Special Report
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SPECIAL REPORT IN THE FASTFAST LANE LANE The sports marketing business in India is accelerating. Here is the full scorecard. INSIDE SPECIAL REPORT Issue 3 I September 2008 Spends on sports marketing will touch $110 billion by the From local events to truly year 2009. Is India ready? international ones, India is Focus on staring a growth phase in the face. What is in it for SPORTS 100 1 brand marketers? MARKETING 75 Brands and marketers take 50 heart. The Asia-Pacific and LEAD India are the next high 25 Throwing the growth areas for sports 92.3 95.9 96.1 99.4 109.1 110.9 Gates Open 0 marketing. A report on what 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Source: PWC 04 Global marketing spend in $ billion; Includes gate revenues, rights fees, marketers should look at merchandising, sponsorthips, internet, mobile satellite and other rights packages when they want more bang from their buck while MEDIA MIX marketing through sports. Much to Do Eyeballs Game Deferred Sports associations, agencies and Viewers are spending more Revenue marketers have a big role to play. time on sports channels 14 2 4than before. SPORTS All figures in MM.SS 40 30 20 11.91 14.14 10 8.30 0 2006 2007 2008 Source: TAM Peoplemeter System STAKEHOLDERS Agents of Opportunity 08 5 Learning Curve THE IPL More than the money What It Taught involved, the IPL has a few Other Game Boy marketing lessons too. Marketers 73 per cent of active gamers 18 prefer to go for the sports Sports 3 genre than other modes. 73% Big Ticket Events The Commonwealth Games and the Cricket World Cup hold promise for Indian marketers. OTHER SPORTS 6 OUTLOOK This is On the ONLINE Not Cricket Big Stage Log on to afaqs.com to download this Special Report 10 22 BRANDREPORTER I SPECIALREPORT � SEPTEMBER 2008 03 ESSAY THROWING THE GATES OPEN FOTOCORP Pitching it local. Mumbai’s dahi handi competitions are million-rupee affairs. Note the Airtel Govinda ringtone hoarding. 04 SEPTEMBER 2008 � BRAND REPORTER I SPECIAL REPORT SPORTS MARKETING By M Venkatesh Inputs by Chumki Sen While other developed Squash player Saurav Ghosal has a As a definition, sports marketing means very matter-of-fact approach to his applying marketing principles to market sports countries have a career. “The yardstick for success is (including sportspersons, teams, leagues and the mature sports different for different sports. A cricketer sport itself) and marketing of non-sports products could probably become a national hero using sport. “In India,” says Hiren Pandit, marketing industry, after scoring just one hundred, but as a managing partner, Group M, ESP, “we are learning squash player, I would probably have to the latter and are yet to master the former.” India’s is just taking win the World Open to get the same off. Here’s the score. attention,” he says. The round-up Last month, Abhinav Bindra proved According to Pandit, the sports marketing business that observation to the hilt. With just one in India is growing much faster than it is shot, Bindra had marketers and brands falling over worldwide. Compared to the global average themselves announcing their intent - if not an growth rate of 5 per cent, it is growing by 20 per actual desire - to back shooting as a sport. Bindra’s cent a year in India. However, in India most of the agent, Latika Khaneja of Collage Sports sports marketing spend comes in the form of Management, was, however, more circumspect. In sponsorships and advertising during sports events. various interviews she “hoped” that corporate India According to estimates from Group M, the global would now inject more sponsorship cash into sponsorship business is pegged at $38 billion sports other than cricket. (Rs 152,000 crore). India’s share of this is just The same happened - on a smaller scale since Rs 1,200 crore. GroupM also estimates that 60 per they didn’t have high-flying agencies managing cent of the total sports marketing business them - with Vijender Kumar and Sushil Kumar. generated in India is from broadcast fee and But the fact is that one no longer has to explain television advertising while endorsements and on- that the two represented India in boxing and ground activation account for 20 per cent each. wrestling in the Olympics. “I am looking forward Sports marketing has come a long way since the to the current medal winners. Bindra, Vijender, 1870s, when tobacco companies in the US made Sushil also make good youth icons in the coming cards of baseball players and inserted them with times,” says Akshay Mehrotra, head, marketing, packs of cigarettes in order to try and boost sales or Bajaj Allianz. The company, which roped in develop brand loyalties. Today, sports marketing is Vijender as a brand ambassador, had sponsored a very different ballgame indeed. the IPL