India Inc looks to draw from IPL's success as a brand

 India's corporate world is looking to draw from the DLF Indian Premier League as a brand that bases is strength on innovation in people management. 

"The most important point was to make believers of non-believers. The brand is so strong now that the second season is under way and even non-believers of the success of IPL 2009 will eventually raise their hats and acknowledge the strong emotional bond that IPL has built with its fans," says, Vibgyor Films Founder Sandeep Kaul. "Last but not the least, the whirlpool effect would mean that IPL can be held in any cricketing nation and still be a successful brand.

"Knowing the iconic popularity of cricket in both the countries namely South Africa and India, IPL ensured that the followers of the game would enjoy the clash anyways and, by default, local brands get international exposure," says Kaul. "This is like a boon to our local brands. So the lesson was not to be fazed by the circumstance but spruce the turkey and enjoy an early Thanksgiving." 

Thomson Foundation Asia Project co-ordinator Savyasaachi Jain recalls one other brand name that Indians associate with South Africa. "It is quite rare to see a brand exercise in India gaining momentum so speedily and then managing to get eyeballs. A brand that I can recall in ties with South Africa was Mahatma Gandhi but then it is quite notable that it took years to establish" he says. "It is a concept that that has notably reacted very fast to specifically Indian market conditions that too in such a short span of time."

McCann Erickson National Creative Director Ashish Chakravorty says IPL has made the most of what some considered a grudge purchase. "First was a decision whether to spend money on development or not - they chose to spend (the potential grudge purchase). Significantly, this was converted into an investment by making it not just short-term spending on players training but rather turning it into a real investment that generates returns for the future," he says. 

"But then the cherry on top - the system they have built not only makes this investment (growing young players by exposing them to the international stars) but also, as an entertainment spectacular, generates huge revenues and value," says Chakravorty.

"It is simply a mixture of the old and the new," says Tag Worldwide Chief Operating Officer Chetan Sachdev. "The age-old game of cricket plus fairly established professional sports marketing and a new exciting format adds up to a brand new product. Very simple in theory but it hadn't been done before like this. They weren't afraid to try it." Euro RSCG Associate Creative Director Nikhil Pandey says IPL has shown that in business, as in sport, it is the innovators who would survive fierce battles. "Questioning the paradigm and breaking the convention are the norms to follow," he says. "The most notable feature is resource utilisation. BCCI's contracted players were a resource. When the demand was created, the value of the resource went up. It is novelty in creating demand that is the highlight of IPL."

Blogworks Founder Rajesh Lalwani advises that it would be advisable to evaluate IPL in its third season for its sustainability. "But IPL as a brand surely is a significant property. The most interesting fact about IPL is it has given a new aspirational wing to parents who were always hesitated thinking about cricket as a prospective career for their kids, now they are ready to back their kids," he says.