Bid to widen reach during elections, cricket mania: Companies plan ad splurge for action-packed June quarter

Indian companies are aiming to boost their advertising budgets by as much as 80% in the April-June quarter from the year-earlier period as they look to expand exposure and reach with media consumption set to surge during the general elections, the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the T20 World Cup.

Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Hyundai Motors, Dabur and Godrej Appliances among others said they will be increasing their ad budgets for the next quarter. Overall spending may surpass that of the festive season because of the confluence of events, experts said. Marketers said the increased spend will be on print, broadcast and digital media.

They said spending during the initial leg of the IPL has been muted since the tournament started at the end of the financial year when marketing budgets were exhausted and will increase as it progresses. The IPL started March 22 and will end May 26. The general elections will run from April 19 to June 1 in seven phases with vote counting on June 4. The T20 World Cup will begin June 2 and end June 29.

Shashank Srivastava, senior executive officer at the country’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki, said ad spends by auto companies in the next quarter are likely to go up, especially for those planning product launches.

“Sporting events like IPL allow companies to build reach quickly and help position a new brand. In a category like auto, where over 90% of the target group is male, both sports and news are genres which have high target group affinity and TV as a media platform has high reach,” he said. “News is synonymous with elections, it cuts across age groups, diverse geographies. So it makes sense to invest in these properties, especially for those companies which have products that appeal to many diverse segments.”

Aiming for More Eyeballs
White goods company Haier has increased its advertising budget to Rs 75 crore for the next 60 days from Rs 30 crore in April-June quarter last year.

“We are going all out with our advertising spend next quarter and it will be even bigger than what we usually do during the festive season since we want to make the most of these events when eyeballs increase,” said Haier India president Satish NS.

Biscuit maker Parle Products is raising ad spend during the IPL by 80% from last year and in May-June for the national elections by 50% from the same period last year. “The media reach of events like general elections and large cricket tournaments is much more than any other period,” said Parle Products senior category head, marketing, B Krishnarao.

SHORTER WAITING PERIODS
Maruti Suzuki will increase ad spends as waiting periods have decreased. “With improved supplies, waiting has reduced on vehicles,” Srivastava said. “Last year, the opposite was the case and hence the lower spending last year. Ad spends will now increase to convert more enquiries into purchases at the bottom of the marketing funnel.”

A senior executive at Tata Motors said the company’s ad spends will increase in the coming quarter on account of the IPL.

For several companies, the next quarter coincides with the summer season when marketing spend for beverages, ice-cream, air-conditioners, refrigerators, soaps, body wash and skincare products is at the highest.