Cutting through the clutter: mascots in Indian marketing

This paper explores theoretically and empirically the mascot concept in India, its contribution towards brand building and the persuasive power of these characters in enhancing brand preference. The approach is qualitative. The results are derived from in-depth interviews with nine retired and semi-retired leading names in the Indian advertising agencies having past experience with well known campaigns using mascots. Also, 42 senior citizens were interviewed in detail. Interesting insights into the topic examining the influence of these fictional characters on various aspects of consumer brand relations have emerged. Some mascots in India have become classic figures building a strong identity and helped to create and express the brand's personality. Mascots interact with families in real life and create an emotional connection and this leads to a great bonding between the brand and people. In India where celebrity ambassadors are prohibitively expensive, mascots are an artistic and economical model for building brand equity. This study has managed to come up with notable first hand insights from the Indian advertising fraternity and people at large on the impact of these fictional characters on various facets of consumer brand relations that have useful implications in mascot advertising.