Chrome DM COTT has released its Advertising Recall Efficiency Report for IPL 2026, offering insights into how digital advertising campaigns performed across categories and brands during the tournament. The report examines the relationship between advertising exposure and consumer recall, measuring how effectively brands converted impressions into memory among viewers during one of India’s biggest sporting events.

According to a Chrome DM press release, the study is based on data from Chrome Digital Ad Track’s digital panel and a primary survey conducted during IPL 2026 between March 28 and May 31. The analysis covers Total Digital audiences, the BFSI category, Metro Banking audiences and Regular IPL Viewers, using the Recall Efficiency Index (REI) to evaluate campaign effectiveness.

The REI compares a brand or category’s share of impressions with its share of recall. A score of 1.00x indicates that recall is directly proportional to exposure, while scores above or below that benchmark reflect stronger or weaker conversion of advertising impressions into audience memory.

At the category level, the report found that higher impression share did not necessarily translate into higher recall efficiency. The Automobiles category led in overall impression share at 16.23 percent and generated a recall score of 13.02 percent, resulting in an REI of 0.80x. FMCG and Consumer Goods followed with a 13.04 percent impression share and 10.17 percent recall, translating into an REI of 0.78x.

Consumer Durables, including air conditioners and appliances, recorded a 9.70 percent impression share but generated a recall of 6.89 percent, resulting in the lowest recall efficiency among the top five categories at 0.71x. Digital, E-commerce and Internet Services delivered a stronger conversion ratio with an REI of 0.91x.

Among the leading categories, Banking, Finance and Fintech emerged as the most efficient. Despite recording the lowest impression share among the top five categories at 7.25 percent, the sector generated 7.03 percent recall and achieved an REI of 0.97x, the closest to parity between exposure and recall.

Within the BFSI category on Total Digital, SBI led both impression share and recall, recording 25.63 percent and 23.40 percent respectively, resulting in an REI of 0.91x. However, IDFC First Bank emerged as the most efficient brand in the category. With an 18.50 percent impression share and 19.23 percent recall, it achieved an REI of 1.03x, becoming the only BFSI brand in the cohort to exceed the 1.00x benchmark.

Groww recorded an REI of 0.92x, while HDFC Bank and Angel One registered 0.84x and 0.87x respectively. The findings indicate that while scale contributed to higher absolute recall, efficiency varied significantly across brands.

A similar trend was observed in the Metro Banking segment. SBI recorded the highest impression share at 45 percent and the highest recall at 38 percent, resulting in an REI of 0.83x. IDFC First Bank followed with a 37 percent impression share and 36 percent recall, delivering the highest REI in the metro banking cohort at 0.96x. HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank recorded REIs of 0.73x and 0.79x respectively.

Among regular IPL viewers, IDFC First Bank once again stood out on recall efficiency. The bank generated 24.65 percent impression share and 25.71 percent recall, resulting in an REI of 1.04x, making it the only brand in the segment to cross the 1.00x threshold. SBI followed with an REI of 0.95x, while Groww, Angel One and HDFC Bank recorded REIs below 0.90x.

The report concludes that advertising effectiveness during IPL 2026 was influenced by more than just media exposure. While impression share played an important role in driving recall, factors such as creative quality, message clarity, brand relevance and contextual placement within the IPL ecosystem also contributed significantly to recall efficiency.

Overall, the findings highlight that achieving high visibility alone does not guarantee stronger consumer memory. Brands that successfully combined reach with impactful communication were better positioned to convert exposure into recall, particularly within highly competitive categories such as banking, finance and fintech.