Sports Sponsorship in B2B | B2B Marketing Shepherd Rajesh Kumar | EP 08

There’s a reason the world’s most prestigious brands bet big on sports, music, and celebrities even in B2B.
In this episode of Decoding B2B Marketing, host Rajesh Kumar (  / rajeshkjindal  ) – marketer, Fractional CMO, Board Advisor and author of the upcoming book Decoding B2B Marketing – sits down with Sujatha V Kumar (  / sujatha-v-kumar-8319585  , CMO, Ex Visa, Coca-Cola and P&G, to unpack how sponsorships, celebrity endorsements and influencers can work powerfully for B2B brands.

Sujatha brings a rare mix of B2C and B2B experience — from Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola and RBS, to leading marketing for Visa in India & South Asia. She has worked with iconic global properties like FIFA World Cup, the Olympics, and with stars like P.V. Sindhu and Neeraj Chopra among others.

Together, they explore how to:
Make high-cost sponsorships pay back in B2B context
Turn sports & music partnerships into a lever for business-building
Choose celebrities and influencers that truly fit your brand
Use sponsorships across the full lifecycle — from brand to demand
Think beyond spray-and-pray to sharp, measurable, strategic marketing
Along the way, Sujatha also shares her journey from from being an earnest psychology student to leading some of India’s most loved brands
How she navigated the shift from B2C → B2B/B2B2C
Her passion for music, bands and theatre
How she mentors young women to grow in their career, as a champion for women in leadership

If you’re a B2B marketer, founder or leader wondering whether sponsorships, celebrities or influencers are “worth it” — this episode gives you a practical, no-fluff playbook on how to use them smartly.

Listen here:

Spotify:https://tinyurl.com/ynb85ec5
Apple Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/42j25d3n
Amazon Music: https://tinyurl.com/rk3r5vpc
JioSaavn: https://tinyurl.com/k3m9w7un
Gaana: https://tinyurl.com/yc2ya5uh

Chapters
00:00 – Introduction
02:15 – Journey into B2B Marketing
07:02 – For the Love of Music
08:59 – On Women in Leadership
11:08 – Transition from B2C to B2B
16:08 – Unpacking Sponsorship for B2B Brands
20:18 – Integrating Brand with Sponsorship
26:24 – Delivering Experiences Money Can't Buy
28:19 – Using Influencer Marketing in B2B
30:33 – Choosing the Right Celebrity/Influencer
32:07 – Making a Business Case
33:46 – Warm Human Side of Celebrities, Paying It Forward
39:10 – Advice, Tips & Hacks

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