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INDIAN INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT,

AHMEDABAD

Term-5 Project Proposal

Effectiveness of Product Placement in Indian Cinema

Name of the project course guides: Prof. Kandaswamy Bharathan

Prof Piyush Kumar Sinha

Name of the Students:

Abhilash S

Dube Akshay Suresh

S G Shrinivas

Sagili Shan Mohan

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TWO YEAR POST-GRADUATE PROGRAMME IN MANAGEMENT

REGISTRATION FORM FOR PROJECT COURSE – SLOT IX & X

ACADEMIC YEAR 2012-2013

Name of the Student(s) Abhilash S

Dube Akshay Suresh

S G Shrinivas

Sagili Shan Mohan

Title of the Project

Effectiveness of Product Placement in Indian Cinema

Evaluation Graded Nos. of Credits

For each student: 1.00

Type of the Project

(Tick the approp. Box)

CP- (Credits)

CIS – (Credits)

IP – (Credits)

IP – (Non Credit)

__

IP (Credits) i.e. Project course (Credits)

* Hrs of Project 80 classes (100 hours)

Area to which the Project belongs Marketing

Name of the Project Guides Prof Kandaswamy Bharathan

Prof Piyush Kumar Sinha

I am interested in studying the above mentioned project course during slot IX & X. The Area approved project proposal(s) is/are posted electronically to Faculty and Student Notice Boards on:

The hard copy of the area approved project proposal in the appropriate format is enclosed.

Signature of the student(s)

Signature of Project Guide

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Title of the Project Course

Effectiveness of Product Placement in Indian Cinema: To study and analyse the

effectiveness of product placement in Indian Cinema (Regional and Bollywood) on

various parameters. As a result, we expect to find if buying behaviours is affected

through product placement and conclude if this is a viable alternative of advertising.

Area to which the project course belongs: Marketing (MKT)

Term in which the project course is to be credited: Term 5 (PGP-2)

Weightage of the project course: 1 credit

Name of the project course guides: Prof. Kandaswamy Bharathan

Prof Piyush Kumar Sinha

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Evaluation Criteria

Component Weightage

1. Review of Literature 15 %

2. Collection of Primary and Secondary Data 20 %

3. Analysis and Inference 25 %

4. Final Report 40 %

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Table of Contents

Title of the Project Course ......................................................................................................... ii

Evaluation Criteria ................................................................................................................... iii

1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 2

2. Aim and objective .................................................................................................................. 2

3. Proposed Study ...................................................................................................................... 3

4. Methodology .......................................................................................................................... 5

5. Research Matrix ..................................................................................................................... 6

6. Deliverables ........................................................................................................................... 7

7. Brief Profiles .......................................................................................................................... 8

8. References .............................................................................................................................. 9

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1. Introduction

Indian Cinema, popularly known as Bollywood, is a vibrant and one of the most active

movie industries across the world. With 1255 releases in over 16 languages, Indian

Cinema reaches almost the entire population of the country of about 1.2 billion people.

The market size of India’s filmed entertainment industry was estimated at Rs 97 billion

in 2010 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 9.2 per cent from 2010 to 2014 to reach

Rs 125 billion by 2013. (Filmed entertainment segment in India, Ernst and Young)

Cinema as a medium has been a preferred choice for advertisers ever since it’s advent

through advertising in theatres screening movies, advertising outside theatres etc. This

is due to the sheer volume of eye-balls that can be reached through a movie and the

popularity of Indian film starts. Since the early 2000s, product placement has fast

emerged as an alternative to other modes of advertising.

Product placement or embedded marketing is a form of advertisement, where

branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies,

music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. It is an advertising

technique where the brands pay a fee or provide symbiotic advertising for the medium;

for a prominent display of their product in the medium.

The objective of such brand communication is to expose the audience to a brand,

whereby the effect can be maximized in terms of increased awareness & higher recall.

2. Aim and objective

The objective of the project is to understand the following:

a) To analyse if people have noticed previous instances of brand placement in

Movies and the impact for the brands/movies

b) To analyse if buying behaviour is affected due to product placement

c) To analyse if this is a viable alternate mode of advertising.

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3. Proposed Study

As part of the study, study of secondary data available on Product placement in Indian

Cinema would be undertaken. In-depth interviews with Film Producers, Brand

Managers and Advertising Agencies will also be carried out to gain an understanding of

the needs and requirements of the stakeholders in the process – the producer, the

audience and the brand.

