CHENNAI SUPER KINGS: THE ROAR GETS LOUDER

EVENT FORMAT

PRELIMINARY ROUND

1. Analyze the given case carefully and come up with a summarized presentation based on the deliverables mentioned

2. The submission should be in the form of a PowerPoint presentation not exceeding 12 slides including the cover slide and Appendix if any

3. Deadline for Submission: Please check the link below

4. Event Registration link: https://dare2compete.com/o/chennai-super-kings-the-roar-gets-louder-indian-institute-of-management-iim-kozhikode-68036 Please go through all the rules & regulations once and also the eligibility criteria.

FINAL ROUND

Based on the submissions, the top 5 teams will be shortlisted and invited to IIM Kozhikode (during 26th to 28th October’18) to present their solution to a panel of judges. Exact dates of the final round will be communicated to the shortlisted teams at a later point in time.

PRIZE MONEY

FIRST PRIZE: INR 70,000

SECOND PRIZE: INR 40,000

CONTACT US: SASI (9698632811) / sasidharan21@iimk.ac.in

https://www.instagram.com/backwaters_iimk/

CASE

CHENNAI SUPER KINGS : IS YELLOW THE NEW BLUE?

CSK returned to IPL 2018 with a bang – by winning the trophy. The roar was able to be heard

from all over the Nation. It was most thrilling and exciting for CSK fans who had missed the action

of their favorite team for two years. The reach and impact of CSK matches were evident through

TV viewership, Social media buzz as well as the electrifying feeling one gets inside the stadium,

where CSK matches were played. The franchise had grown tremendously over the past 11 years,

cutting across barriers with the love and lasting bonds of the huge fan following.

Chennai Super Kings has the credit of been recognized as the most consistent team, as well as

the most followed franchise among all the IPL teams. With Indian Premier League exponentially

growing every year, its brand value has increased by 37% to $5.3 billion. This growth is supported

by the stats that show the rise in viewership, increase in media spend and the spread of the game

globally. CSK has been recognized as the most Valuable brand among all the IPL franchises

(estimated brand value to be $65 million). CSK team has not only a pan-India reach, but also

enjoys a global presence now.

The 11th edition of IPL had revealed that the Super Kings were no longer just a "Chennai" team.

CSK’s brand value had been boosted with a fan-base beyond Tamilnadu, across the states. The

consistency, flamboyant cricket and the on-field charisma of the players have transcended

borders and attracted cricket fans across the country.

Refer Exhibit 1 for BARC India Report and Social Media stats. The ocean of yellow that greeted

the team in Pune and during the away matches across Mumbai, Delhi, Jaipur, Kolkata and

Hyderabad had revealed that the Super Kings enjoyed immense local support wherever they

went.

These developments seemed to suggest that there is an immense scope to further develop the

CSK brand for becoming a strong National and Global brand. It is important to think over how

the Yellow can be made the new Blue, by increasing the fan base across the nation. This will

present opportunities for the Sponsors to associate with and leverage CSK's brand equity to

meet their Marketing objectives outside Tamilnadu.

WHAT MAKES CSK THE MOST POPULAR IPL FRANCHISE?

For a brand to be successful, the entire gaming experience needs to be perceived as quality-laden, providing adequate value for money. CSK’s brand attribute and value stands as one of the best among all the teams. While non-cricketing attributes matter in IPL, the success of a sports club depends chiefly on the core competitiveness of cricket players, i.e., their abilities. CSK’s winning consistency in the history of the IPL has transformed the brand into a cultural phenomenon: nine times in the playoffs, seven-time finalists, thrice winners of the IPL crown, and twice winning the Champions League in 2010 and 2014. In a format where individual brilliance is more impactful than ever, Chennai Super Kings showed the importance of a team, one which had a culture and bond. There is something more special about CSK. Some of the reasons (not exhaustive) can be the attributed to,

Vibrant social media presence which is very engaging and innovative (CSK’s social media was still running when the team was defunct for 2 years. Such has been the meticulous work done by its social media team)

Advantages of staying consistent in the minds of fans: 1) Retention of core group of players - Protecting the sources of brand equity and the Club’s Organizational attributes (If the players are let go off in a merry-go-round, the fans tend to switch their loyalty, resulting in fan alienation. Brand confusion is very evident in these cases) 2) A single Captain during all the IPL seasons CSK had played & his charismatic leadership 3) Even their jersey has undergone the least changes compared to other teams in the IPL. CSK cricketers refresh the eyes in bright yellow

