Yesterday, FIFA announced the stellar line-up – an array of international and African artists – for a ‘Kick-Off Celebration Concert‘ in Soweto on June 10 to mark the opening of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Predictably, the story generated worldwide coverage. But I couldn’t help feeling that FIFA has got its PR strategy on this wrong, and could learn something from the Olympic Games.

Shakira and Alicia Keys will help kick-off the 2010 FIFA World Cup

Back in February, I blogged from Vancouver on what a huge story the Vancouver 2010 Opening Ceremony became in the week leading up to the ceremony itself. This was because the VANOC took the opposite approach to FIFA, by deliberately not revealing details of who would be performing in the Opening Ceremony, or indeed anything about what the show would be like – which naturally generated a tidal wave of media and consumer speculation and discussion, and made the Opening Ceremony one of the most eagerly-anticipated events I’ve ever encountered.

Bryan Adams and Nelly Furtado performed “Bang the Drum” at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games opening ceremony

My mind went back to this when FIFA made their announcement yesterday, and I couldn’t help but feel that FIFA has missed a trick by announcing their line-up. Had they adopted the approach taken by VANOC, I’m sure it would have created the same level of buzz and anticipation that we saw in Vancouver – maybe even more. Sure, there will be buzz around the FIFA gig, but nowhere near as much as there would have been if we didn’t know who was going to perform.

By Tim Crow on March 18th, 2010

Tags: Football, Football Sponsorship, Music, Olympic sponsorship, Olympic sponsorship consultants, Olympics, Public relations, Vancouver 2010, Winter Olympics, World Cup

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In the run-up to London 2012, UK consumers are going to hear more and more about Olympic pins, and the trading thereof. This cranked up another notch this week with the launch by LOCOG of ‘Landmark London’ pin badges, featuring iconic locations in each London borough, such as the Lambeth London 2012 pin featuring the London Eye below. They go on sale later this month and you can see them all here.

With London 2012 in mind, this led me to consider what else captured the unique geography and zeitgeist of London, and what immediately sprang to mind was Ian Dury’s brilliant rendition of ‘The Bus Driver’s Prayer’. Being of a certain vintage, I was lucky enough to see Dury perform it several times live, but as I expect most of you will be unfamiliar with it, it’s the Lord’s Prayer as - perhaps – recited by a London Bus Driver, and it goes like this:

Our Father, who art in Hendon, Harrow Road be thy name. Thy Kingston come, thy Wimbledon, in Erith as it is in Hendon. Give us this day, our Berkhamsted, and forgive us our Westminsters, as we forgive those that Westminster against us. Lead us not into Temple Station, and deliver us from Ealing, for thine is the Kingston, the Purley and Crawley, for Iver and Iver, Crouch End.

It would be nice to think that it could be worked into London 2012 in some way: as part of an ‘Essential London’ album perhaps – or maybe in the Opening Ceremony? After all, a London bus famously featured in London 2012’s section of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Closing Ceremony…

By Tim Crow on March 11th, 2010

Tags: Beijing 2008, Default, London 2012, Music, Olympics

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@synergytim tweeted this morning about a music download service soon to be launched by Sky. Sky Tunes, it says here, will take on iTunes and offer a bona fide alternative in the music download market which is to say these days, the music market per se. It’s the second such service to have crossed my bows in as many weeks, the first having been brought to my attention my my 11-year-old daughter Maddie who received what she perceived to be a genuine offer of free music from her mobile provider, Vodafone. Being the sensible girl that she is (she gets it from her mother) she first checked with me to see if it was OK to reply “yes” to Vodafone’s text and receive 10 tracks of her choice, for free.

I checked it out to find that had she done so, she would have been able to choose her 10 tracks from the UK top 50-ish, and then would have committed with no further action on her part, to a monthly subscription of £5 added to her mobile bill, for which she would have received a further 10 tracks and “the option to buy loads more”. Dangerous stuff when you’re 11 years old and Daddy pays your phone bill, so we declined to proceed.

@synergytim’s tweet reminded me of this today, as I checked out Sky’s service as described in The Guardian, finding that for a monthly subscription of £7.99 I could receive 10 tunes or an album each month. Pricier than the Vodafone service and with no apparent differential benefit.

If I understand these services correctly, I believe that in both cases should I neglect to choose tracks or albums or if I forget, the service provider will choose my music for me. How kind.

Digital natives will be too young to remember a company called Britannia Music, but migrants may recall how in the 1970s and 80s, members of the Britannia Music club, snared by the offer of four albums for £1 each, then paid about £5 per month to the club, for which they received the Britannia Music-selected “Album of the Month” in their chosen format: LP, cassette or 8-track (this last is a dimly recalled format from my pre-school days, I assure you). The entire catalogue of Britannia Music was available for purchase at full or discounted prices. Funny, but all the stuff I listened to always seemed to be full price.

