The KMAC Group attended the ‘Knowledge @ Degroote cocktail event: “Tech Disruption: Your career and your company can’t wait” on Feb 15th, 2018 at the Ron Joyce Center (Burlington, ON).
Keynote speaker: Alfredo Tan; WestJet’s Chief Digital & Innovation Officer, and former Facebook Exec.
Alfredo’s presentation was extremely insightful as he revealed why every role, every company, and every industry will be affected by technology. He challenged the way we think about technological change and disruption.
The four points he addressed within the technological platform were:
- Macro Changes Globally
- The Consumer Shift
- Change is Accelerating
- Culture being the most important focus
Tan was able to demonstrate the rapid growth of technology happening around the world at an astonishing pace. He used very convincing stats to showcase this reality:
- 76% of the internet population in on Facebook
- 99% of people in the Philippines are on Facebook; No hot water, but mobile devices and Facebook – The importance of connectivity.
- Netflix wanting to partner with or have Blockbuster purchase them; Now Blockbuster no longer exists.
- 2 Billion! There are more mobile phones than people in the world today and that number is growing 5x faster than the human population.
Tan stated, “the truth of today will not be the truth of tomorrow”, well how can it be with expansion and change happening this rapidly? With Augmented and Virtual Reality, we are now able to have experiences that trigger reactions and it’s only the beginning. Who knows where technology will bring us if it already has the power to make us react to something we KNOW is not real?
“Culture eats strategy for breakfast!” Facebook’s internal culture followed these ‘office rules’ and open concepts in order to create an environment that has the capability to keep up with the changes and take risks to innovate and succeed:
- Focus on impact – measure the things that matter!
- Be Bold! Failure is a part of success.
- Be Open! – Receive information to help make better decisions and to have a better impact
- Move fast and build things – If you wait for perfection the world WILL pass you.
- Nothing at Facebook is anyone else’s problem!
- What would you do if you were not afraid? Accept challenges and take risks!
Alfredo did an amazing job explaining and demonstrating why culture is so important to an company and how culture can impact their direction and future “you fail at 100% of the chances you don’t take.” Don’t be afraid of failure. Be bold, take risks and continue to innovate and accept change because it is not going to wait for YOU to catch up!
Congratulations to both Shana Ewart and Cassie Jones for your outstanding contributions to the KMAC Team! This award goes to an individual who not only delivers results but goes above and beyond to help everyone on the team grow! Congratulations guys – great work, great results, well done and well deserved. Truly proud to have all you guys on this team!
A big thank you to the entire KMAC Professional Oral Care team for your commitment and drive bringing the KMAC vision to life. Last week the entire Professional Oral Care team attended a National Sales Meeting in Las Vegas where were thrilled to be joined by one of Canada’s most decorated Olympians Adam van Koeverden.
Adam delivered an outstanding motivational message to the team which will help each and every one of us reach new plateaus!
The KMAC Team is celebrating 25 years of being a trusted advisor helping you reach your full potential.
The KMAC GROUP. ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE. BUSINESS EXCELLENCE.
Strategy. Organization & People. Marketing Experience. Sales Training & Coaching. Implementation – Change Management.
On Sept 24/14, at the Pep Supplier Summit in Cincinnati, KMAC was awarded the 2014 Innovation Award. This award is presented to a supplier based on capability innovation, time and cost efficiencies, responsiveness, adaptability and flexibility to work in partnership with Pep to deliver outstanding customer service.
Here’s to hard work that pays off.
Congratulations KMAC!
What does it take to win the World Cup of Soccer — on and off the field of play? Do your sponsorship and marketing efforts have what it takes? Let’s find out.
On June 12, 2014, all eyes will be on Brazil as one of the World’s largest spectacles, the 2014 World Cup of Soccer kicks off. The world’s most widely viewed sporting event features thirty-two teams vying for the FIFA World Cup “Gold” Trophy. 3.2 billion people worldwide watched the 2010 World Cup – 46.6% of the world! The stage is set for a fierce, global competition with millions of dollars on the line for the winning team and players. But that’s just the start, with so many people following the competition, the stage is also set for a global showdown of advertising and sponsorship activations – winning this battle too is worth millions of dollars in sales, share of market and shareholder value. So, what does it take to win this global marketing battle?
