Gaming players spend big bucks on cricketers to leverage IPL 2023 for increased brand awareness

Indian Premier League (IPL) is a visual delight for cricket fans in the country and a much sought-after media property for brands and advertisers. Therefore, it is only logical that the online gaming players have also associated with the tournament and the cricketers, either directly or indirectly, to gain more eyeballs.

In fact, as per the recent report released by Redseer Strategy Consultants, the gross gaming revenue of fantasy sports during IPL 2023 is expected to grow by 30-35% to reach Rs 2,900-3.100 crore and the transacting users are forecasted to increase by 25-30% in 2023, with nearly 60-65% of users coming from Tier-II cities and beyond.  

Some fantasy sports companies had also launched their campaigns, starring cricketers from various IPL franchises, ahead of the tournament. Hence, BestMediaInfo.com decided to speak to industry players from the gaming segment to discuss how they have planned and strategised their marketing initiatives or activities to leverage the sporting property. 

Jaya Chahar

Jaya Chahar, Founder and CEO, JCDC Sports, the parent company of Trade Fantasy Game (TFG), stated that the IPL is a big event in the cricketing season and advertising in the gaming sector is a ‘double-edged sword’. She stated that the League helps companies reach a large audience base, and there’s a high probability of increased brand awareness.

“While being seen in a clutter of brands from the same segment during IPL can come with the fear of going unnoticed, a well-designed app with standout communication and backed by smart strategy can really be helpful for the brand to grow,” she opined.

It is to be noted that TFG had recently rolled out the ‘Tukka nahi chakka maro’ campaign ahead of the IPL which consisted of three digital videos which ran across platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. 

“Additionally in the build-up to the campaign, we had cricketers Ambati Raydu and Khaleel Ahmed promote TFG on the social media platforms. Regional radio and on-ground activations were also part of the media mix,” Chahar pointed out.

Chahar said, “Our motivation behind the campaign was to connect with the audience between 18 and 40 years in a fun and entertaining manner and what better medium than their favourite cricketers. Our campaign brief, therefore, also revolved around the unique offerings of TFG.”

“The agency came up with a campaign that revolved around the situations witnessed in the everyday lives of the people, irrespective of whether you are a fantasy gaming fan or not. At the same time, it focused on delivering a simple message- why guess when you can make the best choices, by utilising unique features of TFG such as 6 a-side teams, player and venue statistics among others,” she added.

Paavan Nanda

Paavan Nanda, Co-Founder, WinZO Games, said that advertising during IPL has unparalleled impact and reach, surpassing all other GEC impact properties combined. 

With this, he also went on to claim that what proved to be a game-changer for WinZo was its association with the past editions of IPL wherein its campaigns enabled the platform to reach 100 million registered users.

Nanda also stated that this time around WinZO has again debuted two films, conceptualised and produced by Cellar Door Production, under the ‘Khiladi ho? Khiladi chahiye?’ campaign during the IPL. They plan to expand the campaign to include multiple films as the company plans to spend approximately Rs 100 crores on its marketing initiatives during the tournament.

Commenting on what made Mahendra Singh Dhoni the right choice for their campaign, Nanda said, “As India’s highly respected cricket captain, Dhoni has achieved unparalleled success in the world of cricket. WinZO’s partnership with Dhoni is a testament to his game-changing abilities, composed leadership, and winning mindset and resonates with the aspirations of the Indian youth and WinZO’s users. With Dhoni as our driving force, WinZO is poised to revolutionise the world of social gaming in India.”

Talking about the campaign, he added, “We aim to spread awareness about its unique offering of access to over 10 crore users and a wide range of more than 100 games for an immersive gameplay experience. Hence, we wanted to invoke a sense of belonging and community among our diverse user base along with looking for a campaign that is energetic, quirky and relatable, with a special focus on non-English speaking audiences in Tier-II and beyond. Therefore, our proposition is simple but enticing- Khiladi Ho? Khiladi Chahiye? To Aao WinZO par and Khelo 10 Karod Khiladiyon ke Saath,” he elaborated.

In terms of the trends witnessed during the early days of the IPL, gaming players onboarding cricketers as brand ambassadors was also a prominent one. Some gaming players also went on to explore newer ways to associate with cricketers in an attempt to innovatively leverage the IPL without going all out in terms of sponsorships or ad campaigns. 

Anindya Kar

Anindya Kar, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer, Sportiqo, said they onboarded Robin Uthappa as a brand ambassador and also rolled out a campaign featuring him because it’s a highly popular sporting event that attracts millions of viewers.

“With the rise of online and mobile gaming, the IPL can be an excellent platform for gaming players to showcase their skills and engage with audiences who are interested in gaming. Further, more than 75% of the Indian fantasy sports market is about cricket and if not anything IPL is the Medina of cricket,” he opined.

Kar added that the central thought was to leverage the cricketer’s popularity and influence among fans, especially those who have been looking to learn about the stock market but didn’t find the traditional methods really interesting. 

