Don't Shut Down the IPL- USE IT!!!!

The IPL and BCCI have come under severe criticism for continuing a cricket tournament during one of the greatest crisis in India’s history. Calls for stopping the tournament are all over social media. What a waste of a good opportunity. 

Don’t shut down the IPL- USE IT!!!

In 1985, Live Aid, a music concert held on one afternoon raised over $125 million for the famine in Ethiopia. A 24-hour telethon led by George Clooney ‘Hope for Haiti’ raised more than $57 million for the earthquake ravaged country. 

Can you imagine how much awareness and money can be raised with a T20 match being played every single evening? 

The BCCI is missing out on being one of the greatest contributors to India during this challenging time. 

There are a number of people in India and abroad who would like to donate money and contribute in any way they can. The absence of a credible NGO or an easy-to-use platform hinders them in the process. There is no greater opportunity at the moment than the IPL to provide access to contribute. 

Why can’t the BCCI tie up with a different credible NGO for every match? Or even one credible organisation for the rest of the tournament? During each match information and advertisements can be shown at regular intervals where people can donate funds to help India in its time of need. 

Contributions don’t have to be in the lakhs or even the thousands. A minimum amount can be set with no maximum contribution. If every one had an easy way to contribute, even a small amount, the funds raised could go a long way. 

A fantastic Mumbai based NGO called Dasra has been providing information on Instagram about NGO’s that are providing last mile help to communities. While their intentions and efforts must be complimented, Dasra has only about 4650 followers on Instagram. How many viewers do you think are watching each IPL game on TV and HotStar? 

Besides individuals, the BCCI could entice corporates to leverage the IPL to help. A corporate could sign up for a game or the tournament and declare that for every four or six hit during the match they would contribute one lakh (or more). This serves as marketing and goodwill for the corporate and hence a few of them may jump at the opportunity. 

The examples above are just scratching the surface in terms of what can be done. The right marketing person leading this can make the project in to one of the most successful fund-raising campaigns in the Covid era. 

For this to work there must be certain things in place. 

The NGO, organisations etc. that the money is going to must be-

a. Credible- the money must reach where it helps the most people

b. Non-political- It cannot be affiliated to any state or national government or the BCCI. There is too much politics already hurting the country and so the NGO must be neutral or people will not contribute 

c.      The NGO should be able to receive contributions from abroad- the IPL is broadcast in multiple countries and the Indian Diaspora will contribute along with locals in these countries. 

2) Small and big contributions are welcome. Don’t just demand big cheques. A number of small ones add up.  

3) The person managing this must be a marketing guru. 

a. The right set up and strategies, seamless process, credibility and message

b. Make donations a thing of pride. After a donation is made the individual receives a notice which they can post on their social media. It is playing to the ego of people but who cares, we are trying to raise money here

c. The right hashtags, the right celebrities on board and the right execution. 

Sports and Bollywood have become easy targets. Stop wasting time criticising them, use them. We need all the help we can get right now.  

Don’t shut down the IPL- USE IT!! 

Photo Credit- https://www.theweek.in/news/sports/2021/03/07/ipl-2021-schedule-announced-mi-face-rcb-in-opener-on-april-9.html