The Hindu Business Line : De-risking the name of the game

THE CRICKETING DAYS of many big names like Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly and Anil Kumble could be numbered. Marketers have to think beyond the game.

At the time of writing, it is barely a fortnight since the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 started. I am at a loss as to how to describe it particularly from the point of view of the Indian cricket fan, so I will just give a smattering of the news headlines that hit the media.

`India loses to Bangladesh'

`India may not make it to the Super Eight'

`Dhoni's house attacked'

`Pakistan lose to Ireland'

`Pakistan out of World Cup'

`Inzamam to retire from one day cricket'

`Bob Woolmer passes away'

`Was Woolmer poisoned?'

`Gavaskar says ill-behaved Aussies could go like David Hookes'

`Gibbs hits six sixes in one over'

`Flintoff stripped off vice-captaincy for excessive drinking'

`Rs1,500 crore loss in case India does not make it to the Super Eight'

`India must beat Sri Lanka by a small margin to qualify'

`Bob Woolmer strangled to death?'

`India almost out of World Cup'

`Will Bermuda beat Bangladesh?'

So what is your verdict? A cup of upsets? A bizarre turn of events? A possible cup of woe for India? A financial disaster in the offing? The ugly shadow of bookies rearing its ugly head again? Or is it just not cricket? Of course, one can bury one's head in nostalgia and say that things are not like the `good old days'.

But how does that help? My concern is more about my old fears about cricket's attractiveness to fit into the overall marketing plans of more and more companies. I believe cricket continues to be "high risk" - whether it is high return, only time will tell.

What has software done?

A few years ago, the Indian software industry was comfortable going for the low hanging fruits. Then and now most business has been, is and will for the foreseeable future continue to be global. And for quite some time, the US has been a happy hunting ground for Indian software companies and there were quite a few easy pickings. But then there was 9/11 and the dotcom bust and suddenly the US wasn't all that hot any more. Indian software was constrained to look elsewhere. It looked at developing other markets as a de-risking strategy.

Any analyst will tell you that it is unwise to put all your marketing eggs in one basket. Or put all your weights in one geography.

Suddenly the UK and Europe and even Asian economies like Japan had a role to play in the development of software companies. The software companies had a name for it. They called it de-risking. And aiding and abetting that strategy were a host of financial analysts who were following these companies, many of whom were listed on the Indian - and on occasions, on the global - stock markets. They studied Indian software companies, analysed their business model, client mix and geographical spread and made their assessment of risk. Today, more and more software companies introspect and self-analyse their performance and client portfolio.

And this is the point I would like to make. Can all those marketers who have consciously and at times followed the herd mentality placed their bets exclusively on cricket step back, if not to smell the roses then to at least objectively evaluate their strategies?

Cricket Excitement or Stress?

Everyone speaks of the great excitement that one-day cricket provides to viewers and watchers. But while Indian watchers have their share of fun and games, they do go through some needless stress. And yet this stress is nothing compared to the stress the Indian marketers who placed their bets on the World Cup have gone through these last ten days. And I am not talking about placing bets with Ladbrokes. I speak of the bets made on the World Cup being an event that people would wait for, watch and even buy products like LCD TVs to watch the matches that their favourite team is likely to play in.

And that word `likely' is what has and will continue to create the maximum stress in marketers' lives. I don't know how many viewers spent late nights (or is it early mornings) watching cricket, but those who put big money on the event and ratings must certainly have spent sleepless nights.

Not surprisingly, the TRPs in the middle of the night are so abysmally low. And those marketing whiz kids who had put a lot of money on the game were going through hell as they worked out the permutations and combinations for India to get into the Super Eight. People who would be better off computing market shares were struggling to figure out the net run rate. Why must our team provide more stress than thrills? That is our karma, perhaps! Of course, it has now all become futile and a lot of us (and that includes me) have egg on our faces.

World Cup and beyond

Cricket fans and marketers had a lot of hopes for the World Cup. They had billed it as the big event and the average cricket fan had built a lot of hope around the cricket team. Both of us are looking a bit silly - to put it mildly.

Of course, cricket lovers have short-term memory and a few cribs and several drinks later will get ready to watch again. But I think the marketer should not be lulled into a false sense of complacency. Now is the time for him to action his de-risking strategy.

Let us also remember that many of our big names like Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly and Anil Kumble will not be around for much longer. And our already beleaguered team will flounder a little before it eventually rebuilds.

Rebuild your strategy if it had a lazy dependence on cricket. How dependent are you on cricket? De-risk! Create a property, event or programme that is exclusive to you. Don't just buy something off the shelf. I remember TVS Saregama being a big hit and having an association with the brand. What is the profile of your audience? Why not work with a long-term strategy that would imply the commissioning of exclusive content that fits you? Not a catch-all like cricket. Nor do I hope that marketers will think that since cricket is failing let's just sign on movie actors. I can imagine the Amitabhs and Saifs licking their lips in anticipation of more endorsements coming their way. But for God's sake, think! It is the obsession with the short term and quarterly results that urge us to look at quick fixes and instant solutions. And celebrity endorsements quickly fix awareness. But isn't there more to branding?

And now for the death overs

Well now that India is dead and buried in the World Cup, the expected happened. Angry recriminations followed. Cricket lovers burned houses and effigies of their erstwhile stars. All the poojas did not help. If this does not get us to act and think of viable alternatives, I wonder what will. As for the several millions who had pencilled in April as a high-ticket cricket viewership month, it will be back to work as usual. And who knows our GDP may go up over the next month!

P.S: And I need a de-risking strategy as well! I have been unable to cancel my tickets. See you at the Ireland-Bangladesh match.

(Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO of Brand-comm.)

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