Results
Power of Blue Activation Scores Goals For BMO
Relevance to target market is key to sponsorship success.
6/14/10: Eighteen months into BMO Financial Group’s
Power of Blue activation program around its major sponsorships, the Canadian banking giant is reporting positive return on its investment.
BMO rolled out Power of Blue as a platform to support a brand campaign emphasizing customer service and to demonstrate such service outside the retail branch environment by giving customers special treatment at sponsored properties.
Examples of benefits offered include access to NHL Toronto Maple Leafs games through a special entrance at the Air Canada Centre and the opportunity to be on the field as part of the official coin toss at MLS Toronto FC games.
Other perks include preferential parking, free copies of team magazines and the chance to win monthly drawings for autograph signing sessions and tickets.
Positive consumer response has prompted BMO to secure new assets for Power of Blue during contract renewals with sponsored properties to ensure the program stays fresh and relevant, said Sandy Bourne, vice president of advertising, sponsorships, merchandising and special events.
Bourne shared Power of Blue results against the three objectives below, with specific data points that illustrate the positive impact.
Elevated Brand Recall And Awareness
- Unaided recall of BMO as a sponsor of the Calgary Stampede rose from 28 percent in ’08 to 61 percent in ’09
- BMO received the highest unaided recall (24 percent) as a sponsor of the Maple Leafs, surpassing the other four partners at the team’s highest sponsorship level
- The bank received 22 percent unaided awareness as the main sponsor of the Montreal High Lights Festival, surpassing Hydro Quebec, the event’s long-running presenting sponsor
- General awareness of BMO’s support of professional and amateur sports increased from the fourth quarter of ’08 to the first quarter of ’09 (the period that included the launch of Power of Blue) based on the Corporate Reputation and Sponsorship Index produced by Canadian research firm Angus Reid Public Opinion.
Increased Customer Retention/Brand Loyalty
- Through Power of Blue’s online presence, 10,000 consumers have opted-in to receive information from BMO, a number the bank considers “healthy” especially for a program in its infancy
- BMO’s Net Promoter Score of customers likely to promote the bank increased two points from ’08 to ’09. In evaluating qualitative comments associated with its NPS, BMO has noted “strong advocacy as a result of Power of Blue.”
- Thirty-eight percent of those surveyed at Maple Leafs games said that because of Power of Blue they would recommend BMO to someone who is looking for a bank
Customer Acquisition
Bourne noted that although the program was designed for customer retention, it also has helped boost new accounts and produced a shift in consumer behavior
- In Toronto and Vancouver, BMO generated “significant lifts” in new checking and savings accounts as a result of Power of Blue promotions
- Eleven percent of customers surveyed at a recent Maple Leafs game said they would probably or definitely consider switching to BMO because of Power of Blue
- The percentage of ticket holders at Air Canada Centre (home to the Maple Leafs and NBA Toronto Raptors) who are BMO customers has increased by two percent since the program’s start
Sources
BMO Financial Group, Tel: 416/867-5000