From ‘Ranczo’ to the Golden Paragon – why it takes years to build a brand

    Recently, ‘Minutka’ tea was honoured with the ‘Golden Receipt – Polish Merchants’ Award’. I particularly value this award, as it reflects consumers’ everyday choices. Merchants know best which products customers regularly return to and which brands have maintained their position over many years.

    As I accepted the award, I was reminded of one of the marketing projects we carried out over a dozen years ago.

    Today, product placement is one of the most fundamental tools in the marketing communications toolbox. Brands feature in films, TV series, TV programmes and on social media, and nobody finds this surprising. However, when we decided to cooperate with the creators of the TV series ‘Ranczo’, the situation was completely different. At that time, very few companies in Poland were using this form of promotion in a well-thought-out and long-term manner.

    ‘Ranczo’ was already a television phenomenon by then. The series attracted millions of viewers and its characters became part of Polish popular culture. Today, it is fair to say that it is a cult classic. Successive generations of viewers continue to watch repeats, and quotes from the series and its characters remain part of public discourse.

    This is precisely why we decided to cooperate with the creators of the series.

    We were not interested in placing the product at the centre of the frame or creating an intrusive advert. Our aim was to showcase Minutka tea in situations where it genuinely features in people’s lives, such as during conversations around the table, family get-togethers or visits from neighbours. The idea was for the brand to become part of the characters’ everyday lives rather than adding an extra advertising message.

    As a result, Minutka’s presence felt natural and authentic. Viewers did not feel as though they were watching an advert. They saw a product that was simply part of the lives of the villagers of Wilkowyje.

    In retrospect, I believe this was an excellent marketing decision. Interestingly, its effects are still felt today. ‘Ranczo’ is regularly broadcast on TV and you can still see Minutka tea in the same scenes during subsequent repeats. The campaign devised many years ago is still building brand recognition.

    This demonstrates that well-planned product placement can have a much longer lifespan than traditional advertising campaigns. A TV advert disappears once it has finished airing. A TV series, on the other hand, which achieves cult status, remains with viewers for years to come.

    Of course, no single campaign builds a strong brand on its own. Product placement was just one element of our strategy. At the same time, we were developing our product range, investing in quality, building relationships with business partners and working consistently to raise Minutka’s profile. Marketing is not about searching for a single spectacular idea. It is about making many sound decisions that complement one another, yielding results only years later.