In a year of huge cultural, historical and sporting relevance, brands will be (and already are) fighting for ‘white space’ and unique ways to engage with the British public. During this very busy year the strategy and tactics that brands choose are critical, which is why we decided to use this Synopsis to look at some of the activation trends we are expecting to see in 2012.

At a macro level, experiential marketing (EM) is a growth trend in itself . Experiential specialists have long debated the need for integration with digital media to extend the reach of the live activity beyond a single interaction. Momentum has been driven primarily by the growth of social networks, which provide longevity, an extended audience and a measurement tool for the effectiveness of such campaigns.

Marketers are more concerned than ever about customer experience and innovation, but with a need to find simple, differentiating tactics, expect 2012 to be a year of the ‘Ts’.

TECHNOLOGY

RFID (Radio Frequency Identification)

RFID is a system that can transmit the identity of a person wirelessly using radio waves.  A portable device (for example a wristband, PDA, card, smart phone or even just a sticker) automatically transmits the data to an RFID reader, where it is then processed.

RFID has been used for many years - in fact, you may be using it in one form or another every day. I used RFID technology at least five times before I reached my desk today via my Oyster and Engine building access cards.  In 2006, the Emirates Stadium opened with an electronic ticketing system and members of ‘The Arsenal’ use their membership cards to enter the stadium, removing the need for gate security staff.

The ability of RFID technology to unite live and digital, by allowing consumers to share a real-time brand experience and messages in a controlled fashion with social networks, has seen the technology flourish.  At the recent Smirnoff Nightlife Exchange London,  RFID technology was implemented for guests to share their real time nightlife experience on Facebook. After a simple registration process guests could ‘check-in’, ‘like’ and post photos directly to their walls by tapping their RFID wristbands on ‘Facebook Interactive Pods’.  All posts were predetermined by Smirnoff which provided an element of controlled messaging. The event was amplified to 1.6 million people on Facebook. Laura Moody of Blondefish, the event technology company who deliver this RFID solution for Smirnoff comments:  ”The use of RFID technology in the event space is delivering  powerful results for both the live audience and brand sponsorship. Consumers and brands are embracing the way RFID can deliver a more personal, memorable and interactive live experience. As guests share their experiences on social media they become advocates for the brand, delivering huge levels of online brand amplification.”

It is not only events that are seeing the benefits and word-of-mouth that RFID can offer. In 2011, Ushuaïa Ibiza Beach Hotel installed Facebook pods for guests to “make all their Facebook friends jealous.”

With the costs of RFID coming down and the possibilities endless, there are some exciting developments that could change the face of experiential marketing.

Music festivals are quickly discovering the benefits of using RFID.  It is making ticketing and admissions more efficient, while ‘cashless’ payment methods are reducing security problems (there is no need to carry a wallet), driving purchases and allowing brands to track spending patterns.

The ability to analyse individuals’ purchasing patterns allows a brand to deliver personalised content and offers.  This not only drives spend (Mastercard in Canada has seen a 25% increase in spending by users of its RFID credit cards), but can also make customers feel more connected to the brand.  Minority Report’s vision in 2002 of personalised advertising seemed something for the very distant future – but RFID is bringing it closer.

Augmented Reality & Blippar™
Image recognition is another way to connect the real world to the virtual one and 2011 saw plenty of brands experimenting with QR codes.  However, it is safe to say that QR codes haven’t exactly set the world alight – usage has been low and according to a survey of 794 online respondents by Simpson Carpenter, just 36% of consumers know what QR codes are for, while only 11% have actually used them.

However, 2012 could be the year that Image Recognition finally takes off, thanks to Blippar™ – the 2.0 QR code. Blippar uses your phone’s in-built camera to bring a static image to life and provide an interactive experience. The difference between this and a QR code…the ‘wow’ factor.

Having previously used QR codes, Domino’s wanted to step up the innovation and required a more dynamic tool. Its current Blippar™-powered campaign promotes the brand’s ’555′ deal. Consumers simply hold their smartphone up to a Domino’s poster and it comes alive, allowing them to download deals, get the Domino’s mobile ordering app, become a Facebook fan and find out more about their local store.

KitKat are giving customers the chance to vote for their favourite new flavour by scanning posters using the Blippar™ app. The brand is also cleverly integrating geofencing into the campaign so that customers will be alerted whenever they are within a certain distance of a store which sells the  KitKat Chunky flavour they voted for.

Sponsorship activation can really benefit from the ability to dynamically interact with static branding. We are not expecting Blippar™ pitch logos quite yet, but over the next few years we will certainly see the decline in static stadium and event branding and advertising. In January alone a number of big brands have started to use Blippar™, and expect loads more to follow during the rest of 2012.

THEATRICS

With an influx of 2 million tourists to London, there is a huge opportunity for brands to engage with consumers in 2012. Brands will need to be clever to cut through the noise, and ‘drama’ can provide the essential memorable hook for consumers.

Flash mobs
Flash mobs bring an experience to people in unexpected moments. Flash mobs are essentially a group of people getting together to do something unexpected, before quickly dispersing. They are becoming more and more popular, bringing a sense of wonder to those that encounter them. Brands have harnessed the power of flash mobs to engage with customers and create interesting content and brand experiences, as T-Mobile showed with their famous ads.

Flash mobs don’t require a lot of money, making them an ideal tactic for a small business, or when budgets are squeezed. The beauty of Flash mobs is their complete integration with social media and their potential to go viral and provide entertainment to not only the people who were there, but those who want to watch and share.