Sky Tunes and the Vodafone Music Club use similar mechanics to the old Britannia Music club, adapted for the digital age. Having wasted my hard-earned pocket money as a teenager on Kirsty MacColl’s Desperate Character and Witchfynde’s appalling debut Give ‘Em Hell, I want to warn all you young folk out there that there is a better, more transparent way of buying music. It’s called iTunes and whilst I welcome competition in the free market, the above two examples are not it because they are fundamentally not transparent. Not honest, even.

These lock-you-in-to-a-punitive-contract music supply services are not new and offer nothing that can not be obtained for similar prices or cheaper elsewhere.  The Guardian points out two added benefits of the Sky service: first, that its tracks come DRM-free and can be played on any MP3 player whereas iTunes tracks require an iPod. With iPods dominating the personal music scene to as great a degree as Microsoft dominates the personal computer OS market, this seems a dubious benefit. And second: Sky offers unlimited streaming for free, which is nice, but I get that anyway via Last.fm and Spotify. I have done so for months.

And where do I listen to these free music services? On my iPhone and iPod, of course.

By Scott Garrett on October 12th, 2009

Tags: Default, Digital marketing, Downloads, Music, New Product Development

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Just yesterday at Synergy towers, there was some collective musing going on around how the face of sponsorship could change in the next few decades. And that got me thinking about that ever-elusive demographic – the 16-24 year olds – to see how they might be running businesses and consuming media in 25 years’ time.

One area of interest is how immune (or not) youth of today have become to brand presence in their everyday lives. Do they reject it (oft-quoted myth)? Do they embrace it (when it suits them)? Do they challenge it to give them added value before giving it their valuable attention (‘what’s in it for me’)? Or do they ignore it altogether?

Or, have they come to expect it as par for the course of being entertained? I wondered if the ’such and such, brought to you by…’ had become such a ubiquitous tag to music concerts / sporting fixtures / televised events, that people in 10 or 20 years might actually notice an absence of brand more than its presence. After all, I was hearing this mandatory credit line before I could even read, from the loveable muppets of Sesame Street (‘Sesame Street was brought to you by the number 8 and letters D and M…’ etc.)

But one interesting application of the sponsorship concept was brought to me today by Britain’s favourite ‘University Outfitter’, Jack Wills.

Having just returned from a summer of fun in New England, the brand’s bright young marketing things are about to embark on another grand tour of the UK’s trendiest universities. JW will be partying at various Freshers’ Weeks in the next few weeks, combining their ‘fabulously British’ fashion with cutting edge, fresh new music – via the brand’s evolving unofficial music label, JWUnsigned.

But what caught my eye in the creative flyer for the Tour was the sponsorship line. Bearing in mind that this is a Jack-Wills event, delivered as a music tour produced by a Jack Wills sub-brand, it is ’sponsored by’ – wait for it – a Jack Wills clothing line. This year’s JWUnsigned Freshers Tour is brought to you by No.350-4-842 – the brand’s denim range.

This I feel points to some interesting signs about the presence that sponsorship has in the lives of youth culture today. Sponsorship in its very basic sense (brand-pays-rights-holder) cannot apply here given that both the sponsor and property are from the same stable. So one assumes that JW is using the Tour platform to leverage awareness of its 350-4-842 denim as almost a stand-alone brand, instantly recognizable in and of itself but crucially as part of the Jack Wills family.

But I sense that there must be an implicit acceptance here by the Tour’s marketeers that their target consumers are so expectant of a live event being sponsored, it has become a necessary element of the Tour name. ‘Sponsored by…’ acts in this case as a ready-made stamp of officialdom: all big music events are sponsored so the JWUnsigned Tour needs to be too, in order to gain stature and acceptance within the youth marketplace.

St. Andrew’s, Leeds, Edinburgh, London, Bristol, Nottingham, Guildford and Brighton all appear to be on the list of host cities for the Tour events, and I’m intrigued to see what these will look like. How will JW use the opportunity to engage with their fans? Will they be actively spreading the word of their ‘Worn in but not Worn Out’ denim range to a captive audience of indie music fans? Will the bands be wearing the jeans during all their sets? Or is that ’sponsored by…’ tag ultimately just that – a tagline?

And most interesting of all – will the legions of JW-loving Freshers either notice or, perhaps more importantly, care?

By Lucie Bartlett on September 9th, 2009

Tags: Brand marketing, Experiential marketing, Fashion, Music, Sponsorship, Synergy

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Can you recall the last CD you bought? Unless you’re either a seriously early adopter or an MP3 evangelist, you’ll probably be able to dredge up that memory. What about the last album you downloaded? Chances are you might be able to remember that too. Okay, so what was the last single you got from iTunes? Maybe trickier?

