(PART – II) Celebrity endorsements in South India – the next ‘Big thing’.

South Indian brand ambassadors – a Rs 50 crore market!

(Click here to read PART – I) People in the marketing industry estimate that the South Indian celebrity endorsement market is under-tapped. In today’s levels itself the market could be worth around Rs 50 crore. Yet it’s only Rs 20 crore in size. One of the prime reasons, I have found out is that – brands don’t know which celebrity suits their brand and how to sign them. With South India being such a pluralistic market, it’s hard for an outsider to know the big names and their image in each of the four states. Brands have the intention and budget to have a single brand ambassador for the whole of South India, or separate ambassadors for each market. But, most of them don’t know who the big names are – or if the celebrity’s image suits their brand.

Also the endorsement opportunities are not limited to the Suriyas and Trishas of the world, but also to other artistes. Big C is a mobile store chain which is mainly concentrated in AP, with monthly marketing spend in crores. It needs a popular local brand ambassador. They had Charmme, Kajal as brand ambassadors in the past and Ileana at present. Brands like Chandana Bros, RS Brothers, CMR have a strong presence in AP and need a face popular in the state. Pothy’s, Chennai Silks, Kumaran, Nalli, RmKV, GRT Thangamaligai, Prince Jewelers, Vasanth & Co are some of the brands that have a strong presence in Tamil Nadu and marketing spends in crores matching that of national advertisers. They only need faces familiar in Tamil Nadu. Likewise, Malabar Gold is a brand that’s popular only in Kerala and has Mohan Lal as a brand ambassador. Below are some of the ‘regional powerhouses’ which have huge budgets and market though they have limited geographical reach – most times, just to one state.

Some of the brands don’t just use leading heroes and heroines, but also popular character artistes. Comedian Vivek, former hero and artist Prabhu (Sivaji Ganesan’s son), Telugu comedian Dharmavarapu, Prakash Raj, yesteryear heroine Vijayashanti have been featured in many ads as the brand felt they don’t need the ‘glamour’ element in their ad to get their message across. As this business gets more streamlined, there will be more opportunities for artists like Brahmanandam (Telugu), Vadivel (Tamil), Vivek (Tamil), Sunil, Venu Madhav who are ‘stars’ in their own right and can bring great mileage to brands with their endorsement.

Celebrities and Marketers don’t speak each other’s language

Lot of brands have the appetite and budget for a celebrity ambassador, but do not know how to go about it. Many a times, a brand manager calls me or my editorial team at Southscope and asks, “We need a brand ambassador for South/AP. Who is the Shahrukh Khan/Hrithik Roshan of South/AP?” We try to advise them that there are no exact parallels. Instead of asking “Who is the Shahrukh Khan of Andhra Pradesh?” let’s turn the question the other way round. “Who is the Ram Charan Tej of Bollywood?” Abhishek? Both are sons of superstars, but no similarity at all. Hrithik? Close in personality, but Charan belongs to a much younger age bracket. Ranbir? Both are youth icons, but Charan has more mass appeal. Realizing it’s hard to draw parallels, we ask them what is it they seek to achieve through their brand ambassador.Then, they describe their requirements. For example – “We want our brand to be seen as a leader, have aspirational look, appeal to both urban and rural youth.” Considering their requirement, we suggest names on who might fit their needs. It doesn’t end with that – again they come back to me if I can pass on the numbers of their business managers, which we oblige.

A month later, on re-connecting with the brand we realize that the deal didn’t go through. Most of the stars or their managers do not know how the advertising and branding field works and not equipped to handle the legal & creative requirements of brands. The brands do not know the language of the ‘film industry’ and how deal-making is done here. This is one of the reasons why most deals don’t go through. As strange as it might appear, it is true. Only an ‘insider’ in both these industries can close a deal, which is why there is a need for an “entertainment marketing agency”. The star needs an agency that can advise him or her and ‘manage’ all the brands he or she endorses. The brand needs an agency which can manage all the brand ambassadors in its portfolio. Most big brands today have multiple brand ambassadors.

The near future of celebrity endorsements in South India

Unlike earlier, brands don’t prefer to close endorsement deals through ‘mediators’ or middle men but seek marketing agencies with which have sound knowledge of the local industry and the muscle to rope in stars for their endorsements. Some of the leading ‘entertainment marketing’ agencies in India are KWAN, a new floated outfit which is the market leader, followed by others such as Globosport, Cornerstone, Bling and a few other smaller ones. Incidentally, Mahesh Babu is the first and only South Indian star so far to be exclusively represented by an an agency, KWAN. Though others have done endorsements, they’ve done it in their individual capacity. Like how the corporatization of the film industry has brought in more revenues, the entry of marketing & branding agencies would do the same to the local industry. All the big players have their eyes set on the Southern industry as they feel this is the next “growth market” as Bollywood and sport stars are nearing saturation. Also the opportunities are not limited to endorsements alone, ‘Appearance fees’ for showroom openings, press conferences, TV shows and events is another avenue. So is ‘Performance fee’ paid for performing at a certain corporate event or award function. ‘Branded entertainment’ is another segment for opportunity, where a celebrity who need not be the brand ambassador lends himself for a TV show or live event. For ex: A leading electronics brand being the lead sponsor for a concert by a leading music director. There are many other opportunities to be explored. The dialogues between the brands and celebrities have already started. In the near future you would be seeing more of your favorite film stars outside movies. The billboards, TV ads, newspaper ads you consume will be far more interesting, familiar and convincing. Also, I feel Rs 50 crore is still a modest number considering how movie-obsessed South Indians are.