INTRODUCTION

Mankind

Background
Before 2005, the Indian government recognized only process – not product - patents on drugs. While this approach encouraged competition
and kept drug costs low, it also fostered the creation of 20,000 pharmaceutical companies and hundreds of brand names for each formulation1.
Mankind Pharma was one of many companies that entered the Indian pharmaceutical sector during the 1990s; that Mankind was able to become
the fifth largest pharmaceutical company in India – and the #1 based on physician recommendations – is testament to the innovative strategy and
business acumen of the founders. A brief company history, focused on highlights that are most relevant to our case study, is summarized below:

1995-2000: Siblings Ramesh Juneja, Rajeev Juneja, and Prabha Arora launched Mankind Pharma in 1995 to address India’s pharmaceutical
needs in underserved Tier II and III cities and rural India. Two of the founders had previously worked in the pharmaceutical sector, where they saw
an opportunity to serve doctors in small towns and rural villages who had been ignored by the pharmaceutical industry. In the early years, Mankind
bought generic drugs from contract manufacturers and sold them under the Mankind brand at a significant discount relative to competitive
pharmaceuticals. The founders focused on hiring, training, and incentivizing medical representatives to cover as many doctors and generate as
many prescriptions as possible2.

2001-2005: Mankind began producing some of its own drugs during this time. The low cost earned Mankind a reputation among doctors as a
company that provides low cost drugs to help poor patients3.

2006-2010: Mankind launched its OTC division, including Manforce (condoms) and Unwanted 72 (emergency contraceptives), with bold
advertising campaigns that featured sports stars, celebrities, and sex appeal. Analysts believe the OTC campaigns created awareness not only for
Manforce and other OTC products, but for Mankind as well. In the words of CEO Rajeev Juneja, “OTC gave us visibility… People used to suspect
our quality because of the cheap tag. But after aggressively advertising our OTC brands, we have earned the goodwill and faith of consumers.4”
Mankind entered the top 10 Indian pharmaceutical companies and became #1 based on prescriptions generated during this period.

2011-present: Mankind has set a goal of becoming the 3rd largest pharmaceutical company in India. Key strategies include growing the OTC
business, launching chronic therapies, and expanding distribution outside of India, including the US. Today, Mankind sells over 1,000 products in
17 therapeutic areas; has distribution in 34 countries throughout Asia, Africa, Central Europe and the US; and earns annual sales of $1 billion5.

1) Dey, Priyanka Sharma Sushmi, Aravind, Indulekha, “The pill pushers,” Business Standard, Jan 20, 2013; 2) Dixit, Neeraj, Sharma, V.., “Mankind Pharma LTD.: Reinventing the
Growth Strategies,” Case Centre, 2017; 3) Ibid, 4) Singh, Rajiv, “Mankind Pharma: Do products revolving around sex help the Rs 3000 cr company?”” The Economic Times,
Mar 26, 2014; 5) Mankind.com
INTRODUCTION

Why we chose Mankind

• As a leading pharmaceutical company in India, Mankind broadens both the product and geographic scope of our case studies, enabling
us to study one company’s marketing approach in the highly regulated pharmaceutical industry, while also offering insight about marketing
approaches in the fastest-growing and 10th largest advertising market1.
• We wanted to better understand Mankind’s marketing portfolio strategy: Mankind aggressively spends to support its OTC portfolio (OTC brands
make up ~10% of revenue), with the intent that this marketing spend also support the overall parent brand, including pharmaceutical sales.
• Unlike many private sector FMCG brands, Mankind is focused on the “bottom of the pyramid,” enabling us to study a private sector approach to
reaching the same populations served by our public sector case studies.

