IPL was an expensive buy for Vivo, for Tata it could be a better fit

There is no dispute on the extent to which cricket delivers reach for the advertisers. A captive audience for a reasonably long period of time is an effective way for a marketer to push the cause of his brand. Of course, that does come with a price and with time, cricket, as a proposition, has become hugely expensive making it well beyond the reach of most advertisers.  

At the centre of it is the Indian Premier League (IPL), a tournament that got off the ground in 2008. It first had DLF as its title sponsor before Pepsi come abroad. The soft drinks major inked a deal for five years but walked out in the middle of it. Those in the media business say Pepsi felt it was too expensive. Something similar has now taken place. 

In mid-2017, Vivo, a handset brand, cut a cheque for Rs 2,200 crore to become IPL’s title sponsor. This was for the 2018-22 period and the company, a couple of days ago, changed its mind and the Tata Group has signed up for two years. The common notion is the anti-China sentiment that led to Vivo moving out. Those close to the development say the brand was looking to part ways with the IPL for at least a year now. “The pandemic upset all its calculations and Vivo realised it had overpaid. It became difficult for the management to justify that kind of investment to its top management,” says one person, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Besides, for one brand to cough up that kind of money is difficult. “For the Tatas, it is a conglomerate and it leaves them with options on which brand to then push. The big amount paid can be picked up by many companies. Maybe Vivo just got carried away.” 

According to Kunal Jamuar, COO, Eggfirst Advertising and Design, mobile handsets have always had a high percentage of sales from online platforms. “With Covid, online sales have only increased further in this category. In such a situation, a mass media extravaganza like IPL become a less than efficient add-on to the media investments,” he says. That’s not all. Jamuar points out that advertisers have to buy additional inventory on a fragmented viewership audience across digital and mass media platforms. “That makes such a media investment extremely expensive on just a two-month visibility platform.” 

For the Tatas, the vast bouquet of companies allows it a high level of flexibility to decide how the money spent can be optimised. As Balu Nayar, former MD of IMG and a key architect of the IPL, argues,“The IPL continues to be a winning proposition, and with the expansion from this year to ten teams, the value for the sponsor increases substantially, especially if a two-season model is adopted, which would give the sponsor brand year-round salience.” He sees a clear opportunity for the Tata Group. “Especially with the proposed launch of Tata Neu, it would connect with various businesses across the group.” The buzz on the street is that the group may go with just “Tata IPL” to ensure the brand is clearly highlighted.   

This is the first time a conglomerate will be the IPL’s title sponsor. Sandeep Goyal, Managing Director, Rediffusion, says the group has been in the news for the buyout of Air India, 1mg, BigBasket among others. “There is a strategy to youngify the Tata brand and that is where the IPL deal make sense. It is a great fit,” he believes.  

Also Read: Tata Group to replace Vivo as IPL title sponsor from this year: Brijesh Patel

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