Depending on who you ask, the IPL went down in flames, reached the logical conclusion of a property that was more "sports entertainment" than cricket or was in spite of (and maybe even because of) all the controversies, an unqualified success.
It also marks the year Pepsi spent a reported Rs 160 crore over two months on what was one of the most comprehensive engagements of a brand with a sporting franchise in the history of Indian marketing. But to get the question everyone wants an answer to out of the way first:
Are Pepsi and IPL quits?
At the time of going to print, no. Pepsi is still maintaining a studied silence on the issue. Besides even as the public and the media savaged the accused players and the top brass at the BCCI, the sponsors were relatively untarnished save for a few stray snide remarks.
An ad veteran who works on brands from Pepsi's arch rival is confident that had Coke been the official sponsor, Pepsi would have definitely come up with a snarky topical campaign, perhaps a more vicious avatar of "nothing official about it."
Marketing consultant Harish Bijoor on the other hand chooses to believe its part of the game: "5-day cricket is like the staid editorial, one-day cricket is like a crisp front page and IPL is all of funky page 3. There is always the risk that things may go out of hand and in this case, it has. I hope Pepsi is reinsured on this count."
At this stage it seems likely the association will continue. The controversy is dying down and there's no statement of a pullout. Whatever decision Pepsi takes on IPL, it continues to engage with cricket. Its latest campaign playing out on social media is titled 'Road To Champions' where players and fans are encouraged to talk about classic moments in the sport. At stake is a chance to be part of the toss at the finals of the ICC Champions Trophy in London. However to dial things back a bit...
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The Road to IPL 6
Pepsi claims it was strapped for time in the lead up to its maiden year as sponsor on IPL. But previous tournaments had left the company with several insights on what was likely to work. Says Homi Battiwalla, senior director - marketing (colas , juices & hydration),PepsiCo India, "From the time we did 'Change The Game' two years back, we realised TV advertising has to be the mainstay but there are newer pieces coming up."
The brand began to harness the power of Facebook a couple of years ago and used Twitter for the first time during the ICC T20 last year. It also took inspiration from the best practices relating to on ground asset utilisation the world over. Given the timing of the matches and consumer habits, team Pepsi was confident IPL 6 would be watched across multiple screens.
Leading the cola category in summer advertising was something Pepsi had taken for granted. A more significant benchmark would be against other brands using IPL. Says Battiwalla, "Salience is one part, but could we break clutter? This was not just about broadcast and on air but on ground. We wanted to convert this into something people had not previously seen or engaged with." Deciding that such an opportunity was too big to squander on just a single brand Pepsi opted to for a folio that included the flagship cola brand, 7Up, Mountain Dew, Gatorade and the launch of its second cola Atom.
On Air
Sources at Pepsi estimate a total 200 million people watched IPL 6 on TV this year. It had commercials starring brand ambassadors Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra and a launch ad for its new brand Atom, but also found a wild card entry. In the West Indian cricketer Chris Gayle, who played for the Bengaluru franchise, Pepsi discovered a global icon with great traction across the country.
The Right Choice, Maybe?
By the time the tournament was through, Gayle had a music video of his own, dancing and rather robotically intoning Pepsi's 'Oh Yes Abhi' tagline. While not standard advertising and nowhere near as widely supported on TV as its lead commercials, videos such as these gave the brand a lot of content to push online