Boris Johnson is obviously a Flash mob fan:- the Mayor of London is using them to promote London as a city of history and culture during the Cultural Olympiad this summer. Mark Rylance, one of Britain’s greatest Shakespearean actors, and his crew of 50 actors (all disguised as ‘normal people’) will stage ‘Flash performances’ of sonnets and speeches.  The unexpectedness of the experience will make it unforgettable for the people involved, while the content (both the planned scripts and unplanned audience reaction) will undoubtedly be shared around the world.

It is not a leap to imagine brands considering this as an opportunity for engagement during the Games, with consumers themselves (if wowed by the experience) providing the communications medium. There are, however, a few rules to making a flash mob successful and preventing this looking like a poor ‘am-dram’ performance:

1) Simplicity & originality for maximum impact

2) Good quantity and quality of ‘performers’ recruited for wow factor

3) Participants and location must blend together for the element of surprise

Sadly Qantas didn’t follow these simple rules for this effort to promote a new route:

Pop Ups

2011 was the year of Pop Ups, and we think that this trend will continue to grow in 2012, particularly with available commercial property sitting vacant. Pop Ups are by no means a new phenomenon with restaurants, shops and galleries embracing them; however, it is now brands that are starting to realise the benefit of a temporary location that makes a statement, delivers an immediate impact and captures the consumer’s imagination. Combine a Pop Up with an event drawing millions in attendance and you have a powerful brand experience.

In 2011, Chanel took Pop Ups to a new level with the arrival of the Hollywood glitterati for the Cannes Film Festival. Golden mosaic-tiled walls, dedicated make-up and nail bars, an exhibition space of Chanel gowns and suits previously worn by actors, and a private lounge on the first floor with views of the red carpet leading up to the Palais des Festivals all helped to deliver the ultimate Chanel experience.

This summer we will see a plethora of Pop Ups appearing across London and much can be learned from those that have gone before them.

1) Locations. Good footfall, transport links and signage will benefit the Pop Up with a steady stream of customers. However, some of the more interesting locations aren’t on the high street, in which case building a strong communications programme and integrating with social media and technologies such as location-based services are essential

2) Content. Build a story. Offer a unique take and provide a new way for customers to consider the brand. New content will give the feeling of exclusivity

3) Innovative branding and stylish fixtures including digital media

THROUGH THE LINE INTEGRATION

So who will be the winners in 2012? From our perspective it will be those that have developed personalised, innovative, simple and, most importantly, integrated experiential campaigns.

Nike has made a strong start in the battle of the sports brands with its #makeitcount campaign. It is a brilliant example of a campaign which fully integrates ATL, experiential and digital to deliver great content and brand experiences.  The campaign uses simple, standout photography and video to deliver a powerful message and a simple call to action…how will you #makeitcount in 2012?

But the really exciting thing is the way Nike has integrated experiential and social media into its campaign and made it relevant for everyone from elite athletes to gym dodgers (like me).  Customers are invited to have their picture taken by a professional photographer in the style of the campaign and are given the chance to create a handwritten pledge as to how they will #makeitcount.  The photo and message are not only shareable via social media channels, but will be displayed outdoor as part of the campaign.

@Nike has created its first single, dedicated Twitter feed. So far over 60,000 people have responded to the cry with #makeitcount. The first tweet on this account is from Nike founder Bill Bowerman: ‘If You Have A Body, You Are An Athlete’.

And, if you are ever in doubt that simplicity provides impact, check out another offering from Nike:

Experiential has always been able to deliver powerful brand experiences.  The issue has been the reach and the fact that it has only ‘touched’ relatively few people. But as we can see, digital and social media channels are unlocking the full potential of experiential marketing by extending this reach exponentially.

And, of course, the power of sponsorship is that it gives brands the content and access they require to create experiential activity around their customers’ core passions.

By Lisa Parfitt on January 25th, 2012

Tags: Advertising, Branded content, Content, Digital marketing, Experiential marketing, Facebook, Flash mobbing, London 2012, Mobile, Synopsis

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Content forms an integral part of our work; understanding the factors regarding emotional and intellectual engagement with an audience are important in order to create meaningful experiences. The aim of this article is to trace the evolution of content creation and delivery in light of advances in technology and changes in social activities; hopefully giving some useful insight into options we have for our clients when planning campaigns.

“My biggest competitor today is someone with an idea”

Nabil Sakkab – Head of Research & Development, Procter & Gamble.

TV Content

In the days when the only mass media was broadcast and print, content producers had a one-way channel to engage their audience.

Typically, audiences respond best to content that carries authority (from factually trusted sources such as the Government) or authenticity (content that connects through personal or social relevance).

Successful TV has both authority and authenticity and the really successful ones are memorable – generally through well-executed, great ideas that appeal to the emotions (through shock or comedy).

A good example is Keira Knightley’s Women’s Aid commercial:

The production values are high, the storyline is strong and the effect of the film is to shock; but if we do not remember the website listed at the end, once the ad finishes we are left shocked but no longer engaged.

Internet content

With the arrival of YouTube came Manic Dog, Mystic Cat and endless wedding carnage videos. However, once TV producers started to talk with web developers (with the aid of a translation service) the result was a subtle shift in the style and format of programmes.

Interactive software has enabled content producers to give audiences a different experience; multi-layered options in story, format and delivery that no longer depend on high production values but instead rely on engagement through information and choices.

The Government anti-knife crime video campaign, ‘Choose a Different Ending’, is a good example of informed choice given to an audience:

Due to the interactive nature of the viral video, the user/target audience is forced to think about knife crime and the choices they are being asked to make. Each decision is then brought to life in the video, offering an insight into the consequences of carrying a knife. This is a good example of a campaign initiative that can only work online, as it relies on audience interaction.