“With a large fan following, Uthappa can help the brand connect with its target audience and build brand awareness. By associating with him, we could potentially increase our reach and relevance amongst the target audience considering we have just entered the Indian market in February and are probably one of the youngest entrants in the market,” he said.

He also went on to add that the campaign brief was very straightforward as the sole objective was to increase financial literacy amongst people by making it fun by the virtue of applying their knowledge of cricket which is how they came up with the tagline- Khel On, Trade On.”

Furthermore, he also went on to add that, in terms of the marketing spends, Sportiqo dedicated 25% of the $ 1.25 million pre-seed fund to their marketing activities, out of which 60% was allocated to influencer marketing and the rest to the IPL campaign and allied promotional activities.

In a rather indirect association with the IPL, Adda52, the online poker platform, announced that the seventh edition of its campaign series titled ‘Poker Night with Stars’ will have David Warner as the guest of honour and that he will be playing along with seven other players or poker enthusiasts at the final table.

Shivanandan Pare

Speaking to BestMediaInfo.com, Shivanandan Pare, CEO and Executive Director, Deltatech Gaming, also revealed that since the real money gaming players are subjected to advertising restrictions, the poker platform had strategically decided to associate with Warner during the IPL, as he apparently is an avid poker player in addition to being a renowned cricketer.

He also went on to add that the campaign series started in 2018 with Chris Gayle and then witnessed Dinesh Karthik, Kieron Pollard, and now Warner join in owing to the players’ penchant and a keen interest in the card game.

Since 2019, Dream11 had been closely associated with the IPL as the official partner of the tournament and this time too, it is the co-presenting sponsor of JioCinema – the digital rights holder.

The fantasy sports platform recently rolled out its IPL campaign titled- ‘Sab Khelenge’, conceptualised by TILT Brand Solutions and produced by Earth Sky Productions, starring Aamir Khan, R Madhavan and Sharman Joshi, among several cricketers like Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, etc.

Dream 11’s campaign features the actors in a series of light-hearted banter films, joking with India’s top cricketers on their acting abilities and challenging them to a game on the field and is the first marquee campaign of the fantasy sports platform with non-sports celebrities at the helm. 

Through the course of the season, a series of 10 ad films from Dream 11 will be aired during the matches on television and digital wherein the platform’s brand ambassadors- Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Krunal Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar and R. Ashwin, will engage in banters with the three actors on who can play the sport better. 

As per Dream 11, the overarching message of the ad is that anyone can ‘play’ and test their skill and knowledge of cricket through the fantasy sports platform, reinforcing the #SabKhelenge proposition.

Saroj Panigrahi

Games 24x7’s My11Circle had recently bagged the title sponsorship of one of the IPL teams- Lucknow Super Giants. Saroj Panigrahi, Senior Vice-President, My11Circle, stated that their recent ad campaign pays homage to ‘The Giants’ in terms of creative strategy, as is evident by the videos in which their brand ambassadors- Sourav Ganguly, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Shubman Gill portray characters who are larger than life and complement the experience that the platform provides for fantasy gamers.

“Our previous year’s IPL campaign had resulted in excellent player engagement on the gaming platform which is why, this time around as well, we are trying to bring about visibility in the segment as it already is a high growth segment growing at the rate of 100% CAGR through new and innovative campaigns,” he said.

He also went on to add that this year, the company plans on going even bigger than the previous year and therefore has come up with a major campaign where aficionados will be able to get up close and personal with their favourite players in the series ‘Bade se Bada’, ‘Out of the Park’ and ‘Locker Room Tales’.

In his view, their marketing campaigns are designed with the sole goal of providing a special offer that enables My11Circle to stay connected to the gaming community whilst providing a rewarding experience on the platform. 

My11Circle’s ‘Bade Se Bada’ ad campaign featuring Sourabh Ganguly and Shubman Gill-

“We have a fantastic range of content-driven social media initiatives on YouTube and Facebook that will engage our players in addition to our ATL campaign, which will debut on Star Sports and JioCinema. They will also be cushioned by influencer and performance marketing running on various digital platforms,” he said.

He further went on to emphasise that in order to keep My11Circle’s social media platforms alive with enthusiasm, there will also be content-driven engagement, such as games, quizzes, and more. “We also have a robust performance marketing strategy to maximise engagement,” he added.

Arshdeep Singh gets candid with My11Circle in latest ‘Out of the Park’ campaign-

In fact, he also pointed out that there can be a big amount of overlap between the IPL viewers and the brand’s TG as anyone who is above the age of 18 and watches the tournament is the target audience for My11Circle.

“As we know that India is a cricket-loving nation, be it someone 18 or be it someone 50 years of age they all want to connect with the sport and the cricketers. Our players are at the centre when we design any new campaign or add new offerings as we are consistently working towards bettering their experience on the platform,” he stated.

Info@BestMediaInfo.com