The ever-growing Indian Premier League (IPL), which has a global audience of just under a billion people, continues to lure brands to secure multiple team sponsorships through its several different marketing provisions.
Evolving from having a presence only on the front of the jersey or helmet to having a variety of possibilities, including partnerships that are exclusively digital. IPL gives advertisers top visibility choices, whether it be through on-air integrations, on-ground visibility, or through team sponsorships.
To make full use of this, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., forerunners in the Indian SUV market, joined four IPL teams as an official SUV partner – Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Delhi Capitals (DC), Mumbai Indians (MI), and Rajasthan Royals (RR) before the commencement of the ongoing season. This landmark arrangement between the above-mentioned parties was facilitated by ITW Catalyst.
Mahindra hopes that this partnership would increase customer interaction and fortify the relationship between the brand and the T20 league clubs. Throughout the 2023 season, Mahindra will launch a variety of engagement initiatives to connect with customers. The brand will also initiate meet-and-greets with their favourite players from the four teams, giveaways of merchandise, and competitions.
Neha Anand, Head, Global Brand and Marketing Communication, Automotive Division, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. said, “At Mahindra, we believe in leveraging the power of sports to connect with our customers. The Indian T20 league provides an excellent platform for us to achieve our marketing objectives, and we are excited to partner with multiple teams this season. We look forward to engaging with cricket fans across the country through on-ground activations, digital campaigns, and other exciting initiatives. We are delighted to collaborate with ITW Consulting for our multi-team sponsorships in the upcoming T20 season. Their expertise and experience in the sports marketing domain has been valuable in helping us plan our marketing objectives through strategic partnerships with top teams like the Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Rajasthan Royals.”
Multi-team partnerships were observed in the initial years of the T20 competition, as companies like Kingfisher teamed up with practically all eight teams in the first few seasons of the league. Jio, BKT Tires, and boAt have also been using a similar tactic in recent years including the 2023 edition as it provides an opportunity to reach a larger audience for a relatively small investment. Through multiple team partnerships, brands also get an opportunity to achieve their marketing goals through content creation and social media exposure.
According to Bhairav Shanth, Co-Founder of ITW Consulting, “Over the last few years, we have seen a definitive increase in brands opting for multiple team sponsorships, in fact in 2020 with no on-ground advertising nearly 16-17 brands had a presence across teams. For Mahindra we suggested a multi team route as we wanted to create an opportunity for wider reach as well as a presence on social media which is amplified through team associations, Mahindra is no stranger to sport sponsorships and have been seen on air for years, this year the focus is on gaining traction through content generation, on ground activations, test drive campaigns and customer engagement. We have led the pivot to digital sponsorships as well with associations like Kredit Bee with the Royal Challengers and the Mahindra campaign as well which will see a focus on content.”
So far, ITW Catalyst has successfully facilitated over 20 deals totalling more than INR 150 crore in the Indian T20 season, with brands like Goel Group, Happilo, Mahindra, Coca-Cola, Hindware, ITC, and many more in its portfolio.