A DLF Maximum or Citi Moment of Success: The Power of Brands this DLF IPL

Well when Chris Gayle hits a huge six over the boundary it is merely more than a six as it called a DLF Maximum.Whenever a catch is taken or there is a turning point in the match it is classified as the Citi Moment of success.To be honest these are really well ingrained with the nuances of an DLF IPL Match and soon people will get used to these interesting alliances in cricket be it Twenty 20 or One dayers or test matches.Orbit is playing safe and is the official chewing gum for all the 8 franchisees of the DLF IPL. If chewing gum was not enough Boomer is the official Bubble gum for all the franchisees.
Thats how sponsor publicity and the return of their investment of their advertisement spend is valued.Well television commentators are a part of this marketing glitz for the fact that they keep thanking the title sponsors of the DLF IPL which are DLF,Citi,Vodafone,Fly Kingfisher,Hero Honda,World Sports Group,Southern Sun and Microsoft.This apart you have the presenting sponsors who advertise during the telecast of these matches on SET Max or Multi-screen media the new name for SET MAX.
But with the DLF IPL shifting to South Africa there have been some interesting changes when it comes to advertisers and sponsors. Pepsico announced its association with two IPL teams, but on the flip side, has pulled out of a reported Rs 50 crore deal with the DLF IPL .

Kolkata Knight Riders:
As for the teams we have an interesting line up of new sponsors and some old ones who have pulled out.HDIL backed out of supporting Kolkata Knight Riders.They now have Nokia as their main sponsor on the front of their Jerseys,Star Plus is on the back of the jersey,Next Electronics retail store on the sleeves along with Sprite which is an interesting choice considering SRK has been a Pepsico loyalist and its after a long time that he or his team is associating with Coca Cola.Reebok is their jersey merchandixzing sponsor.Tag Hueur at the back of their caps and helmets is the best sponsor for any DLF IPL Franchisee and brand SRK has a lot to do with this.I wonder if they could have had a brand SRK or Red Chillies on their cap which would have been a marketing glitz for SRK’s genius.I am sure very soon we may have the Name of popular movies of these stars coming /allying with IPL Teams.Well My Names Is Khan on Kolkata Knight riders could have been unique.

Kings eleven Punjab:

Kings eleven Punjab aka Arsenal have Fly Emirates as their main sponsors. Other sponsors include Gulf Oil as official team partner, Nimbooz by 7 Up Official Beverage Sponsor, Netlinkblue Official Team Sponsor, Royal Challenge Official Games for Royal Challenge Partner, Springbok International Official sponsor, Reebok Official Apparel Partner, Dabur Glucose D Official Team Sponsor and Orbit as Official Chewing Gum Sponsor.

Rajasthan Royals:

Last years most underrated team and this years defending champions Rajasthan Royals had one of their major sponsors Bajaj Allianz Insurance backing out as the DLF IPL shifted to South Africa.So much so that they had to re-launch their team jerseys with new lead sponsors UltraTech Cement.Well 7-up is their Official Beverage Sponsor,Tata is their Official Team sponsor.With Bajaj Allianz going out we had HDFC Standard Life Insurance coming behind the back of their jerseys.The Tata Group and Kingfisher Premium on their left and right sleeves are their official team sponsors.Last but not the least and interestingly for this sector we have Tata Consultancy services advertising on their caps and helmets.Puma the third sporting shoe cum apparel and accessories maker makes an interesting mark with the Rajasthan Royals.

Delhi Daredevils:

Delhi Daredevils seem to be doing really well in this edition of the DLF IPL already along with the Deccan Chargers. GMR Holdings are the team owners and they welcomed Hero Honda as their main sponsors .Their suave yet cool blue and red jerseys are designed by Adidas distinctively marked with their trademark three stripes. Their official beverage is Coca Cola. Jet-King seems to be another unlikely sponsor on the back of their jersey which is an interesting combination.The new partners include Coke and Royal Challenge (both as Associate Sponsors), Wrigley's India (Official Gum Partner), Virgin Mobile (Official Mobile Partner), Fever 104 (Official Radio partner), Big Adda (Official Online Partner), GupShup.com (Mobile Fan Activation Partner), the Times of India and The Hindustan Times (both Official Media Partners).

Mumbai Indians:

Mumbai Indians is another team with their light and dark cool blue jerseys designed for them by Adidas. Owned by Mukesh Ambani the owner of Reliance Industries tag comes along onto the Mumbai Indians.Master Card is the official sponsor of the Mumbai Indians on their jersey sleeves with cellular co Idea being their founding partner and the official team sponsor on the front of their jerseys. Zandu Balm is another sponsor on the caps/helmets of the Mumbai Indians.Pepsi,Kingfisher Premium,Royal Stag ,Red FM 93.5 ,Geetanjali and Alakh Advertising form the next list of their associate sponsors.

Chennai Super Kings:

Chennai Super Kings have India Cements behind their jerseys and are the owners of this behemoth from the South.Reebok is behind their team jersey and has chosen a slightly bright yellow colour which goes with the city.Aircel is the chief sponsor of the team on the front of their jersey and indeed is the biggest advertiser.Chennai Super Kings has been followed by brands like Cloud 9, Reebok and 7Up. Health companies are also associated with the CSK and it has been found that there is a relatively unknown local ayurveda company, Nivaran 90 that has shelled out almost Rs 5 crores to make it to the CSK T-shirt. Peter England the shirt maker owned by the Aditya Birla Group is another sponsor that is vying for the space on the CSK T-shirt.Among other brands that the franchisee of CSK has got for its players include, Band Aid, Nivea for men, Lays, Orbit and Boomer. The association is not relegated to the products category, but even media partners have aligned their fortune with the DLF IPL and sponsors for CSK include Star Vijay and radio station Hello 106 FM.Big Bazaar of the Pantaloon Group is another advertiser associated with the CSK and this could be owing to the fact that the captain of CSK, Mahendra Singh Dhoni is a brand ambassador for the group; therefore the company may have decided to align their fortune with the Chennai Super Kings.Clearly CSK has the most number of sponsors and there is a lot of buzz going for them.

Deccan Chargers:

Deccan Chargers from Hyderabad is the second team for whom the jerseys and merchandize has been designed by Puma.With odyssey as their sponsors on their sleeves. Their main sponsors are their owners Deccan Chronicle ,KingfisherPremium , McDowell’s No 1, Big 92.7FM, Wrigley’s Orbit. Surprisingly their beverage partner is Pepsi which is underplaying its association with DLF IPL and the 8 teams.

Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Royal Challengers Bangalore have used their sponsors very interestingly with Royal Challengers ingrained in the name of their team.This is the fourth team for whom Reebok has designed the team jersey and merchandize.Fly Kingfisher,McDowells No 1 would be natural sponsors coz of their owner Vijay Mallya also the proud owner of United Breweries and Kingfisher airlines.More on RCB Soon.

With a slugfest of advertisers from all genres this years DLF IPL is happening in times of recession.With MSM/Sony Max having sold 85 percent of their on air advertisements and 15 percent remaining to be sold at a premium we have a huge Blockbuster hit already.