KOLKATA: Kolkata-headquartered Linc Pen & Plastics has spent 1.5 to 2 per cent of the Rs 315 crore turnover on marketing and branding in the current fiscal 2014-15.

In an industry, which is marked by low level of differentiation, the company is aware that it is imperative to create brand differentiation among the potential target audience. In keeping with this, Linc Pen & Plastics has spent close to seven per cent of its marketing spent on digital campaigns and internet.

Also, after integrating its brand in the movie Bhootnath Returns, the company is looking for more such brand integration opportunities.

“It is essential to advertise and popularise the USP of the product and the brand on digital platforms these days. We are not only active on digital platforms, but look at how to engage with people. We spend around 78 per cent on the above-the-line (ATL) activities including advertisements and hoardings. Also, the ATL mix is going up as compared to last year,” said Linc Pen & Plastics brand manager Harshvardhen Daga.

With consumers becoming more and more enthusiastic about what brand they use, Linc Pen & Plastics is always looking for engagement programmes with its consumers.

Linc Pen is amongst the top three brands in the writing instruments industry, having largest market share in eastern India. Linc pens are exported to more than 50 countries presently. The brand was placed at number 282 across all brands in India last year.

On the brand integration with movies, he said that brand Linc was shown for around 60 seconds in Boothnath Returns. “We are in talks with people for getting our brand good visibility,” he said.

The writing instrument market is low-involvement and highly fragmented. “Linc focuses on the mass market. We have pens ranging from Rs 5 to Rs 20 in the mass market segment,” he concluded.