Brand and event chemistry are key to success of sponsorship

Have you been to any event lately? Be it a fashion show, a play or a game, the first thing that catches one's eye is the number of companies sponsoring the event. Their banners, posters, goodies are all over the place. And as if that is not enough, their names are announced loudly in the long list of thank yous that is generally read out before the event starts.

All this goes to show that companies are aware of the fact that in order to gain brand awareness or reach a certain target market you need to sponsor events.

But how many companies know how to get it right is a million dollar question?

According to branding experts a good sponsorship is a partnership and Emirates Business spoke to them to find out the do's and don'ts of sponsorship in order to help companies get value for their money.

Duncan James, Strategy Director, Middle East, The Brand Union, said: "When a company is thinking of sponsoring something, they should first find out who all are sponsoring the event. Are they the only ones or are there others? They need to know this as each brand stands for something and they want to be in the right company."

Olivier Auroy, General Manager, Landor Associates, said: "Stay away from the competition. If they are sponsoring rugby, then you sponsor tennis. But whatever you do choose an event that expresses your brand values.

"A good example of how sponsorship can convey your brand values is the way BP moved away from its sponsorship of F1 because it wanted to be branded as a company that was into clean energy. So in order to enhance its green image BP stopped sponsoring F1 as it is noisy, flashy and polluting. And if you want to be taken seriously as a green company you cannot be seen sponsoring an event like that.

"So they shifted to sponsoring sailing which is all about green energy."

James agreed: "Your sponsorship has to tell the people what you stand for, not just who you are. The people at the event don't just need to know your name but who you are, what you do and what you stand for."

James warns that companies need to be careful about what they are sponsoring as sponsorship can be a very precise branding and marketing tool if done properly.

"Be careful with your target audience. You have to decide who your target audience is and then sponsor an event. While advertising in the newspapers and the television reaches a very wide audience, sponsorship can be a very precise branding and marketing tool. So you have to see what your target audience does in its free time, where it goes, what kind of events they watch, etc, and then sponsor an event as it should always be related to your target audience," he said.

A very good example of this kind of sponsorship is Barclays Bank's sponsorship of the Premier League in the UK. Barclays' tagline "Barclays, now there's a thought," is intended to make the bank appear more accessible to the public. So they sponsor the Premier League in a football crazy nation. In effect what they are saying through their sponsorship is that football is important to the people so it is important to Barclays. It's the best way to show that they are a bank of the people.

Giving an example of this kind of regional sponsorship which reaches out to the target audience in their area of interest, James said: "Al Hilal Bank in Abu Dhabi, which is a government bank, needed to reach out to the Emirati men. In the UAE, football is very important to the people. So they sponsored the President's Cup which is the oldest and most prestigious football championship in the UAE. This is the only cup that has the nation's president present at the final match.

"They created the mascot, and created a tag line for the event which said "the people behind the President's Cup" and gave away whistles and other stuff to wave about during the match in order to help the people have a better time.

"Al Hilal used the sponsorship to enhance the experience for their target audience and also successfully sent out the message that as the President's Cup is all about local pride, then Al Hilal Bank which is a bank from Abu Dhabi was supporting local pride."

According to the experts, the best kind of sponsorships are partnerships as they not only cross sell each other perfectly they also last the longest.

Auroy said: "Work for the long term. Build a win-win partnership for the long term. It's the best way to build the brand, you can't build brand equity with just one event."

James said: "Companies have to remember that a sponsorship is a partnership. The most successful sponsorships are ones that are partnerships. The companies have to think that apart from the cash and logo what are they bringing to the event. When a company is getting into a sponsorship they have to see how the two businesses can help each other."

For example, Tag Heuer sponsor the lap timing of F1. They are bringing their expertise and knowledge to the relationship, not just the money.

A very good example from the region is Etihad Airways' sponsorship of the F1. With the inaugural Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix taking place later this year on November 1, Etihad Airways has painted one of its wide-body Airbus aircraft with an iconic special F1 livery. The A340-600 aircraft has a dynamic design with white at the nose leading to red at the end of the plane. The official F1 logo is featured on the engines and motor racing's famous 'chequered' flag is on the tail fin.

James said: "This is because this is very relevant for them. They will be ferrying F1 players and also fans from the region to Abu Dhabi so they are also bringing more to the sponsorship than just the money and the logo. They are cross selling each other."

Auroy said: "Another good example is the Red Bull sponsorship of the Flug Tag and Fedex's sponsorship of the Superbowl.

"While Red Bull is all about adventure and risk the Flug Tag event gels well with it. In the same way Fedex is an Amercian brand and so is the Superbowl. So not only does Fedex's sponsorship of the Superbowl convey the American connection and ride, it also goes well with what they do as Fedex is all about speed, timing, precison and delivers and these are the same values that are reflected in the Superbowl."

According to the experts, if you are a company that is sponsored some event then you need to set yourself an objective as to what you want from that sponsorship and also put a mechanism in place to measure if you have been able to achieve it.

James elaborated: "The first time round you will have to spend the money but if you plan to sponsor it the second time then you must use a brand tracker to see if you are achieving your objectives and the value for money.

"Brand tracker is basically a research you do among your target audience after you have sponsored an event to find out what effect it had on the people. To find out how their perception about the brand changed after the event. If you get a positive feedback then sponsor it a second time but if you get a negative response then don't.

"This is very important as it helps you to find out if you got value for money, which is critical during these difficult times."

The experts also warn that there are certain risks associated with sponsorships that companies need to watch out for at all times.

James said: "Make sure there is no negative publicity so that the sponsorship does not backfire. So make sure you are sponsoring clean stuff and do a background check before you do it."

A good example of sponsorship gone wrong is Festina's sponsorship of a cycling team. The Swiss watch manufacturer was famous for the Festina cycling team that it used to support. The team was, caught in 1998 in a doping scandal at the 1998 Tour de France.

James continued: "Second, it has to fit the brand image. It has to be a good brand fit.

"Third, make sure it is also a creative fit. Your brand world has to fit with the thing which is being sponsored.

"Also you need to look out for vested interest in the company. You might be forced to sponsor something that does not fit with the brand just because some people who matter enjoy the perks that particular event brings for them."

Auroy said: "You also need to cover your target market completely. Do something relevant for each of them not just a part of it. Have a strategy for each of them."

James summed it up: "Sponsorship should be a coming together of two brands for a mutual benefit, not just superficially pasting a logo next to one another."


Lost sponsorships

Kobe Bryant

Sponsor: McDonald's

Lost sponsorship because he was charged with sexual assault. Nutella chocolate spread, also decided to abandon their endorsement deal. Coca-Cola soon followed them, pulling their Sprite ads that featured Bryant.

Martina Hingis

Sponsor: Sergio Tacchini

Lost sponsorship because she badmouthed company merchandise.

OJ Simpson

Sponsor: Hertz

Lost sponsorship because he was charged with double murder

Earvin "Magic" Johnson

Sponsor: Converse, Pepsi

Lost sponsorship because he contracted HIV

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