Findings
• Mankind has mastered the marketing principle of distinctiveness. This is a two-prong approach. On one hand, Mankind seeks whitespace (e.g.,
Tier II and III cities), which makes it distinctive by default – there is no other competition. On the other hand, Mankind has a distinctive marketing
approach. Product names are bold, straightforward, and “in your face” (e.g., Manforce, Unwanted 72), which make them easy to remember.
The company also uses well-known celebrities to make their brands and products stand out. The product approach is similar. When Mankind
launched Manforce condoms in 2007, it differentiated itself by launching a range of flavored condoms – the first brand to do so in India.
• Mankind is a good example of a strong parent brand – Mankind – and strong sub-brands (e.g., Manforce, Unwanted 72, etc.). The company
always uses the Mankind brand with the sub-brand (e.g., the Mankind logo is on all products and advertising), which likely creates awareness
for Mankind. In addition, Mankind recently began advertising the parent brand to consumers, using popular Indian film star Amitabh Bachchan
as the brand’s ambassador. Some argue that this may pose a risk longer-term, as Mankind seeks to enter more competitive pharmaceutical
markets where scientific credentials, not pop culture associations, are important brand attributes. However, it seems to have worked thus far.
• Mankind, and its leading OTC brands, are great examples of “authentic” marketing -- brands that stay true to their brand vision and expand
beyond the original scope of the product. For example, recently Mankind (Manforce condoms) expanded the definition of “safe sex” –
encouraging couples to practice “safe sex” by refraining from filming their intimate moments. Similarly, Prega News (an at home pregnancy test
brand) took on the challenge of educating society about postpartum depression and ways to support new mothers in what may be a surprisingly
difficult period of their lives.

1) BrandZ Top 75 Most Valuable Indian Brands 2019

MANKIND EXCELLENT

1. IDENTIFY THE AUDIENCE AND BEHAVIOR CHANGE OBJECTIVE

Mankind has several target audience groups: primary care doctors in remote villages and Tier II and III cities; specialist physicians
in Tier 1 cities and metros, and the consumers who purchase Mankind OTC and FMCG products. While we did not have specific
information on Mankind’s OTC/FMCG target audience(s),we attempted to define the audience for Mankind’s sexual and reproductive
health portfolio based on a review of the company’s marketing materials. We scored this best practice as “excellent” because
Mankind has significant resources to reach each segment (e.g., a field staff of approximately 14,000 medical representatives – more
than any other pharmaceutical company in India – is a primary “marketing” investment to reach physicians); there is also clarity on the
behavior change objectives.

Audience Primary Care Doctors in rural areas and Specialty physicians in Tier 1 “Lifestyle progressives” Young
Tier II and Tier III cities cities and metros adults who aspire to a modern lifestyle
and seek control of their sexual and
reproductive health
Product Acute Therapy drugs Chronic Therapy drugs Mankind’s flagship OTC products: Manforce
Portfolio condoms, Prega News, Unwanted 72

Behavior Prescribe Mankind pharmaceuticals Prescribe Mankind pharmaceuticals “If you don’t want babies, use Manforce
Change Condoms. After unprotected sex, you can
Objective opt for Unwanted 72. And if you want to know
whether your partner has conceived, Prega
News is there.1”

Comments Mankind further segments physicians After the Company’s initial success reaching This target audience was identified based on a
based on their prescribing practices (e.g., general practitioners in remote locations review of Mankind’s marketing materials.
“very important physicians”). Behavior and Tier II and III cities, Mankind needed
change objectives change somewhat based to establish itself in the competitive urban
on the physician segment (e.g., increase market.
prescriptions of drug A, etc.).

1
Singh, Rajiv, “How Sunny Leone’s Manforce ad helped Mankind Pharma rake in 3000 crore” ETRetail.com, March 26, 2014
MANKIND INSUFFICIENT DATA

2. UNDERSTAND THE AUDIENCE

With more medical representatives than any other leading pharmaceutical company and a corporate reputation as a savvy marketing
engine, we expect Mankind to have robust audience understanding of both doctors and consumers. However, we did not find any
information about Mankind’s approach to audience research and therefore did not score this best practice. In the case of Mankind’s
consumer brands, the literature suggests that it is Mankind’s agency, ADK Fortune, that brings forth the audience findings and
implications for Mankind’s brands.

AUDIENCE DOCTORS1 COUPLES2 EXPECTANT MOTHERS3

RESEARCH FINDING Doctors know about 19% of Indian couples Today’s expectant mothers work
molecules, but they’re have filmed their intimate right up until the very end of their
overwhelmed by the moments. pregnancy; it’s a time when long
number of brands. hours and marathon meetings
can be especially challenging.

