Creating Brand Awareness Through Event Marketing, Lecture notes of Marketing

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Mälardalen University School of Sustainable Development of Society and Technology International Marketing Master Thesis EFO705 Creating Brand Awareness Through Event Marketing The Off-Field Competition of Sportswear Companies in the Olympics Laura Dolge Malin Marmbrandt Supervisor: Peter Ekman Examiner: Ole Liljefors Västerås, Sweden May 30, 2012 II Abstract Date: May 30, 2012 University: Mälardalen University, Sweden Program: MIMA- International Marketing Course Name: Master Thesis (EFO705) Title: Creating Brand Awareness Through Event Marketing The Off-Field Competition of Sportswear Companies in the Olympics Authors: Laura Dolge Malin Marmbrandt Group Number: 2877 Supervisor: Peter Ekman Examiner: Ole Liljefors Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to research how companies are promoting themselves efficiently to increase brand awareness through advertisement in major sporting events, throug+h viral marketing and athlete endorsement. Research Questions: Firstly: What are the major differences and similarities between the official and non-official sponsors and their marketing activities when creating brand awareness in sporting events? Secondly: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through viral marketing activities? Thirdly: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through athlete endorsement? Method: Data was collected with a qualitative multi-method approach that consists of observations of online social networks and media (netnography), and semi-structured interviews was applied. Conclusion: The main differences between the official and the non-official sponsor´s marketing campaigns are that the official sponsor has the advantage of using the event’s logo in its campaigns, and is able to V Contents Chapter 1: Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background and research area ............................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Description of the problem ...................................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Purpose of the study ................................................................................................................................... 3 1.3.1 Research Question ............................................................................................................................... 3 1.4 Outline of the Study ..................................................................................................................................... 3 Chapter 2: Theoretical framework .................................................................................................................... 4 2.1 Branding ........................................................................................................................................................... 4 2.2 Brand awareness .......................................................................................................................................... 6 2.3 Sports marketing communication channels ...................................................................................... 7 2.3.1 Event Sponsorship ............................................................................................................................... 8 2.3.2 Viral Marketing ..................................................................................................................................... 9 2.3.3 Athlete endorsement ....................................................................................................................... 10 2.3.4 Ambush marketing ........................................................................................................................... 11 2.4 Conceptual Framework........................................................................................................................... 14 Chapter 3: Methodology...................................................................................................................................... 16 3.1 Selection of Topic ...................................................................................................................................... 16 3.2 Interest and relevance ............................................................................................................................. 17 3.3 Research Design ......................................................................................................................................... 17 3.4 Data collection ............................................................................................................................................ 18 3.4.1 Secondary Data .................................................................................................................................. 18 3.4.2 Primary Data ....................................................................................................................................... 19 3.4.3. Netnography ...................................................................................................................................... 19 3.4.4 Interviews ............................................................................................................................................ 20 VI 3.4.5 Data collection methods applied ................................................................................................ 21 3.5 Reliability and validity ............................................................................................................................ 22 3.6 Limitations ................................................................................................................................................... 22 3.7 Ethics .............................................................................................................................................................. 23 Chapter 4: Empirical Findings .......................................................................................................................... 24 4.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 24 4.2 Olympic Games ........................................................................................................................................... 24 4.2.1 Olympic Games brand ..................................................................................................................... 25 4.2.2. Sponsorship in the Olympic Games .......................................................................................... 26 4.3 Adidas - the official sponsor of London 2012 ................................................................................ 28 4.3.1 Viral Marketing Activities .............................................................................................................. 29 4.3.2 Adidas athlete endorsement ........................................................................................................ 32 4.4 Nike - a non-official sponsor of London 2012 ............................................................................... 33 4.4.1 Nike´s Viral Marketing Activities ................................................................................................ 33 4.4.2 Nike athlete endorsement ............................................................................................................. 35 4.5 Ambush marketing in Olympics .......................................................................................................... 36 Chapter 5: Analysis (Adidas vs. Nike) ........................................................................................................... 39 5.1 Comparing and analysing viral campaigns ..................................................................................... 39 5.2 Comparing and analysing endorsed athletes ................................................................................. 43 5.3 Analysing the ambush activities in 2012 ......................................................................................... 45 5.4 Summary of the Analysis ........................................................................................................................ 46 Chapter 6: Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................... 49 Recommendations and Further Research ................................................................................................... 52 Bibliography ........................................................................................................................................................... VII Appendices ............................................................................................................................................................. VIII VII List of Illustrations Illustration 1 Olympic Mascotts ....................................................................................................................... 26 Illustration 2 Olympic Logo ............................................................................................................................... 26 Illustration 3 Adidas brand anthem; Adidas „All In” campaign .......................................................... 29 Illustration 4 Adidas Take The Stage campaign ........................................................................................ 30 Illustration 5 Adidas „All In 2012” banner .................................................................................................. 30 Illustration 6 Team GB Athletic Gear; Adidas Olympic Sportswear Collection ............................ 31 Illustration 7 Adidas 2012 Media Launch ................................................................................................... 31 Illustration 8 AdiZone Court ............................................................................................................................. 32 Illustration 9 Nike „Maka It Count” Campaign ........................................................................................... 33 Illustration 10 Nike | How Will You Make 2012 Count? ........................................................................ 34 Illustration 11 Nike + Fuel Band ..................................................................................................................... 34 Illustration 12 Nike Fuel Band Trip Video .................................................................................................. 35 Illustration 13 Nike Turbo Speed Suit ........................................................................................................... 35 Illustration 14 Nike Football Commercial ................................................................................................... 36 2 campaigns around the event, without using the event logo, trademark or trade name, and still be able to create brand awareness and association with the event (Schmitz, 2005). This study is focused on the sportswear industry. Sportswear is a visible element that athletes are wearing during the competition, thus audience is exposed to the sportswear brands when they are looking at athletes. For the Olympics 2012 in London this summer, the official sponsoring sportswear company will be Adidas (London 2012 Organizing Committee, 2011). Despite Adidas´s exclusive deal with the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG), there is no doubt that other sportswear companies will try to get noticed (Kelso, 2012). Nike is one of Adidas´s main competitors, and will be discussed in this study as an example of a non-official sponsoring company. 1.2 Description of the problem The need for sponsorship is crucial for major sporting events to take place since it takes a lot of financial investments. Therefore, events have official sponsors that are offered exclusive rights to advertise in the event and gain brand awareness, and these rights are acquired by paying a sponsorship fee (Ellen, 2010). Major events are also a marketing opportunity for a brand to be seen and to create brand awareness among consumers from the brand’s target market (Kim, 2010). Meenaghan (1996) explains that a problem often occuring during these large events is that other non-official sponsoring companies are also marketing their brand and products at or nearby the event, or run commercials with a connection to the event to create brand awareness. These marketing strategies, called “Ambush Marketing”, detract from a rival that is the official sponsor, and thereby it can diminish the value of the official sponsorship. “This practice, known as ´ambush´ or ´parasitic´ marketing, simultaneously reduces the effectiveness of the sponsor’s message while undermining the quality and value of the sponsorship opportunity that the event owner is selling.” (Meenaghan, 1996 p103). In this study, advertising campaigns prior to the Olympics 2012 will be examined and analyzed, and a comparison between the official sponsor and the non-official sponsor will be conducted. In the sportswear industry, there are two market leaders competing for brand awareness and market share - Adidas and Nike (Kelso, 2012a). Adidas is the official sponsor in London this summer, where the Games will be taking place from July 27th to August 12th, making it the exclusive advertiser for sports apparel and shoes during this period. This study will investigate the marketing activities that Adidas performs in relation to the Games through viral marketing and athlete endorsement. Moreover, this study will also investigate how Nike as a non-official sponsor is creating brand awareness in connection with the Games and their use of ambush marketing. However, there are many legal limitations and restrictions regarding ambush marketing in the Olympics 2012 that Nike must take into consideration before launching their campaigns (London 2012 Organizing Committee, 2011). Marketing in connection to sporting events through viral marketing is a new and rapidly growing phenomena (Miller, 2012), thus there is a knowledge gap regarding this topic (Owen & Humphfrey, n.d). The growth of ambush marketing in large events and the importance of athletes in companies advertisements are other interesting topics that the authors found little academic research on when conducting the literature review. Therefore, the authors wanted to 3 investigate these marketing tactic’s impact on the London Olympics 2012. Moreover, the authors aim is to compare the different marketing activities from the official sponsor and a non-official sponsor, and to evaluate their performance in order to find out if the official sponsorship in the event ensures the highest brand awareness. 