In the months leading up to a public offering, the stakes are high, and brand value becomes the corporate crown jewel, often rising dramatically just as a company prepares for its stock market debut. As companies aim to create a “can’t-miss” impression, advertising and PR budgets see a well-choreographed surge, strategically aimed at both investors and consumers.
In 2023, the number of companies going public reached 57, the second-highest total in more than a decade. In days to come, the competition will only intensify as over 20 late-stage startups are expected to go public in the next 12 to 24 months, according to a research paper by Blume Ventures Private Ltd. This sprint towards brand amplification is far from random and often ridden with competition. As part of its strategy, the food and grocery platform Swiggy is close to finalising a sponsorship deal worth INR 25 crore for the fourth season of Shark Tank India. As part of the agreement, Swiggy has reportedly requested that Deepinder Goyal, Founder and CEO of Zomato, be excluded from participating as a ‘Shark’ or investor on the show. This move underscores the intensifying rivalry between Swiggy and Zomato, two fierce competitors in the food and grocery delivery sectors. While the platforms were closely matched just a few years ago, Zomato has since gained an edge in both markets.
Swiggy’s sponsorship bid also reflected its increased marketing spends as the company prepared for the now-live IPO. In its revised DRHP (Draft Red Herring Prospectus), a prospectus filed with the SEBI before an IPO, Swiggy outlined plans to allocate INR 950 crore of the INR 3,750 crore it aims to raise, towards brand marketing and awareness initiatives. This investment is intended to broaden Swiggy’s reach and attract a larger customer base.
Companies target audiences with laser precision, crafting campaigns that balance brand storytelling with financial strength, all in a bid to impress both Dalal Street and Main Street. This calculated rise in advertising is more than just gloating—it’s about establishing a trusted image, creating a sense of momentum, and ultimately driving up perceived value.
“The pre-IPO brand value of a company is shaped by factors such as market reach, the spread of its concept, the depth of its delivery, profit margins, advertising expenditure, and public perception, including the brand’s image and consumer trust. However, a pre-IPO situation typically sees lower levels of image, awareness, and most certainly interest in the brand being offered,” says Harish Bijoor, Brand Guru and Founder, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc.
Elucidating further, he adds, “Typically, a company that floats a Red Herring Prospectus (RHP) moves forward and puts together an advertising and marketing campaign. That is required for the brand. It is the reason why you see a big blip just before the IPO, and this is a point of storm before the calm.”
As these companies strategise, creative agencies and branding experts become indispensable partners. Their job? To ensure every penny spent on advertising not only raises the brand’s visibility but reinforces a narrative of growth, stability, and promise—turning a soon-to-be-public company into an investment pie that everyone wants a slice of.
“First, the messaging itself is critical because it sets the foundation. Crafting a compelling story is essential to highlight the brand’s heritage and recent milestones, helping to shape how people perceive the company. Before scaling up promotion, this narrative building takes precedence,” says Vikas Chawla, Co-Founder, Social Beat. “Next, the experience should be cohesive, with a specific landing page or platform that conveys the company’s message in detail. This step ensures that for the viewers seeking more information, there is a well-designed digital space to learn more about the company and its offerings,” he adds. Creative and media agencies devise the strategy, selecting the most effective channels, defining target audiences, and crafting ways to build and engage an investor community. This phase supports long-term engagement and sustains interest through multiple channels.
The target audience for these communications are broad-based, including investors (both institutional and retail), analysts, regulators, and internal audiences such as employees, partners, vendors, etc. This involves building a corporate narrative that clearly outlines the company’s business model, mission, vision, and executive positioning. It’s also essential to establish a cohesive link between the brand and the organisation. While pre-IPO marketing previously focused on product sales, the focus now shifts toward appealing to potential investors. Factors like the company’s purpose, investor background, promoter profiles, and competition analysis become crucial at this stage.
“The communication has to drum up retail investor interest in the IPO, ensuring they know enough about the company. An IPO is the moment to tell the world why a company matters, and telling the right story with the right messaging to the right people is crucial for a successful listing,” opines Anup Sharma, PR and Strategic Communications Consultant.
In the lead-up to an IPO, companies often conduct brand lift studies and equity analyses for the first time, triggering a substantial increase in ad spending. This is because, starting from scratch, they must launch intense, highly visible campaigns to quickly establish and reinforce their brand’s market value. Under heightened investor scrutiny, these companies are compelled to boost advertising budgets to craft a compelling brand narrative and secure strong market positioning, resulting in a marked uplift in ad expenditures during this critical period.
“I think the staggering numbers (Ad spends) are potentially because the company has not done a brand lift study before. And we see this a lot with startups, where the marketing spends are a lot more performance driven than brand marketing driven. And the ethics of it, I feel like it is pretty much what the whole process demands as far as an IPO is concerned,” ellaborates Suchana Sarkar, CBO, Makani Creatives.
Ad spending around the IPO is typically a short-term strategy that supports the IPO process by increasing brand visibility, sparking conversations about the brand, and generating investor interest & excitement to participate in the IPO.
“If a company has strong brand reach, it can make it easier for investors to understand the business model and overall value of the brand. Effective brand presence helps potential investors gain a clearer understanding of the company,” says Kranthi Bathini, Director – Equity Strategy, WealthMills Securities Pvt. Ltd. “However, this approach varies by company. If a brand already has substantial reach, their ad spending around the IPO period may not be too aggressive,” he adds.
Savvy institutional investors, as well as intermediaries managing IPOs, are well aware that a wave of advertising and PR typically precedes an IPO, and they tend to discount much of what they see as part of this pre-IPO push. In contrast, retail investors often look forward to increased brand visibility during this period and eagerly absorb all the information available as they familiarise themselves with the brand entering the market.
“So the negative perception will only come by if someone is not speaking the truth. But if someone is speaking the truth, it is an all-positive perception. In any case, water finds its own level. Once the IPO hits the market, the shares actually start trading, and then reality bites. The ultimate assessment of the brand happens in the stock market. So, an IPO is certainly an event that takes a blast out of many brands,” says Harish Bijoor.
The final countdown to an IPO may feel like a whirlwind, but it’s one filled with intentional signals, strategic positioning, and savvy storytelling. For investors, this media storm can feel like either a tempting invitation or a cautiously scripted spectacle. Yet, as brands manoeuvre through this last mile of their IPO journey, the real measure of success awaits on the trading floor, where the buzz of branding collides with market reality. And as the dust settles, one thing becomes clear: the IPO is a momentous blast, but it’s what remains when the storm passes that truly defines a brand’s worth.