1) Dixit, Neeraj, Sharma, V., “Mankind Pharma LTD.: Reinventing the Growth Strategies,” Case Centre, 2017;
2) “The grave reason why Manforce Condoms wants you to #ShutThePhoneUp,” ET Brand Equity, Oct 26, 2017;
3) PregaNews advocates the comfort of moms to be with #YourSecondHome, Social Samosa, May 2, 2017.
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3. ARTICULATE AN INSIGHT

The overall company insight is based on the founders’ experiences working in the pharmaceutical industry, where they saw first-
hand the disparity in pharmaceutical access. The tension is between illness, which doesn’t discriminate between rich and poor, and
healthcare, which does. It is true; but it is not obvious. Or better said, it is so obvious -- it is something that people accept – that no
one thinks about it until it is pointed out. It is emotional because healthcare saves lives. And finally, it can inspire the audience to think
or feel differently; once this tension is pointed out, and there’s an alternative to address the tension, it becomes the obvious choice.
Finally, by selling drugs at significantly lower prices than the competition and targeting doctors in rural communities, Mankind is
uniquely suited to address this insight.

INSIGHT:

Illness doesn’t discriminate between rich and poor, or where

you live, but healthcare does.

BAM360 team criteria for an audience insight

It has tension It is true but not It strikes an It inspires the
obvious emotional audience to
chord think or feel
differently
Yes Yes Yes Yes

SOURCE: https://www.mankindpharma.com/company/heritage
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4. DEFINE THE BRAND VISION – CLARITY & RESONANCE

“Serving Life through Affordability, Quality and Accessibility” is a simple, clear vision that makes sense for a pharmaceutical company.
While Quality is a standard element for a pharma brand, Affordability and Access are differentiators for Mankind, making Mankind
highly relevant to its primary target audience – doctors in rural villages and tier II and III cities.

https://www.mankindpharma.com/company/our-brand
MANKIND GOOD

5. DEVELOP THE BRAND IDENTITY

There are many elements of Mankind’s identity that are very strong. In particular, the Mankind name and simple, straightforward
approach to visual elements bring the brand vision to life. On the other hand, there is tension between Mankind’s desired personality
(dependability, trustworthy, quality) and the reality that Mankind has achieved brand awareness through its flashy, highly sexualized
advertising for OTC products, particularly Manforce condoms.

Distinctive: Mankind’s brand elements are somewhat distinctive, but it is Reflects brand vision: Mankind brand identity is best in class in terms of
the brand’s efforts to target remote doctors, sell drugs at low cost, and drive reflecting the brand vision
brand awareness through OTC advertising that makes Mankind distinctive
from its peers. The name Mankind suggests the Company’s intent to serve life through
affordability, access, and efficacy. The overall look and feel of the brand is
simple and straight-forward, reflecting the Company’s ethos and humble,
everyday man approach of the founders.

Has a Personality: Mankind’s Executed consistently:

desired personality is dependable, Consistent use of the Mankind
trustworthy, and high quality. name in all communications
This is conveyed through the helped drive awareness of
use of Amitabh Bachchan as Mankind as much as the
Mankind’s brand ambassador. individual OTC products.
Bachchan is recognized as one However, it also risks creating
of the most influential actors in confusion in terms of what the
Indian cinema, having appeared in brand stands for. Is Mankind
almost 200 films since the 1970s. consistently about accessible,
However, this conflicts with the high quality healthcare for all? Photo:
reality that Mankind is well-known Is it about sex? Can it be both? https://www.cinestaan.com/articles/2016/jul/12/1335
for the flashy, highly sexualized
advertising of Manforce condoms.
MANKIND GOOD

6. COMMUNICATE A BENEFIT

Prega News Campaign – Your Second Home: Prega News has a well-established benefit – pregnancy confirmation within 5
minutes – that has been consistently communicated over the past 2 decades. While the benefit is clear, believable, and relevant, it
is often articulated as “good news is 5 minutes away,” which seems out of touch. In 2017 Prega News launched a new campaign,
“your second home,” which raises awareness for issues pregnant women face in the workplace. As Joy Chatterjee, AGM Product
Management Team, Mankind, shared with Buzz in Content, “With more than 70% market share in the [home pregnancy test] category,
we decided not to chase business growth but start a conversation for a larger social good.1” We applaud this approach. Mankind
continues to communicate the “5 minutes” benefit in stores and on its website but has shifted “above the line” focus to messaging
that is more engaging and more likely to resonate with the audience. Nonetheless, we scored this best practice as “good”; we see an
opportunity for Prega News to increase resonance by rethinking its assumption that pregnancy confirmation is always “good news.”