As Brazil prepares to claim it’s sixth World Cup title (many hope), so too are some of the world’s largest marketers: Coca-Cola and Pepsi.
Last week on April 2, 2014, Coca-Cola announced the launch of the brands largest ever campaign “The World’s Cup”, created specifically for the 2014 FIFA World Cup spectacle. The nucleus of this campaign emotionally connects the power of the game of soccer across hundreds of nations unifying people from these nations leading to “One World, One Game”. Wendy Clark, senior VP global sparkling brand commented “And we wanted our campaign to celebrate this message of inclusivity and togetherness. ” Weiden and Kennedy the agency that co-created the campaign featured a film inviting young people from across the globe to attend the 2014 FIFA World Cup (as an official FIFA World Cup sponsor, Coca-Cola has the unique opportunity to do this). In addition to the film feature, a series of documentary-style short films features unique groups of people passionate about soccer. The genesis of “The World’s Cup” campaign is based on insights from Coke’s core consumers – teenagers and young adults.
After an exhaustive recruitment and research effort to find the people to be featured in the campaign, the campaign features images of many people with disabilities celebrating those who are often overlooked and truly inviting everyone to be part of “The World’s Cup”.
What is Coca-Cola doing to leverage and activate their 2014 FIFA World Cup sponsorship? Here’s what I see taking place:
#1: Coca-Cola is delivering a simple, clear, compelling message;
#2: Coca-Cola is with connecting with their core audience of teenagers and young people emotionally;
#3: Coca-Cola is taking an integrated, holistic approach to bring their efforts to life. The have integrated their marketing communications with a simple message at all touch points;
#4: Coca-Cola is communicating their core strategy “Happiness” through sport. “The World’s Cup: campaign is not a sponsorship or sport message, it’s Coke’s global marketing platform.;
#5: “The World’s Cup” is Innovative – Coca-Cola adds value to existing ideas and platforms such as the use of film and short documentaries to reach the younger audience via digital in a relevant manner. Coke also uses “experiential” marketing to bring the World Cup Trophy to nations across the globe;
#6: Coca-Cola is engaging their core audience through digital and social mediums such as twitter, YouTube, Facebook “The Happiness Flag”;
#7: Coca-Cola brings the FIFA 2014 World Cup experience to those who can’t attend the event;
#8: Coca-Cola has gathered best practices from recent Olympic experiences 2014 Sochi and 2012 London and 2010 World Cup and reapplies the key learnings to make their programs stronger, relevant to the core audience, creates differentiation vs. other beverage options and substantiates the Return on Investment with proven results at retail;
#9: Coca-Cola demonstrates executional effectiveness consistently across many markets in the short and long term;
Coca-Cola, is an official sponsor of the event, stating it is the largest marketing program in company history. Coca-Cola Global Dir of Football Marketing Arnab Roy said, “In 2010, the campaign was run across 160 countries. For the Brazil World Cup, we’re reaching more than 190 countries.”
#10: Build a strong, proactive PR program. Coca-Cola has learned from the 2014 Olympic Winter Games and is prepared to deal with negative press and activists proactively. If unrest hits the World Cup event, Joe Tripodi Coca-Cola’s Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer commented “Coca-Cola has contingency plans in place to adapt its World Cup Sponsorship and soften it’s celebratory tone in Brazil.” “That (World Cup) spotlight can act as an opportunity to tell a story of happiness but it can also be a spotlight to tell a story of grievances and concerns (the public) have about the direction of the country”.
It appears that Coca-Cola has a well planned program rivalling that of P&G’s “Thank You Mom” Campaign and Visa’s “Go World”. But is that what it takes to win?
There is one more key action Coca-Cola needs to monitor – ambush marketing activities. Enter Pepsi. The same day Coca-Cola launched “The World’s Cup” global campaign, Pepsi launched it’s first ever Global Campaign called “Live for Now”. Similar to Coke, Pepsi “conducted extensive global research, connecting with thousands of fans, and “Live for Now” reflects the insight that Pepsi fans all around the world desire to capture the excitement of now – a mind-set that is aligned at the very core with brand’s DNA.”
