MR Suresh had his task cut out when he joined Krishidhan Seeds last September. India's fifth largest seeds company had just become the first in the industry to get private equity funding after US-based Summit Partners invested $30 million (about Rs 132 crore), and the hybrid cotton seeds producer was all set to start operations in the Netherlands. Yet, it didn't have a strong brand and a pan-India reach. So, the biggest challenge for the 50-year-old executive director of Krishidhan group was to give a new spin to the company's image, and what better way to do it than using the country's biggest brand name-Sachin Tendulkar. No, Suresh didn't rope in the master blaster as a brand ambassador, but sowed an advertising campaign that smartly used Sachin's name as its tagline: 'Beejon ka Tendulkar' . "Cricket is a religion for Indians, and we wanted to capitalise on this mega event for creating a strong brand image of Krishidhan Group across the country," says Suresh. Suresh was not alone in realising that. A slew of companies across the country are using cricket in their advertisements to connect with the masses and cash in on the World Cup fever, which is now at its peak ahead of the India-Pakistan blockbuster semifinal on Wednesday. Sample this: the punchline of DSP BlackRock Mutual Fund's print ad reads 'Prepare your investment kit' while an advertisement run by financial services firm Religare says 'Face every health googly with confidence' .
Cheap & Successful
If you haven't noticed Dr Batra's Super Six offer, there is the hat-trick offer by Style Spa. Even anti-virus firm Quick Heal has launched a 'Crazy about cricket' scheme. And there's nothing official about it. From images and colours to graphics and cricket lingo, companies that are not officially associated with the World Cup are playing all kinds of unconventional shots to make the most of the biggest sporting carnival in the country. And they are doing it with elan, without the huge cost associated with becoming an official partner.
Catchy one-liners
What Jalna-based Krishidhan couldn't achieve in its 25 years of existence was done by the mere use of cricket's most powerful name-Sachin Tendulkar. The 'Beejon ka Tendulkar' campaign became a hit the moment it was aired on ESPN Star Sports. If this was not enough, Krishidhan went a step further to popularise the advertisement . "The print advertisement was prepared in seven languages, including English, Hindi and Marathi, and was put up at dealer and grocery shops, saloons, bus stands, railway stations," says Suresh. "People were asked to send sms replies to questions based on the advertisement . And the response was tremendous."
While the company opted for a mix of TV and outdoor advertising, most others bypassed the prohibitive TV route and flooded print and radio with catchy cricket one-liners . Even Life Insurance Corporation , not exactly known for smart advertising, has come up with some World Cup special googlies such as 'Live life on the front foot' , 'Catch every opportunity' , 'Great partnerships are built on trust' and, 'Form is temporary, class is permanent' . "The idea behind the oneliners campaign is to reach to the public and convey the message that is related to life insurance and cricket," says Vipin Anand, corporate communications chief of LIC. "We feel that sponsorships in World Cup cricket are highly overrated and the same amount of money could be used elsewhere with much better mileage. Hence, our low-key but creative campaign in print media." Matrix Cellular Services , a telecom solutions provider for international travellers that has never been officially associated with cricket, is now scoring high with its 'Score High' print campaign. "World Cup is that time of the season when cricket fever is at its peak. Therefore, by relating a brand to cricket is the most feasible in terms of gaining visibility," says Matrix Cellular (International) Services CEO Arun Batra.
Cheap & Successful
If you haven't noticed Dr Batra's Super Six offer, there is the hat-trick offer by Style Spa. Even anti-virus firm Quick Heal has launched a 'Crazy about cricket' scheme. And there's nothing official about it. From images and colours to graphics and cricket lingo, companies that are not officially associated with the World Cup are playing all kinds of unconventional shots to make the most of the biggest sporting carnival in the country. And they are doing it with elan, without the huge cost associated with becoming an official partner.
Catchy one-liners
What Jalna-based Krishidhan couldn't achieve in its 25 years of existence was done by the mere use of cricket's most powerful name-Sachin Tendulkar. The 'Beejon ka Tendulkar' campaign became a hit the moment it was aired on ESPN Star Sports. If this was not enough, Krishidhan went a step further to popularise the advertisement . "The print advertisement was prepared in seven languages, including English, Hindi and Marathi, and was put up at dealer and grocery shops, saloons, bus stands, railway stations," says Suresh. "People were asked to send sms replies to questions based on the advertisement . And the response was tremendous."
While the company opted for a mix of TV and outdoor advertising, most others bypassed the prohibitive TV route and flooded print and radio with catchy cricket one-liners . Even Life Insurance Corporation , not exactly known for smart advertising, has come up with some World Cup special googlies such as 'Live life on the front foot' , 'Catch every opportunity' , 'Great partnerships are built on trust' and, 'Form is temporary, class is permanent' . "The idea behind the oneliners campaign is to reach to the public and convey the message that is related to life insurance and cricket," says Vipin Anand, corporate communications chief of LIC. "We feel that sponsorships in World Cup cricket are highly overrated and the same amount of money could be used elsewhere with much better mileage. Hence, our low-key but creative campaign in print media." Matrix Cellular Services , a telecom solutions provider for international travellers that has never been officially associated with cricket, is now scoring high with its 'Score High' print campaign. "World Cup is that time of the season when cricket fever is at its peak. Therefore, by relating a brand to cricket is the most feasible in terms of gaining visibility," says Matrix Cellular (International) Services CEO Arun Batra.
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