The video engages the target audience in several ways:

- It is shot from an individual perspective i.e. the player sees the world through the eyes of one person

- It is shot on a council estate and then in the surrounding areas (park, nearby roads), so that the location is a familiar one to the target audience

- The cast is formed of the target audience, ensuring that the language and dress code would also be recognised by this audience

- The video was created with the aid of the target audience which helps with authenticity

Paid, owned and earned

For a while we settled into the comfort of three areas where content would be delivered and debated:

• Paid: TV commercials
• Earned: Comments on a YouTube video
• Owned: A company’s website

 

Of these three areas, earned has proven to be the most valuable as it carries authenticity through endorsement from peers.

Once hit counts and comments turned into real currency, producers soon realised that success with the audience required more than simply being in the same space, even if the content was clever or well-produced. It became clear that the appropriate tone, language and social context were essential for success.

Take the Government swine-flu film, 2009:

This was a TV ad that was also delivered and promoted online, receiving a whopping 380 hits on YouTube. The ‘Catch it Bin it Kill it’ message was generally dismissed as something for other people (perhaps the penalty for wearing bad jumpers in lifts).

The Government then commissioned a viral video to deliberately spoof the official one, involving actors from the target demographic and contemporary music. The result is much more fun.

Same message; different style (smaller budget); 1 million hits on YouTube. Enough said.

How we consume media

Almost more important to ‘where’ people are watching their videos is ‘how’ people are watching them.  This has an effect on the creative and production process.

Viewing habits can be grouped into three main types of activity:

- Snippets (spontaneous media activity)

- Boutique (speciality media searches)

- Catch-up (fitting TV schedules around our own lives)

A recent survey of 1,300 mobile Internet users below the age of 25, showed that most use a mobile device to talk to friends about the show they are watching, a trend known as ‘Social TV’.

Social media

Social media has altered the definitions of paid, earned and owned media or at least has blurred the lines between them. Now, the challenge that agencies face is figuring out how to integrate all three forms of media for maximum effect.

After all, social content, by definition, can lack authority but it has authenticity because it establishes relevance and context with our friends and our surroundings.

Let’s have a diagram.

Sponsorship events

We know there are Fans (consumers) who have Passions (Sport, Music, Art). Sponsored activities provide the magical third piece of the puzzle – the Location. This is not just the location of the event, but, thanks to mobile phones, the location of fans too. And this is powerful intelligence regarding media capture and distribution options.

Radiohead’s concert video shot in Prague in 2009 by 50 fans on Flip cameras makes you feel like you are standing amongst the crowd:

It appeals to fans because it was made by fans, contains fans and gives the fans that couldn’t go the feeling that they were there.

And the effects go beyond the concert. The video was endorsed and published by the band; further projects have been planned by the fans that in turn become a part of the history of the band, strengthening the relationship between all concerned.

The Social challenge – the media ecosystem

The goal is to connect the dots and integrate all media for maximum results.

It is not just about producing content for an event or campaign but to inspire the target audience to contribute, to collaborate and comment beyond the life of the event.

The media can take on a life of its own, especially if there are core community and social values – a mini ecosystem that can run beyond the campaign.

Mobile

Mobile is ever-increasingly becoming the medium of choice, particularly for image capture and Geo-positioning. According to Comscore, in the next 12 months:

‘We predict more than half of all mobile consumers will have access to mobile media, largely driven by growing adoption of smartphones. Identifying the synergies that exist between all consumer touch points – traditional PC internet, mobile media (via app and browser), tablets, etc. – and understanding how consumers use these devices to fulfil different needs and convenience levels will be of critical importance to marketers.’

How does all this affect production for Synergy Clients?

Social / mobile media is very powerful but it often requires a paid spark.

Synergy already produces world-class output and my goal is to bring broadcast, online and social production and planning experience into close proximity with the Synergy team and clients hopefully resulting in:

- Real-time intelligence on media options available

- Advice on production and delivery techniques, and suppliers to maximize creative impact

- Guidance on delivery options, channels, asset management (now and future) and measurability. If they are managed, assets can be re-purposed, like this COI text driving radio ad that was repurposed (very cost-effectively) as a viral video simply by adding graphics

Here is fifteen years of TV and web production distilled into my simple media AIM chart:

In Summary

- Content has developed from a one-way communication to an interactive conversation endorsed and measured through social reference

- The balance  of emotional, intellectual and social engagement should be carefully planned depending on the target audience and mediums available

- Technology and innovation drive the reach of our work but synergy between content producers and audiences fuels its impact

By Colin Burgess on October 13th, 2011

Tags: Advertising, Alcohol, Branded content, Celebrity, community, Content, Default, Digital marketing, Facebook, Media, Sponsorship, Synergy, Synopsis, Television, Viral Marketing, YouTube

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Memorabilia. The ultimate demonstration of fully committed fandom, right? Now I’m not talking about the typical million-odd replica shirts sold each year by Manchester United; I don’t even mean the larger share of these that sell featuring a certain Wayne Rooney’s name and number on the back; no, I’m talking about the real up-close-and-personal stuff: Botham’s bat, Pele’s Pumas or Tiger’s tee-peg.

You name it, someone out there will probably try to buy it, sell it, or, in the case of OJ Simpson, nick it. Allegedly. So what’s the fascination with collectibles, and why will ordinarily sane people part with extraordinarily daft amounts of money to own them? To me it’s about either possessing a tangible part of your hero, a slice of sporting history…or, and this is where the big bucks come into play, both.

In terms of sporting collectibles, baseball rules the roost; from the $10,000 spent by chewing gum maker Curt Mueller on a piece of spent gum from Arizona Diamondbacks Luis Gonzalez, to the ball struck by Mark McGwire for his record-breaking 70^th home run in 1998 – bought by comic book creator Todd McFarlane for a staggering $3.05m. Especially staggering when you consider the record was subsequently tainted by McGwire’s admission of steroid abuse during that season…the baseball shedding two-thirds of its auction value. Less home run, more own goal.