1.3 Purpose of the study The purpose of this study is to analyse how companies are promoting themselves efficiently to increase their brand awareness through advertisement in major sporting events by either sponsoring the event or by using ambush marketing strategies. A comparison between an official sponsor and a non-official sponsoring company will be conducted. The authors focused the investigation on two of the marketing channels: viral marketing and athlete endorsement. 1.3.1 Research Question In order to examine the different marketing activities companies are using to promote themselves and to create brand awareness in the Olympics, the following research questions were developed to guide the research: R.Q.1: What are the major differences and similarities between the official and non-official sponsors and their marketing activities when creating brand awareness in sporting events? R.Q.2: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through viral marketing activities? R.Q.3: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through athlete endorsement? 1.4 Outline of the Study Chapter 1 includes introduction, background information and research area of this study. Further, the problem, purpose and research questions are presented. Chapter 2 provides a theoretical framework where definitions, key concepts and theories are defined and explained. Moreover, Chapter 3 explains the methods the authors used when conducting the research, as well as reliability, validity, ethics and limitations. Additionally, Chapter 4 presents the empirical findings of the chosen companies marketing strategies in the the Olympics, and also about ambush marketing in previous Olympics found through the conducted research, observing the viral environment, and when conducting interviews. In Chapter 5, the empirical material is analyzed and compared to previous theories presented in the theoretical chapter. Lastly, in Chapter 6, the conclusions are presented as well as the answers to the research questions. In the end of this chapter recommendations are provided. 4 Chapter 2: Theoretical framework In this chapter the authors define the concepts that were used in this study and present a conceptual framework. The theoretical framework guides the audience through the concepts, and provides structure and coherence during the data collection and analysis for the researchers. 2.1 Branding A brand is distinguished by a name or symbol that identifies a product and helps to differentiate it from others (Dolak, 2003). In general, branding builds name recognition for one´s company or product (Dolak, 2003). It is very important to stand out in today's global marketplace because people are surrounded by many products and services. Therefore the importance of brand management has greatly increased. In fact, the marketer´s most essential task today is building and managing their brands (Kottler & Armstrong, 2010). The brand has to be carefully developed and managed, and therefore branding is a vital part of the marketing strategy. A brand is the company´s most powerful and valuable intangible asset, and can even be more important than the company´s products or services and facilities (Aaker, 1991). Kotler and Keller (2006) argue that because brands represent consumers´ perceptions and feelings about a product, the most critical aspect for a brand to capture is consumer preference and loyalty. Companies develop new products and build new stores and factories, despite the fierce competition and the fact that there are few empty or undeveloped niches. Therefore, in order to fight for market share, every product has to be different than the company’s rivals and it is essential to stand out (Ghauri & Cateora, 2010). When brands are successful they represent kept promises and they build loyalty through trust. This results into loyal customers who continue to demand products, and consequently profit for the company (Reichheld, 2001). By establishing the brand, it is possible to develop and shape it further. As mentioned above, brands are one of the most valuable assets that companies have. They can increase the value of a company over time or provide an opportunity to expand the business - for example by creating sub-brands and therefore allowing operations in different areas. Moreover, the company can develop a strong brand personality that makes it possible to explore new areas with the same brand. An example of this is Virgin offering services and products within various areas, like airline, music records and media. Further, differentiating a brand has become a central task for companies in the quest to become more competitive and moving towards building or producing a brand, rather than a product (Ghauri & Cateora, 2010). Brands do evolve over time. There are five levels that can be stated in a pyramid form. The first level pertains to attributes that make brands special and express the identity of the producer (i.e. label). The second level is known as functional superiority or benefits. The third level is referred to as the emotional reward that customer receives by using a brand. The fourth level pertains to customer values and the power of self-expression image. At the top of the pyramid stands a brand’s personality, which is the major component of brand building and includes promotion of its image and lifestyle. Ghauri & Cateora (2010) suggests complementing this 7 In sports marketing, branding and the creation of brand awareness can be performed in several ways by using different sports marketing communication channels, which will be discussed in the next section. 2.3 Sports marketing communication channels “Marketing communications are the means by which firms attempt to inform, persuade, and remind consumers-directly or indirectly—about the products and brands that they sell” (Kotler & Keller, 2006 p.536). Nowadays people are exposed to information and advertisements through various communication channels. These communication channels have to be appropriate and have an image fit between the channel, product, the environment or context that it is transferred in (Kotler & Keller, 2006). Sport events are gaining popularity and the sport event business is growing every day, therefore, sports marketing has been developed. The sport business is worth billions of dollars and thus marketers have realized that sports marketing is a vital part of the economy and offers a ripe opportunity for consumer marketers (Bush, 2005). Studies have proved that people tend to rely on word of mouth which can influence a consumer´s purchase behaviour (Rosen, 2000). Thus sport-oriented companies are recognizing that creating a “buzz”, whether it is via peers, key Internet portals, market mavens, or celebrity endorsements, is an integral part of their marketing communications strategy (Rosen, 2000). In order to reach customer’s attention, it is necessary to develop marketing communications that inform, persuade, and remind customers about the brands that are represented. Such communication can be provided directly or indirectly to build relationships with customers and to develop brand awareness (Kotler & Keller, 2006). These marketing communication options can be mixed and combined according to the necessity and relevance. It is possible that customers find the marketing channel inappropriate for the product, thus it creates negative association towards it. For example, life insurance advertisement in aircraft can develop negative feelings for passengers that are afraid to fly (Keller, 2008). There are ten suggested marketing communication channels: Media advertising (TV, radio, newspaper); Direct response advertising (Mail, telephone, broadcast media, print media); Viral Marketing (Web sites, interactive ads and e-mails); Place advertising (Billboards and posters, movies, airlines, product placement); Point-of-purchase advertising (Shelf talkers, aisle markers, shopping cart ads, in-store radio and TV); Trade promotions (Cooperative advertising, trade deals and buying allowances, contests); Consumer promotions (Samples, coupons, premiums, bonus packs,price-offs); Event marketing & sponsorship (Sports, arts, entertainment, festivals); Publicity and public relations; Personal selling (Keller, 2008, p. 230) As for this study, the authors focus on two of the communication channels; event marketing & sponsorship, and viral marketing. In connection to these, topics of athlete endorsement and ambush marketing are discussed. The authors chose these topics since event sponsorship is a common marketing communication channel for sportswear companies that use large events to promote themselves. Moreover, athlete endorsement is also often used by sportswear companies in large events to gain awareness, since their products are visible during games and competitions. In this years Olympics the use of viral marketing has increased largely, and 8 therefore it is an interesting area to research. These topics will now be discussed in the following sections. 2.3.1 Event Sponsorship Sponsorship is similar to traditional advertising in the way that both are used to communicate an organization’s message and image of a product, brand or service to the target market (Jalleh, 2002). Sponsorship is a common marketing activity that takes place in public events or projects and it is also known as event marketing (Sneath et al., 2005). Connecting a brand to an event is a good approach to address consumers. “By forging this connection, sponsorship makes use of balance theory which states that when a belief may be unbalanced and unstable about two objects, the human mind unconsciously tries to link the lowly valued object (product) with the highly valued object (event). As a result of this process, sponsorship creates, in the minds of consumers, a link between the company or brand and an event or organisation that targets consumers’ value highly” (Erdogan & Kitchen, 1998). Another advantage of using events as a communication channel includes the face-to-face contact a sponsoring company can have with their target audience (Sneath, Finney, Close, 2005). Every company cooperates differently depending on the type of event and product. According to Fill (2006) sponsorship is a commercial activity, whereby one part permits another part an opportunity to exploit an association with a target audience in return for funds, services or resources. In this research the authors put emphasis on sports marketing as it is a popular type of events that attracts many people and therefore marketers as well. It is important to choose appropriate events in order to match the target audience and the brand. There are four crucial factors that affect sponsor recall: sponsor relatedness, sponsor prominence, buyer exposure to the brand at the event, and buyer exposure to the brand “due to individual involvement or identification with the sport and team” (Wakefield, et al, 2007, p.67). The intensity and frequency of the individual´s relationship with the event will drive the level of event’s sponsor recall. Therefore, the image of the event is very important. It has to have sufficient awareness and has to be able to deliver desired expectations. Gwinner and Eaton (1999) suggest two types of product relevance: function-based, in which the product is used in the course of the event by the participants, and image-based, in which the brand seems to belong with the event. “Sponsorships are now one of the fastest growing marketing communications vehicles in the world” (Gwinner & Eaton, 1999). There are many ways in which a company can identify itself as a sponsor. The most popular ones are signs, banners or special programs and it can be supplemented with prizes, free samples of goods, and retail promotions (Keller, 2008; Hede and Kellett, 2011). Personal contact with the brand during the event can increase possibility that potential customer will remember it or even buy it. For example, allowing people to interact with the product or talk to the representatives. As for TV viewers of the event, they can switch the channel or do something else during the break because people tend to avoid commercials, yet they are exposed to the banners and other ads on the spot during the event. For example, football fields with sponsored banners and branded athletes are impossible to avoid. This kind of passive communication is not as effective as active interaction with the viewer, although this is the only communication tool for visual media audience. (Nickell, Cornwell, & Johnston, 2011) 9 2.3.2 Viral Marketing The future of traditional mass media advertising is uncertain (Ingram, 2010) since the rising cost of buying traditional media has made the marketers search for other channels (Wilson, 2005). At the same time consumers consider themselves overwhelmed by too many advertising messages, leading to consumers that actively avoid traditional marketing instruments (Hinz, 2012). An alternative marketing channel that companies can use to promote themselves is viral marketing. Viral marketing is described as a marketing technique that use social networks to create brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives, by encouraging individuals to pass on a marketing message to other users or sites (Wilson, 2005; Hinz, 2012). Viral marketing is an attractive alternative since it uses the free endorsement of individuals rather than purchasing mass media to spread the word (Wilson, 2005) Moreover, viral advertising is an efficient marketing tool, because consumers can pick and choose what ads they want to watch and when, and when opting in voluntarily, the message is received more effectively (Howard, 2005). This marketing strategy depends on a high pass-along rate from person to person, with so called word-of-mouth (WOM) and buzz marketing. Buzz marketing is simply referred to as “buzz”, and is an expression of the type of publicity spread among consumers online, causing excitement for the product being marketed (MindComet, 2008).