winner, Rajasthan Royals. According to a PricewaterhouseCoopers- According to Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO, FICCI Report on the media and entertainment brand-comm, “I feel that industry and marketers industry, the global sports market, which is worth are only looking at the low-hanging fruit and that $96 billion, consists of the following components - sems to be only cricket.” The attention, Ghosal and gate revenues for live sporting events; rights fees other non-cricket sport stars seek, is not just that of paid by radio broadcasters, broadcast and cable TV the spectators’. They would love to catch the eye of networks, and TV stations to air those events; corporates. However, the winner of the British merchandising, which includes selling products - Junior Squash Open in 2004 and the bronze in the with player likenesses or with team logos - and A VERY Doha Asian Games, two years later, is happy that other intellectual property; sponsorships, which DIFFERENT BALL he has managed to get sponsors such as India include naming rights and payments to have a Cements, Veedol Lubricants and the Shri Ram product associated with a team, league, or event; GAME NOW Group. and internet, mobile, satellite and other rights The danger of attempting a report on the packages associated with sports events. Add TV Sports marketing has come a sports marketing business in India is that it ends advertising to that, and sports marketing business long way since the 1870s when up looking at cricket. But then, cricket has its shoots up to $545 billion (Rs 21,80,000 crore). tobacco companies in the US nose much ahead of any other sport in India. Of Competition in the media distribution market, made cards of baseball players’ the estimated Rs 2,000 crore sports marketing according to PwC, is fuelling demand for TV photos and inserted them with business in India, close to Rs 1,800 crore goes rights fees. Mobile and online rights are boosting packs of cigarettes into cricket! the market in the US, EMEA (Europe, Middle BRAND REPORTER I SPECIAL REPORT � SEPTEMBER 2008 05 ESSAY BIG BUSINESS 100 75 50 25 0 92.3 95.9 96.1 99.4 109.1 110.9 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Source: PwC-FICCI Report on Media & Entertainment, 2008; Global sports marketing spend in $billion; Includes gate revenues, rights fees, merchandising, sponsorthips, internet, mobile satellite and other rights packages East, Africa), and the Asia-Pacific. Companies are Yalvigi as general manager for Havas Sports India. MOVING also making lucrative sponsorship deals and are Yalvigi has spent time in Network Sports and VGC AHEAD paying premiums for venue and event naming Sports as business head. An added advantage is that POWERFULLY rights. Everyone benefits. Yalvigi has played 29 Ranji Trophy matches and has The Beijing Olympics will fuel growth in Asia- a ‘great working relationship’ with players like As global sports marketing Pacific in 2008, and Canada will benefit from the Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh. spends rise, it is the Asia-Pacific 2010 Winter Olympics. While the host countries That game again. Like many others, does Havas region that will propel the will receive the principal revenue increases from too prefer a cricket-centric approach? Says Nayyar, growth in the next four to five these events, TV and other rights fees will expand “We can certainly see other sports picking up in years in all regions. Sponsorships and associated popularity. Soccer, tennis, hockey, Moto GP and merchandising will also drive sports spending. golf come to mind right away. One has to look at other sports simply because of the excessive clutter Late off the blocks and high costs involved in a cricket-only strategy.” In India, revenue streams are slowly moving Brands that are looking to associate themselves away from just TV. A long way behind global with a sport need to look at some factors very counterparts, it is only recently that sports seriously before taking the plunge. Does the marketers in India moved beyond player association help communicate the core values and endorsements and management. “The advantage,” the proposition of the brand? More importantly, is says Anita Nayyar, CEO, MPG India, “is that we the linkage being leveraged in an effective manner? can take the best practices from established markets That is why most brands probably find it easier to and dovetail it with the local culture and needs.” jump on the cricket bandwagon. Also, in India, MPG is a part of the Havas Group that has a sports most brands spend money on airtime or syndicated arm called Havas Sports with clients like columns. Other routes are mostly left unexplored. Avesthagen, Radico, Wipro and Voltas. GroupM another agency that is talking sports Just how serious Havas is about sports was seriously.