Building of the brand with brilliant blend of all the local flavors and the cult theme song

The effort and intent of CSK players to engage with fans genuinely which is evident in their interactions

CSK’s dominance and consistent track records. Also, the X-factor, which is the ability of its players to grab victory from the jaws of defeat and making spectacular comebacks from tough situations that added more loving fans to the club

Camaraderie of this team which is something envious to every professional cricketer

FAN ENGAGEMENTS OVER THE YEARS

The on-field cricketing excellence was well complemented by off-field campaigns and events to

engage the fans and build a brand that stood for quality, fitness and style. In that light, CSK had

drawn from its glorious history of innovative fan engagement to rejuvenate the brand. What

stands out is the manner the franchise had used local pop culture and Tamil movies and songs to

interact with the fans. Whether in Chennai or Pune or any another venue, a sea of yellow cheers

its team on from the stands. Popular, CSK certainly is. The ‘whistle podu’ brigade is here to stay.

Says Rakesh Singh, executive president, India Cements, “One of the reasons for CSK remaining

as the most popular brand across India is we keep doing things to keep the fans engaged. We

want CSK to be part of everyone’s life—students, youth, corporate executives, senior citizens.”

Chennai Super Kings was the first and only IPL team to crowd source its name. It conducted a promotional naming contest before the start of the season in 2008. The name Chennai Super Kings was zeroed in from a whooping number of 25000 entries. CSK has tried to engage with its fan base in unique ways to ensure that the brand remains top of mind throughout the year. The team launched its own fan loyal program in the form of Kings Club on November 2008. The Kings Club is CSK’s official club membership program for adults and children. The members enjoyed discount on tickets, autographed memorabilia, access to premium tickets and parking space, and even a chance to attend the official team party. CSK launched its CSK Junior team hunt for kids between 8-12 years of age on February 2009. The ‘Whistle Podu’ Campaign was launched on April 2009, to give an in stadia experience for its fans. Whistle podu remains the most widely popular team anthem for any IPL team till date, generating the maximum number of fan made videos. A comic series named Chennai Super Komics was launched by CSK for school children. Post season 4, exclusive CSK store was set up at the Chennai Airport, and with Café Coffee Day they set up ‘CSK zones' in major cities. They also started Junior Super Kings, an inter-school cricket tournament for high school students to give them an opportunity to play cricket at the highest level. The winners of the inaugural year were not only given an opportunity to be mentored by the coaching team of CSK, they also played an international match with a visiting Under 19 team from New Zealand. In view of its popular response, the Jr. Super Kings continues to this date, to include not just schools in Chennai, but has been taken to the districts as well. In 2016, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association launched the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) with India Cements as the principal sponsor. TNPL succeeded in showcasing the talent of budding cricketers at the district level. By 2017, the JSK tournament had covered students across 152 teams in 11 districts, including Chennai. The management kept up its spirits, the game and the brand alive by continuing to sponsor sports activities.

CSK has also made conscious efforts to be engaged in all sports popular in Tamil Nadu including sponsoring the Chennai Marathon, as well as an international Chess Championship in the city. In 2013, The Super Kings launched the Super Cup, a multi-sport corporate tournament that saw huge participation from Chennai corporates. Through these efforts CSK was able to gain fan base crossing demographic and geographical boundaries.

THE MAKING OF CSK BRAND

From a branding perspective, CSK began to differentiate itself, and amply benefitted from the high level of identification of power symbols and a sensory palette of unique visual, verbal, and digital expression. CSK can be awarded full marks in every facet of the complex branding process, especially the potential to build equity by capitalizing on the emotional relationship it shares with CSK fans who derive strength and a sense of identity from their affiliation with the team.

SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE

CSK fans, like their team, are a cog in the machine. With any sports team brand, the fan’s

internalization process is very elemental, and in this digital age, CSK fans are taking their favorite

team right to the streets via social media outlets. This sense of “we” is pivotal in any sporting

culture, and this sense of fan inclusivity is evident in the myriad videos on social media channels

made by CSK fans.

Even during CSK’s two-year absence from the IPL, social media played a key role in keeping the

fan base intact. This has been a season when CSK’s social media handles have been very busy,

and the fans have responded with passionate posts.

