An Unheard Report: Congress Won The Content Game Over BRS

The Launch of SixDegrees in 1997 is arguably the first ever look of modern-day social media. A little over a decade later, social media evolved as a weapon as potent as mainstream media platforms for political parties. Content as on date plays a way more important role than it ever did & this isn't limited to a single platform or form. From 60-word snippets to hour-long podcasts, from high-octane debates to constructive discussions, one would have to say that all forms of content have a role to play in modern-day Indian Politics.

Despite all relevant stakeholders realising the importance of content marketing, most survey agencies still tend to ignore the need for a thorough content audit and limit themselves to the traditional way of collecting samples. One such solicited survey was carried out by a reputed Hyderabad-based agency & it would be an understatement to say that OneIndia stumbled upon a goldmine.

This report speaks of content trends of BRS, Congress & BJP leading up to the Telangana Assembly Elections 2023. The accuracy is bound to send shockwaves across relevant circles. Here's what the survey claims:

BRS LOST 20 SEATS PER MONTH SINCE SEPTEMBER 23

As per the report, in September 2023, content emerging from a total of 92 assembly constituencies was favourable to the ruling BRS. The figure went down to 71 in October, 57 in November and settled at 30 by the 3rd of December. Interestingly, the report also says that the Congress tripled the intensity of the party's campaign during November the month of November. Therefore, it would be safe to infer based on this report that both occurrences were directly linked.

DEPENDENCY ON KEY LEADERS HARMED BRS

According to the report, the BRS' over-dependence on key leaders such as KTR, Harish Rao & KCR might have had an adverse impact on the end result. KTR, Harish Rao & KCR contributed 88 per cent of the media buzz generated by BRS, while the rest of the leaders were limited to a mere 12 per cent. On the other hand, Congress' three key leaders in Revanth Reddy, Bhatti Vikramarka & Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy contributed 70 per cent whereas the rest of the Congress leaders took care of the remaining 30 per cent.

If the neighbouring state of AP is to be taken as an example, over-dependence on one (or more) key leaders harmed the chances of the YSRCP and they same could've unfolded in Telangana. Moreover, as per the report, 60% of the buzz created by BRS on social media was done by KTR's handles whereas the buzz created by the Congress party was evenly distributed across the handles of party leaders.

MEDIGADDA BARRAGE SUNK BRS' SHIP

Among the top issues raised by the Congress during the course of their campaign through content generated across platforms, the Medigadda Barrage top the list, followed by the Kaleswaram Project's National Status & Unemployment. Here's a precise break-up:

Medigadda Barrage: 50.6 per cent

Kaleswaram National Status: 14.1 per cent

Unemployment: 10.7 per cent

Double Bedroom Controversies: 7.8 per cent

Three Acres for Dalits: 6.3 per cent

Unemployment Allowance: 4.3 per cent

Dalita Bandhu Controversy: 2.5 per cent

Podu Land Issues: 1.7 per cent

Rest: 2.2 per cent

BATTLE OF THE MANIFESTOS
The report clearly states that the manifestos of both the parties, BRS & Congress garnered traction during the last leg of the campaign along with Rythu Bandhu for the BRS & the 6 Guaranteed Schemes for the Congress. At this juncture, it is important to note that as per the report, the Congress party put out 37 per cent less posts from relevant handles promoting their manifesto when compared to the BRS.

A similar trend extends to the flagship initiatives (Rythu Bandu & the 6 Guarantees ). Therefore, one would have to say that the effectiveness of the content created by Congress beat that of the content put out by BRS this time around.

URBAN VS RURAL
The top pieces of content produced by both Congress & BRS were analysed and the same threw up an interesting trend as per report. BRS' content was targeted towards the Urban Centres whereas the Congress Party's Content was tailor-made for the rural audience. So much so that the report claims that there was a linguistic disconnect that the BRS faced in rural areas, meaning that some of the top content pieces produced by then were in English.

The accuracy of this report clearly highlights the importance and need for political parties to focus on the conceptualisation, planning, distribution & tracking of content.