Using primary research in form of questionnaires and in-depth interviews, we would

analyse the following:

1. Effect of popularity of actor/director on the success of placement

2. Impact of hero/heroine promoting the product as against a backdrop

advertisement or a camera pan-shot

3. Co-relation between box office success of the movie and brand visibility gained.

4. Impact of product placements in Multi-starrer vs Single hero movies

5. Analysis of different types of placements:

a. Prominent placement vs. Subtle placement

b. Plain visuals vs. Reiteration with dialogue

c. Effect of number of repeat appearances of product or time of focus

d. Placement in a Song vs. Placement in Normal Talkie portions

6. Impact of the number of products being placed in the same movie/shot/song

7. Impact on the consumer buying behaviour based on the type of product being

promoted: Low involvement products like deodorants, cold drinks or costly

products like cars

8. Impact of product placement based on the type of movie – “Mass Masala” vs. “Art

and Classy Movies” or movies targeted at the urban youth audience

An analysis will also be conducted to estimate the brand equity gain for the movie and

the brand by associating with each other.

A study will be conducted from perspective of the brand and the movie to analyse:

a) Willingness to place products in movies.

b) Price for placement

c) Expected returns from the product placement

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Secondary research will be carried out to study the impact of brand placement in three

pioneering movies.

i. Hollywood: POM Presents The greatest movie ever sold – Hollywood

Figure 1: POM presents The Greatest Movie Ever Sold which was a pioneer in Hollywood for product placements

ii. Bollywood: Bodyguard

Figure 2: Placement of Audi in Bodyguard

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iii. Regional Cinema: Moonu (3)

Figure 3: Placement of Aircel, Supermax and Lawman in 3 - Kolaveri Song

4. Methodology

Step 1: Studying the historical instances of product placements in Hollywood and Indian Cinema

Step 2: To analyse the successes and failures in the same (by analysing a set of movies) in terms of visibility and brand reach, return on investment and impact on buying behaviour through secondary research

Step 3:To analyse the impact of recent instances of product placements in Indian Cinema through primary research - surveys of the target audience and in-depth interviews with Brand Managers, Advertising Agencies and Movie Producers

Step 4: Applying the best practices from various instances and enlisting the plausible issues as obtained from the study,to answer the deliverable questions

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5. Research Matrix

Managerial

problem

Decision problem Information

Required

Sources

To analyse

the

effectiveness

of Product

Placement in

Indian

Cinema and

conclude if

this is a

viable

alternative

mode of

advertising

Do people notice product

placement in Indian Cinema?

Does consumer buying behaviour

get affected by product placement

in movies?

Is subtle product placement or

prominent placement the right way

to go about it?

What are the other factors such as

hero/heroine, director, nature of

movie, nature of placement etc that

affect the success and failure of

product placement.

Is there a particular kind of product

(high involvement/low

involvement) that is more prone to

success in product placement?

Consumer buying

behaviour for

products that are

traditionally

placed in movies

Consumer

acceptability of

product

placement

Critical success

factors for a

product

placement in a

movie

Market potential

for product

placement as an

alternative mode

of advertisement

Previous

instances of

Product

Placements in

Indian Cinema

and their success

rate

Secondary Research

about product

placement in

Hollywood (POM

presents the Greatest

Movie Ever Sold)

Consulting reports on

product placement in

Movies or Television

Programs.

Data collection

through questionnaires

to understand the

consumers’ buying

processes

Primary Research

through

questionnaires, in-

depth interviews of

the target audience,

brand managers,

advertising agencies

and movie producers

Focus Group

Discussions to

understand consumer

perception of Product

Placement in Indian

Cinema

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6. Deliverables

a) The level of impact for the brands & the movies in previous instances of product

placement in Indian Cinema

b) The extent of influence on buying behaviour due to product placement in Indian

Cinema

c) To conclude if this is a viable alternate mode of advertising.

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7. Brief Profiles

S G Shrinivas

A civil engineer from NIT-Bhopal, Shrinivas is currently doing a project to suggest an

optimal pricing strategy for Evam Entertainment, a popular theatre group in Chennai.

He was a columnist on regional cinema for various websites like Behindwoods.com etc.

Dube Akshay Suresh

An Electronics and Communications Engineer from NIT Nagpur; Akshay has worked on

indoor positioning systems using ultra-sound sensors. He was the editor of the college

cultural fest magazine.

Abhilash S

An Electronics and Communications Engineer from BMS College of Engineering,

Bangalore; Abhilash has worked for 9 months at Tata Consultancy Services providing

support services to clients in United States and United Kingdom.

Sagili Shan Mohan

An Electrical and Electronics Engineer from BITS, Pilani specialising in Robotic and

Communication Systems; Shan Mohan interned at Mercedes Benz – Research and

Development Centre for 6 months.

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8. References

1. Box Office India

http://www.boxofficeindia.co.in/show-me-the-money/

2. Filmed entertainment segment in India – A report by Ernst & Young

3. IBEF Report on Entertainment in India

http://www.ibef.org/download/Entertainment_270111.pdf

4. Indian Cinema, Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinema_of_India

5. Product Placement, Wikipedia -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_placement

6. Indiantelevision.com's interview with P9 Integrated CEO Navin Shah:

http://www.indiantelevision.com/interviews/y2k6/executive/Navin_Shah.htm

7. Product Placements- Global Scan

http://www.mediae2e.com/downloads/Product%20Placements-

%20Global%20Scan.pdf