UEFA Champions League – Making the most of the Opportunity

Unfortunately, I could not watch the UEFA Champions League final due to professional issues, as should have happened to many others, mainly in Brazil. However, I am sure that few failed to notice the various brands involved in the event.

Reebok, for example, released an opportunity add using two of its players (Henry and Giggs).



Nike made a promotional campaign with Barcelona in which fans could personalize their team kit and, following a promotional mechanic, exchange them with the team's players, the famous priceless prize. The website http://nikefootball.fcbsomosuno.com/ has more information about it.

Adidas All Blacks – Excellence in series

The relationship between Adidas and the All Blacks, the New Zealand rugby team, is perhaps the best explored by a sponsor. The sports brand has already held numerous activities powering this partnership.

One of the most striking was "Bonded by Blood", in 2006, in the launch of the annual team poster. Adidas, literally, took the athletes’ blood and, of course, after some treatment, used it in the printing of a number of posters that were presented to consumers who purchased a team jersey, leveraging sales, generating buzz and spontaneous media all over the world. It also helped enhance the involvement with the New Zealand people.

More details of this activation, which won several awards at the time, can be seen in the video below.

Red Bull Racing – Simply Amazing

I believe most people share my belief that Red Bull is one of the companies that best make use of sports as a marketing tool and best activates its properties.

In the activations that can be seen on the videos below, which took place in 2007 and 2008, the company further enhanced this perception. Red Bull took its Formula 1 racing car to the streets of two of the biggest Brazilian cities (São Paulo and Brasília). This had phenomenal impact, generating buzz, spontaneous media, content for web, viral, etc. .. Almost the full package.

The undoubted success can be proven by the continuity of the action. I hope they keep this way.

São Paulo


Brasília

Heineken on Champions League – Marking its Ground

I believe everyone knows Heineken sponsors UEFA Champions League. It’s very clear, since the brewery is always reinforcing its position. Its ads on the opening and closing of the broadcasts, with the famous lyrics of the start of the games (“These are the Champions”) don’t allow this to pass unnoticed.

UEFA surely agrees with its media partners a preference to sell the broadcast sponsorship to the event sponsors. However, they don’t have to exercise this preference. Therefore, congratulations to Heineken, who does it with a lot of competence, what can be seen on the videos below.

(David Fuller’s tip: http://www.yachtsponsorship.com/)

This post starts with the picture above following the saying: “a picture says a thousand words”. Hugo Boss, who already uses its sailing sponsorship and its gorgeous images to spread very cool pics and videos through internet (above), this time, innovated. They joined together sailing and wakeboard and generated unique images that are surely being spread on the web.

Photo copyright Mark Lloyd

Nescau Xpression Session – Generating Excitement

Radical sports are extremely rich in amazing images and moves. Surf, for its scenario, is almost perfect. Nescau, the Brazilian market leader in powdered chocolate, shines in its Super Surf, the Brazilian surf championship, sponsorship.

The brand not only sponsors the event, but “owns” one of the most exciting moments: the Expression Session, a moment in which all the athletes go into the water together and the one who makes the best trick is the winner. The brand dresses the athletes up with its colours (red and yellow) and the excitement takes the public on the beach, who can’t take their eyes off of the sea.

This action generates more exposure for the brand in the event and in the media coverage and provides several extras, like content to the brand website, promotional opportunities, relationship with the spectators on the beach and at home, images for packaging and several others. Of course, the concept of the action aligned with the brand’s concept is essential.

This action was piloted by the brand’s agency (JWT), together with the event promoter (Abril) and, of course, Nestlé marketing and communications teams. I had the pleasure of taking part in the sponsorship activation for the public on the sand (with Aktuell), a case I’ll share with you in a later post.

Take a look at the Nescau Xpression Session in Porto de Galinhas 2008 in the video below. It’s really exciting!

Mic Label – Another simple and effective

Back to simpler ideas that leverage return, this small label / sticker placed on the top of the microphones during collective interviews guarantees the brand exposure whichever filming angle the TV network chooses. I don’t know who the first to use it was, but it is definitely clever and is being spread. Here you can see it being used by Grêmio and Corinthians. The pics are very small, but it looks good on TV.