Tag: Sport Sponsorship

Big Brands Do Small Sponsorship 11th June, 2012

Brands become involved with sponsorship for a variety of reasons – to create awareness, to raise credibility, or to improve people’s perceptions of the brand as a whole.  The most notable sponsorship deals grace the front covers of our national papers providing the appearance that global brands only sponsor large properties such as the Olympics, UEFA, and Premier League Football.  However, this is not always the case.

Brands such as Adidas and Orange supplement their larger sponsorship properties with community partnerships helping them solidify their positioning and also strengthening the potential for advocacy through closer engagement.

Adidas Women’s 5K Challenge

The Adidas Women’s 5K challenge although still a relatively large event with 20,000 participants is a great example of a smaller partnership intended to raise perceptions of the brand through focusing on the female consumer. Although unisex, Adidas as a sports brand is more readily associated with a male audience particularly because of its association with male-orientated events highly publicised in the news such as UEFA.

For this reason, Adidas’s sponsorship of the Women’s 5K Challenge was a successful sponsorship strategy for the brand for a number of reasons:

  • The focus on a solely female audience helped position the importance of women as consumers
  • It created an emotion tie-in, touching on the heart strings of the female audience through the event’s charity support of Breakthrough Breast Cancer
  • Exclusive naming rights ensured that Adidas stood out from its competitors

Orange Sponsors Swanswell’s Football Kit

Swanswell is a charity that works to help people overcome drug and alcohol addiction. Quite different from sponsoring one of the days a week – Orange Wednesdays – Orange supported the Swanswell five-a-side tournament by sponsoring their football kit for the season.

Trevor Bedford operations manager for Swanswell in Birmingham said:

We’re delighted that Orange has been able to sponsor our new kit, giving people an added incentive to do well and feel well.

Orange’s support for a charity such as Swanswell is beneficial to the brand for various reasons:

  • Small gesture, but creates association with Orange as a brand that cares about the individual as well as community
  • Larger issues that are important and relevant to society as a whole through affiliation with the national charity Swanswell
  • Orange becomes a more approachable brand from a consumer’s perspective –  not just focused on targeting a mass audience
  • Brand differentiation and a change from their typical film sponsorship

Orange and Adidas are a few of many examples of big brands doing small sponsorship well.  We hope to see more of it!

Sport Sponsorship Accessible for All Businesses 5th March, 2012

With new multi-million pound sport sponsorship deals secured almost daily, sport sponsorship may seem to only really work or be available for big brands.  Because of this perception many businesses will not even consider incorporating sport sponsorship into their marketing mix.  However, there are options available for SME’s and they can work better than you imagined.

In this two part series, I explore how small businesses can get involved with sport sponsorship.

Part 1: The Options

Community Projects

Sporting community projects can attract big name sponsors and funding but there are still hundreds of projects in the UK that do not have the funding needed. Although huge multi-national companies such as McDonald’s lead the way in community sponsorship, this can be replicated at a local level by local business. Sponsoring your local football community project can create awareness of your company and build the same brand trust that McDonald’s strives for. Involving your business in community projects also offers a unique chance for small businesses to demonstrate a local CSR programme and show that point-of-difference to your community that will set you apart.

Local Business and Local Sport

Local businesses sponsoring their local sports team is a great way to create brand awareness in your community. Local sports rely on sponsorship to bring in funds that otherwise would not be available. Less popular sports can struggle to attract central funding as well as new players and club members. This was a problem that faced Leicester Hockey Club who in 2008 lacked the financial input to take them to the European Championships in Azerbaijan. This led to a call for help, a call which Pukka Pies duly answered, enabling the team to compete. Pukka Pies have continued their support for Leicester Hockey Club and grown with the team through brand awareness and achievements helping them to success at the European Championships held in Holland.

Korfball

Don’t be afraid to test new waters. Lesser known sports can be great platforms for sponsorship. Not many people in the UK have heard of the sport Korfball (a mixed sport similar to netball), but that didn’t stop Squashed Newt, a UK based web design company from sponsoring the Welsh National Korfball Team. A growing sport in the UK and with an impending tour to the World Championships in The Netherlands, Korfball became the sponsorship platform for Squashed Newt in spite of the sports low national profile.

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Sports sponsorship is the easiest way for local business to market themselves to their own community with guaranteed exposure to their target market. The number of sport sponsorship platforms out there is enormous, but as with major sponsorship deals branding is not enough. Part Two of this blog will explore how you can maximise your sponsorship’s potential and generate real ROI for your business.

