the early Sixties and Sen set about developing
it into a well-honed science.
 He helped the Confederation of India Industry and the government build the Made in India
brand.
 He began writing newspaper columns and was a sought-after speaker at all marketing and
advertising events.
 He strongly endorsed brand marketing and integrated marketing
 Sen set up Quadra Advisory in partnership with advertising professional Suhel Seth and one
of the world's largest ad and marketing conglomerates WPP Group
 India’s premier marketing guru, a manager par excellence and a people’s person to the core
 He was a visionary who introduced many innovative ideas in the Indian market place and
was instrumental in highlighting  the importance and essence of branding in the country.
 BACKGROUND

 Sidartha Sen, nicknamed Shunu, was born on 8th July, 1939 in an

upper-class Bengali household in Bombay, the son of a colonial
Indian Civil Service officer.

 He attended the Doon School in Dehra Dun, north of Delhi.

 Completed graduation from St Stephen's College in Delhi in 1959.

 Sen joined the high-profile Hindustan Lever as a management

trainee in 1960.

 Married Indu Narayan and had one son.

 CONCEPT OF MARKETING

 The concept of marketing was new to India in the early Sixties

and Sen set about developing it into a well-honed science.

 He gave actionable shape to the true meaning of marketing.

Over-simplifying, but not much, marketing is meeting a
consumer desire as yet unsatisfied, with a product or service, at
a profit. So it is not just about selling and advertising, though
both are necessary. It is about the consumer, hence about
people.

 According to Sen, all consumers preferred a "winning brand"

because it helped build their self-image and, to his employers'
delight and profit margins, he gave it to them.
 ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS

 Highly regarded in industry circles for his understanding and practice of

marketing principals, Sen has to his credit several successful brand
launches as well as turnaround of specific business divisions within HLL.

 The first was the Liril campaign with Karen Lunel the advertisement was a
big hit the ad sent Liril's sales graph soaring up

 The second campaign that went into the advertising and marketing hall of
fame was Surf's Lalitaji.
 His ad campaigns like Lipton and Surf, which gave rise to household
catchwords.

 Having missed entirely the new market that was opened up by Karsanbhai
Patel's Nirma, Shunu was looking to formulate a fierce fight back and Lintas
came up with Lalitaji.

 The unconventional strategy of using a thrifty housewife worked wonders on

Surf sales. Surf's revival also gave Shunu the time to move
down market and challenge Nirma with Wheel detergent.

 Hindustan Lever, in the pre-liberalisation days, an era of

lesser competition, seemed to be far more agile and
aggressive than it is today.
 SHUNU SEN’S DESPERATION AND
CONVICTION
 In 1990, a spinal problem trapped him in a wheel chair for the last decade
or more of his life and it brought out another formidable side of Shunu, that
he tried to hide behind those incredibly funny quips and wicked humour.
 He demonstrated that a wheel chair and a pair of nifty gloves could be used
to speed up his work rather than slow him down.
 He worked relentlessly hard, travelled more than most busy executives, and
used his post-retirement consultancy as an opportunity to work on a much
larger range of products and ideas.
 One of these was to help the Confederation of India Industry and the
government build the Made in India brand. He began writing newspaper
columns and was a sought-after speaker at all marketing and advertising
events.
 SHUNU SEN’S VIEWS ON INTEGRATED
MARKETING
COMMUNICATIONS
 Integrated Marketing is the combination of marketing
disciplines, functions and processes into a one-point
agenda of fulfilling consumer needs.
 Integrated Marketing Communications is the concept
of marketing communications planning that takes into
account the strategic rules of a variety of
communication disciplines – advertising, direct
response, sales response and public relations. It
combines all these to form a single message for the
consumer.
Contd….
 Different promotions for non-users and
consumers.
 Inviting feedback on all occasions
 Sponsorship and publicity may even preclude
the need for theme advertising
 Continuously re-profile your consumers
 Customer loyalty programme provides a good
database

The challenges of the 21st century

 BRAND MARKETING
 BRANDING has a long history, both in India and around the
world. The word ‘brand’ is derived from the word brandr, a
word used by early Norse tribesman meaning ‘to burn’, as in
branding livestock to declare ownership.

 He defines brand as a “A name for a marketable unit to

which a set of associations and benefits – functional and
emotional – have become attached”

 He believes brand as a
o A bundle of functional and emotional benefits
o a name with a reputation/a product with a reputation
o a mark of pride
o a simplifier of choice
o a product with an attitude
STEPS THAT NEED TO BE TAKEN TO CREATE A
STRONG BRAND

 It is a misconception that only a high level of advertising

expenditure can create a strong brand.

 Brand owners must invest in maintaining strong brands by:

 Innovating

 Gain mind share and market share through relevant

and powerful advertising
 Distribution

 Expanding consumer base

 Keeping margins intact and maintaining capital

efficiency
 QUADRA ADVISORY

 In 1995 Mr Sen was retired from HLL as the company's

Group Marketing Advisor and Vice President.

 In 1998, Shunu set up Quadra Advisory in partnership with

advertising professional Suhel Seth and one of the world's
largest ad and marketing conglomerates WPP Group
 ACTIVITIES OF QUADRA

 Quadra is a specialized and focused marketing consultancy.

 It provides critical consultancy in broadly 4 areas.

1) Marketing strategy

2) Distribution and Sales

3) Branding and Positioning

4) Marketing training
 CONCLUSION
 India’s premier marketing guru, a manager par excellence and a
people’s person to the core.

 Shunu Sen was a very warm person, a man of high values, very
accessible and sensitive to the needs of his associates. He was a
visionary who introduced many innovative ideas in the Indian
market place and was instrumental in highlighting  the importance
and essence of branding in the country.

 Sen has been a guiding hand to many a senior marketing and sales
professional during his 35-year plus career.

 On 3rd Jan, 2003 at the age of 63 he was died of a cardiac arrest in

New Delhi.
"Mr Sen was perhaps the single most important person
for shaping quality of marketing in India. He had an
incredible knowledge base. His demise is a deep loss
- not only to the industry but personally as well.‘’

-- Mr Anil Metre, Editor &

Publisher, Advertising & Marketing
Magazine
(close personal friend of Mr
Sen )
“I have made more mistakes than have
made successful moves”

“I am open to any suggestion”

-- Shunu Sen
THANK YOU