Brand Update : Thums Up wants you to live the thunder

This summer , the iconic brand in the Indian soft drinks industry has made a significant change in its positioning. Thums Up, rightly said as India's most resilient brand, is now running a campaign which marks a significant change in its positioning.

Over the last few years, Thums Up has been promoted on the theme where the protagonist ( celebrity) would do anything for his Thums Up. In all the campaigns, the protagonist would do unbelievable stunts to get hold of this Thums Up. The brand lived up to its reputation of being a Macho drink was further reinforced by its powerful tagline " Taste the Thunder".

This summer, the brand owners decided to change the winning formula. The entire brand's communication platform has been changed. The protagonist now does not chase Thums Up. But rather, he gets so excited after having Thums Up that he begins to do the stunts. The brand although retains the tagline " Taste The Thunder" now has another slogan " Aaj Kuch Toofany Kartey Hain ". 

Watch the ad here : Thums Up Live the thunder 

It also seems that the brand has dropped Akshay Kumar as the brand ambassador. The new ad features the Telugu super star - Mahesh Babu for the all India campaign.

What is significant in the latest campaign is that the brand's definition of context has changed. The protagonist now possess Thums Up and now he is seeking excitement outside the brand . In my opinion, now the brand is no longer the major focus or the goal in the plot. The ultimate goal of the celebrity is now something other than the brand ( like shortcut /time saving etc) . This is a very significant change in the brand's communication strategy  and not a good idea. While the earlier theme of chasing a Thums Up was unique, the idea of doing stunts after consuming a soft-drink is an old idea. For example , Mountain Dew's campaign of Daar Ke Aage Jeet Hain has the similar concept. I don't understand why a brand like Thums Up chose to ditch its unique communication platform and adapt a also-ran communication theme. Who got bored with the old positioning ?

The only solace is that the brand still carries the iconic tagline " Taste the Thunder "

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Thums Up

afaqs has a relevant article on the subject - Read it here