This year’s IPL had registered 16.7 million conversations across Social media platforms. The Chennai Super Kings dominated social media conversation consistently on Twitter during the entire duration of this year’s IPL campaign, and have dominated overall social media landscape by a huge margin. Refer Exhibit-2 for Information regarding the most talked about teams on Social Media Platforms (Number of mentions) and Social buzz meter during IPL 2018. CSK’s official Facebook page with 12,437,744 likes (as on Oct 6th, 2018) is very active all through the year- posting pictures of players on and off season, celebrating festivals etc. CSK has over 12 million followers on Facebook, beyond 4 million on Twitter and more than a million on Instagram. #WhistlePodu and the newly coined #Yellove hashtags by Chennai Super Kings were the most chanted Team hashtags in the tournament. CSK’s official website www.chennaisuperkings.com had motley of offerings for fans. From team

news to exclusive memberships and merchandises like T-shirts and cricketing gear, it was a

veritable treasure trove for fans. A Super Blog Contest was started to actively involve fans and

invite them to write blogs on CSK.

LEVERAGING CSK’s BRAND EQUITY The fan community is very important for any sports franchise. They pour into the stadium in huge numbers for matches and thereby are one of the most important revenue streams for any franchisee. Since the in-stadia presence is largely limited by the capacity of the stadium and since the gates revenue becomes a function of the stadium capacity, brands turn to other ways of leveraging the fan community. Larger the fan base, better will be the reach. Hence, they form the bedrock for sponsorships and associations with other brands. Brands pitch their potential reach as the major selling point to their sponsors. Given the rather limited nature of gate receipts, brands are increasingly focusing on other ways

of leveraging the fan community. With the advent of the internet, viewership has reached

unprecedented levels. The word e-audience refers to the proportion of viewership other than in-

stadia presence through mediums like the television, internet and radio, and the franchisees

focus on leveraging e-audience. The television and Internet also has a huge psychological

influence in persuading a fan to buy the club’s merchandise which opens up additional streams

of revenue as well. It is also important to think about what franchises can do in the months

other than IPL season, to keep them engaged with the fans.

TRADITIONAL REVENUE STREAMS FOR IPL TEAMS

1. Brand Sponsorships: The IPL franchises generate a chunk of revenue through sponsorships. Top brands tie-up with the franchises in a quest to provide a much-needed visibility to their brand with the public by endorsing the names and logos of their brand on team kits and jerseys. The amount varies significantly as the size or the visibility increases and decreases. Right from the title sponsors to the ethnic wear partners, teams sign a wide array of deals to keep the cash flowing. It opens up avenues for co-branding. Refer Exhibit-3 for details regarding the sponsor categories for CSK. 2. Revenue through the BCCI Central Pool: The IPL, as a brand generates its own share of

revenues through the official sponsorships (such as VIVO, Tata Motors, Jio) and also by selling

the broadcast and streaming rights (Hotstar). STAR India won the Indian Premier League media

rights (TV and digital) for 2018-2022 with a bid of Rs.16,347.5 Crore. Refer Exhibit-4 for

Information regarding IPL 2018 Viewership (Television and Digital Platforms). A share of the

total revenue is added to the BCCI central pool and is distributed among the franchisees based

on several factors including their position in the league table. This year, a steep rise in the share,

the teams get 40% of the so-called central revenue (like revenue from media and title rights, and

league sponsors) from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

3. Merchandise Sales: According to the report by The Times of India, the sports gear business

market growth in the country is 100% annually. The franchisees sell merchandise including stuff

like T-shirts, Caps, and Wristwatches that translate into tangible incomes and generate a

revenue by tapping the fan base.

4. Prize Money: The total prize money pool for 2018 IPL season was set to be around $8 million

(₹51 Crore). The Winners of 2018 IPL got around $4 million (₹26 Crore) while the losing finalists

took home as much as $2 million (₹12.9 Crore). Other two teams in play-off got ₹6.5 Crore each.

5. Ticket Sales: Ticket Sales form an integral and important part of the income of each of the IPL

franchises, given the immense popularity of the tournament and the large crowds that flock the

stadiums in every single game. Each IPL franchise can sell 80% of the tickets for its home games

with the rest being reserved for special people.

6. In-ground Ads: The in-ground advertising banners that are captured on the screen and off it,

by the spectators in the stadiums add a part to the income of the franchisees.

7. Fan Clubs: The membership fees are also another source of revenue for a sports franchise.

CSK’s Kings Club offers two types membership – King’s Club Junior and King’s Club Senior. The

membership fee for the same was US$11.39 and US$22.76 respectively at the time of inception.

It was subsequently lowered later to increase membership.

