The response towards IPL this season is much lower than last year

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Having said that, companies are also significantly subdued in their marketing push with IPL this time, especially when the so-called ‘Slowdown Blues’ are riding the sentiments in the economy. “The response towards IPL this season is much lower than last year. This is a natural transition, as there was a lot of hype around the first season of any event, which tones down by the second season; the economic slowdown has made the situation even worse,” feels Anita Nayyar, CEO, Havas Media. It’s not that the brands are no more interested in IPL season 2; viewership figures (TRPs as high as 10) for last year’s IPL are tempting enough for marketers to take a closer look at, even this season of IPL. But clearly, brand investments are becoming difficult. Although the difference may not be huge, marketers are certainly more cautious this time. Shubhoshekhar Bhattacharjee, CEO, Planman Motion Pictures, comments, “One has to realise that the economic downturn does not mean that this cricket crazy nation will stop watching cricket, especially IPL, which in turn provides an opportunity for good brand visibility.” Utkarsh Singh, Head - BD, Rajasthan Royals opines, “There are surely lesser number of brands investing in IPL this time as compared to the last season. But the level of engagement of those investing is much deeper.”

However, unlike the last season, marketers have become very choosy in their approach and very cautious about the teams they are associating with because they want to make the most out of their dear money. While many teams have already bagged a handful of licensing and co-branded deals and other innovative brand associations, many teams are struggling to get to open their innings on this front. For instance Mumbai Indians are yet to finalise one as Tushar Pania, Media Manager, Mumbai Manager confessed to 4Ps B&M “We haven’t finalised any deals, so far. We are in middle of talks with marketers and advertisers. ”

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Focus on your communication

The Most Revolutionary Concept In Education PLANMAN CHE CENTRE FOR HIGHER EDUCATION, Supported by IIPM India’s Leading B-School

Seen the latest ad from India’s leading insurance provider LIC. Haven’t? Well, it talks about the needlessness of adding two K’s to your name to change your professional fortune. Okay, caught the latest Tata Safari Dicor commercial? This one pointedly rubbishes office politics in these troubled times and asks consumers to ‘Reclaim your life’. India’s largest private bank ICICI is doing a lot of ‘rely on us in bad times’ ads; Honda City’s sedan cruises along rough terrain with an ‘enjoy your challenges’ tag line...

If you are still not getting the point – guess its back to the schoolroom for you. Fact is every marketer worth his salt (or should we say 4Ps?) is sending out ‘loaded’ missives to his consumers these days. He’s trying to build a common agenda with consumers and make a moot point about the emotional connect in these unhappy times so that the consumer should buy his brand. Agrees Anisha Motwani, Executive VP-Marketing, Max New York Life Insurance (MNYL): “Times are cautious. Therefore, the message should have a ‘re-assuring’ communication strategy. The tone and content of advertising should be re-assuring that your money is safe with us.” To communicate its credibility, MNYL recently began spreading the message that their international partner, New York Life is the only American financial organisation that has been untouched by the US economic turmoil.

And that perhaps is the reason for all the optimism floating around in the air. Yeah! You guessed it right – because people want to hear good things (especially the overtly optimistic, never say die, Indian people!!).

Big 92.7 FM, the biggest private FM player as per the number of channels and reach – is similarly attempting to cash in on consumer apathy to negative messages. Their ‘Don’t Worry; Be Happy’ theme is receiving rave response. Says Nirupam Sonu, VP – Programming, BIG 92.7 FM, “Honestly there is a lot of negativity in the air. So, we need someone to tell them to be happy and take them a little away from their troubles.” Besides the daily doses of laughter, the station has a programming line up that hosts visionaries and CEOs who give tips on how to stay motivated at the workplace, how to secure jobs, manage expenses, et al, during these tough times. “It is not just about recession and gives no gyan as to when the bad times will end. Instead it is just our initiative to help our listeners,” says Sonu.

Besides the message itself, medium choices and exorbitant ad rates are other niggling worries for marketers. The trick it seems is to review your media budget allocations to maximise value. Little surprise that a host of marketers are lining up media houses to review their options. Chirantan Chandran, Partner-Client Leadership, Mindshare adds that “clients are of course looking for better rates but moreover, the major deciding factor for them is ROI and the accountability of investments. They have become more careful about each step they are taking, they are seeing what they are receiving in lieu of what they are doing in fact what they are investing.” Titus, ex-Senior Creative Director, O&M suggests innovative media vehicles for generating better bang for their bucks. “Communication is changing. We are all awakening to the fact that television can’t solve all the problems,” he says.

TV sure can’t solve problems. Just like chanting, praying and generally invoking the God of good times to banish those depressing thoughts, TV can at best play along the tunes of hope. But the fact is that there is a lot of hope for marketers and companies that can think out-of-the-box. Out-of-the-box need not be out of the world; but it does mean you actually end up feeling good in these so called bad times.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Detail of all IIPM branches
1500-plus IIPM students placed across the country with 44 bagging international offers
IIPM set to beat economic slowdown
IIPM Admission Detail
IIPM INTERNATIONAL - NEW DELHI, GURGAON & NOIDA
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM : EXECUTIVE EDUCATION