Background

A household-care brand (“Brand H”) selling floor cleaners, dish liquids and disinfectants had strong urban recall and a premium-yet-affordable positioning. For years it competed successfully despite having 12–18% higher MRP than value brands.

However, over 18 months the brand’s volume share dropped by 11pp even though its marketing spend increased by 24%. Competitors were not advertising aggressively — they were simply cheaper.

Leadership believed price was the problem. Data suggested otherwise.

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The Problem

Brand H’s urban segmentation model assumed the majority of its revenue came from mid-income households with hygiene-focused buying preferences. But a deeper category analysis revealed:

• 72% of category growth was now from value-driven households
• A new micro-segment: “premium-switchers” emerged — buyers who preferred premium brands only when price felt “worth it”
• Usage frequency differed sharply by household type — some cleaned daily, others alternated products

The brand was overspending on visibility for a shrinking audience — while undervaluing emerging high-growth micro-segments.

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Root Cause Diagnostic

Issue	Evidence	Impact
Broad targeting	Same messaging used across cities & retailer types	Poor resonance with value-driven buyers
Flat pricing	Fixed price premiums across income tiers	Price felt unjustifiable in new micro-segments
One-tone communication	Functional hygiene claims only	No emotional messaging for “care-driven” buyers
Uniform store allocation	Supply same SKUs to every region	Stock misalignment with true demand patterns

The brand didn’t have a pricing problem — it had a segmentation problem.

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Strategic Pivot — Precision Customer Segmentation

The old segmentation (urban vs rural) was replaced with a 5-segment behavioural model:

Segment	Driver	Share of Category
Value-maximizers	lowest cost	43%
Premium-switchers	premium only when value is visible	28%
Hygiene-focused	germ protection priority	16%
Scent seekers	fragrance and home ambience	8%
Brand loyalists	emotional connection	5%

Brand H repositioned communication, pricing and retail execution for each segment cluster.

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Actions Taken

1. Segment-specific communication

   • Premium-switchers: “More cleans per bottle” messaging
   • Scent seekers: “Home that smells fresh” messaging
   • Hygiene-focused: germ-kill + doctor endorsement

2. Pack-size and pricing redesign

   • Introduction of refill packs priced at parity for value-maximizers
   • Full-price bottles retained for hygiene-focused and loyalist segments

3. Regional SKU allocation

   • South & East → price-sensitive SKUs
   • West & metros → premium SKUs + large packs

4. Retail execution

   • “Scent seekers” messaging only in modern trade and online
   • Value-maximizer packs only in general trade and kirana outlets

5. Media optimization

   • Influencer strategy focused on care-driven personas, not mass audience

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Results (6 Months)

KPI	Before	After	Change
Volume share	–11pp decline	+7pp rebound	18pp recovery swing
Marketing ROI	₹1 → ₹2.7	₹1 → ₹4.9	+81%
Premium SKU sales	34% of revenue	41% of revenue	+7pp
Trade promotion expense	—	—	–22% reduction

The brand won without discounting — simply by selling the right product to the right buyer with the right message.

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Key Lesson

Price sensitivity wasn’t the threat. Mis-segmentation was.

When segmentation became precise, value perception increased — and consumers willingly paid more.

*We take our clients' confidentiality seriously. While we 've changed their names, the results are real.