The Game Plan
By Rebecca Factor & Calista Vantarakis on April 19th, 2018
(From Above) Sam Currie skiing on the slopes of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, France.
Sponsors and shoppers already share the same love for sports, teams and even star athletes, so why not amplify your ROI by building out a promotion around your sponsorship. Here Sam Currie, Edge’s Director of Promotional Risk Management, discusses everything you need to know about how Promotional Insurance and leveraging sport sponsorship properties go together hand in hand.
“Don’t be scared of risk; use it as a creative tool!”
Edge: What role do you see Promotional Insurance playing in sport sponsorship leverage?
Sam: I love seeing brands globally using Risk Managed campaigns to leverage their sports sponsorship properties! Whether it’s a trade or shopper facing activation, Promotional Insurance can ensure increased engagement – usually by taking a brand’s budget and amplifying this into a larger prize pool. Short and sweet, we use Risk Management to deliver innovative and flexible executions whilst managing a brand’s financial exposure.
Edge: What sporting events do you think brands leverage well?
Sam: We tend to see some impressive activations here in Australia centred around the Cricket, State of Origin and Footy Finals. From an international perspective, I always look forward to seeing the Super Bowl, FIFA World Cup and Olympics campaigns surface.
Edge: What’s the most important thing to consider during the planning stage of a sponsorship leverage campaign?
Sam: Like any execution, a clearly defined (and ideally single minded) objective will help guide decision-making. Is the goal to increase AWOP, influence brand switching, secure shelf space or maybe just make a bit of noise? Keep this primary objective in mind when deciding the promotional mechanic, reward content, and most importantly allocating budget.
Edge: What do you believe drives the successful execution of a sponsorship leverage campaign?
Sam: Make it simple and fun but also remember – communication is key! Communication of the offer and shopper journey should be as straightforward as possible. Personally, if I can’t explain a promotion to someone outside our industry in a single text, I don’t recommend that it be executed. Communication of an offer isn’t necessarily about whether shoppers claim or not – it is whether the offer will influence behaviour at point of purchase (#sales).
Edge: What’s your favourite tactic for a sports sponsorship leverage campaign?
Sam: Promotional mechanics executed will always be dependent on brand objectives; however I do love conditional rebates. A conditional rebate is an offer dependent on a sporting outcome. For example ‘For every try scored, you win $10’. From a Promotional Insurance perspective, the promoter pays a premium based on the odds of the ‘condition’ taking place. Dependent on historical sporting odds, these executions can be fairly cost effective and are great at driving shopper engagement for the duration of a campaign or sporting event.
Edge: Why do you believe this style of campaign is important?
Sam: Sponsorships don’t usually come cheap. The sponsor and shopper also share a common interest – a love of the same sport, team or athlete. Why not leverage this shared love? If a promoter effectively executes their sponsorship, it enables them to positively tap into an emotive experience while meeting their own brand objectives.
Edge: Three quick tips to get the most out of your Risk Managed promotions?
Sam:
- Involve Edge as early in the planning process as possible
- Whatever you decide to execute, keep it simple
- Don’t be scared of risk; use it as a creative tool!
Three Quick Questions….
Q: What sports did you join growing up?
A: Gymnastics, netball and skiing.
Q: What do you think is more important to know first – a brand’s budget or objectives?
A: Objectives, always.
Q: If you could attend any sporting event globally what would it be?
A: Winter Olympics.
If a Sponsorship Leverage Campaign interests you and you want to find out how you can amplify your budget, contact our sales team at info@edgepri.com.
Rebecca Factor & Calista Vantarakis
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