Coconut Cure

Step out during a sultry summer afternoon and the local coconut vendor feels like an oasis in the desert. He cracks one open, puts in a straw and hands it over to you. But to your dismay, three sips and the shell runs out of water! Worse, it doesn’t even have the malai he promised! In response to your disappointment, all he does his shrug and say there is no way of knowing and guaranteeing what’s inside until he cracks it open.

That’s true, but not anymore. In a bid to eliminate the guesswork, Bengaluru-based iD Fresh Foods has launched an innovative product called Smart Sip Tender Coconut. The product offers complete transparency in terms of the amount of water, the amount of malai and the sweetness level of the coconut, thereby avoiding any unwanted surprises.

And the innovation doesn’t stop here. Grated coconut is a key ingredient in making coconut chutney, and the company had tried to launch ready-made chutney as well as grated coconut in the past with limited success. Mostly because they couldn’t find the right packaging to make the product last longer. Finally, they hit the nail on the head by using the coconut shell itself to pack the grated coconut, which increased the shelf life to three days, without any preservatives being added.

Both the products have been advertised through equally innovative campaigns that delve into the benefits of the products. “We decided that a rapid narrative pace, combined with a surprising dose of quirk was an ideal way to introduce both our coconut products, which can get lost in the crowd of similar products in case we fail to convey their innovativeness,” says co-founder and CEO, PC Musthafa. For instance, in the tender coconut sip ad, the film plays on an oft-used banking phrase of KYC (Know Your Customer) and replaces the ‘C’ with ‘Coconut’. A voiceover explains why people need to stop buying without knowing what they are getting while the visuals demonstrate the KYC and the end-result – a compact and easy-to-consume tender coconut sip.

Meanwhile, the Grated Coconut in a Coconut film shows that apple juice coming out of a whole apple or French fries falling out of a potato may not be natural, but when you split open an iD Fresh coconut, you will find authentic grated coconut. “This was an idea borrowed straight out of mother nature's playbook; of natural packaging being the best way to preserve purity and freshness,” says Rajeev Ravindranathan, founder and director, People Design and Communications, which has worked on both the films.

“With our latest coconut products, we are taking a ‘green leap’ into eco-friendly packaging, while maintaining our USP and continuing to innovate in the fast-growing segment,” says Musthafa.

Both films aptly communicate the customer pain points that these products address. In fact, the cheekiness of the films ties in beautifully with the innovativeness of the products. For the viewer, this is sure to be a refreshing campaign.