But if you think that sports fans have the market cornered (as well as signed, framed and independently authenticated) – think again. It’s the movie buffs that really know how to splash the cash to get their hands on a piece of Hollywood heroes or history.

In 2008, a miniature TIE Fighter model spaceship from the original Star Wars movie sold for over $400,000 and Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber made almost a quarter of a million dollars. Surprisingly though, in the memorabilia stakes, chic overcomes geek, with Audrey Hepburn’s Givenchy dress from Breakfast at Tiffany’s selling for just under $1million and James Bond’s gadget-filled Aston Martin DB5 going for $4.1million.

What, might you ask, has any of this got to do with marketing, per se? Well, if you need to ask, then you obviously haven’t seen the recent Nike Mag campaign.

For those of you not aware, Nike Mags were the futuristic sneakers worn in Back to the Future II by hero Marty McFly when visiting Hill Valley, year 2015. For a quick reminder…

The self-lacing, self-illuminating hi-tops went on to become the most sought-after movie footwear since Dorothy Gale’s ruby slippers, whilst creating veritable product placement lore for their creators, Nike.

Many have crudely tried to repeat the trick, most notably Will Smith’s Converse-obsessed lead in I, Robot and, subsequently, the Puma-wearing inhabitants of The Island. Given that each member of the latter’s identically-shod population is, in fact, an irretrievably doomed clone of a corporate paymaster, you have to think that Puma really should have read the script before involving themselves.

What sets Nike apart from the aforementioned brands is that the trainers worn by Michael J. Fox’s character were simply an ‘ain’t-it-cool’ vision of the future for the movie’s teenaged audience, appropriate to Nike’s own brand trajectory; they weren’t linked to part of a specific marketing campaign, and were categorically not made available for purchase by their makers.

Until now.

Hot on the heels of Total Film’s 2010 ‘Future Day’ hoax, forums were buzzing earlier this year with the rumour that Nike had taken out a patent on an ‘automatic lacing system’. Nike sneakers with power laces on their way? Not quite, but an ingeniously timely tease nonetheless.

In fact, the Oregon-based sporting superpower had finally chosen to make film buff dreams a reality, by producing a limited run of 1,500 pairs of ‘2011 Nike Mags’.

With illuminated LEDs that can be recharged after a long day switched on in their display cabinet (as though anyone is actually planning on wearing these) the 2011 models are, in fact, not of the self-lacing variety. This is rather unsubtly explained courtesy of the movie’s co-star, Christopher Lloyd – AKA Doc Brown – in the video below, where it becomes clear that said technology will only be available in 2015 (the year he and Marty visited in BTTF2), and that the DeLorean time machine has erroneously brought him to a point four years too early.

So, after all the hype and fervour, how can I get hold of a pair, you ask? Well, unfortunately you’ve already missed the boat: the entire lot were auctioned off over a 10-day period on eBay in early September. Although bidding started at $0.99, over-excited demand amongst collectors and scalpers alike saw standard prices kick off at around $4,000. Who pays $4k for a pair of slightly ugly-looking trainers? Well, no one, it would seem. The first pair actually sold for the princely sum of $37,000 to one Patrick Chukwuemeka Okogwu – that’s Tinie Tempah to you and me. His PR or Nike’s…it’s hard to tell.

But never fear: Nike’s ruse was all in a very good cause (besides fleecing a few overpaid musicians). It turns out that the brand had partnered with the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, all profits from the auctions going direct to the organisation.

Nike (with a little help from eBay) capitalised on the perfect storm of memorabilia-hungry Back to the Future fanboys, obsessive boxfresh sneakerheads and understandably fervent supporters of the Parkinson’s research projects – raising $5.7million in a mere 10 days. This was doubled to $11million by the ubiquitous Google, whose co-founder Sergey Brin has pledged to match donations to Fox’s foundation until 2012 to the tune of up to $50million.

Nike has demonstrated just how far ahead its thinking is from its competitors’ in respect of memorabilia, limited edition wares and product placement (even retrospectively). And who’s to say that the ‘2015 Nike Mags’ won’t be released to the general public in four years’ time anyway?

They’ve hit the sweet spot between collectible and commodity, and through the nostalgic lens of one of the most popular movie franchises of all time, have delivered a lesson in slow-burn brand marketing.

But coming back to the crux of the argument, people will do anything for their own part of an image, an icon, a moment or a man – heart over head, irrational and absurd. As Huey Lewis once put it: that’s the power of love.

By Jonathan Izzard on October 4th, 2011

Tags: Brand marketing, Celebrity, Charity, Content, Default, Digital marketing, Film, New Product Development, Viral Marketing

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Sponsorship is dead, long live sponsorship

Those of you who are regular readers of Synopsis may have spotted a pattern. The lead articles are not Synergy’s random musings but rather the building blocks of a bigger story about the new rules of sponsorship.

But before we get to the rules, a little bit of context. Like all marketing disciplines, sponsorship has evolved over time…but every now and then, there is a paradigm shift which generates an explosion of innovation and introduces a completely new way of acting. Excitingly, we have entered one of these new eras – the 4th Era of Sponsorship.

Below is a rough timeline of how the Sponsorship Industry has evolved. There is never a clear line in the sand to separate the various eras (and of course there are always sponsorship programmes that are ahead of their time), but to keep things simple, they can be broadly separated into decades.

1970s: The Dark Art

The very beginnings of the sponsorship industry were characterised by informal deals done on a handshake in smoke-filled rooms — often literally smoke-filled, as much of the early days of sponsorship were driven by cigarette brands putting their brand on the side of fast cars to circumvent advertising restrictions.

