IEG’s Sponsorship Blog

Is the Social Media Trend the Shiny Object Distracting Us From the Real Marketing Revolution – Mobile? Perhaps.

Posted: 3/11/2010 11:32:49 AM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 0 comments

I had a light bulb moment earlier this week when I read a document called Mobile Mania (A Manual for the Second Internet Revolution) produced by Simon Silvester of Y&R (a WPP agency). It seems simple enough, but one of my take-aways was that I (we) need to start thinking of mobile devices as portable, very personal mini-computers, not as smart phones – meaning mobile devices are the evolution of computers, not the evolution of cell phones. It really is a major distinction. Everything that we do on computers and the internet will be available on mobile devices and will be improved by the personalization, immediacy and mobility that these portable devices provide.

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Filed under: olympics, activation

Increased Activity around Participatory Sports Events by Amica Insurance and What it Could Mean for Properties

Posted: 3/5/2010 1:20:46 PM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 0 comments

Since 2008, Amica Insurance, based in Rhode Island, has really stepped up its marketing activity around participatory sports events, specifically triathlons and marathons. In 2010, Amica is the title sponsor of no less than 13 events across the U.S., including a series of 10 sprint distance triathlons, an Ironman 70.3 and two marathons. What is also interesting is that almost all of these events did not exist before 2008.

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Filed under: events, marathon, sports, agency

A Company’s Sponsorship Budget Should be “a” Factor Not “the” Factor When Choosing a Property

Posted: 2/26/2010 11:58:56 AM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 0 comments

Among the numerous considerations a sponsor must wade through to determine which properties to sponsor, cost is usually at the top of the list. Unfortunately, focusing too much on cost can sometimes lead a sponsor down the wrong path or create unnecessary boundaries, ruling out properties that might otherwise be appropriate.

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

Will Other Online Companies Follow in the Sponsorship Footsteps of AOL and GoDaddy.com?

Posted: 2/18/2010 4:15:52 PM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 1 comments

An AOL press release from earlier this week about AOL’s sponsorship of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week spurred a thought. I wanted to better understand what online companies such as AOL, Google and YouTube are sponsoring and why online companies aren’t more active in sponsorship.

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Filed under: nonprofit, research, sports, NASCAR

The Role of Sponsorship in Business-to-Business Marketing

Posted: 2/11/2010 4:20:55 PM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 0 comments

Early in my career my focus was on business-to-business marketing, specifically technology B-to-B marketing. What I learned from my experience is that business-to-business marketing is REALLY challenging. B-to-B marketers’ challenges include issues with both the message and the medium and those issues are often compounded by limited marketing budgets.

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Filed under: research, events

Ziploc's Latest Brand Integration in The Biggest Loser is a Big Loser – Success is in the Details

Posted: 2/5/2010 3:12:59 PM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 0 comments

There are several reasons why Ziploc's latest brand integration in The Biggest Loser was a bust. Somehow the :45 brand integration managed to leave me confused and conveyed nothing of value about a product that is actually useful. I have to wonder if anyone watched the integration before it aired. I actually debated whether the feature should be considered branded entertainment, product placement or brand integration. Technically, it is integrated in to the show, but it just feels like a bad infomercial. Beyond the less than stellar actual integration, it appears Ziploc needs to step-up its activation around The Biggest Loser to make it pay off.

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Filed under: branded entertainment, activation

Leading with Activation

Posted: 2/5/2010 8:56:27 AM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 2 comments

A property’s typical, linear approach to developing a sponsorship program is to gather assets, allocate those assets, create packages at various levels, solicit sponsors that seem to fit with the property and then hopefully sign a few sponsors at each level. Ultimately, the package may be slightly tweaked to offer benefits that are a better fit for the sponsor, but overall, it is still a pretty standard package. The activation of the sponsorship is left to the sponsor, possibly with some assistance from the property. There isn’t really anything wrong with this process, it makes sense, it follows a well-worn path and it has often proved successful. It makes allocating assets easier, it is easier to price and manage, and initially it is a lot easier and quicker to take to market.

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Filed under: selling, activation

Extent of Sponsorship Category Exclusivity

Posted: 1/29/2010 2:41:24 PM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 0 comments

Category exclusivity can be a major aspect of a sponsorship negotiation and partnership. First there is the question of whether or not category exclusivity is part of the sponsorship, then there is the matter of what categories are going to be included and finally there is the issue of what is the extent of the exclusivity. Take two major organizations like the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). A TOP sponsor of the IOC has category exclusivity that extends throughout the structure of the organization, whereas category exclusivity for a FIFA Partner doesn’t have quite the same reach. The organizations are very different and not directly comparable, but we can look at how this difference in extent of category exclusivity might affect a sponsor.

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Filed under: olympics

Disney and the HandsOn Network: Give a Day. Get a Disney Day

Posted: 1/22/2010 2:54:16 PM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 0 comments

You may have seen some recent TV commercials featuring; Taye Diggs, Terri Hatcher, James Denton, Missy Piggy, Kermit the Frog and other Muppets characters for Disney’s Give a Day. Get a Disney Day. campaign.

The promotion, a partnership with HandsOn Network (a nationwide network of a half million volunteers) will distribute one million one-day, one-park tickets to people who volunteer at select charities. The promotion began January 1, 2010 and continues through December 15th, 2010.

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Filed under: cause marketing

Part Two: How can I Maximize the Value of my Sponsorship Opportunities?

Posted: 1/22/2010 2:41:44 PM by Carrie Urban Kapraun | with 0 comments

Per my blog last week, I stated that one of the most common questions that I hear is: “How can I maximize the value of my sponsorship opportunities?”

As I said, this can be a daunting question for a property because there are numerous potential answers and generally there isn’t one “right” answer. There are both short-term solutions, such as adding overlooked tangible benefits to a package, or enhancing existing benefits and long-term solutions, such as increasing awareness of an organization. As always, the answer is unique to each property. Last week’s blog discussed some higher-level thinking around adding value. For this blog, the focus is on tangible benefits.

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Filed under: activation