Prega News continues to reinforce the benefit of pregnancy In the third year of the campaign on behalf of pregnant women
confirmation within 5 minutes. This benefit is believable, especially in the workplace, Prega News shifted the focus to household
now that home pregnancy tests are well understood. However, help, encouraging women (employers) to find ways to make
we suggest that the benefit of “good news” in 5 minutes may not things easier for pregnant workers. The benefit is clear (return
resonate. the favour!), believable (it’s easy to do), and likely resonates, as it
brings awareness to an issue that may otherwise be overlooked.

1) “Prega News takes content route to reach smaller cities and rural, says Joy Chatterjee of Mankind Pharma,” BuzzinContent, March 13, 2018; images: PregaNews.com and
PregaNews.com/YourSecondHome
MANKIND EXCELLENT

7. TOUCH THE HEART, OPEN THE MIND

Prega News Campaigns – Your Second Home and Good News Is Gender Free: Over the past several years, Prega News has
released a series of campaigns that touch the heart and open the mind, including: #YourSecondHome, which encourages viewers
to think differently about pregnant women and new mothers returning to the workplace. In the third year of the campaign, Prega
News shifted focus to update the definition of employer and a workplace, focusing on household help. Another examples is
#GoodNewsIsGenderFree, launched in 2019, which challenges viewers to think of a healthy baby as good news vs. the traditional
view that it is the birth of a boy that is good news.

PLAY PLAY PLAY

#YourSecondHome launch – invites #YourSecondHome year 2 – shifts focus from #GoodNewsIsGenderFree – questions why
employers and co-workers to think the corporate workplace to the domestic society worries about a baby’s gender
differently about – and better support – workplace, inviting viewers to extend support
expectant mothers for expectant mothers to domestic workers
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8. SELECT THE RIGHT MARKETING VEHICLES AND ENSURE MESSAGE CONTINUITY

Prega News – Overall Brand: Over the years, Prega News – like Mankind’s other leading OTC brands – has had consistent
messaging (“know in 5 minutes,” “Prega News is Good News”), using Indian film stars (Shilpa Shetty and Kareena Kapoor) in a variety
of media channels (TV, in store, out of home, etc.). Most recently, Mankind has maintained its benefit-focused messaging while
also launching its first digital campaign, using content instead of celebrities to break through. Mankind stands out for aggressively
supporting its leading brands (industry analysis estimates that Mankind spends 10% of total revenue on marketing, almost 2x that of
its competitors)1 and launching campaigns during culturally relevant moments, like Mother’s Day and Women’s Day.

PLAY

Each campaign was launched on either Mother’s Day or Concurrent with its digital campaigns #YourSecondHome and
Women’s Day, ideal moments to raise awareness about “GoodNewsIsGenderFree, Mankind maintains support for Prega News
issues relevant for expectant and new mothers with in-store and out of home awareness driving marketing vehicles

Bhalla, Mohit, Rajagopal, Divya, “The story of Juneja siblings, the biggest disruptors in Indian pharma space,” The Economic Times, April 10, 2018
MANKIND EXCELLENT

9. DELIGHT THE AUDIENCE

Prega News Campaign – Your Second Home: The are a variety of ways in which Prega News delights the audience, including
online contests, raising awareness about issues women face during or after pregnancy, and providing education and tips related to
pregnancy. Shortly after the launch of the #YourSecondHome campaign in 2017, Prega News announced a partnership with local
airline Spice Jet, which included special “comfort” features for pregnant travelers, a contest offering free travel for selected pregnant
travelers, and awareness about ways to make travel easier during pregnancy.
MANKIND GOOD

