Online marketplace Snapdeal’s goof up has helped Hindustan Unilever (HUL) gain a loyal customer for lifetime and many new ones. Laxminarayan Krishnamurthy, a Mumbai-based resident and a bank employee, went all gaga over the FMCG major’s kind gesture over major social networking sites after he received a Samsung Core Duos phone from them. It is important to also mention that Snapdeal and HUL are not competitors.

Krishnamurthy had, however, ordered the same phone model from Snapdeal during the online e-tailer’s festive season sale but was shocked to find a soap bar and a brick inside the box. He called up Snapdeal but failed in getting a response.

Realising the power of social media, he shared his ordeal on Facebook and Twitter and his post slamming and alleging Snapdeal of fraud went viral. Taking note of this incident, the country’s largest consumer goods manufacturer sent Krishnamurthy the same smart-phone model, he had ordered for as a gift from the company. It also sent a note saying “The pictures you posted online show that our brand was used in this incident. Vim is one of our iconic brands with some great consumer franchise. We felt bad about it, not to mention what you went through. Here is a small gesture from our side to cheer you up.” It also sent out two bottles of its Vim liquid soap.

This incident also gathered a lot of attention on social media with thousands of people appreciating HUL’s gesture and its “out-of-box” ways to engage with the new age consumers.

Of late, HUL is smartly investing in digital media and are using it as a tool to engage with consumers and promote its brands. This has in turn helped the company cut down on its advertising and promotional spends this quarter.

Meanwhile, Snapdeal has not admitted to the faux pas on social media but has apparently returned money to Krishnamurthy

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