In India, Sunsilk, a known shampoo brand, was introducing an eight-variant conditioner. The target audience was college females (18 to 24) accustomed to multi-variant Sunsilk shampoos. They needed to be educated about the new product in order to increase trials.

Our unique insight was that the TA, the Google generation, prefers to discover brands and products on their own, in conjunction with their friends, and through social media. Because four variants of Sunsilk conditioner were to be distributed, education and interaction leading to customized trials was imperative.

Our creative idea was to prompt the TA to discover the product through interaction and education. Using her mobile phone, she could create a customized sample, which would be delivered to her instantaneously.

We created a Mobile Savvy Vending Machine for interaction, education and mass customization. Because smart phones are not common in India, we utilized SMS.

Execution was on a college campus in Mumbai (which leads the country in fashion trends). Placing it during inter- college festivals increased the number of consumer interactions and maximized the budget.

Girls were invited to:

1) Select their hair type from the display to get a short code

2) SMS the short code to a phone number to get the sample code and a Sunsilk Expert’s advice for specified hair type within a minute

3) Enter the sample code to get a conditioner tube from the machine immediately.

The machines became instant social hubs on campus for girls and their friends. No girl walked up to the machine without her friends. This gave them a chance to discuss their hair type with friends, and discover the conditioner variant best for them. They also exchanged notes on the SMS’s they received from Sunsilk Experts.

The method allowed one minute of active involvement in every sample and encouraged about five minutes of discussions with friends regarding their hair types.

In six days, 1700 girls discovered customized conditioner samples, creating a database of as many phone numbers that can be used for personalized messages from Sunsilk Experts.

For the client, this experiment answered the question of mass customization. This opened a new channel for sampling and inducing trials, along with educating the consumers about the relevant variant for their hair.

After a successful pilot in 2012, the model is getting ready to be rolled out in department stores across key cities in India. Five additional machines will be implemented in May.

We created a Mobile Savvy Vending Machine for mass customization. TA interacted with the vending machine using her mobile phone to discover what conditioner variant was best for her hair type. Because smart phones are not common in India, we utilized SMS technology.

The machine allowed three levels of interaction, provoked conversations about hair type and promoted a higher degree of involvement with the sample.

The machine was placed in Mumbai college campuses hosting inter-college competitions, ensuring greater reach among the TA. Girls were invited to:

1) Select their hair type from the display (friends will tell her if it’s soft / dull / rough) to get a short code

2) SMS the short code to a phone number to get the sample code and a Sunsilk Expert’s advice for specified hair type within a minute

3) Enter the sample code to get a conditioner tube from the machine immediately.

Sampling was done using a customized pull technique instead of pushing conditioner sachets.

The method allowed one minute of active involvement in every sample and encouraged about five minutes of discussions with friends regarding their hair types.

In six days, 1700 girls discovered customized conditioner samples, creating a database of as many phone numbers that can be used for personalized messages from Sunsilk Experts.

After a successful pilot in 2012, the model is getting ready to be rolled out in department stores across key cities in India. Five additional machines will be implemented in May.