I was called to make a presentation on- 'Tools for surging economy' in Apree, a Marketing Seminar organized by Spotlight Event and Apnacircle in August 2010 in Goa. It was my first attempt as a speaker in such forums with stalwarts like Harish Bijoor and others. I decided to share my views on how Sports and its various facets can act as an effective tool to reach consumers effectively.

1. Creating an appetite for Sports…

2. Lets play…

3. Sports in India… Huge… almost $5 billion currently

5. But we are a country that is obsessed with Cricket …

6. That’s our cricket…

7. We start early…

8. But where did it start… Back in 1983 when India delivered at International stage…

9. And what changed Indian sports… Liberalization in 1991-92…

10. And we got big brands spending more money in India… Big consumer market forced them to invest in the biggest reality show in India then…

11. And then came the big moment… It put in a new belief in the Young India…

12. What followed was… Madness, Adulation and Celebration

13. And gave birth to something called the IPL… Glamour, fun and excitement..

14. Made cricket more than the entertainment…

15. Every brand wanted to own a pie here…

16. But there are many other sports… ..which kept looking for Corporate India’s attention…

17. 2004 Athen’s Olympics… Three years later, shooter Abhinav Bindra, backed by Mittal Champions Trust (MCT), won India’s first individual gold in Beijing.… One Silver Medal only for the 2 nd most populated country in the World

18. India’s first individual Gold came as late as 2008, inspired 2 other medals...

19. And India has suddenly started doing well in individual sports...

20. Even Corporate India thought that there is life beyond cricket.. Percept bought marketing rights for All Boxing events in India for 5 years, investing almost 40 crores. Videocon has invested 20 crores for Indian Franchise of World Series of Boxing, a country based tournament with 12 countries participating The National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Mahindra Group, announced a partnership to launch a new multi-city community-based recreational basketball league. The new league for boys and girls ages 14 and up will tip off in Bangalore, Ludhiana and Mumbai

21. And the investment covered many kinds of sports… The Jaypee SK Group bagged the rights to host the Indian Grand Prix in October 2011 in Delhi. Vijay Mallya – chairman of United Breweries group and Kingfisher Airlines – bought a 50-percent stake in the Spyker F1 team for around 120 million dollars and promptly rebranded the team as Force India. Out of 100 crores that Hero Honda plans to invest in Sponsorships and Advertising in Sports, a significant amount will go to Hockey. Apart from sponsoring WC, they are organizing inter-school tournament in 20 cities, 300 schools to promote hockey. Aside from the above, there is Reliance, Airtel, JK Tyres, LG etc.…

22. And this much needed given the investment from Government… India allocates about $777 million every year to sports, a tiny fraction of its $1-trillion GDP. …

23. But what is the ROI Corporate will get for their company/ brands..

24. Lets go back to Cricket

25. Look at the corporate investment there…

26. Sponsorships in Sports Are consumers really connecting with the sponsoring brand?

27. Audience Reach Sponsor Recall Passion Index Gratitude Index Target audience Perceptions, attitudes and buyer behavior. Measuring Sponsorship Effectiveness…

28. Audience Reach Sponsor Recall Passion Index Inter-relationships…

29. Engagement level which the brand has worked on…

30. And do a Pre-post sponsorship measurement…

32. What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight - it's the size of the fight in the dog." - Dwight D. Eisenhower For brands to get the most out of a sponsorship campaign they must focus on the relevance and value for the fan.

33. More than Sponsorships It is the engagement level in Sports that offers the best ROI for brands? Afterall, Sports is all about passion…

34. There is something else that IPL did for Sports in India… Merchandise association

35. Online engagement…

36. Off the pitch events…

37. Got them to connect with fans.

38. But this is cricket, a game that has all eyes on it...

39. Other Sports still need more focus…

40. Cricket - 122 million viewers Wrestling - 96 million viewers Football – 83 million viewers Tennis - 70 million viewers Golf - 65 million viewers Source : Jan-Dec 2008 Estimates, TAM (Urban Class I), Nielsen & Industry Top 5 Viewed Sports in India

41. Lets look at Football

42. 7 And who is watching football

43. Sports Advertising goes against popular perception

44. 2 times more ad volumes since 2005 Football has grown faster than other sports

45. 3 times more advertisers since 2005 Led by major spurts during football events..

46. Limited content giving more viewership to Domestic Football

47. Football today is not just the a game played by Westerners… “ Cricket is for the fathers, Football is for the sons.”

48. Nike and Football in India…is the kind of effort required

49. Moving above just putting a logo..O2 & England rugby O2 has been a proud sponsor of the England Rugby Team since 1995 O2 customers receive priority treatment at Twickenham when they visit the blueroom in the West Car Park to pick up a free pie, pint or programme and meet England players. O2 Scrum on the Beach allowing fans to combine sun, sea, sand and rugby throughout the summer months, meet and train with their England heroes, and win prizes.

50. Finding your own pie in Sports When the likes of Coca Cola, Mastercard and Nikes of this world are buying up every ad spot, how do smaller brands with a modest budget make a genuine impact?

51. Using Digital in Sports When used appropriately and managed effectively, technology has the power and potential to amplify a brand beyond the event itself, creating and maintaining a lasting impression with fans that doesn’t fade as soon as the final whistle is blown.

52. Turning Fans into Loyalists..England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) Summer 2009- The ECB (England & Wales Cricket Board) created ‘The Great Exhibition’, a campaign to capitalize on the excitement and interest generated by these high profile events, creating more cricket fans and building a positive legacy for the future of cricket. Objectives - Increase the overall cricket fan base in the UK from 9.5m to 11m by August 09 - Increase unique users of ecb.co.uk to 500,000 per month - Add 80,000 new cricket fans to the ECB database for future Communication

53. Digital was the medium- The Great Exhibition Campaign Messages of Support Fans’ Jerusalem

54. Gatorade- Meeting the fans in the real time

55. Some ideas on how brands can get into sports…

56. Technology brands need to find their own intervention.. The recent England ‘goal that never was’ against Germany had highlighted the changing role of technology in the world of Sport.

57. Advent of two screen experience.. TV audience appetite for sport is bigger than ever, as proved by the World Cup, but that we are seeing a growing trend for a 2-screen experience In the 2-screen world, the TV is all about watching the content in the best way possible, while the second device (a mobile, laptop or similar) is all about socializing and how the viewer critically can get involved.

58. Making the user experience more useful.. The question was asked – what new technology will have the same impact as the colour TV did on snooker? The conservative nature of broadcasters and highlighted how much more and richer data could be available to sports viewers, for example, the heart-rate of Jonny Wilkinson as he took a spot-kick in the World Cup Final

59. Some great social entrepreneur ships in sports…

60. Making the user experience more useful.. Bangalore-based Sporting Minds-analytical cloud-based application that analyses matches and players’ performances in real time. The application christened 22 Yards is developed on Microsoft Windows Azure platform and provides real time analysis to players on how they played. For instance, one can see a ball-by-ball account of how Sachin Tendulkar played against Sreesanth with a video playback option as well.

61. EduSports is India’s First and Only Private Initiative providing Integrated Sports Management Services to Schools. Working with Schools all over the country helping them fulfill the dreams of millions of school going children for High Quality, Holistic Education.

63. Lets Play…