1980s – 1990s: Off-the-Peg

Patrick Nally is credited as being the founding father of modern sponsorship. His ground-breaking partnership deal with Coca-Cola for the 1978 FIFA World Cup effectively ‘invented’ the concept of a rights package. This has set the template for how sponsorships have been packaged and sold by rightsholders ever since.

2000s: Tailored

Brands started to become much more sophisticated and proactive in terms of how they approached sponsorship. No longer was it thought of as a collection of off-the-shelf rights or as a separate marketing channel, but rather as an asset that could be integrated into the overall marketing mix and used to increase the effectiveness of the brand’s marketing activity.

2010: Social

The 4th Era is the “Social Era” for two reasons. Firstly, it has been enabled by social media which has allowed people (and brands) with shared interests to engage with each other at a scale and depth that has never before been possible. Social also refers to a sense of ‘Higher Purpose’ – the ability of a sponsorship programme to connect with its audience by delivering something that really matters.

The Rules of the Social Era

Moving to the Social Era has changed the game of sponsorship and everyone can benefit from knowing the new rules. We have analysed hundreds of best practice case studies from the world of sponsorship and beyond to identify and codify the keys to success in the Social Era.

We have been examining these new rules one by one over the past 5 months but now it is time to bring them all together.

It’s as easy as ABCDE…

Rule 1: Authenticity

Endorses for Courses by Jon Izzard

The best sponsorship programmes, the ones that really resonate with the audience, feel completely natural. The brand simply feels at home in the space. Think of Red Bull and extreme sports, Cartier and Polo, Robinsons and Wimbledon, Unicef and FC Barcelona, Coca-Cola and the Olympic Games, Moët & Chandon and F1. There are loads of sources of authenticity: products, geography, heritage, brand message and simple longevity.

Some brands have to work hard to establish authenticity in a given space, but it is imperative that they do because the very audience that a sponsor is trying to connect with can see through an imposter straight away. Skoda’s sponsorship of the Tour de France provides a great example of a brand working hard to establish credibility in a space where its source of credibility may not be immediately obvious.  Brilliant:

Rule 2: Beyond your Brand

What Can Sponsorship Learn from Farmville by Liz Brown

Sponsorship is about a brand becoming a natural part of their customers’ lives — but the audience needs a reason to invite a brand into their lives.  Brands that view the relationship with their audience as a one-way value exchange and think only in terms of “what will we get out of it”, have no chance of forming the kind of relationship they want. Again, there are a number of ways that brands can demonstrate “Beyond your Brand” thinking, focusing on delivering benefits to their customers (O2 Priority), the property (Converse and London’s 100 Club) and society as a whole (RBS RugbyForce).

Rule 3: Content

Is Content Really King by Ben Wilkinson

Consumers want to learn, laugh, discover, share, be entertained and be inspired.  And they want to do all these things around topics that are of specific interest to them.  That is what sponsorship allows you to do: create relevant content around your audience’s passion points.  But brands have to be creative to capture attention — posting a video of “talking heads” on YouTube and hoping for the best is not enough.  Great content is about innovation.  It’s about finding something that connects and resonates with your audience and providing it how they want it, when they want it and where they want it.

Our favourite example of this is Converse Domaination — a campaign that not only puts great content at its heart but also shows a perfect understanding of its audience.  Enjoy.

Rule 4: Dialogue

D is for Dialogue by Carsten Thode

Talking to each other, sharing ideas, working together, creating things, discovering  new stuff,  having fun, laughing, crying, flirting, arguing – everything that makes life worth living is built on our ability to actively engage with each other. Why should that be different from the relationships we build with the brands in our lives?

Yet for most of its history, marketing has been pretty much a one-way conversation where brands tell you what they want you to know and the customer has no way of talking back.  However, the digital age, and particularly the social media age, has smashed through the barrier separating brands from their consumers.

Now it is possible to source brilliant ideas from your customers such as Pepsi Refresh and GE Ecomagination, or to tailor your marketing in real-time to reflect input from your customers. The Old Spice Man is a classic case in point of how much more engaging the conversation becomes if you give your customers a voice.

Rule 5: Entertainment

Passion Pointers by Tom Gladstone

Sport has a particular ability to evoke strong emotions through its personal stories of courage, inspiration and determination; through its inherent unpredictability, excitement and drama. Those emotions are an essential component of successful sponsorship – and are as relevant across other sponsorship platforms (music, film, fashion, art) as they are in sport. Harness the emotions correctly, and your consumers will add the catalyst of conversation.

But while simply being visible within a passion point might increase the chances of getting noticed, it doesn’t win a place in consumers’ hearts. There has to be active emotional involvement, not just proximity or presence — engagement not impressions. Whether brands capitalise on moments of high emotion or they tap into the core emotional sensibility of the passion point, anchored in anticipation, pride, patriotism, celebration, or even pain, they all need to exhibit genuine empathy and understanding.

This rule is articulated nicely by Mark Harrison, Chair of the Canadian Sponsorship Forum: ‘You can’t manufacture emotion. It’s already there. When you find it – just find a way to trigger it; tap into it; fuel it; and watch it grow into something remarkable.’

Using ABCDE

ABCDE is not a menu, where you can choose one or two elements to focus on. Rather, a great sponsorship programme will deliver against all the rules of the 4th Era.

