Product Marketing lessons from the Burroti

The day before, I had Burrotis for lunch at an Indian fast food restaurant in downtown San Francisco.

Essentially roti rolls with an Indian flavored filling, the restaurant had picked a really smart name for its

flagship product (an anagram of the more popular burrito). And not only that, the visitor has an option

of creating his own ‘burroti’ in a few simple steps:

Pick the base (the burroti wrap); choose your protein (paneer/chicken/garbanzo beans); and add your

flavor.

A truly ingenious way to make a traditional Indian dish relatable and appealing to a wider (non-Indian)

audience. Also, it repositions traditional Indian food, which has been known to be tasty (and

overwhelmingly spicy) to be healthy and catering to a universal palate.

And that is the essence of product marketing. Communicating what your product is simply, clearly and

in a manner that appeals to your target audience.

Truth be told, the product itself is not all that unique. I have created such rolls so many times for my

kids at home. But its branding (starting with its name), the brand promise (wholesome protein-rich

flavorful meal), messaging and communication (so like the subway sandwich) is what makes it really

innovative. In fact, its smart communication definitely entices the customer to want to try the product!

So what are the lessons for all B2B product marketers from this example?

1. Know your product- that is an imperative- the burroti’s communication reflects a deep

understanding of its ‘features’ (protein-rich, fresh, customized etc) and its ‘benefits’ (healthy, tasty).

Importantly, pick the salient features; do not overwhelm your audience with a laundry list.

2. Know your audience – As important as knowing your product, as it decided how to communicate.

Burroti is clearly targeted at the global customer, and its messaging is bang on. The communication

is designed to not overwhelm someone who is not used to the intricacies of the Indian kitchen.

3. Keep it simple- the communication is meant for the audience and needs to resonate with them, it

is not meant for the creator (or the company) – so refrain from jargon and complex details and instead

focus on what the audience is looking for.

4. Keep it real – Finally, the product experience needs to match the marketing- so make sure that the

talk matches the ‘walk’. Often times, B2B marketers are guilty of pronouncing their products as

unique, world-class, peerless and so on. But, in today’s connected world, messaging that is closer to

‘what you see is what you get’ than one that borders on the hyperbolic is more likely to work. In the

burroti’s case, I did a quick check and found that reviews on yelp by and large corroborate the brand

promise and communication.

The burroti is a great example of smart marketing backing a good product. My burroti lunch gave me

much ‘ food ‘ for thought!

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