Why KBC continues to attract advertisers Y-o-Y?

Over the years, ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ has become the perfect fabric to weave in every Indian’s dreams and aspirations. In every season, the knowledge-based show has celebrated human virtues of courage, self-belief, patience, confidence, and intelligence – as Season 13 of ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ states, ‘Sawaal jo bhi ho, #JawaabAapHiHo’.

The 13th Season of ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ is Co-presented by BYJU’S and Cadbury Dairy Milk. The show is Co-Powered by Hyundai Motor India Limited, Asian Paints Royale Glitz, Ultratech Cement and Zydus Wellness Ltd – Complan. The Associate Sponsors are CERA, PharmEasy, IDFC First Bank, LIC of India and Bharat Matrimony. Reserve Bank of India is the Special Partner on the show.

Quite a few changes have been made in the look and feel of the set as well as the show’s format in Season 13. From the floor LED to the use of AR (Augmented Reality), a refreshed motorised virtual ceiling and gameplay graphics – everything has been re-engineered. Fastest Finger First, with which the show commences, has been modified to Fastest Finger First – Triple Test. Meanwhile, the Audience Poll is making a comeback this season. On Fridays, ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ will be seen celebrating Shaandaar Shukravaar with celebrity guests, from all walks of life, playing the game for a social cause.

‘KBC Season 13’ has no less than 14 sponsors onboard. According to industry sources, ad rates for Season 13 have been increased by around 20%. Through the years, ‘KBC’ has been able to maintain a hold over its audience base and continued to attract a bevy of advertisers.

Highlighting the show’s strength, Karan Taurani, SVP - Research Analyst (Media & Consumer Discretionary), Elara Capital pointed out, “‘KBC’ is a family show, where the entire family can sit and watch together. I think that the compelling ad investment is basically because the entire family is viewing the show and Amitabh Bachchan is able to drive the audience, so that is what works in their favour.”

Speaking about the kind of ROI ‘KBC’ delivers for the brand, Amit Syngle, CEO & MD, Asian Paints Ltd, one of the show’s sponsors in Season 13, said, “In comparison, there have been several spin-offs who just have not been able to consistently get as many things right as KBC for a long period. And hence, for 21 years, it has been raking in the Television ratings like no other show, irrespective of other popular shows running concurrently.”

Bringing out the  factors that continue to draw advertisers to KBC, Vandana Ramkrishna, COO, Madison Media Ace, said, "KBC continues to be content that that be watched as a family show and families are known to have their family time around it. On the other hand, Bigg Boss or KKK are more digress and cult viewership which means it appeals to a kind of persona that is more individualist in nature. And this results in different kind of advertisers for each of the show – KBC – slightly more serious or family kind of brands vs BB and KKK with something edgier / high voltage brands"  

Talking about what made a brand like UltraTech Cement invest in a quiz show like ‘KBC’, Ajay Dang, President, Head - Marketing UltraTech Cement Ltd, said, “Our brand positioning is that of an empathetic expert and ‘KBC’ as a show is pivoted on knowledge and expertise. Like in this game show, a player has a lot to lose if she/he makes a wrong decision after a certain stage, similarly in case of home construction you can change most of the things later, but never its cement, so it is a critical decision point for home builders. Lastly, the coveted stature of KBC amongst reality shows gels extremely well with our stature of being the No. 1 cement brand of India. So, beyond the mass reach of this game show, all these synergies of brand KBC with brand UltraTech makes it an obvious brand building opportunity for us.”

‘KBC’ is a kind of show that does not fall in the same genre as other reality shows. It is a show which tests one’s knowledge and is meant to target and engage these aspirational viewers. The game show format that ‘KBC’ has adapted from has been adapted in several countries across the globe, but nowhere does it feature on prime time. The drama around the opportunity a common man has to change his or her life, the connection that Amitabh Bachchan has with the audience and the format that allows everyone to participate are all reasons for the popularity of the show.

Megha Ahuja, AVP- Digital Media Planning, Carat India, eleborated, “In comparison, there have been several spin-offs who just have not been able to consistently get as many things right as ‘KBC’ for a long period. And hence, for 21 years it has been raking in the Television ratings like no other show irrespective of other popular shows rubbing concurrently.”

Knowledge-based shows require a specific set of audiences and, barring a few, most of them have not been so successful in terms of TV metrics. Keerat Grewal, Partner, Ormax Media, noted, “‘KBC’ is a rare example of a show that offers a mix of knowledge and inspiration via both its format, and its host Mr Bachchan. This winning combination is a difficult one to replicate, which could be a reason why we've not seen many experiments with this genre. The show has been able to deliver on audience engagement over seasons. This, and Sony's stronghold on the metro audiences for its non-fiction content, has helped the show sustain itself as a premium property for advertisers over the years.”

Will the upcoming festive season and back-to-back IPL and ICC T-20 World Cup draw away advertisers from shows such as ‘KBC’? Manesh Swamy, Senior VP - Creative, Social, PR, Marcom, Logicserve Digital, opined, “I wouldn’t deny that cricket is still the biggest thing on Indian Television. And with IPL and World Cup coming back-to-back, it is easily our ‘Double Super Bowl’ moment. Advertisers are waiting for such big impact events to bounce back post the second lockdown phase. So, you might see some dip in spends on other content shows.”

(Edited and additional inputs by Shanta Saikia)

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