In India, Branded Entertainment is still nascent. It seldom extends beyond passive product placement on television shows and, to an extent, in Bollywood movies. Active placements are few and far. Leading content producers are normally very protective of their content, and give little leeway to advertisers to dictate terms of integration.

Most integration in Television shows is the obvious fits like food brands with food shows, Auto cars in Auto shows, etc.

Additionally, the measurement of results is almost non-existent, with no post-measurement mechanism available. Nor is measurement actively encouraged by content owners and producers. The industry is fairly fragmented.

We partnered with one of India’s biggest soap operas - Bade Ache lagte hain. Across 16 episodes we told the dramatic story of a couple’s honeymoon down under.

He was aloof, distant and cold as they set off. Needless to say the magic of Australia brought them together. Viewers saw how the excitement and beauty of Australia’s biggest attractions made for a very special honeymoon.We created and owned one of the most emotional storylines viewers of the show had ever known. The tale of pressure and insecurity after a marriage resonated powerfully. In fact there were only meant to be 8 episodes but the audience demanded the story run and run!We worked closely with the studio to package and promote this special series of episodes. The branded up Australia Honeymoon episodes were promoted in TV, Print, OOH and digital. It was like launching a show within a show.

The biggest achievement was that the brand and message seamlessly integrated into the show’s content and storyline, without viewers feeling ‘force-fit’ messaging. A beautiful destination woven into the plot of a top rated show, as an integral element of the story track – it is one of the most subtle, relevant and successful integrations ever into a TV show in India.The ratings achieved an all-time high and 76.5m Indians saw the specials.The number of Indian visitors to Australia post this initiative grew by a massive 10%.

With 60% of the audience saying they definitely wanted to go to Australia, it was clear the campaign had put Australia on the Indian travellers’ map for good. Honeymooners and holidaymakers alike now know what Australia has to offer them.The icing on the wedding cake was that the show delivered 13 times more value for Tourism Australia vs the investment.