Obviously, this framework isn’t rocket science, but at Synergy, we have found it to be incredibly useful as we advise our clients at every point of the sponsorship process.  We use it not only as a kind of checklist to diagnose where we are strong and where we need to work harder but also to ensure that all elements of the sponsorship programme - from creating the strategy and identifying the right assets right through to the activation – deliver the ABCDE.  So, before signing off, here are a few ways that it can be used to make your sponsorship programmes even more powerful:

1. Articulate specifically how you are using sponsorship to deliver all elements of ABCDE. Sponsorship strategies should use deep audience insight and a clear understanding of the business and brand to ensure that you are using sponsorship as effectively as possible in the 4th Era

2. When making the decision to acquire a new sponsorship asset, make sure that there is a concrete plan in place to deliver the ABCDE. Use it as part of the screening process and answer questions like: “What gives my brand authenticity in this space? How can I build or acquire authenticity?”  “What is the higher purpose of the sponsorship?  How are we adding value?”

3. When creating activation plans, be specific about which elements of ABCDE you need to focus on and how you will be able to deliver them.  For example: “How can we stimulate dialogue amongst our audience?  What role should our brand play in that conversation”

4. Factor ABCDE into your measurement. Create specific targets around each element and evaluate your success at achieving them.  Where do you have to work harder?

© Synergy Sponsorship a trading division of Engine Partners UK LLP 2011.  All rights reserved

By Carsten Thode on September 1st, 2011

Tags: Advertising, Brand marketing, Branded content, Communications, community, Consultancy, Content, Default, Design, Digital marketing, Event management consultants, Event management service, Experiential marketing, Food & Drink, Football Sponsorship, Olympic sponsorship, Olympic sponsorship consultants, Sales promotion, Sponsorship, Sponsorship consultancy, Sponsorship consultants, Sport, Synergy, Synergy Loves, Synopsis, Twitter, Viral Marketing

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Oakley‘s immersion into athletic eye wear began in 1980, when the company released its first model of motorcycle goggles. Dubbed the “O-Frame,” the goggle consisted of an arced cylindrical lens that would eventually become the brand’s hallmark. Over the last 30 years, Oakley has been awarded more than 600 patents and developed, through strategic sponsorship, enviable relationships with sport’s elite.

The first professional athlete to be sponsored by Oakley was the three-time winner of the Tour de France, Greg LeMond, in 1984. Since then, Oakley has sponsored a diverse range of leading sportspeople. The most notable of which, Lance Armstrong, has been with the brand since 1988. Here he is in the current Oakley Rebellion campaign.

In the Rebellion campaign, Oakley positions itself as a brand that is built on being against the status quo, against conventional thinking and against underachieving. It is this attitude that Oakley looks to share with its athletes so as to emphasise the credibility of this positioning.

To dovetail this Rebellion campaign, Oakley Europe has kept innovation at the forefront of their mind by launching its ‘You Vs’ digital campaign. The goal of this innovative social media campaign is to build Oakley’s European Facebook community while creating awareness about the Oakley athletes. We think it’s been done brilliantly!

What happened?

‘You Vs’ takes viewers inside the world of professional sport by putting ‘you’ against the Oakley pro athlete. The videos, which viewers are directed to after ‘liking’ Oakley on Facebook, have been filmed in a point-of-view style and allows viewers to compete against the athlete. The fact that the film plays through Facebook, ensures each viewer enjoys a personalized experience with their name and profile pictures appearing at key narrative points. This personal touch creates a sense of individuality and elitism that resonates strongly with Oakley.

The first experience has been created with world champion cyclist Mark Cavendish. In this challenge the user gets to race against Mark through Italy’s beautiful Tuscan hills. The interactive film allows the viewer to make ‘live’ decisions that affect the outcome of the race, from how to take corners to when to start the final sprint.

Oakley eyewear is also integrated into the decision-making, allowing fans to select different lenses at the start of the challenge and custom-build a pair of frames at the end of the experience, bringing them closer to the world of professional sportsmen.

Other experiences will be released over the next six months with Oakley athletes including Kevin Pieterson, Ian Poulter, Janko Tipsarevic and Sebastien Loeb. These videos will be timed to coincide with major sporting events, having started with Mark Cavendish and the Tour de France.

Why we like it

We like the ‘You Vs’ digital campaign because it gives us the chance to challenge some of the world best sportsmen. More importantly, it offers us insight into the key decisions that athletes are continuously making when competing. It is these decisions that end up separating first and second place, but it is very seldom that fans are exposed to the stragic side of sport. This campaign by Oakley now enables the everyday athlete, who is usually constricted to shouting ‘advice’ at their TV, the opportunity to experience competing against the world’s elite and making those all important decisions.

Oakley has planned the release of the films to coincide with high profile sporting events throughout the year. This has been done to encourage long term engagement and to allow fans from a particular sport to discover and develop an interest in other Oakley athletes.

This, together with the great cinematography, has produced an exciting campaign that has the potential to be shared by many on Facebook. As the campaign gathers momentum, so too will Oakley’s digital presence in Europe.

What the brand says

Tom Cartmale, marketing director for Oakley UK, commented: ‘As a technology driven brand Oakley has always invested in digital media and looked at new ways of engaging social media communities’. He continued to say, ‘Our aim is to create immersive brand experiences that engage a wide audience of sports fans, showcase our hero athletes and bring our products to life. We hope to build a significant Facebook community as a result and boost awareness of key product stories, in particular lens adaptability and customized frames’.

We feel that the innovative ‘You Vs’ campaign achieves exactly those goals and, after 61,000 Facebook likes, is already having the desired effect for Oakley.

Now I suggest you click here and give it a try for yourself. Let us know how you get on.

