Olympic opportunities for sports marketing
Debate continues as to whether London 2012 is a good or a bad time for the communications industry in the UK. Should pitches take place during the Olympics? Are brands too late to get on the Olympics bandwagon? Should everyone shut up shop or make the most of the global spotlight that will shine on the UK? As usual, there are no hard and fast rules, but a bit of good old British common marketing sense needs to be applied.
At TriNorth, advising our clients on what they should and shouldn’t be doing around the Olympics has been a big part of the last few months, and our work with the English Hockey Board has focused on producing publications that target both new and existing fans at a time of heightened profile for the sport.
Conversely for All Out Cricket, the Olympics is a less an attraction than an distraction, and – as such – we have worked hard to ensure that the game as well as the magazine remains in the spotlight and that we are we are able to offer sponsors and advertisers maximum value for money in a summer saturated with sport. Being able to advise clients when it’s a good time to shout and when it isn’t – even when they want to be on the rooftops – is testament to the quality of any agency.
Looking beyond these industry questions, it’s fair to say that sport is playing an ever-increasing role in marketing. Campaigns are using sports stars to communicate messaging more than ever before – yes we have always had examples, think Thierry Henry telling us to buy cars, or Sir Chris Hoy making Bran Flakes sound irresistible for breakfast – but now sport and its stars are poster boys and girls for even more brands as they strive for the association and to capture the country’s mood.
This week easyJet were quick off the mark as they launched a campaign around the messaging – ‘Tears Dry Faster In The Sun’ – as a direct result of the England’s penalty meltdown on Sunday night. Quick, easy advertising responding to the nation and with a reported 23 million watching the game, they were right on the money.
TriNorth, of course, hopes that all this sport-related hype will continue, although we appreciate not everyone enjoys it. As someone noted on Twitter on Sunday night, even Andy Murray may have been hoping for an England win on Sunday – as it is, the hype’s all his this week!