“Buzz marketing is a multi-dimensional communication process that involves sending persuasive messages out via buzz agents (senders) to buzz targets (receivers) in the form of WOM (offline and online) conversations, and retrieving market research information from buzz agents on the particulars of these buzz marketing experiences” (Roshan, Michels, Walker, Weissbuch, 2007 p.151). A positive buzz is usually the aim of viral marketing (Roshan et al., 2007). Viral marketing is considered to be an inexpensive, effective and powerful tool to increase the popularity of a brand and it creates a potential for exponential growth in the message's visibility and effect if a buzz is generated online (Hinz 2012; MindComet, 2008). A buzz spread like a virus, and the viral strategies take advantage of the rapid multiplication, where a message can be shared by thousands, and even millions in a short period of time (Wilson, 2005). Viral marketing may take the form of video clips, emails, images, interactive flash games, advergames, or text messages (Rodić, 2012). Platforms used for launching these marketing messages and campaigns include the brand's social media page (for example twitter, facebook, youtube), blogs, the campaign´s own website or the brand´s website (Rodić, 2012). A trend among major marketers is to create interactive online campaigns in which they try to create messages so fascinating, funny or evocative that the consumers spontaneously want to share them with friends in the viral environment. If the consumers gets involved in the ad, it is more likely that the consumers will share message (Ives, 2005). The main strength of viral marketing is that it involves targeted promotion, meaning that it can reach a large number of interested people at low costs. The challenge with viral marketing is to make the message creative or attractive enough for users to want to bother spreading it around (Hinz, 2012). There are various reasons why people would not want to share and spread the ad 12 Subcategory within an Event”. This is when the ambushing company decides to sponsor some lesser category within the event, at a lower cost than the official sponsorship fee. Again, a dispute between Kodak and Fuji illustrates this, but this time the roles were reversed. Kodak was the official sponsor in the 1988 Olympic Games, and Fuji sponsored the U.S swim team and advertised aggressively, and thereby associated themselves with the event at a lower cost. Further, making a sponsorship-related contribution to the “Players´pool” means that the ambushing company is sponsoring individual athletes or teams participating in an event. Athletes and teams have a powerful position in events, and they are looking to sell their property rights to sponsors. This creates a complicated situation and brings up the dilemma of whose rights should prevail (Meenaghan, 1996). One example of this is when Puma sponsored Usain Bolt in the 2008 Olympic Games, and after winning the Gold in the 100 meter race, he held up his Puma shoes when being photographed (Ellen, 2010). Moreover, Meenaghan (1996) explains that the ambusher can plan marketing activities that coincides with the event, or purchase traditional advertising around the event. For example, the rival company to the official sponsor might advertise heavily during or around a sponsored event. This happened in the 1992 Olympics, when McDonald´s was the official sponsor, and another fast-food chain, Wendy´s, featured an Olympic champion figure skater in their commercials. This connected Wendy´s to the event and detracted from their rivals McDonald´s, while the audience got confused about what company actually were the sponsor of the event. The last form of ambush marketing that Meenaghan describes is “developing imaginative ambush strategies”. Ambushing companies make use of creative campaigns and new forms of media to promote themselves in connection to events. One example of a creative campaign was the brewing company Fosters ambushed the official sponsor Steinlager in the Rugby World Cup in Great Britain in 1992. Fosters ran a campaign in Great Britain during the event, using the tag line “Swing low sweet carry-out”, which was clearly a play with the words from the British rugby teams anthem “Swing low sweet chariot” in an attempt to be associated with the event without paying an expensive sponsorship fee (Meenaghan, 1996). Other authors that have written about the topic of ambush marketing are Chadwick and Burton (2010). They identified three different forms of ambush marketing. Direct Ambush Activities. Indirect Ambushes, and Incidental Ambushing. 1. Direct ambush activities include Predatory Ambushing, Coattail Ambushing, Property Infringement, and Self-Ambushing, and takes place when a brand intentionally tries to associate itself with an event without paying the sponsorship fees. Sometimes companies do this primarily to attack their rivals, other times this activity occurs mainly to take advantage of the large audience watching the event (Chadwick & Burton 2010). Some examples of direct ambush activities are when American Express had an ad during the Summer Olympics 1992 in Barcelona saying “And remember, to visit Spain, you don't need a visa”, while Visa was the official sponsor of the Games. One more example is when a sportswear company is sponsoring an athlete participating in an event that is sponsored by the rival brand. Moreover, if a company intentionally makes use of a protected intellectual property, unauthorized, it is also direct ambushing. Examples of such properties include logos, words and symbols associated with the 13 event. All these activities create confusion for the customers about who actually is the official sponsor (Chadwick & Burton 2010). 2. Indirect Ambushes include Associative Ambushing, Distracting Ambushing, Values Ambushing, Insurgent Ambushing and Parallel Property Ambushing. It is defined as the intentional association of a brand with an event in order to market their product, but the brands main focus is not to take attention from their rivals, as in the direct ambush activities. An example of this is when a brand is putting up ads and billboards near the event without making a specific connection to the event itself, but in order to gain awareness from the event’s audience. Moreover, when a brand uses an event´s central theme to associate itself with that event in the consumer's mind, it is also a form of indirect ambushing. For example, Puma had a soccer related ad during the FIFA World Cup in June 2008, with the slogan “June 2008: Together Everywhere”, and the theme of the event was unity and anti-racism. Lastly, if a brand competes for the public´s attention by sponsoring an event that is related to another event, as in the case when Nike sponsored a running event only seven days after the Olympic Games 2008, it is indirect ambushing (Chadwick & Burton, 2010). 3. Incidental Ambushing includes Unintentional Ambushing and Saturation Ambushing. It can be explained as an unintended association with an event. The consumers think that the brand is a sponsor, however, the brand has not made any attempts to establish that connection. Even if it is not intended, it still is a problem for the host of the event since it clutters the marketing environment. For example, if media coverage mentions clothing or equipment used by an athlete, this can confuse consumers thinking of that particular company as the official sponsor, even if they are not. In the Beijing Olympics 2008, the Speedo LZR racer swimsuits were mentioned so frequently that the audience thought Speedo was an official Olympic sponsor (Chadwick & Burton 2010; Söderman & Dolles, 2010). Based upon Chadwick & Burton, 2010 Figure 2Forms of Ambush Marketing 14 Mazodier et al. (2012) explains that “consumers rely on heuristics to recall sponsors and some may genuinely recall a non-sponsor as a sponsor, simply because the brand is dominant or exhibits a high degree of congruence with the event” (Mazodier, et al, 2012, p. 198). Rival marketers strive to mislead consumers by ambushing the event, and thereby create awareness. People might misinterpret this action as a marketing activity from the official sponsor, therefore, ambushers take credit for the effort and money that is invested into the event by the official sponsors. Ambush marketing is considered to be a serious problem by hosts of major events, thus legal protection must be provided (Crow and Hoek, 2003; Ellen, 2010). Companies that use events sponsored by rivals as a platform to gain attention and recognition has to act creatively in order to avoid legal responsibilities. Non-sponsors do not carry direct messages, although they aim to create a belief that they are official sponsors. “Labelled ´ambush marketers´ are hounded both by event organisers and their army of legal counsels, these mavericks aspire to associate their brands with the event through the use of related imagery, heavy advertising around the site or intense presence around the broadcast of the event, and other media-related tactics.” (Mazodier, et al, 2012) To avoid a situation where rival companies get the same benefits as official sponsors of the event, organizers develop rules and limitations that include legal responsibility for non- sponsors. The level of the ambush marketing protection depends on the size of the event. For big events that are sponsored by various important partner companies, it is necessary to guarantee that their investments and partnership will pay off and to create good relationships for future collaboration (Crow and Hoek, 2003). There are no common rules or restrictions against ambush marketing; regulations are created for each event independently. Examples of restrictions for non-sponsors are the prohibition of using the event logos and slogans, as well as advertisement around and in the area of the event (Blayney-Stewart, 2011). 2.4 Conceptual Framework For thorough research development it is necessary to acknowledge relevant topics for the theoretical framework. According to Fisher (2010), creating a conceptual framework is simplifying the research task. The conceptual framework helps the researchers to provide structure and logic to the thesis. It also indicates the movement from confusion stage to certainty (Fisher, 2010). In this section the conceptual framework used throughout this thesis is introduced. The focal topic that is discussed and investigated in this thesis is brand awareness, and how it is created and increased by sponsorship and the use of the viral and ambush marketing in major events. For a better understanding of the chosen topics a conceptual framework figure was developed (Figure 3). As shown in the conceptual framework figure, “sporting event” is the broad area all concepts are connected to, and therefore it is in the background of all the concepts involved in the figure. In the bottom of this figure there are two elements- “official sponsorship” and “non-official sponsorship”. In sporting events, sponsors can belong to only one of these two groups. These sponsors perform their promotional and sponsoring activities in different ways. The official sponsors perform activities with the “exclusive rights and advantages” from the event 17 journals. However, data about current topics like for example ambush marketing, viral marketing and netnography, was harder to find and therefore newspapers and other new publications served as sources for this information collection. When searching in the databases and the World Wide Web, we used the following keywords in different combinations: Branding* Brand Awareness* Marketing communication channels* Olympics 2012* Ambush Marketing* Viral Marketing* Athlete Endorsement* Official sponsorship* Non-ofiicial sponsor* Adidas* Nike* 3.2 Interest and relevance As the largest sporting event in the world (London 2012 Organizing Committee, 2011), the Olympic Games phenomena is a very interesting and relevant event for global companies that want to improve brand awareness and other marketing objectives through sponsoring and advertising in sporting events. It is a unique opportunity for companies to advertise while the ‘whole’ world is watching (Meenaghan, 1996), and therefore we will use this event as a platform for our study. The competition for brand awareness is fierce, and our study gives insight in this rivalry. We will explore the sportswear industry and the two main players, Adidas and Nike, and we will investigate these companies different marketing approaches. Moreover, the topic of ambush marketing is interesting because it is not extensively researched, and and there is limited literature on how ambush marketing diminishes the effectiveness of sponsorship (Wei, n.d) and ambush marketing is becoming an increasing problem in the Olympics (Ellen 2010). This study is of relevance for companies interested in event marketing, for hosts of large events, as well as it is informative reading material for marketers interested in advertising in sporting events and ambush marketing. Moreover, this study will be significant material for athletes to understand their importance in this off-field marketing competition and for fans to understand on what level they are exposed to marketing just by watching a sporting event. 