Opinion
Assertions
1/12/09: When
Honda pulled out of
Formula 1 racing last month, it was a result of difficult
financial conditions for the automaker. Now longtime sponsor
Shell is
considering dropping its ties to
Ferrari’s F1 team, a technical partnership that extends back to Enzo Ferrari’s founding of the automaker more than 60 years ago. But in this instance
the economy is not the reason. The two primary considerations for the fuel giant are the new
technical limitations being put on the teams to help even the playing field–which Shell reasons will curb its ability to tout the technology transfer element of the partnership, a key objective for the deal–and the
conflict between
racing and the company’s efforts to position itself as
environmentally responsible. Stay tuned for a decision…Should Shell depart, Ferrari can console itself with its
new sponsorship from Indian conglomerate
Tata Group.
Although we are thrilled to report on any company–let alone an automaker–that is
increasing its spending on sponsorship or activation,
Infiniti’s leveraging of its
San Francisco Symphony partnership leaves us with a few questions. The first is whether the sponsor is
determining success based on more than just sales leads. While leads are critical, and increasing the number of them by 150 percent is great, it would be
lazy measurement to say the sponsorship is working based solely on that number. What effect is the sponsorship having on those consumers’
consideration of Infiniti and
purchase intent, and ultimately and most importantly, how many of them will
convert to sales? Compare counting leads to
Subaru’s knowledge of the growing number of cars it
sells through its
association and
cause ties and it’s easy to see which program is
bulletproof.
The
Rose Bowl stadium has
split its bottled water category between
Fiji Water and
Sparkletts, both of which have brand new deals. Each is paying
$185,820 over five years for their non-exclusive agreements. Each receives a scoreboard advertising panel and sales rights at the stadium and the Brookside Clubhouse. The
$371,640 total compares to the venue’s
$265,456 five-year
exclusive deal with the Dr Pepper Snapple Group’s
Deja Blue brand, which ended at the close of ’08. Each partner’s deal limits the Rose Bowl to no more than two water brand sponsors. Fiji is guaranteed to be the
only premium water product, while Sparkletts is guaranteed to be the
least expensive water brand sold on site. The deals were brokered by the property’s sales agency
Premier Partnerships. The Rose Bowl is on track to generate total sponsorship and permanent signage revenue of
$717,000 for fiscal year ’09.
When
times get tough, the deals often
get more creative. Case in point: The
LA Opera has signed
Silversea as its
official cruise line, and as part of the two-year deal will provide some its
performers for an
opera-themed cruise later this year. The sponsorship is reminiscent of
Cirque du Soleil’s former relationship with
Celebrity Cruises. The small-ship Silversea line is considering a European route for the cruise that would be timed with some of the major opera festivals. The cruise will be marketed to opera fans globally. The sponsor receives print ads in opera publications and on-site exposure at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.
Jon Holman, president of the opera’s sponsorship agency The Holman Group, put the deal together.
Jim Andrews