IPL to grow bigger & better, witnesses 15 percent ad-rate hike

Multi-screen Media’s Sony MAX and Sony SIX, gear up for the most awaited property, Pepsi Indian Premier League (IPL). Being the official broadcasters of Pepsi IPL, the channel has already started giving its viewers a sneak-peak of what is in store, by launching their biggest campaign of the year; “Ismein Hai Dilon Ka Pyaar….Ye Hai India ka tyohaar”. Though the campaign is yet to create an excitement in the market but the teasers have already started to pump the cricket fans to cheer up for their teams.

Also, not only that but the channel has also signed 9 sponsors and is looking at expending the sponsor portfolio to 10 to 12. As the name suggests, the campaign aims to connect hearts, connect lives, creating a national euphoria and strengthening emotional affinity towards the sport. ‘India ka tyohaar’ invites people to break their differences and join in the revelry which is aptly communicated through a heart shaped mnemonic that exudes the ‘spirit of togetherness’ this season of Pepsi IPL 2015.

The campaign kicked off with a series of 3 prequels set in distinct situations of people’s life, ending with the common messaging of ‘India ka Tyohaar’. The films leave viewers with intriguing thoughts of preparation towards the year’s grandest tournament. Sony MAX & SIX have roped in the renowned musical duo - Salim-Sulaiman to compose the anthem for this magnanimous tournament.

The Anthem with words like “dooriyan chod kar…dil se dil jod kar”, stirs up warm emotions that encourages viewers to come together and transcend all barriers to rejoice this season of Pepsi IPL.  With a peppy and feet tapping rhythm the music will surely get the nation to groove in the spirit of festivity. Directed by Anupam Mishra of Crazy Few Films and conceptualised by DDB Mudra, the films brings alive the excitement that Pepsi IPL brings year on year and promises another year of fervour and celebration.

Adgully to get a deeper understanding caught up with Rohit Gupta, President, ad-sales, MSM; Neeraj Vyas, Senior EVP & Business Head, SONY MAX; Vaishali Sharma, VP -Marketing Sony Max and Sonal Dabral, the ad-man and DDB Mudra Chairman.

As mentioned above that the channel has already got 9 sponsors on board and Gupta mentioned that the property is being sold at a much higher rate than last year. Elaborating on the same, he said, "The response from the advertisers and marketers have been quite encouraging and as of now we have locked deals with 9 marketers including Pepsi, Vodafone, Amazon.in, Car Dekho.com, Vimal Pan Masala, Hero Motorcorp, Intex mobiles, Paytm etc. There has been a 15 percent increase in the ad-rates too."

Gupta also mentioned that the viewership increased by 7 percent last year and IPL has been growing year on year. Elaborating on the ratings and viewership front, he said, “The ratings have been growing significantly year on year. Every year there have been big names coming on board which marks the property’s growing evolution and success. We have also signed large spot-by deals with brands like Snapdeal, Vivo, TVS and etc. There are 7 sponsors on extra-innings too.” He also mentioned that barriing few all the ad-spots have been sold...

Interestingly this time there will be multiple language feeds too. IPL will telecast in Bengali, in Tamil and Telegu. Though the custodians are still working towards how and where to telecast the Tamil and Telugu feeds but the Bengali audience will get to see IPL on Sony Aath. When asked about the rationale behind the same, Vyas said, "The whole objective is to make the property reach as much audiences as possible and to create an opportunity for everybody to engage and be a part of the festival. Also it is always fun to watch a match in your own language."

Speaking about the rationale behind the campaign, Sharma said, "The whole idea is that IPL is a tournament and is one of the largest cricket events and this cuts across genders, generations and geographies. So from the campaign perspective it’s a really large scale and we have to bring that alive."

Speaking about the campaign Vyas said, “Pepsi IPL reaches out to people across age groups, gender and languages. This year’s initiative “India ka tyohaar” is a unique thought that stems from the insight of how Pepsi IPL over the years has grown to be a huge festival which people celebrate together. It is a perfect blend of cricket, entertainment and festivity packaged in one”.

The brief to the agency was simple that was to create something that engages the entire country and appeals to each and every heart. Vyas said, "The brief was simply to engage with our audiences in the best possible way. We wanted to be different from 'Chalo Bulawa Aaya Hai and Jumping Jampaing. The idea was to be different, big and better year on year."

Sharma said, "Ratings of the last match went through the roof. A feeling which was known and which revived as everyone watched it and that's where the thought came to bring people together. So it is about a good game and that's what brings people together. So that's the goodness that happens in a sporting game. On the contrary it brings people together no matter who's on the other side. So that was a key insight."

Dabral said, "Pepsi IPL is India’s only true festival. Unlike any other sporting event in the world, it’s a microcosm of the passion, fervour and madness that envelops our country whenever cricket is played, uniting hearts and minds in its wake."

Stretching across a 4 week period till the launch of the tournament, the Pepsi IPL 2015 campaign will have a complete 360 degree rollout across mass media. The communication will be seen by viewers across mediums like television, print, radio, digital, outdoor, on-ground, mobile, BTL and out of home.

Adding further Sharma said, "The campaign went live last evening at 9 pm on YouTube. There was a roadblock on all our network channels yesterday. And then after that, closer to the IPL we will go 360 degree across channels. Currently, the campaign is running only on our network."

Later the campaign will go to all genres including music, kids, movies, cinema, Radio and so on. Digital will be really big. The channel is looking at creativity in all mediums. When asked Dabral about the key focus areas while conceptualizing the campaign, he said, "IPL is the true festival of Cricket for India as it has the colours of Holi, passion of Diwali and brotherhood of Eid so the whole focus was to bring a purpose into advertising and go beyond just mere entertainment. We thought of not only making the viewers excited about the event but also wanted to inject a thought about the whole humanity behind IPL."

According to Vyas Digital will play a key role in the media mix. On asking Dabral that whether it was a challenge to conceptualise this campaign as it was going live during the biggest Cricket tournament, Dabral stated, "This campaign was designed with an objective in mind which was that since the World Cup is going on and the campaign was slated to break during this time we wanted to smartly play with the campaign thought. We had to be different to create that buzz and engagement about IPL as there would have been a fatigue level for the viewers too."

Also as it was speculated in the industry that since two big tournaments are happening back to back so there might be a dip in the sponsorship during IPL but Vyas totally nullified the speculations and said, "No that is not true. The IPL 2015 will be one of the biggest and largest IPL seasons ever. Also IPL matches happen during prime time and marketers are not avoiding that opportunity. Brands have money and are willingly spending." 

As the campaign is has already gone live in television so when asked Sharma about the response she said, "Everyone loved India ka Tyohaar. Everyone has been wondering if this is the campaign....Salman-Shahrukh and the auto rickshaw one have been the most popular ones on both the mediums digital and TV. So there is a level of expectancy, on what is coming more. The prequels have achieved what they have had to and the sequels are on their way.."

Known to redefine the music of Bollywood with their unique style, Salim-Sulaiman hope to get everyone to dance to the anthem of Pepsi IPL 2015. Extremely overwhelmed with the opportunity to compose the anthem, they said, “With Pepsi IPL that reflects the fervour of the nation and an idea as powerful as ‘India Ka Tyohaar’, we tried to create a song which is very Indian in its spirit but yet has the sound of 'The Now'. Once we had the lyrics we composed the tune and created a rhythm around it which is the beat of our folk music and festivals all across India. The song is infectious! We hope the audiences will celebrate the music and this festive spirit of the Pepsi IPL across the globe.” |By Aanchal kohli | Twitter: @aanchalkohli
 

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