Sports Sponsorship: More Than Just Branding 25th January, 2012

Ever since Kettering Town became the first English football club to host a sponsor – Kettering Tyres – across their ‘famous’ red and white shirts, in 1976, corporate sponsors have been obsessed with branding. Every sport, from snowboarding to horse riding, is full of brands trying to get the most prominent position on a racer’s helmet or the best placed advertising board on any given sports field around the world.

The most pertinent example I can find of such blatant logo blasting is FX Pro’s sponsorship of Fulham – signed chiefly so the foreign exchange broker could have its logo streaked across the roof of Fulham’s home ground, which lies directly along the Heathrow flightpath.  A multi million pound deal, just so people flying in from Beijing can see your company emblem.  No message explaining what they do, how they do it or what their company ethos is – JUST the logo.

And for years this type of marketing has worked.

Exposing customers to logos has been a tried and tested formula, creating profit for brands for decades.  But in today’s market, where we are constantly blasted with logos of innumerable brands – many of which we don’t even recognize – is it enough?  And from a sponsor’s perspective, is it even worth it?

In today’s world a simple logo is no longer enough – it does not convey enough about your company to make a positive impression on the consumer.  With marketing budgets being slashed, brands are being forced to ENGAGE with their target audience, to ensure resonance.  Well-executed sponsorship activations can do just this.  They bridge the communication gap, allowing the target audience to experience exactly what the brand has to offer.  For the rights owner, such sponsorship deals offer the opportunity to provide a richer and more complete experience to their audience.

Whilst many sponsor relationships remain stuck in this branding culture (especially within sports sponsorship), some brands and rights owners are leading the way through truly innovating sponsorship campaigns.  One of the most forward thinking approaches is the partnership between Spanish giants Real Madrid and network provider Cisco Systems.  The agreement will see the installation of Cisco’s high-density Wi-Fi system at Madrid’s home stadium – Santiago Bernabeu – allowing fans to:

  1. Access specifically designed applications through their smartphones, encouraging them to engage directly with the Santiago Bernabeau.
  2. Watch Hi-Definition screens throughout the ground that will broadcast replays, highlights and interviews exclusively to those in the stadium.
  3. Utilise social media – encouraging match-goers to share tweets of their match day experience with those at the stadium and those around the world.

Whilst there is an argument from die-hard fans that such technological progressions may detract from the atmosphere on match-days, I actually think it has the potential to enhance it.  I’m not advocating everyone sitting on their iPhones, tweeting for 90 minutes.  Rather, at half-time or during injury stoppages people in the ground can watch a replay of a missed opportunity they couldn’t see clearly; get information about a new player; or even find out the words to a chant they weren’t aware of – meaning they can actively contribute to and thus improve the atmosphere in the ground.

Another interesting approach to sponsorship within the realm of football has been the recent  partnership between Manchester City & EA Sports.  Both partners have fully embraced the relationship, making user-interaction a far more engaging and rewarding experience both at match days and online.  A few examples of the activation have included:

  1. A virtual launch of the club’s kit for the 2011-2012 season, exhibited by a computer generated Manchester City eleven.
  2. Full motion capture of the Manchester City squad, making player movement even more realistic – resulting in Manchester City being the most commonly used team by online FIFA 2012 players around the world.
  3. A proposal to use FIFA statistics to simulate upcoming Manchester City matches.

All interesting stuff, however the innovation of this campaign lies in the way users are directed to the data.  The plan is to deliver the latest software – Sergio Aguero’s new haircut, up-to-date statistics, or the new Manchester City away kit – to users via smartphone, be it using a personalized QR code or the RFID chip on the back of fan’s membership cards.  Once the code is scanned, the fan receives unique FIFA 2012 data, which they can then trade with other consumers.  Friends could swap them via smartphone, match-goers could swap them at a game and online users could swap them over Facebook.  While EA Sports and Manchester City would create the initial software, the fans would be tasked with sharing the data – taking the EA Sports and Manchester City brand into a more social setting.

Although football sponsors have the tendency to simply ‘brand’ everything, Formula 1 sponsors are undoubtedly more culpable: every driver, every car and every available space is awash with corporate sponsors.  Such branding may still be effective to a point, but some companies are realizing that they can get so much more out of their sponsorship.  A perfect example of this realization is the ‘Step Inside the Circuit’ campaign, produced from Johnnie Walker’s sponsorship of the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes racing team.

