In-depth: With surge in IPL viewership, advertising to go up on both TV and digital, say top advertisers

Amidst the apprehension about reduced number of brands advertising in the 16th season of IPL, top advertisers told BestMediaInfo.com that as the tournament progresses it is expected to attract more brands with a surge in viewership.

Advertisers believe that despite the cost of association with IPL being much higher than other impact options available to them, good viewership in the coming weeks is likely to build confidence to leverage this high-reach property for advertising by more brands.

Advertising should go up on both TV and digital

Gaurav Mehta

Gaurav Mehta, CMO, Noise, said that it’s a positive sign that audiences are showing good traction for IPL on TV, leaving scope for an increased reach for a de-duplicated audience. 

“Marketing investment will follow relevant and scaled reach, which is why this is a welcome data point to see. But to get the return on advertising spends (ROAS), de-duplicated reach needs to be aligned with the advertiser’s business results,” Mehta said. 

He added that any mismatch makes the investment decisions more complex. 

“At Noise, we are running our campaign with Virat Kohli on Connected TV and tracking the results. We feel that a healthy balance of platforms to advertise on would result in the desired ROI,” Mehta added.

Anita Nayyar

According to Anita Nayyar, COO, Media, Branding and Communications at Patanjali Ayurved, initially people were a bit apprehensive because the platform changed from Hotstar, which had a very loyal audience, to JioCinema which is offering IPL for free. 

“The app saw a record 2.5 crore downloads on the first day of IPL but now the average live viewership on the Jio platform is 1-1.5 crore every day. IPL on the Jio platform is being offered for free which means more eyeballs are guaranteed,” she said.

Furthermore, she stated that given this situation, advertising on the Jio platform should go up. 

“If we talk about TV, earlier there used to be Star Sports and Hotstar and there was a very similar audience in the sense that people who were loyal to Star Sports used to go and watch IPL on Hotstar as well. But now that there is no other option on TV, Star Sports has also seen a surge in viewership. Overall, it seems like a great season for IPL and advertising should go up on both TV as well as for the streaming platform, as it progresses,” Nayyar added.

Advertisers have the ability to read data filtering away noise generated by media

A senior executive from one of the leading brands said that advertisers would ignore all the random news stories which are planted by either side and get their agencies to give them the right analytics on viewership data and the correct perspective in one’s own markets and target group (TG).

“Historically, this kind of tactic is often used by news channels wherein a channel would choose one five-minute segment in a specific TG and claim leadership position,” he said. 

Furthermore, he went on to say, “From cricket broadcasters, more maturity is expected when it comes to claiming numbers. Advertisers understand and have the ability to read the data filtering away noise generated by the media and will put money behind the right medium. Ultimately most advertisers are listed companies and have to answer to their shareholders for making the right decision.”

Good viewership is likely to build confidence to leverage IPL

Shashank Srivastava

According to Shashank Srivastava, Senior Executive Director, Marketing and Sales, Maruti Suzuki, the viewership needs to be monitored closely as the season progresses, even though initial numbers are very promising. 

“As the cost of association with IPL is much higher than other impact options for advertisers, good viewership in coming weeks is likely to build confidence to leverage this high-reach property for advertising by more brands,” he added.

“The average IPL ratings nationwide for the 2022 season in MSIL TG was 4.1 TVR which was still way more than any GEC (general entertainment category) impact property we associate with despite a drop in ratings over the last season that is 2021,” Srivastava added.

BK Rao

Striking a similar tone, BK Rao, Senior Category Head at Parle Products, said, "I am extremely optimistic of the viewership picking up on TV. That’s the most natural way for die-hard fans as well as even lapsers to catch up with the action. It is a sheer habit."

Sports, particularly cricket, is enjoyed on the large screen for relaxed viewing, he added.

Info@BestMediaInfo.com