how to make the rich open their wallets

the recent ipl auctions where new franchises were sold for more than rs1,700 crore for 10 years,were a stunning success.the ipl management deserves accolades,not only because they have created indias biggest showbiz event in three years out of nowhere,but have also managed to sell the recent franchises ata price it is almost impossible for the buyers to make money.
calculations are floating around on the internet and estimates vary,but the latest auction winner needs to pay rs 170 crore merely in franchise costs per season.other costs,such as player fees and administration expenses averaged around rs 45 crore in the last season.thus,even after ignoring the time value of money,the franchisee needs to generate rs 215 crore in revenue per season to cover costs.it doesnot require a financial wizaed to tell u that the new buyers have paid too much.revenues could potentially grow as ipl taps other earning sources,but there are threats too.the addition of too many new teams could dilute viewership.the novelty factor could wane from what is india biggest reality show.a recent study revealed that ipl viewership could be lower than the top rated soap operas.this finding could have significant implications.
yet,some of d biggest industrial groups paid serious amounts of money to get a piece of the action.surely,they had finance teams that knew the numbers?the main motivator behind the purchase may not have been investment return.there r non monetary benefits.the instant,visible stardom and high life that ilp team ownership provides is hard to buy almost any way else.you could have thousands of crores in the bank,but do u get to sit next to bollywood starlets in d stadium?do u have high_five with a top australian batsman every time ur team hits a boundary?do ur megabucks allow u to clink glasses with cheerleaders at d post-march party,with full societal sanction?more importantly,does d whole country watch when u do that?if not,whats d point of owning skyscrapers and oil rigs?just to give some shareholders and irritating bankers a returncmon,u have money.people have to know u amount to something.and whats rs100 crore lost per year,if u get a to change ur introduction from i make boring petrochemicals to i own kochi koolness.
thats true,an ipl team has d power to add instant glamour,youth,sportiness and enhance ur persona to larger than life proportions.u dont need talent or any special gifts.u need d only thing it takes-money.
while some may look down on d shallow commercial nature of d whole exercise,i think there r terrific lessons on how to extract money out of rich indians.compared to their western counterparts,india truly rich contribute far less to charity as a percentage of their net worth.this may be entirely the owners personal choice and many NGOs n good causes struggle to raise from indian corporate houses.but,the ipl auctions have shown that rich people can be made to open their wallets n pay serious cash even without profit,provided u feed one thing-their ego.they will pay,so long as u make them look good.
i have no qualms about offering things up to rich people if it gives them illusion of being larger than life.opportunities r manifold-we can offer to name flyovers,sealinks,roads,lanes,metro stations,individual trains after rich people-who can bid for n buy them.if competitive tension is created,they will outdo each other to put up that plaque n grab d next days headlines.if it helps raise a few thousand crores for good causes,what difference it make?
certain govt. posts,with nominal powers,can be given to rich people.they could pay a huge fee n be d second vice-president for a year,getting there picture clicked with every foreign dignitary n being more than just d owner of a dull fertilizer company.

some of these suggestions may seem outlandish,but surely u get d drift.the ego is the animal within a person that demands to be fed,no matter what his/her level of accomplishment.it is commendable that lalit modi n the rest of d people tapped into it,sold teams for double their worth n still had smiling buyers at d end.fundraisers n govt. agencies should consider selling greatness for hard cash,especially if it is for a good cause.
meanwhile,if u dont have rs1,700 crore lying around,thank ur stars,sometimes,too much money makes u do stupid things far better instead to watch the cheerleaders on tv.......