3.3 Research Design The purpose of this study is to explore what companies are doing to advertise and create brand awareness prior to the Olympic Games this year. Therefore it is necessary to investigate the Olympic Games phenomena and develop an overall understanding of the marketing approaches used prior to the Olympic Games as well as to investigate the impact of ambush marketing on brand awareness. In order to get a broader scope of the research problem we let the investigation develop naturally, leading us to new aspects since it is hard to predict the outcome of this study due to the uniqueness of the investigation’s environment. However, the conceptual framework helped us to ‘frame’ this research and lead us to the preferred direction. There are various possibilities of how to design a study, as well as two general types of research, qualitative and quantitative approach. A qualitative approach is used when a question needs to be described and investigated more in depth, in some cases with fewer raw data and aimed on quality, and usually no measurements or statistics are used. Instead, words, descriptions and 18 quotes are used. The data gathering strategies that the researcher employs include for example structured and unstructured in-depth interviews, focus groups, and observations. A quantitative analysis is used when something needs to be measured, and it is based on a more broad and overall analysis and aimed on quantity. It usually contains numbers and statistics. Research tools used in this type of data collection are for example questionnaires and surveys. Many times the two methods are used in the same study to provide measurements for comparison and evaluation and to give a more in-depth explanation. The method of using two different research approaches is called “mixed-method studies” (Spratt, 2004). Mixed-method studies use different methods of data collection and analysis within a single study. One example of this method is when “the researcher conducts a series of semi-structured interviews with a small number of students and also carry out a large-scale survey” (Spratt, 2004). In this research we used a “mixed-method studies” approach. We have primarily followed a qualitative approach, as we have focused our research mainly on observations of the viral environment via primarily social networks and blogs. We also conducted semi-structured interviews with an Adidas representative, the event manager of the Swedish track and field team, and an Olympic athlete. However, in order to conduct a measurement to be able to make a comparison of brand exposure, we also needed to a use the quantitative research approach. 3.4 Data collection In general, there are two types of data collection used for any research; primary data from primary sources, and secondary data from secondary sources (Bryman & Bell, 2011). In this study, we have used both primary data and secondary data to conduct the study. We will now discuss these two types of data in more detail in the following subsections. 3.4.1 Secondary Data Secondary data is information that has already been collected by external parties and that is readily available (Bryman & Bell, 2011). The main advantages of his type of data are that they are cheaper and much quicker to obtain than primary data. Secondary data is also very useful when no primary data can be obtained (Bryman & Bell, 2011). Moreover, secondary data provides a basis for comparison, and it can be used to validate the primary data collected by the researcher. The main disadvantage of using secondary data is that the data is collected by others than the researcher who will use the data, and their purpose of the collection may be different. Thus, the data may not entirely fit to the second group’s problem (Fisher, 2010). Some other problems with the use of secondary data include the possibility of subjective influence, for example, if the data was taken from a biography it may contain poor validity and low quality. These can all diminish the accuracy of the research, and should be considered when choosing the method of data collection (Fisher, 2010). There are no specific methods of collecting secondary data, but they can include, for example, data collection from public records, census data, newspapers and surveys (Fisher, 2010). 19 In this study, we used secondary data from official websites, which we investigated to get information directly from the source. Moreover, we looked at up-to-date electronic journals, which gave us information of new topics like netnography and the emerging problems with ambush marketing. For further information, we looked at newspapers talking about Nike and Adidas and other related topics discussed in the news. 3.4.2 Primary Data When realizing that existing secondary data was not providing sufficient information to answer our research questions in this study, it was apparent that primary data was needed. Primary data refers to data that you collect yourself using methods like interviews, questionnaires and focus groups. According to Fisher (2010), there are six most commonly used methods: ● Interviews ● Questionnaires ● Panels, including focus groups ● Observation, including participant observation ● Documents ● Databases According to Bryman and Bell (2011) quantitative approach is testing of theory, therefore the qualitative approach is generating theory. Quantitative research is considered to involve more numbers and can be more easily related to questionnaires and database analysis, while qualitative research is considered to be more related to interviews and documents as they involve more words, not numbers. It is still possible to conduct both approaches with either of the methods. The main advantage of primary data collection is that the data collected is unique to the authors and the research, and until it is published no one else has access to it. Thus, this type of data is much more consistent with the specific research problem and research objective at hand. The main disadvantages of collecting primary data are that it might be expensive and time consuming. Moreover, it could also be difficult to get access to the right people to interview, and if the research is not done properly and analyzed correctly, the reliability of the data might be questionable (Fisher, 2010). 3.4.3. Netnography Today, over two billion people are using online communities (Miller, 2012) such as newsgroups, blogs, forums, social networking sites, pod casting, video casting, and photo sharing communities. Therefore the Internet has become an invaluable platform for research (Kozinets, 2010). In this study, the majority of the empirical data was collected through etnography observations online, so called Netnography (Tynan, McKechnie, Chhuon, 2009; Kozinets, 2010). “Netnography, or ethnography on the Internet, is a new qualitative research methodology that adapts ethnographic research techniques to the study of cultures and communities emerging through computer-mediated communications” (Kozinets, 2002 p2). Kozinets further describes 22 example a survey could have been conducted to find interesting information from the customers point of view, a focus groups could have been used to investigate, for example, peoples attitudes towards ambush marketing, and questionnaires could have been useful to research how successful the companies are in their creation of brand awareness in connection to the Olympics, by asking, for example, if they know who the official sponsor of the Games is. However, due to the nature of our study, we chose to use observations and interviews. 3.5 Reliability and validity An absolutely fundamental criteria for the research is reliability and validity. Bryman and Bell (2011) explains that reliability can be related to the consistency of the measurement instrument and weather the results of the study are repeatable. Reliability is considered to be present if measurement instruments can deliver the same results from the same environment or object after a while (Bryman and Bell, 2011). Validity refers to the assurance and truth of the research, and is concerned with the integrity of the conclusions generated from the study (Bryman and Bell, 2011, p. 42). Fisher (2010, p 271) emphasizes four characteristics of validity of the research: ● The concepts and terms used to analyze and describe the research fairly represents the research material ● The interpretations and conclusions drawn are robustly and logically derived from the research findings ● Appropriate research techniques have been competently used so that the authors can be reasonably sure that the findings reliably and fairly represent the topic being studied ● It would be safe to use conclusions from the research as a guide in a managerial, professional or organisational practice Fisher (2010, p 272) also describes different aspects of validity. Construct or measurement validity is related to precision of measurements, thus it represents compatibility between statements of measurement and actual measurement itself. Internal validity refers to cause and effect compatibility with evidence presented. External or population validity is connected to different external generalisation or interpretation mutual applicability in context. Ecological validity represents fairness of findings. As for this study, subjective judgments has been acknowledged and taken into consideration, since they pose a threat to reliability. To minimize biases, all of our findings will be clearly linked to our topics in the theoretical chapter. Our aim is to present the results of this study as accurate as possible. 3.6 Limitations Researching and data gathering was an ongoing process throughout this study, therefore it is important to note that new activities could take place after this study is finished and new information is constantly added. Pre-Olympic marketing activities will take place up until the start of the Games, July 27, 2012. This might affect the outcome of some of our conclusions. However, we can assure the validity of the data and information that was available before the 24th of May, 2012. Moreover, since this study is depending heavily on netnography, 23 observations performed online, during a specific time frame there is a risk that the results would come out differently if this study was conducted during another time. Since the information online changes constantly and new information that could affect the outcome of this study is continually added, it is difficult to guarantee reliability of a replication of this study. However, if another researcher had carried out the same study during the same time frame, most likely the same results would have been produced. Moreover, we carefully compared all our empirical findings to existing academic sources in order to minimize biases. When it comes to validity, there are a few things to keep in mind. This is a study about brands in the sportswear industry and the Olympics, and therefore it is important to be aware of that the results might not be applicable for brands in other industries or for other events. Moreover, observing the actions taken from the two brands investigated to create brand awareness prior to the event, will maybe not give the same result if the research was conducted closer to, or after the event has taken place. Further, despite the limitations mentioned above, the authors want to stress that there are many academic articles available regarding marketing in The Olympic Games that are thorough and valid sources to strengthen this study. Also, interviews were conducted with professionals of their field to ensure reliable first-hand information. Lastly, our study was focused at the sportswear industry´s marketing activities in sporting events, and therefore it comprehends relevant information particularly to the sports management field, and might not be applicable for other industries. 