Kerala floods wash out ad revenue worth billions

The recent floods in Kerala are turning out to be more than just a humanitarian issue. For businesses it has been equally devastating as most of the sectors have suffered heavy financial loss, including local media players. The total loss to the media revenue is estimated to be in hundreds of crores.

Traditionally media players in Kerala rely on the festive season around Onam for advertising revenue which also accounts for 40-50 per cent of the total annual sales of most brands in Kerala. If we take the example of consumer durables market in Kerala, it is estimated to be above Rs 2000 crore and more than half of the sales happen during Onam. This year too the local media players were looking to cash on the season but unexpected floods played havoc with the estimates.

Impact on Media Revenue

The local media has suffered on many fronts. Print, TV and radio players have been impacted the most as they sacrificed their prime ad spaces and time slots to help in the rescue operations by featuring campaigns and announcements. Almost all the state based newspapers carried full page campaign ads while the TV and radio channels ran ad free coverage of the floods.

“During the 15 to 20 days of floods, not a single ad appeared in any newspapers or on any TV channels. So it has been a total loss for the entire media in terms of revenue,” stated I Venkat, Director Eenadu Group.

If we look at last year, TV advertising alone attracted almost Rs 150 crore during the Onam season and this year’s revenue has been way below that mark. Speaking about the loss that the local media suffered, Varghese Chandy, Vice President, Marketing, Adverting Sales, Malayala Manorama said, “The floods happened during the prime season of the Malayam New Year, between this period the sales should have peaked but there was an absolute wash out. We also refused to take ads on the front page, because obviously it was not the right sentiment to give ads. Unlike any other state, all newspapers and most television channels refrained from advertising. We also didn’t take any front page ad and all this happened during the prime time.”

“In the extremely affected areas, newspapers did not reach, the distribution got really affected for 3-4 days in those areas but most of the papers reached the relief camps. But now things are back to normal. This was a well co-ordinated evacuation exercise even media organisations pitched in. We had a control room in our office with a team taking calls, noting down numbers and alerting the rescue teams including Navy and Air Force,” he further added.

Brands showed solidarity by pausing campaigns

According to Anuj Madan, PHD India’s General Manager and Digital Lead for Delhi, brands also played their part by pausing their campaigns and thus showed solidarity with the affected population. He said, “Onam is of prime importance to consumers and brands. However, given the gravity of the situation in Kerala, many of our clients have paused their campaigns this year. While this certainly impacts the business of these brands, our clients understand the importance of standing in solidarity with their consumers during times like these, with many even taking steps to help out in whatever way they can. We have seen brands contributing from their own resources and/or creating easy opportunities for their consumers to contribute to the cause – from Paytm setting up simple donation methods to Amazon and Zomato delivering amenities and food on-ground in the disaster areas, and even Vistara flying doctors into Kerala for free. It’s during times like these that our clients can demonstrate they are more than consumer brands and an actual part of the community as well.”

Having borne the brunt of the natural calamity, the media industry in Kerala is limping back to normalcy. The festive season may be lost but the industry players are hopeful of a new start.

“During the Onam period we used to double the revenue on a monthly basis, and this time was a complete washout. Distribution was affected and we couldn’t reach all the places. Since the state is reviving there will be requirements of household products in the market, but we still have to see how much of it can compensate the Onam revenue,” stated. Kamal Krishnan PS, National Head, Integrated Media Solutions, Mathrubhumi.