“Live for Now” is designed to invite and inspire Pepsi fans to live each moment to the fullest. The campaign is brought to life through pop-culture platforms including music and entertainment, digital innovation, epic events and unique partnerships including several high profile soccer players.
Brad Jakeman, president, Global Enjoyment Brands, PepsiCo stated ” the ‘Live for Now’ campaign is considerably more than a positioning statement or a single ad creative – it is the central governing idea for the brand globally.”
Over the next few months, watch for Pepsi to create a series of exclusive partnerships to bring the “Live for Now” campaign to life featuring some of the world’s leading artists and entertainment properties. Pop up concerts, interactive digital platforms will operate in real time curating exclusive content for the Pepsi target audience.
Pepsi has a long standing history with soccer and they are using the popularity and scale of the World Cup to bring awareness to this new “Live for Now” global campaign. Activities such as this are considered by many to be “ambush” marketing tactics. In Pepsi’s case, it’s a global platform using the popularity of soccer to bring the campaign to life.
To round out their sponsorship activation platform, Coca-Cola also needs to think like an ambusher and prepare to defend their sponsorship investment in this manner.
Who will win? We’ll find out in mid-July!
For over 21 years, The KMAC GROUP has worked with some of the world’s best-known companies to help them grow their sales. Using our experience in strategic sales, key account management, sales training, project management, consumer engagement, strategic partnerships and live retail event activations, we help companies like Procter & Gamble and General Mills increase sales performance.
Sources: CNN World, Advertising Age, The Coca-Cola Company, Pepsico
Coca-Cola Official Press Release
PepsiCo Official Press release
The 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic games can be remembered as a lot of things, a controversial whirlwind surrounding preparedness, security, gay rights laws and even biased Olympic judging; but we as Canadians will remember it as the time where we rallied together to win more than just medals.
If you can recall 6 weeks ago, we began on our quest to evaluate leading global brands implementing Olympic sponsorship best practices. Now that the Olympics are over, we can reveal what impact these efforts have made on both their brand and bottom line.
First, let’s review our 12 Best Sponsorship Practices one last time.
- Sponsorship Practice #1: Deliver a simple, clear, compelling message.
- Sponsorship Practice #2: Connect with your audience emotionally
- Sponsorship Practice #3: Take an integrated, holistic approach
- Sponsorship Practice #4: Market your core strategy through sport…don’t just create a sports related message;
- Sponsorship Practice #5: Innovate – always add value to existing ideas and platforms
- Sponsorship Practice #6: Engage your audience
- Sponsorship Practice #7: Get in the game, in real-time
- Sponsorship Practice #8: Consummate innovative strategic partnerships
- Sponsorship Practice #9: Bring the Olympic Game experience to those who can’t attend the Games.
- Sponsorship Practice #10: Build a strong, proactive PR program. E.g. Dealing with negative press and activists.
- Sponsorship Practice #11: Gather best practices; reapply the key learnings as you progress
- Sponsorship Practice #12: Demonstrate executional effectiveness consistently across many markets in the short and long term.
At the top of the pack is Procter & Gamble. Many of you might be wondering what P&G did differently compared to the London 2012 Olympic Games that has kept them relevant after the games? Well, they simply executed sponsorship best practices to the tee, oh yeah, and did I mention they started early?
P&G not only reapplied their key learnings from their last “Thank You, Mom” campaign, but amplified and lead the Olympic marketing charge with their early release of TV commercials, resulting in achieving the largest proportion of positive conversation online throughout the games (Engagor, 2014). By capturing the emotions of their audience rather than bluntly trying to sell them products has really paid off, as their ads have been viewed over 18 million times, solidifying their place in the marketplace, and more importantly in their consumers’ hearts.