Viewers are directed to branded content via Johnnie Walker’s Facebook page, where they are then transported to the hustle and bustle of a Formula 1 track.   Users can mingle with the other drivers, check out the last minute adjustments to the cars or take a spin around the track to experience what it’s like for Lewis Hamilton or Sebastien Vettel on race day.  To further personalize the experience, photos are taken from the user’s Facebook, along with webcam input and text-to-speech technology.  The campaign culminates with 20 competition winners being taken to Silverstone for three days of training, finishing with VIP tickets to the Grand Prix itself.

It is still unclear, which of these different sponsorship channels will prevail and prove to be most rewarding for a partnership in the long-term.  Many of these alliances are still in their infancy and it is impossible to tell if anyone has already found a winning formula.  However what is clear is that, if done correctly, there are substantial gains to be made for the sponsors, right owners and fans themselves:

  1. Sponsors better engage with their audience and promote their brand
  2. Rights owners can offer a richer and more varied experience to their brand/event
  3. Fans receive a more interactive and diverse experience.

From what we’ve seen, it is clear that future sponsors cannot rely simply on branding alone.

Innovation in UK Sports Sponsorship 21st November, 2011

Each year, towards the climax of rugby union’s most demanding league, the Aviva Premiership, London Irish Rugby Club host their two biggest games of the season The St. Patrick’s and End of Season Parties.

Last year with the aid of Slingshot Sponsorship, London Irish implemented a unique strategy with these games applying a three dimensional model that generated new revenue, promoted fan loyalty and increased the reach and exposure of the club.

These events saw the introduction of live music, entertainment, competitions, food stalls, and brand experiences prior to kick off for the sold-out fans creating a festival experience.  This changed the single match day experience to an entire day out for families and supporters within the Madejski Stadium.

Further to creating a more encompassing day for fans, it has also proved to be an innovative way to allow international, national and local brands to get involved with one of the biggest team names in British sport at a fraction of the fees commonly associated with sports sponsorship.  In doing so, the club has been able to create additional value for fans through this new sponsorship revenue stream supporting activity on those specific game days.

Experiential Brand Activations

In 2011 both events integrated a number of brand partnerships for these two games.  From the EA Sports Hub providing visitors with the chance to experience the latest EA Sports video games in a pop-up gaming station, to McCain Foods’ inflatable Track and Field Road Show giving younger fans a chance to be mentored by professional athletes at a range of disciplines from running and jumping to strength and reaction testing.

Benefits for brands included:

  • Being able to physically connect with the London Irish audience of young families
  • Communicating the brand messaging through the integrated marketing campaigns including game programmes, print, online, and social media
  • A platform to promote positive messages of sport and health
  • Brand exposure for local businesses to reach the community through one of the biggest experiential marketing, advertising and hospitality platforms in the area

2012 and Beyond

By offering the opportunity for sports association at single games, the St. Patrick’s and End of Season parties are attracting growing numbers of partners each year and in turn presenting increased diversity in the event content offered. This is inevitably broadening the team’s fan base; providing a sustainable and growing sponsorship platform, whilst simultaneously building upon the traditions of heritage UK rugby club. With St. Patrick’s Day 2012 seeing Aviva Premiership winners Leicester Tigers come to the Madejski stadium, followed by Gloucester for the final game of the season, London Irish’s two key events of the year are set to be the biggest yet and will no doubt provide the parties to match.

Women's Sport Draws Fraction of Sponsorship Investment, But Not for Long 18th November, 2011

Having read the recent articles from our most successful Paralympian ever, Baroness Grey-Thompson, I was saddened with how little revenue is generated through sponsorship in women’s sport in the UK. With some very successful elite teams based in the United Kingdom including football, hockey, and netball, I wrongly assumed this would also draw large sponsorship funding to the sport and players.

Perhaps I have been tainted.  I have always gone out with women who play sport and whether it’s been pretending to understand the rules of netball or be enthralled with a sublime left foot penalty, female sport has been nearly as big a part of my life as their male counterparts.

So why is it that the rate of interest has gone up but sponsorship hasn’t? Between January 2010 and August 2011 sponsorship of women’s elite sport in the UK contributed just 0.5% of the total market. Shocked? If not, you should be when you compare it to the 61.1% for men’s sport.  It is clearly time for a change.

A contributing factor for the significant difference in sponsorship investment is the amount of media coverage that women’s sport receives.  As audience awareness is a key benefit for sponsorship rights, this decreased media attention in women’s sport significantly affects the total sponsorship able to be retained.