CSK – THE WAY FORWARD

Given this scenario, there are two challenges that CSK is facing currently – how to increase the

fan base across nation and how sponsors can leverage this fan base and popularity to create new

avenues for revenue generation. Put yourself in the shoes of the CSK management and answer

the following questions:

Making Yellow the new Blue (Increasing fan base across the nation)

The Super Kings continued to enjoy a strong connect with its fans throughout the years. With the huge support CSK received during this year’s IPL, despite not having played in two IPL seasons, it is evident that CSK is more than just a regional brand (The Blue here indicates the Indian Cricket team, to which all the ardent Indian cricket fans can associate themselves with). Refer Exhibit-5 to understand the Typology of Cricket Fans The objective is to have the largest and the most engaged IPL fan following among all the IPL teams. Think about the brand vision, an all-round view of the franchise with its sublime culture. Explore the ways through which CSK can make the cricket lovers spread over the country to associate themselves with the franchise (Market development strategy) and make them loyal to fortify the CSK brand.

Leveraging the team's popularity by the Sponsors outside of Tamilnadu

Research has shown that the Sponsors of Super Kings have richly benefitted from the association,

thanks to the resultant high brand recall and positive rub-off. BARC India report says that IPL

brand count has grown by 79% over the last three years and the 247 brands that advertised on

IPL 2018 were accounted for by 123 advertisers, the count of which has grown 50 percent since

2016.

With the support CSK had received during this year’s IPL, it is discernible that there is a lot of

potential space for Sponsors to utilize the established brand equity for more reach and revenue

generation. You can also benchmark with global Sports leagues like English Premiere League or

globally recognized Sports Clubs like Manchester United to come up with your creative feasible

ideas.

EXHIBIT-1: POPULARITY OF THE TEAMS ALL OVER THE NATION Excerpts from BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council) India Report: At an all India level, games featuring Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI) generated the highest viewership, while Rajasthan Royals (RR) garners the lowest. Matches featuring CSK and MI remain the big draws on TV. Both these teams not only drive up viewership in their home cities/states, but also at all India level. EXHIBIT-2: MOST TALKED ABOUT TEAMS ON SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS (NUMBER OF MENTIONS)

SOCIAL BUZZ METER DURING IPL 2018

EXHIBIT-3: SPONSOR CATEGORIES FOR CSK:- Currently, CSK has the following sponsor categories- 1. Principal Sponsors (everyone with a presence in the playing attire): Main, Back, Chest, Leading arm, Non-leading arm, trousers, helmet side and helmet back.

2. Associate Sponsors (Brands that are not present in the playing attire, but have the rights to use Team logo in their promotions, player images, hospitality seats etc.)

3. Cheerleader Sponsors

4. Partners (Merchandise / Apparel, Pouring, Hospitality, Travel, Radio, Print etc.) CSK’s Sponsors list includes,

The Muthoot group (Principal Team Partner) India Cements (Official Cement Partner) Gulf Oil Lubricants India Ltd. (Official Lubricants Partner) Equitas Small Finance bank (Official Retail Banking Partner) CK Birla group HIL (Official Partner) Nippon Paint (Official Paint Sponsor) Jio (Official Telecom Partner) Frooti (Official Pouring Partner) Act Fibernet (Official Connectivity Sponsor) Peter England (Official Style Partner) Seven (Official Merchandise Partner) Duroflex (Official Sleep Energizing Partner) Khadim’s (Official Footwear Partner)

Previously, CSK had sponsorships associations with Aircel, Coromandel, Reebok, Nivea, Big Bazaar, 7UP and 9Cloud.

EXHIBIT-4: IPL 2018 VIEWERSHIP (TELEVISION AND DIGITAL PLATFORMS)

Star India Pvt. Ltd aired the tournament across its 10 channels as compared to just five last year

when Sony held the rights. With Television viewership having grown by 16%* (As per BARC India

report), Star India saw 700 million viewers tune in across its platforms to watch this year’s Indian

Premier League T20 tournament. Around 200 million people (28% of the total viewership)

watched the tournament on digital platforms such as Hotstar (up 55% jump from last year), with

the final match drawing a peak of 10.3 million simultaneous users on Hotstar: yet another record

for live streaming of any event worldwide. IPL viewership has a male skew, but share of female

viewership has marginally risen in 2018. Young audiences (22-40 years) is major contributor to

IPL viewership. For marketers, IPL remains a platform to engage with young, affluent audiences.

"I believe IPL 11 has proved to be an Inflection point for mobile, as a platform becoming

mainstream. The viewership numbers on Hotstar are a testimony that digital can be scaled like a

mass media platform television," said Ajit Mohan, Chief executive of Hotstar.

