Marketing leaders need to stop chasing today's consumer needs and instead focus on solving tomorrow's challenges if they want to remain relevant in an increasingly volatile business environment, according to Rakesh Kaul, Managing Director and CEO of Livpure.
Speaking in a conversation titled 'Steering the Marketing Engine in a Complex World' with Mehraj Dube, Founder and Managing Partner of Your Next Orbit, Kaul said brands today are operating in an era where technology, consumer expectations and competition are evolving faster than ever before.
Opening the discussion, Dube highlighted the pace at which customer expectations are changing, observing that "by the time you design and deliver, expectations have already changed." He asked whether marketing has become more chaotic or more organised in an era powered by technology and AI.
Responding to the question, Kaul said technology has made it easier than ever to create personalised customer experiences, provided brands build the right technology layer over their communication strategies.
"Customers are evolving faster than products, technology is evolving faster than product roadmaps, and new entrants are evolving faster than incumbents," he said, adding that businesses now compete in an environment of asymmetric competition where agile disruptors often outpace established players.
Kaul cautioned marketers against relying on past achievements, arguing that previous success can often become a liability.
"Success only reinforces what's happened yesterday. It doesn't emphasise the future," he said, noting that brands can no longer assume consumer loyalty simply because they have been market leaders for decades.
According to Kaul, the starting point for every marketing strategy should be what he described as the "insighting process", identifying the problems consumers are likely to face tomorrow rather than merely addressing current unmet needs.
He said disruptive brands are succeeding because they are planning for the future, while many incumbents remain focused on protecting their existing businesses. At the same time, AI is enabling brands to deliver highly customised offerings, making consumer insights more valuable than ever before. "Experience is overriding ownership," he said.
Dube then turned the conversation to Livpure's own transformation, pointing to the company's successful expansion beyond water purifiers into other home appliance categories. He asked how the company manages rising customer expectations while operating in a highly competitive market.
Kaul said Livpure's strategy began with a simple question: why does India, with nearly 30 crore households, have water purifier penetration of only around 8%?
The company identified affordability and high maintenance costs as the biggest barriers to adoption. Rather than selling expensive annual maintenance contracts, Livpure introduced a subscription-based model where customers pay only for what they use. IoT-enabled devices monitor filter performance in real time, automatically informing customers when maintenance is genuinely required.
"The power is in the hands of the consumer," Kaul said, explaining that the model improves transparency while eliminating unnecessary service costs.
He added that the connected ecosystem also allows the company to predict customer dissatisfaction and intervene before consumers churn. Livpure is now expanding its platform further with personalised features such as alkaline water options, hot and ambient water, and immunity-boosting solutions.
Reflecting on the subscription model, Dube noted that subscriptions have historically been difficult to build in industries such as news media and asked what inspired Livpure to adopt the approach.
Kaul credited consumer experience as the driving force behind the decision, drawing inspiration from businesses such as Netflix that transformed entire industries through subscription-led engagement.
"For many consumers, the water purifier was a black box," he said. "When you solve a real consumer problem, that's where the insight process starts."
Offering advice to fellow marketers, Kaul said brands often abandon promising strategies too early because of pressure to deliver immediate returns. He urged marketers to stay committed to their positioning, consistently reinforce their message and focus on building long-term consumer experiences rather than short-term campaigns.
"Building experience is not a one-day phenomenon. It's a continuous process of engagement," he said.
Looking ahead, Kaul said marketers must embrace uncertainty as the new normal. With social media now becoming the first channel for customer escalation, businesses need to remain agile while continuously innovating for future consumer needs.
"Uncertainty is becoming the new certainty," he said. "Focus on future solutions that consumers may need tomorrow, not necessarily today."
