The New Powerplay: Disney+ Hotstar to amplify brand outreach this cricket season

The resounding cheer of cricket lovers is mounting with the commencement of the much-anticipated cricket season that will kick off with the Asia Cup next month, followed by the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup. With India set to host the ICC Men's World Cup tournament after a 12-year gap, the excitement is palpable.

The significance of the upcoming tournament is amplified by the nostalgic victory of the Indian team in the last ODI WC held in India in 2011. The last One Day International World Cup (ODI WC) held in India saw the Indian team emerge victorious, a monumental event etched in the hearts of millions of fans. This year's ODI WC, set to begin in October, could be the perfect platform for brands to ride on the wave of cricketing euphoria and festive excitement.

These high-interest tournaments scheduled right before the peak festive season have set the pitch for more than just sporting exploits for viewers, it is an opportunity too big to miss even for brands. Leveraging the power of Connected TV (CTV) targeting, brands have the potential to make their mark and engage with customers like never before.

The proliferation of CTVs is driving the growth of content consumption in the country and India's largest OTT player, Disney+ Hotstar is at the forefront of this trend. A recent report by Kantar-GroupM states that the number of connected TVs reached 22 million in the last year and are projected to reach 30 million this year. Although these figures are based on household numbers, CTV is known to be a co-viewing experience, with an estimated 80-90 million individuals expected to watch content on CTVs.

With Disney+ Hotstar's advanced targeting options, the cricketing season promises a golden chance for brands to hit the bullseye in terms of audience engagement. The value of Connected TV (CTV) campaigns is no secret, with Disney+ Hotstar demonstrating impressive results. The upcoming cricket season, anticipated to attract millions of cricket fans, not only from India but from around the globe, is a phenomenal stage for brands to make their mark.

The effectiveness of ad campaigns on CTV (Connected TV) can be further supported by the results of an analysis of over 47 campaigns that ran during the ICC T20 WC in 2022, which was streamed live on Disney+ Hotstar. The analysis offers valuable insights into the impact of sports advertising on brand exposure and impact. It highlights the importance of consistent brand presence, multi-platform exposure, and innovative ad formats in maximizing advertising impact.

The key highlights of the analysis done on different metrics are as follows:

• ICC T20 World Cup campaigns were a resounding success, delivering 25% higher results compared to the industry benchmark. This suggests that the campaigns resonated well with the target audience and had a significant impact on their perceptions of the brands involved.
• Brands that were active throughout the tournament saw 2 times higher uplifts compared to those that were not as active. This highlights the importance of consistent brand presence and engagement in sports events.
• The uplifts in sponsor brands were 2 times higher compared to the inventory buyers. This suggests that being a sponsor of the event provides a significant advantage in terms of brand exposure and impact.
• Brands that had a presence on CTV along with mobile saw a stronger impact compared to those that had a presence on just one platform. This highlights the importance of having a multi-platform presence in order to reach a wider audience and maximize impact.
• Brands with investments above Rs 5 crores saw the maximum impact, with 2 times higher impact in awareness and favorability. This suggests that a significant investment in advertising can result in a much larger impact.
• Campaigns that supplemented midrolls with other formats such as branded cards, billboards, squeeze-ups, etc. had 1.5 times higher impact in awareness and 2 times higher impact on favorability. This highlights the importance of complementing traditional ad formats with innovative and engaging advertising solutions.

What’s even more exciting is that Disney+ Hotstar is launching billboards on CTV, which is a high impact, premium ad inventory being the first ad placement in the CTV home feed. Both display and video billboards will be available to advertisers on Disney+ Hotstar for the upcoming Asia Cup and ICC Men's World Cup.

Several brands have already experienced the magic of Disney+ Hotstar’s platform. They testify that the platform has opened doors to audiences previously hard to reach. Sumeet Singh, CMO, Info Edge, applauds Disney+ Hotstar's CTV offerings saying, "At 99Acres, we are always looking for newer ways to connect with our core audience - premium, affluent, urban, male audiences, especially those who are in the market to buy or rent a property. Disney+ Hotstar enabled us to reach our desired audiences at scale, via its CTV offering for Tata IPL 22 and India v/s Australia matches."

The sentiment is echoed by Abhijit Shah, Head - Marketing, Digital & Customer Experience at ICICI Prudential AMC Ltd. He says, "Given our country's love for the sport, the recently concluded T20 WC was a key tournament for us to reach out to relevant audiences, Disney+ Hotstar further enabled us to sharply target our intended audiences via CTVs. CTV audiences are predominantly young urban adults with high disposable income, which is also our core audience."

Disney+ Hotstar has also been a perfect match for Niraj Singh, Founder & CEO of Spinny. "Our latest brand campaign - ‘Go Far, To Come Together’ is about how celebrations can bring people even closer. To amplify our message among our core audience of young, premium, digital-first audiences, we partnered with Disney+ Hotstar. Leveraging its CTV offering during the Asia Cup, we were able to drive significant awareness and purchase intent for the brand,” he stated.

In conclusion, with the cricketing season and the festive fervor all set to engulf the nation, the stage is set for brands to score big with Disney+ Hotstar's CTV offering. This platform’s reach, combined with the power of CTV targeting, makes Disney+ Hotstar the ultimate ally for brands this cricket season.
(This is advertorial content curated by partner team)