However, it is possible that this is changing around – if even ever so slowly.  On a recent trip to Marrakesh, I was elated to be able to watch the women’s World Cup quarter final live! (albeit via the red button).  Also to note that this was due to an unprecendented 700,000 people who had watched England’s final group game.

When looking at the situation from a different angle, it becomes apparent that women’s sport is offering the rare opportunity for brands to associate with sporting athletes, teams and associations without having to compete with a plethora of additional sponsors and advertisers.

These opportunities also come at a heavily discounted price in comparison to the fees generally associated with sports sponsorship. With the London 2012 Olympics on the horizon, there has never been a better time to get involved with this relatively untapped marketing resource.

It seems to me that as long as the general public continue to be attracted to women’s sport in greater numbers, sponsors would be foolish to miss out on an ever growing opportunity as the cost of investment is sure to grow!

Sony Ericsson Harness Social Media for UEFA 12th September, 2011

The 2010/11 UEFA Champions League final proved to be the event of the football season, featuring a showdown between two European giants, Manchester United and Barcelona. Having both won their domestic leagues earlier in the month, the game was undoubtedly the spectacle to be watched closely by millions around the world.

As the Official Mobile Handset Provider of the UEFA Champions League, Sony Ericsson chose to reach this engaged audience through the power of social media – specifically an innovative approach using Foursquare. Showcasing the capabilities of the Xperia mobile handset range, Sony Ericsson launched two promotions the day before the final.

The first saw fans build their own football team through Foursquare by finding a player in eleven locations around London, each revealing a prize on the inside of their jersey. Prizes included Sony Ericsson PLAY handsets, official UEFA merchandise and a pair of tickets to the 2011 UEFA Champions League final. The second promotion engaged fans attending the final to unlock the Sony Ericsson Xperia Footy Final Badge at the Sony Ericsson Football Hotspot located at Wembley Stadium, in an effort to win tickets to the UEFA Super Cup in Monaco, 2011.

With over 6 million fans on Facebook, Sony Ericsson not only knew their target audience, but created promotions that resonated with UEFA fans in a unique way.  Future plans will see a focus through their social networks throughout the 2011/12 UEFA Champions League season offering Facebook-exclusive competitions, new mobile applications, and further Foursquare promotions.

Stephan Croix, Head of Global Marketing Partnerships and Sponsorship at Sony Ericsson, informed Marketing Week that:

Social media will now become an additional investment in our Champions League sponsorship, we will dial up the volume to help build the brand and continue to drive commercial success.

Sony Ericsson is now the  40th biggest brand on Facebook providing regular engagement with the ever-changing mass mobile handset market.  This platform not only allows the brand to gain valuable insight into consumer trends and demands, but also continues to strengthen the brand further proving the importance of harnessing new media channels within sponsorship activations.

How O2 Creates Priority Through Sponsorship 6th September, 2011

Telefonica Europe Plc also known as O2 is a European broadband and telecommunications company who maintain the customer messages of ‘priority’ and being ‘better connected’. In addition to the marketing campaigns run, these messages are further reinforced through their sponsorship activation.

As part of the naming rights sponsorship of The O2 Arena in London (formerly known Millennium Dome) since 2007, O2 customers are able to receive Priority Tickets for concerts and exhibitions up to 48 hours before they are released on general sale along with other better experience at the venue. Similar benefits are expected to be provided across the nation within their O2 Academy venues (O2 Sponsorship, 2011).

Another example of ‘priority’ can be demonstrated with Arsenal Football Club. As a sponsor since 2002, O2 offers free shirts, £40 vouchers and other benefits in exchange for signing with O2 home and mobile broadband. O2 also allow fans to meet and watch Arsenal away games at Emirates Stadium called Live Away Screening where O2 customers have priority seating, access to VIP rooms, and the opportunity to win competitions, meet the coaching staff, meet players or attend training.

As sponsors of The England Rugby Team since 1995, O2 customers also receive priority packages at Twickenham in the form of free pie, pint, program and chance to meet England players.  Further rugby sponsorship includes Scrum on the Beach for the younger demographic and engages the local community.

 

Shadi Halliwell, Head of UK Brand Communications at O2 said:

We are always looking at innovative ways in which we can engage customers with Priority Tickets and make sure they hear about pre-sales for their favorite events.

Priority is a strong message with O2 and they ensure it isn’t just whitewash.  Sponsoring the right properties enables them to expand their brand and engage their target audience creating a truly better connected network.

 

Herbalife Promotes Their Products Through Football 27th July, 2011


Herbalife, a global nutrition company, became the main title sponsor of a second time running international football tournament ‘Herbalife World Football Challenge’, the goal of which is to promote football (soccer) in Northern America.

