GroupM ESP releases top 10 trends

GroupM ESP (Entertainment & Sports Partnerships), a specialist business unit of GroupM released their top 10 trends for 2015. Sports in India is going through exciting times. With the rise of leagues across various sporting formats and with increase in co-branded promotions, the opportunities for brands to associate with movies and sports are also increasing. Uniquely positioned at the intersection of media and marketing.

GroupM ESP Trends for 2015:

Increased role and usage of celebrities as digital influencers
Sporting entities will evolve by building digital and social assets to drive their valuation
Blurring gap between Entertainment & Sports
“Associative” to “Associative + Integration + Surround + Social”
From Advertisers to Sponsors
New avenues for traditional licensing – ex. branded real estate
TV fiction characters as Brand Ambassadors
Non-cricket sports to expand sports business ecosystem
Sports businesses to build strong grassroots engagement through experiential programs
Music concerts to grow bigger than award shows

Commenting on the trends Vinit Karnik- National Director, GroupM ESP said, “As we scale up our practice, 2015 will see a change in the way consumers interact with the sports and entertainment category. Sporting entities will evolve by building digital and social assets to drive their valuation and brands will increase role and usage of celebrities as influencers especially across digital assets. We have strategically positioned ourselves to embrace this change and are confident that it will help us achieve our clients' objectives by offering innovative brand solutions.

Celebrities have been using the digital space extensively for their work. From promoting their movies to inviting fans to attend a social cause, celebs make use of the digital platform in a great way. With millions of followers, celebrities have the power to influence their fans and effectively get their message forward.”

“Digital and social assets are used by sports entities to keep their fans up to date. In order to increase the fan base, sporting franchisees and leagues will develop fan following around them by efficient use of digital medium. With immense focus on digital rights of sporting leagues, digital video sites will be competing with television broadcasters for eyeballs in the near future.” he adds.