The IPL has been suspended; the bio-bubble has burst. But were the signals – the negativity already visible? The Indian Institute of Human Brands (IIHB) and the Rediffusion Consumer Lab (Red Lab) had been tracking consumer sentiment for the past three weeks: the bomb dropped on the IPL almost on cue.
Call it a premonition. Or call it prudent guess work. Or call it gut feeling. Or, well just call it common sense. The Indian Institute of Human Brands (IIHB) and the Rediffusion Consumer Lab (more popularly called Red Lab) started a small consumer survey on April 17 and 18, reaching out to 482 respondents (M=271, F=211) asking the following questions:
The same questions were asked to the same respondents the next week on 24 & 25 April. There was a 22% drop rate of respondents ‘not available’ or ‘not contactable’ from the previous week. A third round of the same questions were administered on 1 & 2 May, with the drop-out rate down 18% of the original sample.
The sentiment started pretty positive at 81% saying ‘yes’, 14% saying ‘no’ and the rest ‘maybe/don’t know’ in Week 1.
By Week 2, it was 75% ‘yes’, 21% ‘no’ and balance undecided.
Week 3 saw a big plunge with only 58% still saying ‘yes’. ‘No’ was up to 37%, the numbers nearly doubling. It seems the grim reality of the pandemic upsurge across India was finally catching up with India’s biggest sports entertainment show!
This feedback in Week 3 had already been recorded before news of the IPL bio-bubble being breached had become public.
So the decline in sentiment cannot be attributed to actual negative news from the IPL front.
Overall the majority as of the last weekend was still in favour of holding the IPL, but the decline in support over 3 weeks has been visibly significant.
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