Latest Thinking from IEG

In Corporate Sponsorship, the Best Response Is Preparation

When disaster strikes, we initially focus on the aftermath of what just happened; but attention (and scrutiny) quickly turns to the disaster response. We’ve seen this most recently with the Gulf Coast oil spill from a BP rig (full disclosure: IEG has done work for a BP business unit), as both BP and the government struggle to stop the spill and limit the inevitable environmental damage. As bad as the actual problem is, a bad or failed response is almost worse.

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Filed under: backlash, contracts, nonprofit, servicing, activation

Sponsors’ Arizona Dilemma

As a general matter, I’d prefer that sponsorship and politics remain separate. But there’s a place for such intersections when they encourage the public to educate themselves and pressure sponsors to live up to the values they espouse in their marketing. Such is the case when it comes to Arizona’s recent legislation governing immigration enforcement.

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Filed under: backlash

Authenticity in Sponsorship: Does Keeping it Real Need A Reality Check?

This past Saturday night, my husband bet me 15 bucks to ask Anthony Bourdain whether his Chase Sapphire product integration deal cost him his soul.

He needn't have made that bet. Tony launched into it within the first five minutes of his storytime/stand-up/Q+A concert Saturday night at The Chicago Theatre. (For those who don’t know his work, Anthony Bourdain is the chef/author/badboy foodie/world traveler who has a great show on Travel Channel called No Reservations emphasizes finding the authentic experience of a place.)

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Filed under: branded content, cause marketing, digital media, entertainment, new media, non-traditional categories, product placement, backlash

What I Learned About Sponsorship Backlash While Waiting Out The Ash Cloud

While reading the April 16th edition of The Independent, I came across two striking images. The first was a banner unfurled at a rally staged by Fair Pensions, which lobbies for ethical investment of UK pension funds, reading “BP Sponsors Climate Chaos.”

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Filed under: events, festivals, international, backlash

FIFA’s Local Merchant Crackdown Offers Golden Opportunity For Sponsors

Today’s Wall Street Journal reports on FIFA’s efforts to control ambush marketing and the sale of unlicensed merchandise in conjunction with the upcoming World Cup in South Africa.

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Filed under: backlash, international, sports, ambush marketing

I Pity the (April) Fool!

As a newshound, I can’t wait for April 2. April 1 seems like a constant cycle of clicking on a link to an interesting article and realizing within a paragraph it’s all a self-indulgent joke—and generally not a very funny one. Note to editors everywhere: The Onion’s on Line 1—you didn’t get the job.

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Filed under: selling, social media, backlash

How to Make Rest Stops a Viable Sponsorship Opportunity

Plenty of bandwidth has been spent on this site discussing how government entities get it wrong when dealing with sponsorship. And this Philly.com article on a plan to sell naming rights to rest stops on the New Jersey Turnpike will do little to reverse that trend. The stops are already named for New Jersey’s most famous sons and daughters, so corporate naming rights can be expected to inspire particularly heated backlash.

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Filed under: government/municipal, naming rights, backlash

Coca-Cola Steps Up, Then Steps Into Hot Water

Those familiar with African-American step-dancing likely know its importance among traditionally African-African fraternities and sororities. Stepshows can offer rousing competition, but they mainly serve to bring people together and highlight the organizations’ shared values and goals. So putting on a step competition would seem like a slam dunk for a company interested in connecting with an audience of young, educated and influential African-American men and women.

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Filed under: backlash, soft drink, arts

Breaking A Fall From Grace: What Tiger Teaches Us

Beyond the particular circumstances of the Tiger Woods saga are some specific lessons for marketers who partner with individuals and properties.

See my guest column in this week’s Advertising Age to read what all marketers should take away from Tiger’s tale.

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Filed under: contracts, endorsements, negotiating, sponsorship measurement, sponsorship ROI, trends, backlash

Sponsorship and Association Governance: Just Say No

When working with associations, we universally recommend against offering sponsorship of governance activities, like board meetings.

An association risks its credibility—with its members and external stakeholders—when sponsors get too close to an organization’s decision-making. Similarly, the sponsor can take a hit if its involvement is perceived as an attempted bribe.

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Filed under: backlash, international, sports, associations