Latest Thinking from IEG

Izod and Indy Will Be Interesting Partnership To Watch

Media reports indicate that the IndyCar Series will announce its first title sponsor in eight years with a Thursday announcement that Phillips-Van Heusen Corp.’s Izod brand has purchased naming rights.

Much of the current commentary around the deal involves speculation of how much Izod is paying. The Indianapolis Star quoted the series’ sales rep, Zac Brown of Just Marketing, as saying the “asking price” was $10 million a year to be allocated across IndyCar and its media partners.

Conventional wisdom says that no property is getting its asking price these days. And that $10 million starting point is down from where it was three years ago, when an exec for a company that had been pitched the series title at that time told me IndyCar was seeking $15 million a year for 10 years, not including TV ad buy commitments.

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Filed under: fashion, sports, activation

Power to the People: Democratic Sponsorship

If you read my posts often enough, you know I’m constantly waxing poetic about how important integrating the consumer into the sponsorship experience is. So it should be no surprise that upon hearing about Stephen Colbert’s, “Colbert Nation” top sponsorship of the U.S. Speed Skating team (if you haven’t already, check out my colleague Rob Campbell’s blog post here) and FanCar’s unique sponsorship opportunities around Sprint NASCAR cars; that I am ready to hand out two big, fat gold stars for fan integration. 

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Filed under: digital media, entertainment, new media, selling, sports, activation

Hertz Preps New Brand Campaign, Inks Deal with PGA of America

Sponsorship may play a role in The Hertz Corp.’s ’10 brand revitalization campaign that will include a new corporate logo, remodeled rental car facilities and new employee uniforms.

As part of the makeover, the company next year will roll out a marketing campaign themed ‘Journey On.’ The goal of the campaign: to connect with consumers on an emotional level.

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Filed under: entertainment, how to get sponsorship, in-kind, sports, branded entertainment

Big Sponsorships, Small Thinking

Those of you who don’t subscribe to IEG Sponsorship Report (and in my obviously biased opinion, if you work in sponsorship, I think you should) missed a terrific one-on-one interview a few weeks ago with sponsorship veteran Dockery Clark.

The former Bank of America and MillerCoors sponsorship exec took sponsors to task for what she perceives as a trend to use the medium strictly to drive short-term, product-focused results instead of to build passion for brands.

Her observation about the declining importance of exclusivity was very telling in that regard, not to mention that it has been echoed in recent comments by Anheuser-Busch marketers, who have referred to some of their deals as “half exclusive.” (While I understand they probably mean exclusivity restricted to certain property components, the phrase is as ludicrous as saying, “sort of unique.”)

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Filed under: sports, trends, valuation, negotiating

Harsh Words about the Commercialization of Pro Sports

“The commercialization of sports hasn’t reached its nadir, and we know this because the inevitable last step still hasn’t happened-that moment when the Browns and the Rockets become the Cleveland E*Trades and the Houston Mennen Speed Sticks, with logo-embossed jerseys to match.” The column continues…

“This is the year when sports commercialization will finally go from being a cute, quintessentially American subplot (poor small town jock makes it to the big leagues, gets the big hit in the big game, gets rewarded with his face on a Wheaties box) to a disfiguring herpes-like disease that one never stops being aware of and finally sucks the last bits of joy from following pro sports.” And continues…

“It’s not just the preposterous sponsorship tie-ins you see everywhere, so much so that you can literally consume them…I know we are getting there because I love sports but am beginning to hate watching sports. There are so many goddamn ads and tie-ins now, your skull starts to feel like an echo chamber by the end of the game-and you start inadvertently humming beer-company jingles to yourself, against your will. It is enough to make you want to gouge out your own eyeballs with a spoon and eat them raw.” (Don’t hold back, tell us how you really feel.)

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Filed under: NASCAR, pro sports, research, sports, beer

H1N1’s Silver Lining: Hand Sanitizer Sponsorships

Sometimes the identification of emerging sponsorship categories comes straight out of the headlines. For example, we are seeing more activity from the makers of hand sanitizers in the wake of growing concerns over the spread of the H1N1 virus.

Last month’s Tour of Missouri bike race was sponsored by Germ-X, which also has been the official hand sanitizer of the MLB St. Louis Cardinals, the Cincinnati-area’s Newport Aquarium and Branson, Mo.’s Silver Dollar City.

Vancouver-based ALDA Pharmaceuticals Corp. is the official antiseptic hand sanitizer, disinfectant and disinfectant cleaning products supplier to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Games’ speed skating venue—the Richmond Olympic Oval.

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Filed under: museums/zoos/aquariums, non-traditional categories, olympics, prospecting, selling, sports, theme parks, venues, associations

Heir Jordan’s Battle to Wear Nike A Big Headache for Adidas, UCF

Many of you have probably seen this week’s story about the conflict brewing over the shoes Marcus Jordan—son of basketball legend Michael Jordan—will wear as a basketball player for the University of Central Florida. UCF counts Adidas as its exclusive apparel supplier, but Jordan has apparently requested to wear his father’s eponymous Nike Air Jordan brand. A few thoughts come to mind:

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Filed under: sports, contracts

Signage as a Sponsorship Benefit (It isn’t as Boring as you Might Think)

Signage as a sponsorship benefit is often written off. When you compare signage to sponsorship benefits like VIP hospitality, mailing lists and sampling, it doesn’t seem as relevant or meaningful. Also, if you consider the per impression or per person value of signage, it is often on the lower end of the value range (although those impressions can add up). Additionally, signage has gotten a bad rap because, at times, it has been overused, poorly placed or is just not very creative. Plus, signage is hard to leverage and is considered “old school”. A sponsor or property rarely receives recognition around a great sign. However, as much as we would like to think otherwise, a lot of sponsorship packages started as primarily on-site signage or other visibility elements. I definitely don’t think that is what we should go back to, but I would like to make a case for signage as a sponsorship benefit. Signage has evolved a lot, the definition of it has changed, and if done strategically can be a great benefit as part of a sponsorship package.

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Filed under: arts, associations, cause marketing, events, music, sports, activation

Vonage Calls Up New Sponsorship Campaign

Properties that draw Indo-Americans, Hispanics and other multicultural and general market audiences that make frequent international phone calls should put Vonage Holdings Corp. on their prospect list.

The Internet phone service provider last year hired former Cingular Wireless CMO Marc Lefar as its new CEO. At Cingular, Lefar oversaw the telco’s massive sponsorship portfolio that included everything from pro sports teams to festivals, fairs and performing arts organizations.

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Filed under: nonprofit, pro sports, selling, sports, how to get sponsorship

Aon Takes Man U Sponsorship to the Field

Imagine my surprise when, sitting in the salon waiting room, a blog post appeared. Someone before me had left behind Q, Aon’s employee magazine (Q3 2009 edition). The bright cover depicts children playing soccer and the headline "UNITED IN 2010: AON AND MANCHESTER UNITED" along with a call-out saying there is a team poster inside.

Above and beyond that poster is a case for a sponsorship the likes of which we rarely see. While Aon's core business is not sponsorship or even marketing (it's risk management and human capital consulting), they give their employees solid background on the reasons for the partnership, including business objectives, value drivers and ROI case studies. Particularly impressive is an interview with Charlie Armstrong, senior director, advertising & global branding for AIG, to "find out how the current sponsor leveraged its opportunity to build brand and grow AIG's business."

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Filed under: international, pro sports, sports, activation