Olympic Sponsors Compensate for Lack of Visibility with New Ideas
(New York and London, August 2, 2004) - SponsorClick's research shows that, outside of media visibility, corporate sponsorship of the Athens Olympic Games can have multiple marketing impacts for sponsors.
The Olympic Games, along with the Wimbledon tennis tournament, are among the few large properties that do not offer any media visibility to their sponsors: no billboards in the stadiums, no logos on the athletes. This absence is in stark contrast to high profile properties like the Super Bowl or the recent Tour de France.
Despite the lack of media visibility at The Games, Coca-Cola, Visa, Panasonic and 8 other prestigious companies have chosen to invest massively (between $40m and $50m each) to be associated with the event.
Reine Willing, Senior Consultant, noted: 'This lack of media visibility leads advertisers to imagine innovative ways to use or, as we say at SponsorClick, 'activate' the partnership and turn it into a very profitable investment. Sponsorship marketing investments, when planned and activated carefully, generate second-to-none ROI. That outstanding return comes in spite of scant media visibility, the value of which is questionable anyway.'
SponsorClick has identified a number of events, advertising and promotional activities set up to create a substantial marketing impact. For example, Samsung participated in the worldwide selection of 1,800 official Olympic torchbearers, who embody Olympic values. The Korean company also cherry-picked top-level athletes, like the UK's Darren Campbell and Australia's Cathy Freeman, to become its brand ambassadors for a one-year period. The brand obtains great visibility and loud 'buzz' through its tight association with these world renowned sports icons and through its presence in cities visited by the Olympic Flame.
The Olympics Games clearly demonstrate how sponsorship marketing can achieve considerable gains for brands without any media visibility. However, without skillfully designed activation campaigns, these partnerships will lose most of their value.
For more information:
Isabelle Guize (London): +44 20 7900 2612 / iguize@sponsorclick.com
Jennifer Doan (New York): +1 212 971-9584 / jdoan@sponsorclick.com
The Olympic Games, along with the Wimbledon tennis tournament, are among the few large properties that do not offer any media visibility to their sponsors: no billboards in the stadiums, no logos on the athletes. This absence is in stark contrast to high profile properties like the Super Bowl or the recent Tour de France.
Despite the lack of media visibility at The Games, Coca-Cola, Visa, Panasonic and 8 other prestigious companies have chosen to invest massively (between $40m and $50m each) to be associated with the event.
Reine Willing, Senior Consultant, noted: 'This lack of media visibility leads advertisers to imagine innovative ways to use or, as we say at SponsorClick, 'activate' the partnership and turn it into a very profitable investment. Sponsorship marketing investments, when planned and activated carefully, generate second-to-none ROI. That outstanding return comes in spite of scant media visibility, the value of which is questionable anyway.'
SponsorClick has identified a number of events, advertising and promotional activities set up to create a substantial marketing impact. For example, Samsung participated in the worldwide selection of 1,800 official Olympic torchbearers, who embody Olympic values. The Korean company also cherry-picked top-level athletes, like the UK's Darren Campbell and Australia's Cathy Freeman, to become its brand ambassadors for a one-year period. The brand obtains great visibility and loud 'buzz' through its tight association with these world renowned sports icons and through its presence in cities visited by the Olympic Flame.
The Olympics Games clearly demonstrate how sponsorship marketing can achieve considerable gains for brands without any media visibility. However, without skillfully designed activation campaigns, these partnerships will lose most of their value.
For more information:
Isabelle Guize (London): +44 20 7900 2612 / iguize@sponsorclick.com
Jennifer Doan (New York): +1 212 971-9584 / jdoan@sponsorclick.com