Next is BMW Group Canada. This high-performance, power driven automobile brand partnered with the Canadian Olympic Committee as well as chose to sponsor 6 athletes, both new and returning Canadian Olympians to be the face of their ‘Powering Performance’ Campaign, also known as Team BMW. These picks helped drive the momentum of their campaign forward…because when your athletes win, you win. Five out of six members of Team BMW scored medals and created the opportunity for BMW to harness the feel-good nature of a win and connect it effectively to their brand consistently across all markets.
So what does Canadian Tire Corporation (CTC), Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC), The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC), adidas Canada, and Coca Cola Canada all have in common?
They have all in some capacity implemented these sponsorship best practices to reach their goals.
HBC. The COC and adidas Canada embarked on an innovative strategic partnership for this years Olympic Winter Games, revolutionizing the way sponsorship partnerships are shaped. Together they brought the Olympic experience closer to Canadians who couldn’t actually be there, by helping them feel like an Olympian. HBC created stylish Canadian themed gear that was also worn by the Canadian Olympic team during the opening, closing and medaling ceremonies, while adidas created Olympic themed training gear so that us Canadians would be able to share in that Olympic training feel while being active. We strongly believe that this type of sponsorship will catch fire and soon be implemented for future Olympic games amongst some of the most powerful brands in the world. These guys really win for pioneering this dual sponsorship strategy.
Canadian Tire Corporation delivered a clear message, hoping to connect with their audience through a holistic approach involving all aspects of social media, while weaving it into their bigger picture strategy. Did they succeed? We’re leaving it up to the audience to decide. Did they resonate with you?
Lastly, we have Coca-Cola Canada. Despite international turmoil regarding gay rights and digital backlash, they are still standing tall through their proactive PR program and really focusing their marketing efforts on what matters most, their frontline in-stores where sales are made actually made. By continuing to activate through mass retail chains throughout the country with Olympic themed messaging and artwork, they continue to remind Canadians of their support for these Olympic athletes, and how they wish to inspire them to win like Patrick Chan and Marianne St-Gelais did, winning their silver medals in figure skating and short track.
Practice makes perfect, well sometimes.
With all preparation, comes execution. These sponsorship best practices mean nothing if they are not implemented correctly. We realize some companies are just beginning their Olympic marketing journey, and some are seasoned vets who are expected to outdo themselves year after year, but with these sponsorship best practices, they can help you maximize the return on your investment!
Over the next few weeks and as the Olympic Winter Games come to a close, The KMAC GROUP continues to track Olympic sponsor activations demonstrating sponsorship best practices that will help you achieve a positive return on your investment. For the past few weeks we’ve been assessing the Olympic sponsorship practices of leading global and Canadian companies, tracking their activities at all touch points to see how they use sponsorship to drive sales and identify which practices work best.
Here is a recap of sponsorship best practices we’ve covered so far:
- Sponsorship Practice #1: Deliver a simple, clear message.
- Sponsorship Practice #2: Connect with your audience emotionally
- Sponsorship Practice #3: Take an integrated, holistic approach
- Sponsorship Practice #4: Market your core strategy through sport…
- Sponsorship Practice #5: Add value to existing ideas and platforms
- Sponsorship Practice #6: Engage your audience
- Sponsorship Practice #7: Get in the game, in real-time
- Sponsorship Practice #8: Innovative strategic partnerships
- Sponsorship Practice #9: Bring the Olympic Game experience to those who can’t attend the Games.
- Sponsorship Practice #10: Build a strong, proactive PR Program. Example Dealing with negative press and activists.
Our fifth installment of this series highlights a sponsorship best practice that requires a disciplined approach to marketing and sponsorship, starting with the principles of making the idea BIG yet SIMPLE, one that MAKES A DIFFERENCE, turns key insights into a core idea, activates consistently across multiple platforms, requires rigorous evaluation and continuously reapplies key learnings.
Sponsorship Practice #11: Gather best practices; reapply the key learnings as you progress.
The world’s largest consumer-products maker, Procter & Gamble released it’s continuing Olympic “Thank You Mom” sponsorship program this year as a part of their partnership with the IOC initiated in 2011 (P&G 2010 activation was with the USOC). In attempts to innovate their groundbreaking “Thank You, Mom” campaign success from the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and London 2012 Olympic Summer Games, P&G once again has focused their efforts to not only connect with moms in a relevant way, but thank moms of athletes in Canada and around the world and continuing to acknowledge and celebrate moms as the motivating force behind athletes.
