Co-marketing media spends for Hindi films have reached approximately Rs 100 crore annually: ESP Report

A look at GroupM's recently launched entertainment and marketing report 'Showbiz, the Indian Superpower' by ESP Properties.

ESP Properties, the sports and entertainment programming specialist arm of GroupM, recently released the first edition of its entertainment marketing report - Showbiz, the Indian Superpower. Segmented into three parts - film marketing, the celebrity aspect and content licensing - the first edition of the Showbiz report includes viewpoints of those who work to maximise brand value through film promotions.

According to the report, the film entertainment industry is growing at 10 per cent year-on-year in terms of the number of films released. This opens numerous marketing opportunities for brands through alliances and content licensing. In India, marketing budgets for films have grown from 5-6 per cent of production budgets to 10-15 per cent which is closer to the global average. 20 per cent of the films released include brand associations where brands also share a part of the marketing budget. There are close to 56 hours of entertainment promotion films playing cumulatively through the day across channels. Today, producers are working closely with agency partners that help them achieve their marketing objectives efficiently and drive footfall into the theatres.

The report also says that keeping aside lack of digital boundaries and the reality of a global village, a regional film artiste still has the ability to converse directly with a specific demographic in their local language. That is why 25 per cent of Hollywood films, 15 per cent of south Indian films and 16 per cent of Marathi films have brand associations. FMCG, Apparel and E-commerce, for instance, are categories that are most active in in-film integrations and co-branded associations. Placement, in terms of a healthy media-mix, accounts for 10-15 per cent of the film's marketing budget.

As further highlighted in the report, a film's promotion budget is higher on television (45-50 per cent) and lower on print (10-15 per cent). Digital is being added (10-15 per cent) and activation is steady at 25-30 per cent.

Vinit KarnikVinit Karnik, business head, ESP Properties, says in a press release, "The film entertainment industry is an integral part of India's marketing landscape and drives revenue for film production and exhibition. Traditional film studios and production houses now increasingly rely on advertising and digital media interactions coupled with research, data analytics and innovation to market movies. At ESP Properties, we bring our client brands and movie marketing together to engage an audience that is spoilt for choice with 1000 movies released every year. Targeted marketing to the consumer has, therefore, become critical and this report will give brands and film producers some insights into movie marketing in a media landscape that is so disruptive."

Another data point that the ESP entertainment report brings out is on celebrity endorsers. In the last 10 years, 25 per cent of brand advertising on television features a famous face. While we have seen peaks in ad creatives with celebrities during the summer and festive seasons, this trend is fast moving with the influx of digital avenues. And we see celebrities playing the role of an active influencer to the brands, rather than just endorsing them.