Granted, I’ll still buy the odd CD, but we’re talking about a handful of artists whose records I’ve always bought – somewhere between a fan’s loyalty and a collector’s prerogative. Do I download full albums? Very rarely. You’d need to be talking about either a pretty esoteric band (which iTunes isn’t always guaranteed to stock) or a download-only release. And I’m not alone. Singles rule the download charts, whole careers etched out through a few million mouse clicks on Apple’s site.

Last year Katy Perry notched up over 2 million downloads of ‘I Kissed a Girl’ on iTunes (no wonder she liked it), but only 282,000 copies of her album. That sort of singles-to-album sales ratio simply never happened pre-iTunes.

Over the past couple of years both the distributors of digital content (read: iTunes) and even artists themselves have found this troubling enough a trend to warrant two very different reactions.

For iTunes this has meant ‘Complete My Album’. Described (by Apple) as “a wonderful new way that iTunes helps customers grow and enjoy their music collections”, this is an additional service made available for six months following the purchase of any individual song/songs from a given album, iTunes offers a discounted rate on the rest of the collection in question. In fact, by mid 2008, ‘Complete My Album’ was said to be responsible for 52% of all album purchases on iTunes, with a 10% conversion rate from single to full work. In response, a number of recording artists have capitalised on this opportunity, digitally releasing tracks in advance of the full album being made available, whilst ensuring that their fanbases are made aware of the facility and the deal iTunes is offering them.

By contrast, Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins has publicly stated that the band will only be releasing singles, rather than full albums: “We’re done with that. There is no point. People don’t even listen to it all. They put it on their iPod, they drag over the two singles and skip over the rest.” Taking this a step further, AC/DC simply refuse to put their music on iTunes, stating “We don’t make singles, we make albums.” Schoolboy error? Given that their last album, ‘Black Ice’ sold over 8 million copies, having debuted at #1 in 29 countries, I’d say they’re fairly switched on.

Guy Garvey, lead singer of Elbow has described downloads, and iTunes in particular, as being “responsible for the death of the album”, although you can most certainly purchase the band’s wares on said site. I guess there’s still something to be said about the age-old quest for albums that are all killer, no filler – but what happens to those records with the songs that used to grow on you? Understanding where a band was, artistically, when they wrote any given piece of music? Do certain tunes always have the same impact in isolation of their creative surrounds?

I mean, other than an executive at Sony, whose favourite album is a ‘Best of…’?

By Jonathan Izzard on July 22nd, 2009

Tags: Default, Digital marketing, Music

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In football especially, we’re used to seeing teams, governing bodies, brands and celebs attempt to make a few quid around major events by releasing a track which attempts to capture the zeitgeist, and there have been some brilliant moments – especially Three Lions, Nessun Dorma,  World In Motion, and the Nike-inspired A Little Less Conversation. Which brings me to The Ashes, the 2009 edition of which starts today, and two very new, and very different attempts to join the pantheon.

First up is Hey Hey Ricky by The Barmy Army (with a lot of help from Naked), which falls firmly into the ‘make a few quid’ category, the Barmy Army being, as The Times demonstrates today, something of a hand-to-mouth operation.

The track has a catchy riff (which many will recognise from the days when the BBC televised cricket) and some clever, light-hearted, Aussie-bashing lyrics. I have to say I hated the film though, with its clunky, gratuitous brand placements, and equally gratuitous Benny Hill meets Eric Prydz moments. But judge for yourself here.

Next up is The Duckworth Lewis Method, a concept album of cricket-inspired songs by Irish musos Neil Hannon (of the Divine Comedy) and Thomas Walsh (of Pugwash).

We shouldn’t be surprised, incidentally, that two Irishmen have turned their attention to cricket – after all, Ireland  bowled out the mighty 1960s West Indies for 25 back in 1969 (albeit with with more than a little help from Arthur Guinness the night before) and Samuel Beckett was a fan and played at first class level, and as such is the only Nobel Prize-winning author to feature in Wisden.

I’m sure that Sam would have approved of TDLM, and I’d be shoulder to shoulder with him. It’s barking mad, but utterly, utterly brilliant, and I unreservedly urge you to buy it.

By Tim Crow on July 8th, 2009

Tags: Branded content, Cricket, Default, Music, Product placement

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I’ve been in plenty of creative meetings recently. Creative sessions to me are brilliant: lots of enthusiasm, energy, ideas and the best thing is you can’t be wrong (often!)  One of my favourite things is how fresh and innovative they can be. However, in the last year or so, one thing always seems to come up; flash mobbing. Now I’m not opposed to it – quite the opposite if you see below - but I don’t think it works for every brand.