P&G released new “Raising an Olympian” videos in its series to provide Canadians a glimpse of the journey families take to reach the Olympic Games. This particular video series is actually a part of a bigger integrated marketing communications platform touching online and social aspects, including a P&G Olympic microsite that houses TV ads consisting of “Pick Them Back Up” and “Thank You, Mom”, athlete profiles, promotional contests and related content adding to P&G’s biggest multi-brand media investment.
“P&G brands look at Olympic sponsorship through a special lens,” said Marc Pritchard P&G Global Brand Building Officer. “Our brands don’t just live at the finish line; they’re about the everyday journey athletes take to get to the Games, a journey they started in childhood with their moms. That’s why if a P&G brand sponsors an athlete, we also celebrate the mom who helped get them there.” (P&G, 2013)
The 2014 Sochi campaign has been brought to life through many different channels, including the pairing of star athletes and iconic brands. Each brand story has their own inspiration, for example, P&G Beauty will feature Lindsey Vonn and look to inspire women to “Look Winter Wonderful’, Gillette is encouraging men to “Reveal their Inner Steel’ with Alexander Ovechikin and Sven Kramer as faces of the campaign, and Elena Ilinykh proving that hair can “Win Over Winter and Shine!” with Pantene.
Worldwide, two million retailers are estimated to feature P&G Olympic themed athlete packaging, end caps and displays. Talk about reach!
Meanwhile in Sochi, P&G repeated its efforts to host the P&G Family Home where athletes and their families come and relax throughout the games to take advantage of the beauty and grooming services featuring brands such as Pantene, CoverGirl, Bounty and Gillette. It has been a successful initiative to thank Moms, and more importantly making them feel more at home during such a fast-paced and sometimes quite stressful environment.
Sometimes the smallest changes make for the biggest impact and that is what innovation is — making improvements to existing ideas and platforms. In this case, P&G took a step further digging deeper into the journey families take to reach the Olympic Games, documenting the struggle, the training and ultimately reaching the goal of being a part of the Games. As evidenced from the 2012 Olympic campaign, they have assessed what was successful and implemented those same key learnings to strengthen their already successful and emotionally charged “Thank You, Mom” campaign. P&G planned early on to create the ‘perfect storm’ utilizing TV, retail, digital, social and PR activity to set the stage for what they’re hoping to be their most captivating and effective sponsorship activation yet. This time around they started the race early already having the magic formula, and have continued to build by sharing their brand story.
Will this head start lead to another winning campaign? So far, it looks like they have, as they were recently announced the top performing Olympic brand in terms of overall ad effectiveness for both its corporate brand and portfolio brands (Market Watch, 2014).
Complete List of P&G Canadian Sponsored Athletes:
- Meghan Agosta-Marciano, Ice Hockey – Sponsored by Bounty
- Tessa Bonhomme, Ice Hockey – Sponsored by P&G
- Rosalind Groenewoud, Freestyle Skiing – Sponsored by P&G
- Charles Hamelin, Short Track Speed Skating – Sponsored by Tide, Swiffer and Duracell
- François Hamelin, Short Track Speed Skating – Sponsored by Tide, Swiffer and Duracell
- Kaillie Humphries, Bobsleigh – Sponsored by P&G
- Scott Moir, Figure Skating – Sponsored by Pantene, CoverGirl, Olay and Crest
- Jon Montgomery, Skeleton – Sponsored by P&G
- Maëlle Ricker, Snowboard Cross – Sponsored by P&G
- John Tavares, Ice Hockey – Sponsored by Gillette
- Tessa Virtue, Figure Skating – Sponsored by Pantene, CoverGirl, Olay and Crest
- Greg Westlake, Sledge Hockey – Sponsored by P&G
For over 21 years, The KMAC GROUP has worked with some of the world’s best-known companies to help them grow their sales. Using our experience in strategic sales, key account management, sales training, project management, consumer engagement and live retail event activations, we help companies like Procter & Gamble and General Mills increase sales performance.