10. INSPIRE AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT

Prega News Campaign – Your Second Home: Prega News engages the audience through many of the same activities cited in the
previous best practice, “delight the audience.” In addition to contests and social media posts that invite feedback from the audience,
Prega News also engages the audience in discussions and polls aimed to raise awareness and make small changes in society. For
example, as part of the original #YourSecondHome campaign, Prega News asks people to “pledge” to make life more comfortable
for expecting mothers. The Prega News website currently hosts a pledge that asks household employers to pledge to make the
workplace more comfortable for domestic help. We scored this best practice as “good.” As a brand that plays a short-lived, but
important, role in women’s lives, Prega News has found ways to meaningfully expand its role, engaging the audience on a variety
of topics relevant for expectant and new mothers. It is not, however, a major cultural force that inspires the audience to proactively
engage with the brand.
MANKIND

11. TEST MESSAGE EFFECTIVENESS

No available data. Best practice not evaluated.

MANKIND

12. EVALUATE PROGRAM RESULTS

No available data. Best practice not evaluated.

MANKIND

13. MEASURE BRAND PERFORMANCE

No available data. Best practice not evaluated.

MANKIND

14. EVALUATE MARKETING VEHICLE EFFECTIVENESS

No available data. Best practice not evaluated.

MANKIND

15. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE // 16. PROCESS & DECISION-MAKING // 17. PEOPLE & CAPACITY // 18. REWARDS & INCENTIVES

ELEMENT DESCRIPTION
Organizational Structure Mankind is a very flat organization. Most employees work in the field; there are very few managers or executives at
headquarters. This helps to manage costs (as explained by Chairman Ramesh Juneja, “We keep our drug prices
low because we don’t have highly-paid managers…1”) and ensures executives are involved in the details. Mankind
continues to be family-run, led by brothers Ramesh C. Juneja (Chairman) and Rajeev Juneja (CEO), with family
members in four out of six executive roles. In the words of an executive at a competitor company, “They tend to bring
a lot of family into the business in operational roles. They are trying to acquire talent but need to professionalize and
create more management bandwidth.2” Executives have all worked in field sales roles; they understand the day to day
reality for the largest employee group.

Process & Decision-making Insufficient information

People & Capacity Mankind has marketing leadership focus on creating an engaged workforce at the executive level. Two out of the
six Mankind executives are marketing experts. According to the executive profiles on Mankind.com, it is CEO Rajev
Juneja’s “insight into every aspect of marketing” that “gives Mankind its competitive advantage.3” CEO Rajev Juneja
described his three principles for success in a recent talk on entrepreneurship: (1) heart-work (this Is described as
hard work that comes from the heart, “you cannot be successful if you are not excited about your work”); (2) cohesive
management and transparency, (“you cannot be successful if transparency is not there”); (3) willingness to learn,
(“today’s best will become tomorrow’s old, so you must be willing to learn4”). Attrition at the medical representative
and managerial level is between 10-15%, compared with an average of 30-40%5.

Rewards & Incentives The incentive program – for staff, retailers, and physicians – is generous and is designed to drive sales and mitigate
attrition among field staff. Field staff receive an incentive the first month of employment, regardless of whether
they have achieved their sales criteria for that month. This is intended to motivate them to work hard to maintain
the incentive beyond the first few months of employment. Mankind gives more margins to retailers and hospitals
compared to the industry average – and they also provide bonus offers for achieving sales thresholds. Whereas many
companies offer gifts to physicians, Mankind differentiates itself by asking doctors what gifts they would like. The
company believes this helps doctors to better remember – and be more likely to prescribe – pharmaceuticals from
Mankind.

1) Hussain, Shabana, “Mankind Pharma: Formulating Strategy To Enter The Big League,” Forbes India, May 8, 2014; 2) Bhalla, Mohit, “The Story of the Juneja Siblings, the biggest
disruptors in India’s pharma space,” The Economic Times of India, Apr 2018; 3) Mankind.com/company/management; 4) “Stories of Successful Entrepreneur”
Indian Pharmaceutical Congress, Feb 11, 2019 5) Dixit, Neeraj, Sharma, V.., “Mankind Pharma LTD.: Reinventing the Growth Strategies,” Case Centre, 2017.