By Mike Russell on July 26th, 2011

Tags: Blogging, Default, Digital marketing, Facebook, Media, Online communities, Social Media, Sponsorship, Sport, Synergy, Synergy Loves, Synopsis, Viral Marketing, YouTube

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By Adam Raincock on May 18th, 2011

Tags: Advertising, Blogging, Brand marketing, Celebrity, Default, Digital marketing, Music, Social Media, Synergy Loves, Synopsis

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Heineken Star PlayerI’ve often wondered why it is that, in contrast to other major events, the sponsors of the UEFA Champions League (UCL) have mostly struggled to create great campaigns (litmus test: how many can you actually remember?). The exception to this has generally been Heineken, which has consistently created entertaining and memorable UCL work. Last week it launched its latest UCL move, Star Player, to coincide with this year’s UCL semi-finals. Star Player is really interesting football first: a free iPhone app with Facebook integration, which leverages the intersection between football fandom, event TV, social media and gaming. I downloaded it and played it during last week’s now-infamous UCL semi final first leg between Real Madrid and Barcelona. Here’s my review.

The Game

Getting started is easy. You download the app and create a simple profile for yourself. Ten minutes before kick-off the app goes live: when the whistle blows the action begins. Throughout the game, you’re given various opportunities to score points, either by predicting the outcome of free kicks and corners, whether there will be a goal in the next 30 seconds, or answering multiple choice quiz questions during breaks in play. You can also use one of three ‘Power Ups’ throughout the game to give yourself an additional goal prediction, a chance to score more quiz points, or a 50:50 style clue to answering questions.

So far so basic – it’s the additional features that socialise the game and make it interesting. After each corner, free kick or quiz question, you can see how everyone else playing the game voted as a percentage. Correct answers win you badges, visible through your profile. You can enter yourself into a league with friends, and play against them in real time. And finally Facebook Connect functionality enables you to publish your results, and those of your league, to your Facebook wall.

The Experience

Playing the game was fun, and it nicely complemented watching the game on TV. If, like me, you enjoy the real-time, predictive environment of live in-play betting, you’ll like this game too, because it’s about trusting your instincts to make the right call in an instant. Like winning an in-game bet, there’s a real thrill both in correctly predicting (as I managed to) that Ronaldo would waste a string of free-kicks or that Messi’s run would end in a goal and then being rewarded for it (although only with badges and points rather than cash). I also liked the way after questions you could see how everyone else playing the game voted, and although I wasn’t playing with a group of friends, I could imagine it being a great brilliant ‘game within a game’ if I had been.

But there were also things that weren’t so good. On the night the app wouldn’t let me use the Power Ups, or post my score to Facebook at the end of the game – both very annoying (especially as I posted a score that put me in the top echelons of the global league!). The multiple choice questions were average: the football questions mostly seemed random and had no relevance to the game I was watching (for example “When was Rangers founded?”), and there were too many questions about Heineken (for example “How many countries is Heineken served in?”) when one would have been fine. I also felt there could have been more variety in the gaming. Goal and free kick prediction became a little dull after a while, and I found myself wanting the opportunity to be able to predict the half-time and full-time score, or the next scorer or next team to score, as you can in in-play betting. This is such an obvious missed opportunity that I can only assume there’s something in Heineken’s UCL sponsorship contract that prevents them from using scoring data.

The Verdict

Seven out of ten. This is a great move by Heineken that has the potential to create real social currency among football fans, become an essential part of the UCL experience, and an engagement platform in its own right. But there are missed opportunities too that need to be addressed if, as an experience, the app is to achieve its full potential.

By Tim Crow on May 4th, 2011

Tags: Branded content, Default, Digital marketing, Facebook, Football Sponsorship, New Product Development, Sponsorship, UEFA Champions League

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What happened?

adidas launched what its calling its ‘largest ever brand marketing campaign’ and the first to feature adidas Sport Performance, adidas Originals and adidas Sport Style sub-brands together.

By using a number of their most popular personalities from across sports and culture adidas has created an impressive campaign which leads off with this ad featuring David Beckham, Lionel Messi, Katy Perry, basketball player Derrick Rose, gymnast Louis Smith, the All Blacks, musician B.o.B and top skateboarders including Silas Baxter-Neal.   The spot aims to promote the idea that when you love your game, whatever that game may be, you put your all into it.

On top of this they have delivered an integrated campaign using ground breaking 3D projection mapping at the launch and including different TV and online versions of the film.

adidas have used their YouTube channel and Facebook page to seed engaging digital content including some individual films of their ambassadors including Messi and the musician B.o.B.  The video was seeded on Messi’s new Facebook page which launched on 7th April and achieved a remarkable 7 million likes in 7 hours.  On their campaign website www.adidas.com/areyouin fans of football, skating and music can win prizes and in the US win the chance to feature in their next version of the ad to air during the MTV Movie Awards.

Why we like it?

Rather than a sport specific campaign that we often see from brands such as adidas they have utilised so many of their assets in this campaign and across a wide spectrum of sports and culture from football to skateboarding to Russell Brand‘s missus.  The campaign therefore appeals to a huge audience across many different markets.  By using the impressive 3D projection at launch and using their various digital channels adidas are showing they are at the forefront of technology, are maximising their assets and are taking their (obviously pricey) ATL campaign many steps further.

What the brand says:

From the campaign press release:

The brand’s largest marketing campaign in history showcases adidas’ distinctive presence across different cultures and lifestyles fusing the world of sports, music and fashion and is the first time the company features adidas Sport Performance, adidas Originals and adidas Sport Style sub-brands in a single campaign.

“Today’s consumers are not one-dimensional,” said Patrik Nilsson, president of adidas America.  “They live across the cultural spectrum and that’s where adidas has its edge.  The adidas brand extends beyond sports and ‘all adidas’ celebrates this breadth of passion from athletes, musicians, artists and beyond.  The new campaign allows us to create stronger, truer connections with the consumer by encouraging and celebrating a mix of interests and passions central to their lives.”

