FACE VALUE: Ray at a campaign in New York

"The Indian and Pakistani populations pack a huge market for branded goods." Andy Kessler, president, Rado USA

Tariq Khan, national director, South Asia and East Europe markets, MetLife, has an anecdote that he never tires of telling South Asian audiences: MetLife was the first American company to use an Indian family in a mainstream advertisement. But joining MetLife in the fray now are several other companies. Like Apple, which featured Gautam Godse, an Indian software engineer with accent et al, and Dove, that used an Indian woman in a prime time advertisement for its deodorant.

The sudden rush for South Asian eyeballs has been prompted by the recognition that US markets are segmented, especially after the immigrant waves in the past two decades. While the Hispanics and the African-Americans have long been targets of multinationals, it is only in the past one year that mainstream corporate America has woken up to the South Asian market potential. Not surprisingly, at the just concluded ninth annual ethnic marketing conference in Chicago, several analysts flagged the need to target the South Asian community rather than view it as part of the larger Asian family, traditionally dominated by the Koreans and the Chinese.

Says Rupa Ranganathan, an ethnic strategist with the Strategic Research Institute, co-hosts of the conference, "In a recession, companies have less funds to go around. A specific consumer group, therefore, becomes very attractive. The Indian market has been discovered to be very lucrative."

The Indian diaspora in the US, as per Census 2000, number 1.7 million-over 70 per cent of them are in the workforce; 60 per cent hold a college degree-and are concentrated in key states and around specific markets, making them an ideal target community. Their average annual income is $69,000, while the national average is $49,000.

Additionally, most of the South Asians are immigrants with specific needs-like housing, education and transportation-that need to be addressed immediately. The annual population survey reveals that at the end of 2000, 56 million-or one in five-US citizens were foreign born. The figure for the Indian population is estimated at 1.07 million, catapulting them from 12th position in the 1990 census to fourth.

Like MetLife, the other American insurance major, New York Life Insurance Company too has made emerging markets a central focus in the past four years. The company is part of the new generation of American firms that also have joint ventures in India, enabling them to straddle the immigrant market a little differently.

Maintaining that his company has dominated the cultural markets in the US, Ashwin K. Verma, corporate vice-president, says, "People keep going back and forth and are bound to pass on the good word to their relatives back in India. In the next five years the private insurance companies would do well if they are able to account for 20 per cent of the life insurance business in India."

Following in their wake are retail and investment bankers like Merrill Lynch and Citibank using their private client groups to target South Asians. "We found that in the area of financial services this is a community that has been under-served. The Indian community in the US possesses multi-generational dynamics. You have first, second and now third generation Asian-Indian families here. Their needs are very different," says Jyoti Chopra, director, multicultural and diversified business development advisory division, Merrill Lynch. The company also invested in a series of surveys to profile the demography of the Indian populace.

The multinationals have also been quick to size up the consumer preferences of South Asians and accordingly tailor strategies.

Rado, the fourth largest watch brand in the world, has effected an interesting adjustment to its brand. Never seeking endorsement for its product, Rado has introduced Lisa Ray, model and actress, as its brand ambassador at showrooms displaying Rado products. Not without reason: though the South Asians account for less than 2 per cent of the total US population, they form the group to which Rado sells a quarter of its watches.

"I believe that the Indian and Pakistani populations pack a huge market for all branded goods. There are enough people who have a household income to purchase a Rado product. This is particularly true in the US," says Andy Kessler, president for Rado USA.

Similarly, Merrill too has tailored its products to suit the pocket and market segment of South Asians. "These products are delivered by financial advisers-part of the private client group of Merrill-that have expertise and knowledge within a specific community. In this way we ensure that there is an inherent expertise and knowledge that resides with this group of individuals that is servicing our clients from the community," says Chopra.

In many ways, the South Asian community in general and the Indians in particular are both an opportunity and a challenge. While their purchasing power offers an incredible opportunity to American blue chips struggling in the throes of a recession, their multiple languages can be overwhelming to the less experienced. Addressing this right would make the distinction between the men and the boys.