Football’s popularity is steadily growing in the US, especially after the FIFA World Cup and Champions League final last year.  The Champions League final was viewed by 4.2 million people on Fox and Fox Deportes, nearly twice the 2.2 million who watched last year’s tournament final (Market Watch, 2011).

As Rob Levy senior vice president of sales and marketing at Herbalife explained “The biggest teams in the world are coming to play across the U.S., and the games will be on ESPN and Univision”.

The football tournament kicked off on 13th July 2011 at the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, US.  A total of 12 teams are taking part, including European football giants Manchester United (England), Manchester City (England), Real Madrid (Spain), FC Barcelona (Spain) and FC Juventus (Italy); Los Angeles Galaxy, New England Revolution, Philadelphia Union and Chicago Fire from Major League Soccer (MLS); Canadian Vancouver Whitecaps and Mexican clubs Chivas de Guadalajara and Club America.  The football games are scheduled to take place in various locations across the United States and Canada in order to maximise exposure.

Michael O. Johnson, chairman and chief executive of Herbalife, added: “The Herbalife World Football Challenge is a great opportunity to expand our commitment to a healthy active life through sports and is an ideal backdrop to launch our new line of sports products” (MLS Press Box, 2011).  As a title sponsor and “Official Nutrition Company” of the event, Herbalife will provide all participating teams with their new line of new nutrition sports products, Herbalife24.  The deal also includes access into teams’ locker rooms and demonstration with the teams’ doctors and nutritionists.  The Herbalife 24 is a customizable seven-product line that everybody can determine day-to-day needs based on activity levels and training demands (Herbalife 24, 2011).

Herbalife did a great job in introducing and promoting their new products at the right time and in the right place through a successful tournament that attracted significant spectators and media broadcast.The tournament and sponsorship illustrates how a successful partnership can benefit all parties involved.

1. The tournament will increase awareness of European football on the American continent where American football, baseball, basketball, and ice hockey still dominate.

2. The title sponsor Herbalife will achieve activation, publicity and promotion of their products in the future due to mutual cooperation and partnership with each of the teams. Furthermore, the fact that this tournament is international will help Herbalife’s expansion globally.

3. And finally the European teams will benefit from expanding their brands overseas and increasing their fan base in the new potential market of 358 million American and Canadian sports fans.  Herbalife Football Challenge is a great example where everybody benefits from the event including organizers, sponsors, teams, players, spectators and media.


NHL 2011 Stanley Cup Final Aftermath 4th July, 2011

Blaring of the final horn in the seventh, deciding game of the NHL 2011 Stanley Cup final divided Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins into losers and winners.  Boston Bruins became the Stanley Cup Champions again after long 39 years, what a reason for celebration!

The team celebrated excitedly on ice wearing merchandise already boasting the new Stanley Cup Champions’ logo provided by Reebok Hockey, the main NHL licensee.  The marketing partner Anheuser Busch brewery too made a special Bud Light beer edition with “Boston Bruins the Stanley Cup Champions” logo for the players to toast their victory – promoting sales and thus generating revenue for the NHL as a whole through shared revenues.

The main celebration was scheduled for the streets of Boston, where the team could celebrate together with their fans.  The city parade called the Rolling Rally involved eighteen duck boats carrying cheering players who presented the Stanley Cup to over a million of supporters.

The show also attracted a strong media interest, being broadcasted on both local and national TV networks, thus creating a great opportunity for other marketing partners, in addition to the official NHL partners, including TD Bank and Marriott hotel of Boston Bruins, to activate their sponsorship.  A visible affiliation with the event improved the public awareness of the marketing partners ultimately aiming to alter consumer behaviour.  Owing to the popularity of ice hockey, although still trailing behind NFL, MLB and NBA, large followings of fans, both local and importantly non local fans, were targeted, further improving the economic impact of the event in Boston.

The above is a prime example of the close association of the NHL and its sponsors, which, in the last six years, lead to a much needed, progressive increase in the NHL’s revenue.  This is following a lockout in the 2004-05 season when the NHL was suspended due to the rapid increase in players’ salaries, with only 7 teams of 32 in profit.  A salary cup was introduced then as a precaution calculated as a proportion of the previous season’s revenue.  As the NHL has just announced an increase in the salary cup for the coming season from $59.4 to 64 million, this indicates a good working sponsor partnership as well as efficient budgeting.  The NHL has definitely turned a corner and I look forward to more exciting games to come.

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