Preliminary figures indicate the total viewership of IPL grew by 40% from about 500 million last

year and online viewership more than doubled this season. Beyond Impressions, Average Time

Spent watching IPL matches too exhibits an upward trend, from an average of 28 minutes in 2016,

it increased to 34 minutes in 2018. Clearly, IPL viewership continues to enjoy growth year on

year, pointing to the fact that it remains a dynamic and much sought-after property on TV.

“In the next five years both online and TV viewership will grow and complement each other. This

is because India is still a very under-penetrated market and consumption of TV continues to be

very low. And Star has made a big bet on convergence,” said Sanjay Gupta, Star India’s MD.

EXHIBIT-5: TYPOLOGY OF CRICKET FANS Sportskeeda classifies cricket fans into several categories, the details of which are given below- a) The Sports Fan • Interested in a number of sports in general and cricket is “one of the sports” that he follows.

• Does not associate with the game emotionally or with any particular team and is interested in the news of the happenings of the game as with any other game that he follows. b) The Cricket Fan • Enjoys cricket as a game

• Appreciates good cricket from any team

• Knows the rules and the players of the game. c) The Winning Fan

• Takes the winners side; Not a loyal fan

• Supports different teams at different occasions

• May watch their team’s matches and support it as the team reaches finals or semifinals

d) The Ultimate Statistician • Has statistics for every single ball with analysis ready for every possible event on the field

• Ready to provide stats and enter into arguments e) The Loyal Fan / The Angry Fan • Loyal fans of a particular player/team and are ready to fight for him/them

• Fiercely emotional about the team and its players’ conducts

• May blindly support their teams; may not accept any logical reasoning. Could be very emotional and sometimes get violent too.

f) The Critical Fan • Very knowledgeable about different aspects of the game

• Very critical and sometimes cynical about different aspects of games (including not very significant issues) g) The Hollow Fan • Watches cricket just because everyone around him is watching

• Watches it with great effort memorizes a few names for the post-match discussions but never enjoys the game

• Will not engage in discussions which slowly move to history of the game or requires generating own insights. h) A Star’s Fan • May watch a match just to follow his/her favorite star’s performance

• The game is over for them when their star is out

• For some it is Sachin, some Sehwag or Gayle etc.

REFERENCES:-

A decade of Indian Premier League

https://www.livemint.com/Sports/YePVdt1fzjh9jYOLCiDqgI/A-decade-of-Indian-

Premier-League.html

IPL's brand value grew by 37% to $5.3 billion; CSK most valuable brand

https://www.businesstoday.in/buzztop/buzztop-feature/ipl-brand-value-grew-37-

percent-usd-5-billion-csk-most-valuable-brand/story/279033.html

CSK’s fan base spans globe

https://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/csks-fan-base-spans-

globe/article24008602.ece

Winners Chennai Super Kings and MSD dominate social buzz: MESH Report

https://www.socialsamosa.com/2018/05/social-buzz-ipl-2018-statistics

CSK’s fan base spans globe

https://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/csks-fan-base-spans-

globe/article24008602.ece

IPL 2018 set to fetch profits for all eight teams for the first time

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cricket/ipl-2018-set-to-earn-profits-for-all-eight-

teams-for-the-first-time/story-D0zF2F8Mt8sUYzRdujgkWJ.html

Sportswear sales rise up to 100% in December https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/sportswear-sales-rise-up-to-100-in-december/articleshow/62408046.cms

5 reasons why CSK has such a mass following https://www.sportskeeda.com/cricket/5-reasons-why-csk-has-such-a-mass-following

CSK Webiste: Sponsors Category https://www.chennaisuperkings.com/CSK_WEB/module/news/html/sponsors.html

MS Dhoni makes up for 50% of conversations around Chennai Super Kings https://www.socialsamosa.com/2018/05/ipl-2018-statistics

How CSK became a super sports brand https://www.financialexpress.com/opinion/how-csk-became-a-super-sports-brand/1231828

Star India celebrates as IPL 2018 draws 700MN viewers https://www.rapidtvnews.com/2018052952283/star-india-celebrates-as-ipl-2018-draws-700mn-viewers.html#axzz5TKEjIlNr

BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council) India Report https://www.barcindia.co.in/resources/IPL%20-%20Over%20the%20Years.pdf

How IPL franchises make money? http://blog.sportwalk.co/cricket/case-study-how-ipl-franchises-make-money

The Economics of Club Football: Importance of Global Fan Support https://www.sportskeeda.com/football/the-economics-of-club-football-importance-of-global-fan-support