9X Media has carried out several successful brand integrations with some of its popular characters like Chote Bade, Bheegi Billi and the Beetel Nuts over the past two years. Now, they are moving over these characters and taking the concept a step further, says Pawan Jailkhani, Chief Revenue Officer, 9X Media
Brand integration in Indian channels is a relatively new concept. What was the principle behind this innovative marketing strategy?
Brand integration cannot really be called a very new concept. However, as a network, we have taken up the concept very aggressively in the past year-and-a-half and have been successful to a large extent. We are a music network. Unlike movie channels or GECs, we don’t buy formats, but create them. In the process, we try to create a lot of newness, be it in terms of format or story. We create something around songs, music, dance, Bollywood, and as a platform and a genre, we connect with the largest audience in the country, the youth. So the thought was, why can’t we create something for brands? We had developed several formats for regular channels and then slowly started doing it for brands. We started almost two-and-a-half years back, but in the last year-and-a-half, we have been very aggressive with brands. We have done some big projects and they have been a success, in terms of the kind of integration, the kind of content created and response the brands have received.
What are some of the most successful brand integrations that 9X has carried out recently?
There are many. The whole idea is to ask brands what challenges they face in the market and how we can do something for them. We have three national and two regional channels. And the regional channels are in markets that are the largest in terms of television viewership for brands. We are dominant players in Maharashtra and Punjab. Once, I was talking to the marketing head of ITC Foods who told me there was a lot of challenge for their product, Bingo Mad Angles. He said they wanted to increase their market-share, specifically in Punjab, and asked me how we could work together. So we thought of creating the first brand song, a first in the history of television when a brand song was created and played in any content playlist. We also did a lot of ground and social media activation across digital platforms. It’s been nearly three months now, and we have almost completed the second song and the brand has got a tremendous response in the market. These are topical onetime integrations, which is the first step. The second step is getting into bigger deals. Currently, we are working on that. I have created a slot for an e-commerce client where I will drive my channel’s audience to the website by launching a one-hour show. Thirdly, we are exploring what long-term integrations we can do with brands as per their brief. For example, concepts of 4G in India and what we can do on a long-term.
What are your parameters for selecting brands for such integrations?
We mostly cater to an audience in the age group of 15 to 40. Today, each and every brand needs this audience and platform. But that doesn’t mean I will get every brand on air for such integrations. A brand has to respect, understand and synergise with me on what I deliver through such integrations. So firstly, they should understand what brand integration means and what it will do for the brand. They should understand it goes beyond a 30-second TVC, or CPRP ratings. It has an opportunity cost. We need brands that share challenges with us and we help them overcome those challenges – be it creating high recall, high impact or SOV.
How have brand integrations helped the channel?
Firstly, our vision and mission is, we will be one of the largest innovative networks in the country, whether it is with our content or our brands. If you switch on one of our channels, whether it is Tashan, 9XM or Jalwa, you will see brands playing with our content but in a very innovative way. Secondly, the revenue level is huge in this and it has impacted my revenue in a positive way. Today, roughly 16-17% of our revenue comes from brand integrations.
What are you currently working on in the area of brand integrations?
We are working on two big ideas with an e-commerce client, and are in the process of shooting promos for the project. We are also working on certain topical ideas simultaneously that will run for 10-15 days. Some of the brands I can name for ongoing projects are Godrej and Idea, and there are multiple pitches going on currently.
How does an advertiser stand to gain from such integrations in comparison to normal TV commercials?
Normal TV commercials will get a brand CPRP. What we do gets brands higher SOV, much higher impact, and away from the clutter of commercials. The brand message here is being depicted in a different way altogether. If they want to promote something specifically, they can do it with a certain synergy with the content. I can give you the example of the Idea commercial or the ITC commercial. Badshah, who is one of the biggest singers in Punjab after Honey Singh, has sung the song. So, it’s a big benefit for brands to go beyond the regular 30-second commercial and that’s what the world is moving towards.
