Cheerleaders on the airwaves

In the ongoing Indian Premier League matches, the FM radio channels may have discovered a new frontier that could boost their brand as well as revenues. Jimmy Tangree, station head, Red FM Kolkata, notes, "The IPL has been one property which has brought about a huge amount of money and visibility to the FM stations". However, the FM radio companies are cagey about divulging figures.

Even the radio industry analysts refuse to go on record on the revenue that FM channels may have generated, but believe it has been anything but modest. This is what a radio industry source has to say: "Radio stations across India have earned anything from Rs 25 lakh to as high as Rs 75 lakh from IPL-related promotions, depending upon the extent of their engagement". According to a senior media buyer, a vanilla ad campaign that runs for a month on a radio station in a city costs roughly Rs 9 lakh on an average.

Media buying agency Maxus' Managing Director Ajit Varghese says, "Spends on radio have been in significantly higher proportions than normal brand campaigns. And considering all of it is streaming in within a span of just two months makes it quite substantial."

It is not easy to affix the exact income as deal sizes also depend on barters and discounts. For activities worth Rs 50 lakh, a station may give a rebate of Rs 10 lakh or more. "But that would mean exclusive rights and unrestricted access everywhere (grounds, team promotions), to everyone (players, experts, owners), and to everything (merchandise, match tickets etc.) for the channel. The station becomes an extension of the particular team and gains visibility that you can't miss", explains the source.

Clearly, the IPL and radio partnerships are mutually beneficial. Ashit Kukian, executive vice president and national head, sales, at Radio City, refuses to part with exact numbers, but says that the FM channel will see a 4 to 5 per cent increase in its overall monthly revenue, which is "more than average".

In lieu of the deals, radio stations have pulled all stops to leverage their association with IPL. "The activities have been a mix of audibility, interaction and participation", says Tangree. Referring to Red FM's activities outside the studio, Tangree says that the channel in Mumbai (which has partnered Mumbai Indians), put up huge hoardings to declare that it had turned blue in support of the Mumbai Indians. In Kolkata, where it tied up with the franchisee, Belmonte, the station gave out clubhouse tickets and other memorabilia through road-shows and contests. Red FM's teams are also seen cheering the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Mumbai Indians in their respective cities. "We infuse a lot of colour on the grounds through our cheering squad and create an identity in the crowds at the stadium", adds Tangree.

Radio City too has lined up its own team of Radio Cityzens and is one of the few stations to have an exclusive tie-up with the Royal Challengers. Fever 104 has partnered with the Delhi Daredevils for its campaign called