Most of us can agree that if you haven’t seen a Thank You Mom commercial on television, an in-store display at a retailer, or some sort of online tidbit of this campaign, then you haven’t been living in the year 2012.
Procter & Gamble implemented a holistic campaign that was amplified by the 2012 London Olympic Games utilizing TV, digital, social, PR, sponsorships and massive displays.
The “Thank You, Mom” concept was first executed during the 2010 Vancouver Olympic games where it tied together multi-brand activation within retailers. In 2012, these intensified efforts resulted in a 5%-20% lift in sales for P&G products in the 4 week Olympic merchandising period alone.
How did they do it?
- Content: This was instrumental in their campaign success. Not only did they create a large amount of content, but co-created content with customers – people actually wanted to share. (Purpose-Inspired Marketing).
- Timing: This campaign was implemented early (100 days prior to the opening ceremony of the Olympic games) which allowed for people to participate and become a part of the experience and understand what it meant to thank their mom. (Engagement & Participation).
- Scale: It was part of the largest multi-brand commercial initiative in company history, which we believe was game changing. It was so big and so wide that it was able to reach thousands worldwide. (Extensive).
The impact of Thank You, Mom has hugely influenced the views on which P&G products are perceived. Their brand messaging was seamlessly integrated into this campaign, conveying to their consumers that they are about bettering lives and providing everyday solutions. This massive marketing strategy has proven to be viable and effective, and continues to evolve year after year. We predict that in the new year, brands will attempt to replicate this model in terms of scale, timing, and truly create content that consumers can connect with in an emotional way.
Red Bull is another example of a brand that has separated themselves from the pack by being different. They transitioned themselves into a publishing empire that also happens to sell a beverage. They are a lifestyle brand selling the number one energy drink that works in multiple media platforms. It recently released a feature film, regularly publishes a print magazine called The Red Bulletin, owns an in-house record label, and on top of all that, provides their visitors with thousands upon thousands of photos and videos to enjoy everyday.
They not only broke viewership records when partnering up with Felix Bamugartner for his world record jump from outer space, but their content as a core strategy has driven this brand into immense success. In fact, it’s a media business beyond the drink. Red Bull has been successful in aligning their brand with extreme sports and action, which has allowed them to create engaging content that people will want to spend time consuming.
This creative yet quiet marketing strategy surrounding their content creation has caught the attention of consumers and competitors around the world. By tackling their goals in a new way, this has led way for consumers to adopt a new way of thinking. People really do believe that Red Bull is more than just an energy drink, it’s a lifestyle.
This year McMaster celebrates its 125th year as a world-class institution of higher learning. The university was founded by one of Canada’s most successful entrepreneurs of the 19th century, Senator William McMaster. A year long celebration highlights its rich history and many of the contributions of its students, alumni, faculty and staff within the community. Four-time Olympic medalist and McMaster Alumnus, Adam Van Koeverden was invited to share his thoughts at the 125th McMaster Alumni luncheon celebration hosted at Hamilton Place.
Adam’s story touched on three themes that played a significant role in his journey and growth as an individual and athlete, and how it all tied into his experience at McMaster University.
M: Mentorship
When Adam was 14 years old, he was introduced to the sport of paddling at the canoe club in Oakville — an activity that would keep him busy and out of trouble after school! Little did he know this would be the breeding ground for an amazing Olympic journey. Through mentorship and support by Gavin Maxwell (former Olympian & McMaster Alumnus) and Larry Cain (Gold Olympic Medal winner in canoeing), Adam was inspired and motivated to pursue his dream of going to the Olympics and capturing a medal.
A: Advocacy
Today, Adam is an athlete ambassador for Right To Play, an international humanitarian organization that uses sport and play programs to improve health, develop life skills and foster peace for children and communities in third world countries. He delves into the reasons why he joined the Right to Play group and that because he received so much in life from sports, he wanted to give back and advocate on behalf of children and their right to play. Realizing that empowering children through this program could make a world of difference in their lives, as sport has made in his, he continues to pursue this commitment and raised over $12,000 on his most recent trip to Africa.