3.7 Ethics Another major issue to consider when conducting research is the ethical aspects of doing research (Fisher, 2010). When conducting research, it is important not to harm anyone or treat anyone unfairly. Informed consent is a key issue in research ethics, and everyone that has participated as a source in a study must have an understanding about how they are involved (Fisher, 2010). When we conducted our interviews, we started by clearly informing the participants that we were students doing research for our master thesis, what our topic was, and why they were chosen. The participants agreed to be a part of our study and we were allowed to use their names if we needed. Moreover, before recording the phone interview, we asked for permission to do so. When conducting an interview, it is important that the researchers are not revealing their personal view on the topics discussed (Fisher, 2010). When we conducted the research we had this in mind, and asked unbiased, open-ended questions. Ethical issues concerning the research method Netnography has been debated in recent years (Kozinets, 2011). The main issues debated are if online forums is considered to be a private or a public site, and what constitutes “informed consent” in cyberspace. Consumers who created the data in the online forums might not want to be part of a research, and just because the information is publicly available, it does not mean that researchers can use it the way they want (Kozinetz, 2002). Clear guidelines or rules how to ethically act when conducting Netnography has not yet emerged. 24 Chapter 4: Empirical Findings In this chapter, the empirical findings are presented that have been collected by observing the viral environment, to see what the two largest sportswear companies Adidas and Nike are doing prior to the Olympics to create brand awareness online by using social media to convey their messages. Also, the most prominent Olympic athletes that the two companies are endorsing to market themselves at the Games have been investigated, and the challenges faced by these endorsed athletes are presented. Finally, the authors discuss the different positions the companies have as an official sponsor, and as a non-official sponsor and the use of ambush marketing. 4.1 Introduction The focus of the empirical chapter is on the two largest competitors in this industry, Adidas and Nike. The largest player in the market is Nike, with a world wide market share of 33 percent. The worlds second largest producer of sportswear is Adidas, with a 22 percent market share (Dogiamis & Vijayashanker, 2009). To be more competitive, Adidas bought the third largest competitor Reebok in 2006. Other rivals in the global sports apparel industry includes Puma, Asics, New Balance, and the emerging Chinese brand Li Ning (Dogiamis & Vijayashanker, 2009). In each product category, only one company can be the official sponsor, and in this case it is Adidas that has paid large amounts of money to be able to enjoy the advertising benefits that come with being an official sponsor of the Games (Meenaghan, 1996), and Nike is a non-official sponsor. This chapter will present the different approaches these two companies are using to create brand awareness in connection with the Olympic Games, and in particular the two marketing communication channels viral marketing and athlete endorsement. These two topics are connected in the way that the companies are using the endorsed athletes as spokes persons and the athletes are featured in many of the commercials. The last topic included in this chapter is ambush marketing, and ambushing cases from previous Olympics are presented. Ambush marketing is related in the way that it is a huge marketing problem within the Games for the official sponsors, and a common way for non-official sponsors to attain brand awareness without paying the sponsorship fees. The reader can find background information on the two largest players industry, the official Olympic sponsor Adidas and the non-official Olympic sponsor Nike, in Appendix A. 4.2 Olympic Games The Olympic Games has a long history and heritage. The event can be traced as far back as 776 BC when the first Games were held. The Games were dedicated to the 12 Olympian Gods and were hosted on the ancient green plains of Olympia, a place famous for its magnificent great temples of the two gods Zeus and his wife Hera (Athens Greece Guide, 2007). Back in the days, all the competitors were all male. Married women were banned from participating in the competitions, and they were not even allowed to watch the Games. If doing so, they could face the possibility of death (Davis, 2008). However, unmarried women could attend the competition, and the priestess of Demeter, goddess of fertility, was given a privileged position next to the stadium altar (Olympic Movement, 2012). 27 are legal limitations and protection from ambush marketing or any other illegal interference from the rivals. London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games have made negotiations with Twitter not to sell advertisement space on their website for non-official sponsors with hash-tags like #London2012, as well as detailed social media and blogging restrictions are issued for Olympic athletes (Addley, 2012). The development of the Olympic Games as a brand has created the need for protecting it in order to keep it exclusive and attractive. The Olympic Partner (TOP) program, founded in 1985, represents International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) sponsorship program. This special program is responsible for managing and attracting the interest of international companies in order to support the Olympic Games. The TOP programme provides each Worldwide Olympic Partner with exclusive global marketing rights and opportunities within a designated product or service category (International Olympic Committee, 2012). Also ‘Rule 40’ includes all the details concerning athlete appearance in advertisements and other restrictions to prevent ambush marketing, unauthorised commercialisation of the Games, protect the integrity of athlete’s performance and associations with non-official sponsors during the Olympics. (London2012, 2011) Rule 40 is issued by U.S. Olympic Committee and is a guideline to obey for all the “Participants participating in the Olympic Games”. However, these rules apply only to the United Kingdom territory, therefore, if an ambush marketing incident would appear outside the United Kingdom, this issue will be addressed to that particular country’s National Olympic Committee (London2012, 2011). This year’s Olympics have very strict regulations and rules that have to be obeyed by all the participants. “The organising committee has also put together a detailed social media and blogging policy for athletes, so that they don't accidentally fall foul of regulations - by Tweeting about a brand that isn't an Olympic sponsor, for example” (Addley, 2012). Therefore, Olympic athletes can not mention their sponsors in the viral environment, if their sponsor is not one of the official ones for London 2012, because it can be considered as the ambush marketing and rival’s advertisement. Strict regulations apply also for the visitors of London 2012, “a Ticket Holder may not license, broadcast or publish video and/or sound recordings, including on social networking websites and the internet” (Addley, 2012), namely, no personal videos or photos from the Olympic stadium can be published. To prevent ambush marketing and to protect the exclusivity of official sponsors, the organiser of the Games, The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG), has special statutory marketing rights under The London Olympics Association Right, as well as special rights under The London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Act 2006 and The Olympic Symbol Protection Act 1995 (The Chartered Institute of Marketing, 2011). Only official sponsors can use Olympic symbols, therefore it is unauthorised for non-sponsor companies to use the Olympic logo, combination of rings and colours, the words: “Olympic”, “Olympiad”, “Olympix’, “Olympican” and other similar wordings or phrases that can be falsely associated with the Games. For example, non-sponsors cannot use two of the following words: Games; 2012; Two Thousand and Twelve; Twenty Twelve, in a combination with any of these words: gold; silver; bronze; medals; sponsor/-s; London; Summer. What is more, the use of Olympic motto’s is prohibited (The Chartered Institute of Marketing, 2011). The Olympic moto is “Citius, Altius, Fortius”, which is Latin for: Faster, Higher, Stronger, and the Paralympic motto is “Spirit in Motion”, which was introduced recently in Athens Olympic Games 2004. 28 For promoting Olympic activities in the viral environment, the London 2012 Organizing Committee has created Twitter accounts @London2012; @iamWenlock; @iamMandeville; @London2012Fest, as well as Facebook account (http://www.facebook.com/London2012) and promotion and teaser videos on YouTube. An Olympic sponsors’ and partners’ list can be found in the Appendix C. “The Olympic Games as an event of such magnitude cannot take place without the commercial support of the sponsors. At the same time, there is a growing concern that the Olympic Games are losing their spirit and are over-commercialized because of the excessive sponsorship-linked marketing activities.” (Lee, et al, 1997). Nowadays competition between companies for the rights of the official partnership and promotion in Olympics is as intense as the competition on the field, although this off-field battle takes place during a longer time period and requires much more investments. An estimated amount of the sponsorship fee for the London 2012 is £80 million (Soldner, 2010). The London 2012 Commercial Director, Chris Townsend stated in 'The Power of the Games - 2012 Sponsorship Opportunities' conference, that "The Games provide the chance for organisations to achieve unique market differentiation, increased sales and productivity, new customers, improved community relationships, better staff recruitment and retention, and more" (London2012, 2007). 4.3 Adidas - the official sponsor of London 2012 Adidas is the official sportswear sponsor in London 2012 as well as the official clothing licensee of the Games, and they “will dress 70,000 volunteers, provide the outfits for the Pre-Games torch relay and create clothing for the athletes to wear in the Olympic Village” (Hall, 2011). The company also obtains full access to the Olympic marks and co-branding rights that they can use on sportswear and in their campaigns. Adidas gets access to the sales place and advertisement spots in the Olympic area and full support from The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) including legal protection from ambush marketing. The Adidas Sales Director Nordic confirms in the interview (Appendix F) that LOCOG provides large teams of people who will ensure protection from the ambushers. “Nike might try something during the Games by using Olympic athletes, etc. But London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) are extremely careful and there is a large group of people that will work to protect sponsors and stop illegal ambushing, such as putting up posters or any similar activity too close to the Olympic Stadium” (personal communication, May 16, 2012). However, rival companies usually push till the edge of what is allowed, but when not disobeying any rules, it is hard to fully protect the sponsors. There are a few factors that affect decision making in favor of The Olympic Partnership program (TOP): especially “the long-term (a required minimum of four years) linkage to a very attractive intellectual property, exclusive global marketing rights, and the principle of product/service- category exclusivity” (Papadimitriou, et al, 2008). Cooperation and support in the Olympics is very expensive, yet cost effective because of the great awareness created. Television alone reaches billions of people during the event. According to the Nielsen television audience 29 measurement reports “The 2008 Beijing Olympics drew an estimated global television audience of 4.7 billion over the 17 days of competition” (SportBusiness Group, 2008). The Adidas representative explained that the British market is one of the most important ones in Europe, thus sponsoring London 2012 was a strategic move. Adidas has invested a very large amount of money. “It depends how the spending is being calculated. Sponsorship of the Games is valued approximately to 80 million pounds but you can not forget other expenses that are made to activate these activities. This money is not expected to pay back in one year, but the goal is to overtake Nike by the year 2015 within UK market” (personal communication, May 16, 2012). More detailed information regarding Adidas marketing prior the Olympics can be found in the Appendix F, where the reader can find the interview with Adidas Sales Director Nordic. 