Making your Olympic investment last the distance
By The Team 16 Jun 2010.
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When it comes to international recognition, the Olympics runs rings round other brands. A survey in 2001 found the interlocking rings to be the most recognised symbol in the world. A powerful tool for pulling in sponsors and audiences alike, the Olympics arguably take the honours for the most desirable brand affiliation on earth.
It’s the intangible ‘spirit of the games’ that goes way beyond athletic competition, making it irresistible for businesses to reap the benefits of positive association.
But sponsorship investment comes at a high price – well into multiple millions – while the return is only manifest through the use of the Olympic brand mark in advertising, corporate and internal marketing.
Businesses have to be inventive to maximise the value of this investment at each and every one of its touch points: from external to internal, from senior to junior, from global to local.
Why do organisations sponsor sports events?
Motivators for sponsoring a sports event include sales and marketing benefits, developing or maintaining corporate image, providing a platform for promotional activity and building the brand profile in new markets. Increasingly, social responsibility, environmental impact and health consciousness have come into play too. The ‘rings’ certainly have allure for brands wanting to be associated with exalted values of responsibility and ethics. What’s more, 63% of firms use sponsorship to boost employee morale and relations and increase job satisfaction.
Give your investment a sporting chance
The Olympics provide a succinct way of building brand association to motivational business concepts such as leadership, teamwork, commitment and competition.
Equally, the Olympics build emotional engagement - they are emotional, authentic and unscripted. Real-life stories of triumph and tragedy, heroes and underdogs, feats of strength and stamina juxtaposed with delicate dance moves and tears of joy. Here are people pursuing sporting passion – not for the million dollar endorsement deals but for the pure sense of personal accomplishment.
In “the spirit of friendship and fair play”, the London 2012 Olympics aspire to be the most accessible and participative Games, stimulating people to do more, try new things and reassess what we are all capable of – the basic call to action of many an employer brand.
Nevertheless, 47% of sponsoring corporations in the nineties did not evaluate the success of their investment, screen for appropriate objectives or measure effectiveness.
And Olympic sponsorship gives uncertain returns: “It’s very good for internal engagement… but unless you invest heavily in making the Olympics work for you, you won’t reap the benefits,” said Vodafone’s global brand director, David Wheldon. “To leverage the benefits of Olympic sponsorship, you have to create a very carefully considered run-up to the campaign as well as its legacy.”
Legacy is key. London 2012 know that success lies in what legacy the Games leave behind: “The 2012 legacy must be much more than a successful tournament and the regeneration of the Olympic Park site itself. The Games must enhance London’s reputation as a dynamic, international city; catalyse the physical transformation of East London; and contribute to a step-change improvement in the skills, aspiration and employment of some of the country’s most deprived communities.”
The question is, how are you leveraging your investment and what will be different after 2012? Talk to the Employee Engagement people at The Team to find out how we can help you identify and implement a truly effective and engaging campaign that will measure and maximise the value of your investment.
