3. FLOW OF THE PRESENTATION
Why Pro-Kabaddi League
Sports Entertainment in India
2
What can we as marketers learn?
3
Identifying the Problems and Reasons
4
Theorising the Case
5
Solutions : Forward Path
6
1
4. WHY PRO-KABADDI LEAGUE?
Large no of similar events popping
up throughout the year, males it
hard to create loyal fan base
High Competition on Sports Entertainment
Small engagement periods like 37
days for PKL, causes a intermittent
engagement for fans
Small engagement periods
There is a large viewership for
sports events in a dramatized
format
Large Customer Base
In the past 4 years 12+ sporting
events came up in digital format
and 8+ are yet to join in the coming
3 years
Increasing popularity of Non Cricket Sports
With the growing awareness and
engagement their a huge
opportunity for growth
Large Scope of growth
61% of engagement is via
smartphones and online
subscription model, hence helps us
evaluate the aspects of digital
marketing
Digital Content Handling
4
5. SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT IN INDIA
NEW PROF. LEAGUESISL,PKL, HIL reinvigorate less
popular sports, increasing non
cricket market in India
INCREASING VIEWERSHIP
WOMEN & RURAL VIEWERS
INTERNATIONAL EVENTS
SPONSORSHIP
DIGITAL CONSUMPTION
Increased viewership, in case of
PKL 51% growth in 4 years
PKL had ~50% of 429m viewers
as women, as compared to IPL
41% and ISL 57%
UEFA 50 million viewers
FIFA WC 55 million of which
~40% are women
Garners sponsorship woth 5190Cr,
12.5% growth on-air and 6.7% on-
ground 30% yoy
Hotstar, Cricbuzz used extensively
Avg comsumption time up to 35
minutes daily. New ways of connecting
with audience for improved revenues
5
6. PRO KABADDI LEAGUE-BUSINESS CONCEPT
Advertising and sponsorship
revenues increasing manifold
Winning teams may make
Immediate profits, players receiving
increased salaries
Operating expenses like salaries,
accommodation, travel are
$800,000 per team
Vast network of 64 sponsors-
of which 12 are central and
52 are franchise linked
Held twice every year
with 12 teams now
Star Sports- a major stakeholder with 74%
shares has not made profits
running into the 5th year
Launched in 2014
Franchise based model where
teams have to pay ~$250,000
Revenue through ticket sales,
prize money, sponsorships
and media rights
7. • Despite the rising viewership per season, the delta
between IPL and PKL is huge
• First Mover’s Advantage has to be maintained
• Have many options such as
-extending duration
-having two or more legs in a year
-adding more teams
-going international
-making
• No appointment viewing: still a second option
• Can’t leave the business as self sustaining, as the
sport itself isn’t as popular
• Teams in negative unless they win. Sponsorship
amount is less
• Image Problem: Cheap sport. (tickets/fees etc.)
• Nature is as such: very less gate revenue
• No national sport backing like cricket, so dual task
to keep both Sport and the league alive
• Not aspirational or cool enough
• Lack of media assets, no immediate possibility of
global presence.
REASONS
Still in start up phase : Very important to keep the
momentum going and reinforcing the present success
SCALING THE BUSINESS
In the mad rush for increased viewership and
extensive marketing, focusing on profitability is
required for securing long term sustainability.
MAKING BUSINESS PROFITABLE
7
REASONS
PROBLEMS OF THE INDUSTRY
8. Where would Mr. Kotler like it?
Marketing Strategy
(Chapter 2)
The campaign involved promoting not just
the league, but the sport at large, since it
was the sport which had to be connected
with the audience first
A comprehensive 360 degree marketing
campaign was employed : Outdoors,
On-Ground Promotions, radio
Digital Strategy
(Chapter 19)
Everything was organic – No paid
ads, promotions asking fans to re-
tweet, no contests. Still
#Prokabaddi used to trend on the
match day
Created a Twitter handle
@prokabaddi and Facebook page
ProKabaddi
League was turned into a
prime time slot after 7.30 PM
Players were interviewed in
Hindi, facilitating them to
develop a connect with the
audience
Pre-Game community
building and creating a buzz
Constant keyword
monitoring and replying
POSITION IN THE MARKETING
COURSE
9. PRICE
• Shorter game duration, reduced time
per viewer per match.
• Low priced tickets of ~Rs 200
• Caravan format of the league allowed
cost cutting
PROMOTION
• Malls with maximum footfalls targeted – kabaddi game
units installed inside.
• Celebrities like Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra added
to the glamour quotient
• ~10 second teasers to give a feel of the sport
• Parallels drawn between spirit of game and life
through campaigns
• Every team had a star around which the campaign was
centered.
PLACE
• Game was launched on multiple STAR
Networks at prime time.
• Star Sports 2 in English commentary was
aired
• Hindi commentary version run on
Entertainment Channel Star GOLD
• GAME played in big cities which enabled
media attention .
PRODUCT
• State of the art indoor stadiums.
• Specialists for better viewing experience
• Elevated perception of the game
• Game made televisual: bright outfits, loud
music pyrotechnics, colorful strobe lighting
• Enhanced camera capturing
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SCALING THE BUSINESS
THEORISING THE CASE- 4P OF PKL
10. Industry
Rivalry:
High
Threat of Substitutes :
High
-There is enough stuff out
there on TV if our product fails
to gather interest
Threat of new entrants :
Medium
-Sports leagues have begun
to gain momentum
Bargaining Power of Suppliers :
Low
- Players are not yet well known
Bargaining Power of Buyers:
High
-Viewers are all powerful, their interests
are paramount
PORTER’S FIVE FORCES
11. FORWARD PATH
The following ways can lead to increase
stickiness of the content, improve
penetration, help PKL expand its reach and
swell its income margins.
Percentage of viewers of Pro Kabaddi League 2016
1
To have a year long
interaction with fans, the
promotors must come with
other formats like women's
league, player negotiations
and transfers etc.
Larger time frame of
Engagement
2
Tie ups with online service
providers like hotstar, amazon
prime or Jio TV can help them
expand reach and also
impressions per content
Larger online
presence
3
Developing more sports
merchandise, infrastructure
so that people can connect
with the sports on personal
level too. It will help
increase the product
associativity.
Expand Offline
Connect
4
Only 15% of ad space cater
to 44% females of the total
viewership. Creating
focused ad content for
youth like education or
career will increate interest
among users.
Focused Ad-Content
5
At the moment majority
viewership is from
southern states, forming
more teams from other
geographical area will help
increase the reach and
help shape the game
dynamics better
Catering to emotional
appeal of larger
geographical area
56 % Male 44 % Female
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