4.3.1 Viral Marketing Activities Adidas currently runs the biggest marketing campaign in the brand’s history (Adidas Group, 2011b). The focus of their “All In” campaign is not exclusively focused on sports, but also on other areas, such as culture and lifestyle. This broad campaign is aiming to reach many different kinds of people with diverse interests. The driving force of this campaign is to decrease the distance between Adidas and its biggest rival Nike (Brettman, 2011) The campaign is called “All In“ and it represents unity and passion about everything that people do, it is also related to the brand anthem of the Adidas company. “The Campaign is for the love of the game, no matter the game, we put all our heart into it” (Kilmartin, 2012). As a part of this campaign, Adidas launched a commercial with celebrities called “We All Run”. Illustration 3 Adidas brand anthem; Adidas „All In” campaign Retrieved 14 May, 2012 from Kilmartin, 2012; Brettman, 2011 Another “All In” campaign that promotes Adidas and London 2012 is “Take the Stage” that “gives once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for teenagers of United Kingdom to show talents and fight for the chance to perform on a special platform at the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games” (Shayon, 2012). This campaign features various celebrities that offer to ‘work’ with them in their professional life. For example, play basketball together with one of the celebrities or perform on the stage. 32 Illustration 8 AdiZone Court Retrieved 09 May, 2012 from The Great Outdoor Gym Company Ltd, 2011 4.3.2 Adidas athlete endorsement As mentioned in the previous section, Adidas wants to cover many different areas of interest, like culture, lifestyle and sports, therefore they are cooperating not only with athletes, but with various other celebrities. The most prominent ambassadors for Adidas in the “All In” campaign are the football stars Lionel Messi and David Beckham, and the basketball player Derrick Rose. “David Beckham will offer viewers the chance to photograph him on set, rapper Wretch 32, who has recorded the soundtrack for the TV ads (Adidas TV ads), is searching for a music act to perform on his tour, while basketball star Derrick Rose will invite a winner to play basketball with him in the US” (Brownsell, 2012). Unfortunately, Mr. Rose tore his ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) in the end of April this year, and will not be able to compete in the Olympics (Badenhausen, 2012). This is a serious blow to Adidas because Rose was one of Adidas biggest stars, and he will no longer participate in the Games (Badenhausen, 2012). Moreover, Adidas is also endorsing successful individual medal hopes that will participate in Olympics 2012, for example Jessica Ennis (heptathlon), and Phillips Idowu (triple jump) as well as track athletes Blanka Vlasic (high jump), Tyson Gay (sprint) Dayron Robles (110m hurdles), Haile Gebrselassie (marathon), Ian Thorpe (swimming), Britta Steffen (swimming) (Ranau, 2012). Other celebrities participating in this campaign´s different commercials are the Brittish athletes Victoria Pendleton, Louis Smith and Tom Daley as well as cricket star Kevin Pietersen, TV personality, comedian Keith Lemon and music artists Example and Wretch 32. The specific ad featuring David Beckham, created by agency Sid Lee, inspired nearly 22,000 Facebook shares and was mentioned in 16 blog posts (Hall, 2012; Brownsell, 2012 ). This campaign is related to the Olympic Games and is supported by Adidas designer’s McCartney sportswear collection. Further, Adidas is the sponsor of the entire British national team in this year’s Olympics. Famous track and field athletes promote the brand in many advertisements when modeling the new Olympic British clothing collection (Kelso, 2012b). Moreover, Adidas also sponsors the Australian national team with the 100m hurdle star Sally Pearson as one of the main brand ambassadors (Australian Olympic Team, 2012). 33 4.4 Nike - a non-official sponsor of London 2012 Nike is not sponsoring the Olympics Games and thereby they do not have the exclusive right to advertise during or in connection to the event. For example, Nike is not allowed to use the “Olympic words” mentioned previously, or use the Olympic logo in their marketing campaigns to connect themselves to the Games (The Chartered Institute of Marketing, 2011). Thus, Nike has to put in a greater effort and be more creative in order to develop associations with the Olympics 2012 and create brand awareness, but at the same time they have to be careful not to break any rules. 4.4.1 Nike´s Viral Marketing Activities Nike´s 2012 marketing campaign uses the slogan “Make It Count”. Several of the campaign´s commercials feature a number of elite Nike sponsored British Olympic athletes, like Paula Radcliffe and Mo Farah, in black and white action portraits. There are also online video clips with these athletes depicting their hunger to achieve their goals. The Make It Count campaign communicates the hard work and dedication needed to win and compete at the highest level and quotes like Farah´s “Don´t Dream of Winning, Train for it” and Radcliffe´s “Nearly Isn´t Enough” appears in the advertisements with the athletes (Williams, 2012). These British Nike sponsored athletes are not allowed to appear in any advertisements for Nike from the period of two weeks before the Olympics til three days after, since they are members of the Adidas sponsored British team. However, prior to that time Nike can use these athletes to make themselves connected to the event without breaking the rules. Illustration 9 Nike „Maka It Count” Campaign Retrieved May 17, 2012, from Nike, 2012b; Williams, 2012 In the online social networking service and micro-blog Twitter, Nike has created the hash-tag #makeitcount in their viral campaign. Nike’s message is “How will you make it count in 2012?” and encourages people to use the hash-tag to announce how they will make it count in 2012 (Williams, 2012). Nike has also created an Instagram account, where users can post photos of how they make it count in 2012 (Nike Inc, 2012a). 34 Illustration 10 Nike | How Will You Make 2012 Count? Retrieved 13 April, 2012 from Nike, 2011a As a part of Nike´s Make It Count campaign, the company has launched a wristband called the Nike+FuelBand, which is a wristband that the user connects to an app, allowing people to record their physical activities such as cycling, running or swimming, and share the results online. The users can compete and compare the results with others on social networks like Twitter and Facebook (Miller, 2012). The Fuelband is promoted by Olympic athletes like Carmelita Jeter, and the product is advertised in the viral environment when the users are sharing their results. Illustration 11 Nike + Fuel Band Retrieved May 17, 2012, from Miller, 2012On April 9, 2012, a video was published on YouTube with the title “Make It Count”. Nike had hired film director Casey Neistat and editor Max Joseph to make an advertisement for the Nike FuelBand and to exemplify their new slogan Make It Count. However, the duo did not make a traditional advertisement for the product in a studio as they were hired to do. Instead, the video starts with the message “Nike asked me to make a movie of what it means to #makeitcount” and a text follows explaining that they decided to use the money they received for making the ad, to travel around the world. They traveled as long as their budget allowed them. “It took them ten days, and they traveled for 34,000 miles, visited three continents, 13 countries and 16 cities” (Li, 2012). The video shows the two men traveling around the world to some of the most beautiful places and enjoying life, and the famous quotes of some of the history´s most famous people like Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln and Ghandi flash across the screen during this video, encouraging people to live for the moment. 37 during the same time as the Olympics in Barcelona 1992, to exploit the media saturation at the event (Mazodier et al, 2012). According to Crow and Hoek (2003), sponsoring teams or individuals competing within the specific event is also a way of ambushing. One example of this was when Nike was the official sponsor for the Australian Olympic team, and Adidas was the individual sponsor of the Australian swim star Ian Thorpe. During the Games, Thorpe was photographed with his towel draped over Nike’s logo at the medal presentation ceremony, in order to protect his personal contract with Adidas (Crow and Hoek, 2003). In the Olympics in Beijing 2008, Nike made several ambushing advertisements. During the summer, the company made use of the number 8 in many of their advertisements, a symbol of luck and fortune in China, and it also represented the Games, which started on 08.08.08 (O´Brien, 2012). Another example is when the Nike sponsored athlete Liu Xiang´s got injured in the men´s 110m hurdles, and afterwards Nike released a full-page ad in the major Beijing newspaper with a picture of Liu, making people think that there is a connection between Nike and the Olympics (O´Brien, 2012). Moreover, only seven days after the Games ended, Nike hosted a “counter-event” called the Human Race, which was a running race happening in 24 cities across the world, and that people also related to the Olympics because of the time proximity (O'Brien, 2012). In this year’s Olympics, intense ambush marketing is expected to occur, even though the rules are more strict than during previous Games (Ormsby, 2012). The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) will be taking a zero tolerance approach towards ambushing, and they will work hard to protect sponsors' investments. LOCOG have been implementing many new rules to combat ambush marketing, and one of them is the “Rule 40”, which deals specifically with the use of athletes and other participants in the Games (London2012, 2011). For the endorsed athletes with personal sponsorships, this Olympics will face them with difficult situations. The athletes will be torn between the loyalty to their personal sponsor who has been supporting them for a long time, and their sports team’s sponsor that sponsors their specific sport, as well as the national team’s sponsor that sponsors the country’s Olympic team (Magnay, 2012). These different agreements and contracts will lead to uncertainties about when and where to wear what brand. For example, Nike athletes in the Adidas sponsored British team are facing a dilemma in case they will walk up on the podium to receive a medal. Should they wear their personal sponsors shoes or their national team´s sponsor´s shoes? (Phillips, 2012). To clarify this complicated issue and to give an example, an interview with the Swedish Track and Field marketing and event manager was conducted, as well as an interview with an Olympic athlete who will participate in this years Olympics. The marketing and event manager of the Swedish Track and Field team explains that the official sportswear and shoe sponsor of the Swedish national team in the Olympics 2012 is the Chinese brand Li Ning, which sponsors the Swedish Olympic Committee (SOK) (personal communication, April 16, 2012). The Track and Field team has their own apparel sponsor, which is Puma, and outside those two sponsors many athletes also have their personal sportswear and shoe sponsor that they have to consider. The 38 Olympic Athlete that was interviewed has Adidas as her personal sponsor (personal communication, April 17, 2012). The Olympic athlete explained that there are special rules and regulations in the Olympics when it comes to sponsors in the event. The difference of competing in the Olympics compared to for example the World Championships, is that during the Olympics an athlete represents the country´s national committee, in this case the Swedish Olympic Committee (SOK) and therefore, have to follow the rules of the SOK primarily. When athletes decides to accept being a part of the Olympic team, they are expected to follow the specific rules of this event (personal communication, April 17, 2012). There are fairly complicated rules that determine when and where the athletes should wear which sponsor´s clothing and shoes. The Swedish Track and Field marketing and event manager says that since all the athletes from Sweden in all sports have Li-Ning as their official kit supplier in the Olympics, they should wear Li-Ning clothing and shoes when: they are outside the stadium; in the Olympic village; in the opening ceremony; during the closing ceremony; and on top of their competition uniforms. This applies to all Swedish athletes in all sports. Moreover, the athletes are not allowed to appear in any advertising during the Olympics that clashes with the official sponsors, from July 18 till August 15, 2012 (personal communication, April 16, 2012). The Olympic athlete explains that during the competition she and all the members of the Swedish track and field team will wear competition gear from Puma. This includes shorts, spandex, and the top/t-shirt the athlete will wear during the competition (personal communication, April 17, 2012). On top of the Puma clothing, the athletes will wear the official sponsor’s Li-Ning tracksuit. The interviewee explain that the only exception from the official national team and sports team’s rules is the competition footwear (personal communication, April 17, 2012). The Olympic athlete explains that she is only allowed to wear shoes from her personal sponsor Adidas during the competition, since shoes are classified as “equipment”. At all other non-competition moments athletes are expected to wear the official sportswear sponsor’s team kit (personal communication, April 17, 2012). Despite all the new rules and regulations regarding sponsorship of athletes in the Olympics, the ambushing companies are expected to use clever marketing tactics to go around the legalities and convey their message, therefore they might still be able to create brand awareness in legal ways (Ormsby, 2012). When observing the viral environment, the authors found in many blogs and social networks the research results from a research conducted by the social media monitoring company BrandWatch. It suggested that Adidas´s advantage as the official sponsor has not yet paid off. The research showed that Nike is the brand that has been dominating the online conversations about the Olympics, with 7.7%, while Adidas only had 0.49% of the online buzz (Chapman, 2012). 