C: Community
Adam emphasizes community and its role in the development of a child and how it helps foster goal setting. Tracing his journey back to the canoe club in Oakville, where he was reminded about the importance of mentorship in the growth and development of young athletes, through to McMaster University where he recalls a professor being his “McMaster Mom”, he described the importance of a support system throughout his academic and athletic career and goes on to explain that without this community, he would not be the person he is today.
“If I hadn’t had my canoe club and Mac, I [wouldn’t] have much to be thankful [for].”
“We work hard and that value in hard work is far more important than achievements.”
“That’s what makes us great people as Mac grads!”
Positive role models in the community can help set examples in our schools, our businesses, and even in our homes. Reflecting on Adam’s comments, we need to be reminded of where we come from, where we’ve been, and reflect on the journey, making sure we don’t forget those who have encouraged, supported and pushed us along the way. As members of the community, we have a responsibility to give back to those who have given us the tools to become the people we are today.
Now, that’s a gold medal performance Adam.
The world’s best Paralympians are in final preparation and ready to take the stage for The London 2012 Paralympic Games (scheduled August 29 – Sept 9, 2012) as the Paralympic Movement returns to the country of its “spiritual” birthplace. They will be the biggest Paralympic Games ever featuring 4,280 athletes from 166 countries who will compete in 20 sports.
Quick Facts
- 2.2m – Number of tickets sold
- 2.4m – Number of tickets available
- 4,280 – Number of Paralympic athletes competing
- 20 – Number of sports in Paralympic Games
The London 2012 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games’ (LOCOG) vision is that rather than making them different from previous Paralympics, they want to take the best aspects of previous Games and bring them together.
On September 9, 2010 tickets for the Paralympic Games went on sale. In the three-week ticket window more than 1 million tickets were sold, a record for the Paralympic Games, with a number of sports already sold-out. The day before tickets went on sale London’s Trafalgar Square staged International Paralympic Day. More than 100 British and international athletes attended the 12 hour spectacular which involved demonstrations in 10 Paralympic sports.
London 2012 has also secured the biggest commercial deal ever for a Paralympic Games with UK supermarket chain Sainsbury’s. The company boasts 21.5 million customers each week all of whom will be exposed to London 2012 Paralympic branding in the lead-up to, and during, the Games.
The Paralympic Games are a great opportunity for TOP sponsors to extend their Olympic themed marketing efforts and for newcomers to get in on the action as well. The Games will be broadcast via Channel 4 which has divided it’s advertising slots into mixed packages of eight-10 spots, both at peak and non-peak times. With such a large anticipated viewership, advertising at the Paralympic Games is a must for Olympic sponsors and a great opportunity to get a step ahead of the competition for Olympic newcomers.
Most existing IOC sponsors will be re-using their Olympic marketing campaigns for the 2012 Paralympic Games, using it as a transition to post-Games time. These companies often face the difficulty of building anticipation for a different campaign in the short two week span between the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. Instead, they feel their campaigns should maintain a sense of continuity from the Olympics, simply changing the focus to a Paralympic profile. For example, Adidas will be re-using their Olympic star banner, slightly tweaked by featuring Paralympic athlete, Ellie Simmonds.
Canadian Paralympic Team Sponsors include Pfizer, Petro-Canada, Air Canada, Bell, Chevrolet, Hudson’s Bay Company, RBC and Rona.
Of note, Oscar Pistorius, the blade runner will be the first athlete to complete in an able bodied and disabled Games. His accomplishments continue to expand the reach and interest of the Paralympic Games.
Oscar Pistorius left the London 2012 Olympic Games with no medal, but nevertheless as a champion in the eyes of the world. Running on two carbon fibre “blades,” Pistorius raced in the men’s 400 metre event, advancing to the semi-finals. As the heat ended, eventual gold medal winner, Kirani James asked to trade name bibs, out of respect for what Pistorius had accomplished. Now, Pistorius will face a new field of competitors on the same field of play.
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