By Erica Hodges on April 8th, 2011

Tags: Advertising, Branded content, Content, David Beckham, Digital marketing, Football, Music, Rugby, Social Media, Synergy Loves, Synopsis, Tennis, YouTube

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What happened: Coca Cola have created a new music programme called, “Coca-Cola Music,” which is designed to give teens the inside track on the creation of music and the opportunity to view the industry’s leading artists at work.   As part of this Coca Cola developed the ‘24hour session’ which uses the social power of the web, to create a unique experience for the band and fans online.  In March, Coca-Cola partnered with Maroon 5 to make music history by writing and recording a brand new song, ‘Is Anybody out There’, they were the first band to take part in the ‘24 hour Session’, using ideas from their fans via Twitter to compose the song. 

Fans can now log onto Coca-Cola’s website for a free download of the song and for the first 100,000 downloads; Coca-Cola will make a donation on your behalf to The Coca-Cola Africa Foundation’s Replenish Africa Initiative (RAIN) to provide access to clean water to people in Africa.

Why We Love It: How can we not love it?! For any die hard music fan, being able to have the smallest influence in the production of one of their favourite band’s songs is a unique experience and an unforgettable one.  ‘Coca-Cola Music’ is a concept that communicates with Coca-Cola’s global audience and gives music fans access to what would normally be undisclosed.  The ‘24 hour session’ concept was activated through promotions on facebook and used twitter as mechanism to let fans communicate in real time to Maroon 5 during the live ‘24 hour session’.  Influential bloggers across 20 countries were also employed to keep followers informed and involved in the music making process.  Coca-Cola have demonstrated how powerful social media is for a brand and by having a strong presence online it enabled them to bring their global audience together and communicate to them as one.

In turn, Coca-Cola have created a unique and bespoke experience for music fans but the longevity of this concept could easily translate into other genres, such as film.  Creating 24 hours with a top film Director editing the next big block buster, would be pretty cool, right?

What The Brand Says:   Joe Belliotti Director of Global Entertainment Marketing for Coca-Cola commented, “This is the most ambitious and experimental effort in music Coca-Cola has ever undertaken. For the 24hr Session, we are deploying and developing new and emerging technologies to allow as many people as possible to be part of the event and gain insight into the creative process that goes into making great music,”

Maroon 5′s lead vocalist, Adam Levine commented. “It was a unique experience and an amazing experience, and hopefully it will go down in the Guinness Book of World Records as a crazy, weird experience that was awesome!”

By Francesca Gamble on April 7th, 2011

Tags: Brand marketing, Communications, Default, Digital marketing, Facebook, Media, Music, Social Media, Synergy Loves, Twitter

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How could Powerade support the launch of the new Powerade ION4 master brand in February 2011, using existing sponsorship platforms to help bring the new product’s key attributes to life?

Synergy took Powerade’s tried and tested ‘sweat session’ concept (pitting ‘average Joes’ against professional sports stars), and applied it to rugby. Four rugby players, one from each of the four home Unions (spotted the ION4 link yet?) were recruited to participate in a punishing 60 minute training session at Twickenham under the direction of England’s National Fitness Coach, Paul ‘Bobby’ Stridgeon.

The session was filmed and edited to create engaging digital content that could be seeded during the RBS 6 Nations. Watch and enjoy…

‘Bobby’ (named by the London Wasps squad for his ‘Waterboy’ matchday duties when at the club) devised the training schedule to maximise sweat loss, not an easy feat on a freezing evening in early January. The lucky ‘average Joe’ was in fact amateur rugby player and carpenter Matt Taylor, who had the unenviable task of going head to head with international rugby stars Simon Shaw, Kelly Brown, Luke Fitzgerald and Alun-Wyn Jones in a continuous series of aerobic and anaerobic exercises –  including sprint shuttles, tyre flips, spinning, wrestling and a highly competitive tug of war  - to demonstrate how much sweat is lost during a high intensity training session.

All participants were weighed before and after their exertions to calculate how much weight they had lost through sweat. The big guys led the way in fluid loss, with Simon and Alun-Wyn both shedding a staggering 1.4kgs.

Now for the science bit (and the reason Powerade is now Powerade ION4): when you sweat, you also lose four essential minerals - sodium, magnesium, potassium and calcium. Without trying to sound like an advertising voiceover, Powerade ION4 has an advanced mineral system that is scientifically proven to hydrate better than water by replacing both fluids and these minerals.

For the key target audience of ‘Born Sportsmen’, we knew that in terms of insights that float their boat, statistics and data that substantiate product functionality are right up there alongside ‘behind the scenes’ footage, and seeing how normal people fare against elite athletes.  Which meant that the Powerade ION4 sweat session content provides the ideal platform to communicate the brand’s key hydration messaging, delivering against all target audience insights – at the time of year when Born Sportsmen are most highly engaged in rugby.

Although rugby adheres to the maxim ‘what goes on tour, stays on tour’, a day’s filming at Twickenham doesn’t count. So here’s a few behind the scenes highlights for any Born Sportsmen out there:

- Luke Fitzgerald ripped his shirt flexing his muscles before the warm-up started

- Alun-Wyn Jones was top performer on the shuttle sprints

- ‘Average’ Matt Taylor (also a part time oarsman), won the ergo challenge hands down

- All players bottled the ice bath option post-session

Next up for the participants (Matt apart): blood, sweat and tears in the RBS 6 Nations. Bring it on.

By Tom Gladstone on February 2nd, 2011

Tags: Advertising, Brand marketing, Branded content, Content, Default, Digital marketing, Rugby, Sponsorship, YouTube

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