39 Chapter 5: Analysis (Adidas vs. Nike) In this chapter the authors analysed and compared the marketing activities performed by the two sportswear companies Adidas and Nike prior to the Olympic Games 2012. The authors compared their viral campaigns, their athlete endorsements as well as other activities leading to brand awareness. As mentioned previously, athletes are not the only ones competing for gold in London 2012 Olympics this summer. There is also a fierce off-field competition between different companies that are competing for brand awareness. In the competition between the two sportswear giants Adidas and Nike, Adidas went into the race with a huge advantage - being the official sponsor. Adidas´s position as the official sponsor gives the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) the power to block all the other sportswear companies from advertising during the Games, and non-Adidas athletes are prohibited from advertising any other brand during the Olympics. Nike on the other hand has to create clever and creative marketing campaigns to go around the legalities to be able to create brand awareness. To continue, the analysis of the findings was performed in order to discover the similarities and differences in both companies´ marketing activities, to compare their viral marketing campaigns and athlete endorsements, and thereby find out which company is the most successful when it comes to increasing brand awareness prior to the Olympics 2012. 5.1 Comparing and analysing viral campaigns Adidas is the official sponsor of the Games in 2012 and has the advantage of using the Olympics as a main driver in their campaigns. Therefore, they are allowed to use the Olympic symbols, words and other Olympic marks in their marketing. Adidas campaigns are mostly related to the Olympics and they are trying to fully associate themselves with being the Olympic brand. Thus their campaigns and activities involve mostly co-branded products, like events that promote Adidas as the official sponsor in London 2012. “Adidas strongly relate itself to the Olympics and believe that they are a great supporter and bringing new products and innovations into the ‘Game’. Adidas message is that athletes can perform better with the Adidas equipment in London 2012” (personal communication, May 16, 2012). Adidas´s “All In” campaign is their response to Nike´s “Make It Count” campaign. “All In” is the biggest and most expensive campaign in the history Adidas´ existence. Adidas aim with sponsoring the Games is to decrease the gap between them and their arch rival Nike (Dogiamis & Vijayashanker, 2009). According to Fill (2006), sponsorship permits another part an opportunity to exploit an association with a target audience in return for funds, services or resources. In this case, the Games will ensure the opportunity for Adidas to associate themselves with the Olympics and gain brand awareness through the London 2012, therefore, possibly decrease the gap between the rival. Overall, Adidas´s “All In” campaign brings together sport, street, and style and shows to the world what it means to go all in. This campaign shows Adidas´s broad targeting and that the brand has a presence not only in the different sports, but also in different cultures and lifestyles when they merge the different worlds of sports, music and fashion all in one campaign (Adidas Group, 2011). 42 In the theoretical framework chapter Erdogan and Kitchen (1998) argues that connecting a brand to an event is a good approach to address consumers. Sponsorship creates a link in the consumers minds unconsciously, connecting the brand with the popular event. This is also in line with Sneath et al.´s (2005) findings that event marketing is an effective communication channel that creates face-to-face contact between the sponsoring company with its target audience. These results are applicable to this study, explaining why Nike´s viral commercials have been successful. When observing Nike´s viral campaigns the authors found that the company try to connect their brand strongly to the Olympics by for example using former Olympians and British athletes in their campaigns. In the figure below, a few viral videos on YouTube of Adidas and Nike’s campaigns are presented with the number of their views on 24th of May, 2012. These particular videos are presented as they are the most popular ones and can be considered to be related with the London 2012. Figure 4 Summary of the viral video views Source: Own Illustration As it can be seen in the Figure 4, two of Nike’s viral videos have significantly more views in this period of time than Adidas. According to Wilson (2005), buzz spreads like virus and this is the case in Nike’s viral videos, considering the large number of views in the short period of time. The key of this success might be under the target audience size, namely, Nike is targeting world wide audience, whilst Adidas is focusing on UK market. Both Nike´s popular videos - the “Fuel Band Nike Trip” and Christiano Ronaldo and Rafael Nadal football commercial - are in line with the brand characteristics pyramid by Ghauri & Cateora (2010) in the Figure 1. The Nike slogan “Make It Count” can be referred to as the emotional reward (third level) that people get by sending in their own videos and thus, by making it count. And the purchase of Mercurial Vapor VIII football shoes, after such creative and popular advertising video, can be emotionally 43 rewarding as well as self expressive (fourth level) and different, unique (seventh level). Meanwhile, Adidas “All In” campaign offers functional superiority or benefits (second level) by giving opportunity to win a chance to perform together with the celebrities, for example, to play basketball with Derrick Rose. Ghauri & Cateora (2010) pyramid’s other characteristics can also be applicable for this viral video, like, emotional reward (third level), strong power of self expression (fourth level), consistency (sixth level) and differentiation (seventh level). Both sportswear companies are achieving attention with their campaigns and other activities prior to the Olympics. However, according to the Marketing Magazine, the social media monitoring company BrandWatch has conducted a research that shows that Adidas´s advantage as the official sponsor has not yet paid off. Brandwatch states that Nike is the brand has been dominating the online conversations about the Olympics, with 7.7%, while Adidas only had 0.49% of the online buzz (Chapman, 2012). Hinz (2012) argues that viral marketing is an inexpensive and powerful tool to increase the popularity of brand, therefore, it is in line with this the empirical findings that Nike can gain larger buzz and popularity than Adidas through the use of viral campaigns, regardless of the non-official sponsor position. With its successful and exciting campaigns, Nike is creating brand awareness and associates their brand with the event while still obeying all the official Olympic marketing rules. This is very clever and effective ambush marketing. When being connected to the Games, Nike is not doing anything to dispel the assumption that they are involved. Instead, they are trying to take advantage of the situation and the “free” promotion that comes with being involved with one of the largest sporting event in the world (Meenaghan, 1996). The Adidas representative admitted that they were expecting that Nike would get awareness and be related to the Olympics to some level with their campaigns, however, he says that Adidas was not expecting the surprising results of recent research that indicated that non-sponsoring Nike had a much larger brand association with the Olympics, compared to Adidas in the viral environment. The Adidas representative was frustrated that an official sponsor can invest a lot of money in the event, but the consumers still associate the event with their rivals. And in this year’s Olympics the competition is even more fierce because of impact of the viral environment. As Miller (2012) suggests in “Socialympics”, social media is really widespread and that brings the rivalry to the next level. 5.2 Comparing and analysing endorsed athletes Athlete endorsement is one of the most important communication activities that both companies use in order to gain brand awareness. Athlete endorsements and Olympic sponsorship contracts are colliding in this summer’s Olympic Games in London, and the sponsored athletes from the two sportswear giants will play a large role in the upcoming competition between the companies in the 2012 Games (Miller, 2012). As suggested by Martin (1996), both rival companies use endorsed athletes to capture the attention of consumers, give the message credibility, increase liking and attractiveness of the product and brand. Adidas tries to reach a broader category of people by focusing their campaigns on more than just athletes. Instead, the Adidas campaigns also cover fields like culture and lifestyle. Therefore they are cooperating not only with athletes in their Take The Stage campaign, but also with 44 popular artists and comedians that young people can relate to. Evans, M., Jama, A., & Foxall, G. (2010) support Adidas choice of endorsed athletes and celebrities by stating that consumers compare self-image with the brand and they tend to look for the products that are similar to their self-concept, therefore, broader target audience can be reached by using celebrities from various fields of interest. With the Olympics taking place in London, a lot of attention will be focused on the British athletes during this year’s Games. Adidas is the sponsor of the entire British national team and this will create great brand awareness. Even months before the event, British track and field stars like Jessica Ennis and Phillips Idowu have been modeling the new Adidas clothing collection by Stella McCartney. In the theoretical chapter Elberse (2009) explains that the success of a brands athlete endorsement depends on the athlete´s success, and the sponsoring company will receive more attention and increase brand awareness if the athlete performs well. In the empirical findings the authors found that Adidas heavily featured basketball star Derrick Rose tore his ACL, and will not be able to participate in this years Olympics (Badenhausen, 2012). This means that this endorsement might not be as effective as if Mr. Rose had been healthy and performed well in the Games. Since the Games are taking place in London, Nike is also using some of the most famous British athletes to create brand awareness and connect themselves to the event. By endorsing these athletes who the audience connects to the Olympic Games, Nike is able to subtly relate their brand to the event, but at the same time carefully avoid any direct association with the Olympics and the risk of using illegal ambushing activities. However, it is easy for the audience to make that connection when Olympic athletes are featured, training hard to reach a goal and become the best in the world, during the same year as the Olympic Games take place. Sponsoring athletes who will appear in the event is a clever marketing tactic used by many non-sponsoring brands to create brand awareness. The athletes will be seen competing in branded shoes, while not having to pay any of the official sponsorship fees and according to Bean (1995) and Meenaghan (1996), this is the ambush marketing activity that non-sponsoring companies use to associate themselves with the event. In response to Adidas´s “We All Run” commercial where several world famous celebrities appear which has slightly over 1 million views on YouTube, Nike depicts two of the worlds most famous athletes, tennis player Rafael Nadal and footballer Christiano Ronaldo, in a commercial that has been viewed 7.5 million times on YouTube. By uniting two of the worlds most famous athletes in one commercial, Nike is able to attract millions of viewers who want to see this unexpected game take place, all while the athletes wear Nike clothes and shoes. This video created a large buzz online and is mentioned on many blogs and other social media websites. Nike also sponsors the current fastest female 100 meters runner, Carmelita Jeter, who won the world championship in 2011 and that hopes to win gold in London 2012 this summer. Successful athlete’s endorsement goes in hand with Elberse (2009) and Hoecke et al. (n.d.), stating that if the athlete wins, the sponsoring company will increase brand awareness and the physical appearance and personality are affecting factors for the endorsement effectiveness. 