Hats off to T-Mobile who reignited the trend once again at Christmas.  I’m sure you’ll have read about it and seen the ad but if not take a look below:

A quite brilliant intro to the use of flash mobbing, I’m sure you’ll agree.  Now for my new favourite, one I’ve just been sent today.  This is from NY400, an initiative set up to celebrate 400 years of friendship between the Netherlands and the USA.  If you’re in a hurry skip the first 30 seconds, but well worth a watch.

Not right for everyone maybe, but definitely right for some brands and this one certainly got me thinking about going Dutch.  So next time we have a creative meeting and the ‘flash mob’ gem pops up we’ll be giving it some thought. This piece demonstrates beautifully that you can still be innovative with a concept that’s been used time and time again.

By Ben Wilkinson on April 7th, 2009

Tags: Advertising, Brand marketing, Branded content, Digital marketing, Experiential marketing, Flash mobbing, Media, Music, Television, Viral Marketing, YouTube

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Obviously The O2 and its owners AEG think so and I hope they are right.  But what damage will be done to their reputation if Michael Jackson is a disappointment?

I, like millions of others, watched the lengthy ad on ITN at the weekend designed to stir up those of us who witnessed Michael Jackson’s finest performances and have remained fans ever since.

 It had the desired effect.  I was propelled to think about how I could get tickets to see the great man in July.

And then sense prevailed and, I’m afraid, a certain cynicism set in. 

Yes, he was fantastic.  But is he still?  Everything would suggest that he isn’t, but oh how I would love to be proved wrong.  But, imagine the disappointment if I go along to watch and he’s just not up to it.  (I had a similar secret dread about Tina Turner last week but happily she was everything she always has been and the show was simply the best).

Then my sponsorship and marketing brain got working.  Hadn’t Pepsi had an unfortunate relationship with Jackson some years back when it became an embarrassment to be associated with the performer?  Is AEG taking a similar risk?

How much must AEG have paid to get him to commit to ten performances?  Or, maybe, he’s so short of money and desperate to rekindle his fans’ spending power that AEG’s outlay wasn’t as great as I first supposed.

Will he last for 10 performances?  What insurance does AEG have if he doesn’t?  Will punters get their money back if he can’t last the pace?  Would a  fallout damage AEG’s reputation?  The questions are endless and the risks are high.

And, last but not least, my practical side took over and I was left thinking what a nightmare it must be for whoever is responsible for putting together the crisis communications plan.  Good luck to them I say. 

By Karen Earl on March 10th, 2009

Tags: ITV, Music, Public relations, Sponsorship, Television

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A rather unusual story caught my eye on Page 3 of The Sun today – don’t worry it didn’t invade on the usual space devoted to the beauty chosen for her intellect and commitment to good causes. However, alongside ‘Nikkala, 25, from Middlesex’ is a story on Francis Rossi from Status Quo chopping his infamous ponytail off. It seems that time hasn’t been kind to the ageing rock star who has been struggling to pull his now wispy locks into a ponytail.

I can see why the bods at The Sun gave space to this light-hearted story, particulary given the amount of depressing news that has filled our papers over the past months. However the part I don’t get, and that frankly makes me feel a little weird, is that they are running an exclusive competition to give away Rossi’s 35 year old ponytail.

I’d be interested to know how many entries they get for it and even more so, what the proud winner is planning on doing with the ultimate piece of Status Quo memorabilia . Then again, maybe it’s better not to know.

By Kelly Russell on March 10th, 2009

Tags: Media, Music, Public relations

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Last week we helped launch British Airways’ Great Britons campaign at Heathrow by naming a plane after Olympic Gold medallist Chris Hoy. We’ve been working closely with the team at British Airways to create a campaign to demonstrate a clear role for British Airways in the London 2012 Olympic Games.

As the national flag carrier, helping British talent succeed has always important to BA and the 2012 Games has given the airline a great goal to aim for. The BA Great Britons programme is offering hundreds of free flights in the run up to 2012, to enable budding talent from sport, fashion, community, art & design, innovation and performing arts to realise their dreams.

Whilst much Olympic marketing can feel remote to consumers, this campaign has active participation at is core. Alongside encouraging applicants to show how flights could help them, BA is encouraging the public to vote on who deserves to fly across the world in search of their dream.

The initial response has been positive with good media pick up and lots of discussion on a variety of blogs from http://www.gaj-it.com/7639/british-airways-holds-its-very-own-britains-got-talent-show to http://styleclone.com/128/fancy-a-flight-to-milan-fashion-show-with-british-airways. The hope is to not only receive hundreds of applicants but create a forum for discussion and support for Britain’s up and coming talent.

By Roberto Colandangelo on February 27th, 2009

Tags: Fashion, Film, London 2012, London 2012 sponsorship, Music, Olympic sponsorship, Olympics, Team GB, The Arts, grass roots sport

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