47 Figure 5 Summary of the analysis Source: Own Illustration Adidas, the official sponsor of this years Olympics launched the most expensive campaign in the company’s history, called “All In” to create brand awareness. Nike, as non-official sponsor, is performing ambush marketing to create brand awareness with the use of a creative and strong viral marketing campaign called “Make It Count”. One obvious difference between the two companies promotional activities that the authors found, is that since Adidas is the official sponsor, they can make use of slogans, words and symbols connected to the Olympics in their commercials, while Nike is not allowed to do so. Nike instead performs other activities and implement ambiguous slogans in their campaigns that do not break any legal restrictions regarding the use of the Olympic words, but at the same time they lead the audience to think of London 2012. Another difference found is that Adidas seems to focus more on the U.K market, especially the youth in London, while Nike has a broader targeting strategy, targeting people from all over the world. Adidas seems to focus on more than just sports, by using comedians, rappers and pop stars in the videos, while Nike mainly uses athletes. 48 Similarities found is that both companies mainly use British athletes in their campaigns to connect themselves to the country and thereby the event. Also, successful former Olympians are featured making this connection even stronger. Moreover, both companies have created strong viral campaigns where they both use hash-tags to promote themselves efficiently in social networks. 49 Chapter 6: Conclusion In this chapter, conclusions of this study is drawn and the following research questions are answered: R.Q.1: What are the major differences and similarities between the official and non-official sponsors and their marketing activities when creating brand awareness in sporting events? R.Q.2: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through viral marketing activities? R.Q.3: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through athlete endorsement? As it can be seen in the conceptual framework (Figure 3), official and non-official sponsors start from different positions when marketing their brands, striving for brand awareness in connection to a sporting event. The official sponsor has exclusive advertising rights and advantages, whilst non-official sponsors make use of ambush marketing. The major differences between their marketing activities are that the official sponsor has the advantage of legally relating its marketing campaigns with the event, and receive exclusive marketing rights within its product category. In the case of the Olympic Games, they also have the right to use the Olympic marks (for example, logo, motto, name) in their advertisements, and the sportswear sponsor also has the advantage of dressing the 70,000 volunteer staff members, provide the outfits for the pre-Games torch relay and create clothing for the athletes to wear in the Olympic Village, activities that will be seen by people from all over the world. Therefore, they will have a great visual presence prior and during the event. The non-official sponsor does not have any of those advantages. This rival company has to follow various limitations and legal restrictions regarding the use of prohibited Olympic words and symbols that can create associations with the Olympics. Instead, the non-official sponsor has to create creative ambush marketing campaigns that goes around the legalities that still allows them to gain brand awareness in connection to the event. These can be direct or indirect ambushing activities, and as long as they are performed within the rules this is a very effective marketing technique that is legal to use and might be less costly. Further, differences as well as similarities between the official sponsor and the non-official sponsors marketing activities will be presented when discussing the viral marketing and athlete endorsement in the next section. As shown in the conceptual framework in Figure 3, the authors have investigated two of the communication channels that lead to brand awareness - viral marketing and athlete endorsement. To create brand awareness through viral marketing activities, the official and non-official companies have to develop creative and interactive campaigns that encourage their target audience to share their experience or ideas. From this study it is also possible to conclude that a non-official sponsor can gain as much as awareness or, in this case, greater brand awareness than the official sponsor by targeting broader audience and sending adventurous messages. The official and non-official sponsoring companies developed creative viral campaigns, that are in one way or another connecting the brand to the event. Both companies feature famous athletes and celebrities in their commercials, that have been competing in the 52 Recommendations and Further Research Social media has a great impact on contemporary marketing activities, thus marketers should be careful to not underestimate the importance of viral campaigns. In addition, a creatively carried out marketing campaign can outperform the official sponsor’s efforts and gain the associations with the event. Therefore, sponsoring large events does not ensure the most brand awareness, and this has to be considered before entering a sponsorship and when creating campaigns. Moreover, it is important to endorse athletes/celebrities that can be related to the event and that match the target audience. As the Olympics 2012 have not occurred yet, there is a broad spectrum of topics that can be investigated further after this study´s completion. Firstly, it would be interesting to measure Adidas´s and Nike´s brand awareness after the Olympics, by conducting a survey. For example, investigate if people know, which sportswear company was the official sponsor in the Olympics 2012. Secondly, another study could measure Adidas market share, to see if they were able to become the market leader within the UK by the year 2015. Thirdly, a similar study can be developed by focusing on another industry or event, for example, World Cup. Lastly, in the Rio 2016 Olympics, Nike will be the official sponsor. 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Retrieved May 04, 2012, from Web Marketing Today: http://library.softgenx.com/Children/marketing/ViralMarketing.pdf X Appendix B Olympic Cities since 1896, Athens 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 Athens Paris Saint Louis London Stockholm Cancelled (was due in Berlin) Antwerp (Belgium) Paris Amsterdam Los Angeles Berlin Cancelled (was due in Tokyo) Cancelled (was due in Helsinki) London Helsinki 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 Melbourne Rome Tokyo Mexico City Munich Montreal Moscow Los Angeles Seoul Barcelona Atlanta Sydney Athens Beiging London Retrieved 15 April, 2012 from: http://www.nostos.com/olympics/ XI Appendix C Worldwide Olympic Partners: London 2012 Olympic Partners: London 2012 Olympic Supporters: XII London 2012 Olympic Providers and Suppliers: McCann Worldgroup Mondo NATURE VALLEY Next Nielsen Populous Rapiscan Systems Rio Tinto Technogym Thames Water Ticketmaster Trebor Westfield Aggreko Airwave Atkins The Boston Consulting Group CBS Outdoor Crystal CG Eurostar Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP G4S GlaxoSmithKline Gymnova Heathrow Airport Heineken UK Holiday Inn John Lewis IX Appendix E Interviewee: Olympic Athlete, Team Sweden Interviewer: Malin Marmbrandt Interview type: E-mail Interview Date: 17th of April, 2012 Personal information Age: 25 Sex: Female What country do you represent? Sweden Sport: Track and Field Event: High jump Which sportswear company is your personal sponsor? Adidas Which sportswear company is your team´s sponsor? Track and field team, Puma. (Swedish club team is sponsored by Craft). Which sportswear company is your national team´s sponsor? Li-Ning For how many years have you been sponsored by this company (your personal sponsor)? 7 years. Did you have a different personal sponsor before? -if yes, why did you switch? No What are the benefits your personal sportswear sponsor gives you?(Clothing? Shoes? Money? Trips? Etc.) They give me as much shoes and cloths that I need, and this year I got international sponsor contract so now I also get money. Before I only got bonus for good performances, but now I get both. And what do you do for your sponsor? (for example, wear their clothes in competitions, at your spare time, appear in commercials, PR-events). I wear the brand Adidas during training, competition and during press conferences and as much as possible during my spare time. I have done a couple commercials for them but there will be more coming this year. Did your personal/ team/ countries/ sponsor give you any restrictions of how to wear the brand, or if you are able to wear competing brands? Any Brand appearance restrictions/ or rules? X (Please answer if there are different rules for the different sponsors). Personal sponsors: They want me the wear their cloths during all competitions except for the competitions I represent my country. But I shall always have Adidas shoes. Team sponsors: When we (the Swedish team) are at international championships, pre-camps and press conferences we should wear Puma. Pretty much the whole time we are representing Sweden should we wear Puma. Also when we are traveling. My Swedish club teams sponsor has no say in what I should wear, except for when I compete in the Swedish championships, then I wear a Craft top during the competition, but I still have Adidas hotpants then. National team sponsor: Li-Ning should be worn at the Olympics when I don't compete. Have you ever been asked by your personal sponsor to break any rules regarding contracts of team or national team? (for example, there is an issue now in Great Britain with athletes that are going walk to the prize ceremony barefoot because they don’t want to wear another shoe brand than their personal sponsors and breach their contracts, just because their national team is sponsored by a competing brand. How did you do when receiving your medal in the World Championships earlier this year, Puma or Adidas?). I had Adidas flats (shoes) at the price ceremony at the World Championships and I don’t think Puma care if we have our personal sponsors shoes, but I don’t know how that really works at the Olympics. In what occasions do you have to wear your personal sponsors brand? And is there any occasions when you should not wear it?(maybe if you are out celebrating and drinking?). My contract does not say when I am not aloud to wear Adidas but I am representing Adidas and if they find out that I am not a good ambassador they can decide not to work with me anymore. But I should wear their brand as much as possible, absolutely during competitions and practice. And I have got special cloth I have to wear during competition so that all Adidas athletes are dressed same. How many times you have participated in the Olympics? This will be my first. Have your sponsor increased your benefits since you qualified for the Olympics 2012? Not specifically since qualifying. But this year I got an international sponsor contract so now I am not only receiving clothing and shoes, but also money. What activities do you have to do for your sponsor prior the Olympics? Any event specific happenings or tasks? Press conference? Promotion of products? Commercials in TV or print? Haven’t been that much yet, but I filmed for a commercial a couple weeks ago and maybe there will be more. XI Appendix F Interviewee: Sales Director Nordic, Adidas Sverige AB Interviewer: Malin Marmbrandt Interview type: Telephone Interview Date: 16th of May, 2012 Introduction and background information: Adidas strongly relate itself to the Olympics and believe that they are a great supporter and bringing new products and innovations into the ‘Game’. Adidas message is that athletes can perform better with the Adidas equipment in London 2012. USA is the world’s biggest sportswear market and Nike has a 60% market share, while Adidas only 15%. In Europe market share is quite equal. It was a big gap in the UK a few years ago, when Nike was 50% bigger than Adidas. Market share for Adidas was 23%, Nike 50% however, the gap is decreasing a lot. The current market share is very equal. It is strategically very important from the European market point of view to be bigger than Nike within the UK. What are the main pre-Olympic marketing activities Adidas is doing? Take The Stage is the biggest marketing campaign and all the effort is to become bigger than Nike within UK by 2015. Idea behind Take The Stage is that youth of UK that usually reference themselves to stars, like different pop-stars, rappers, basketball players, and they are usually form USA, thus wearing Nike. Campaign’s goal is to give young people an opportunity to show their talent with the help of Take The Stage. Kids like to share and show their talent via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Adidas gives this opportunity together with celebrities. Giving kids the opportunity to show that they have something to offer and share. There will be couple of winners in all categories that will be able to perform and show their talent with celebrities. Target audience are inner-city kids, especially from London. How does the official sponsorship in the Olympics 2012 affect Adidas marketing? Is it a large increase of marketing spending compared to Non-Olympic years? It depends how the spending is being calculated. Sponsorship of the Games is valued approx 80 million pounds but you can not forget other expenses that are made to activate these activities. This money is not expected to pay back in one year, but the goal is to overtake Nike by the year 2015 within UK market. Olympics is a stepping stone, therefore spending is much higher this year. Usual spending per year within the UK is 30 million pounds. What kind of Viral marketing campaigns and Athlete endorsement activities are performed prior the Olympics 2012?