Inside Sponsorship

In recent years we’ve heard a lot about the potential of emerging markets, across all industries, and it is easy to see that emerging markets will have an impact on the global sponsorship industry.

Emerging markets are increasingly engaging with and investing in top-level sport: the next three Olympic Games will be staged in Asia while Russia and Qatar are the next two FIFA World Cup hosts and Japan will host the Rugby World Cup.

Of huge significance, and leading the way, is China. With 1.38 billion people, it represents a significant and mostly untapped market. Further, the Government has targeted a US$813 billion sports industry by 2025 and that will be fuelled by major investment across all aspects of sports – in events, facilities, teams, leagues and grassroots programs.

The mind boggles!

To help us understand the emerging Chinese market, and as part of our series exploring Nielsen’s commercial trends in sports, of which #1 is the emergence of new sporting powers, led by China, Claude Ringuet, Managing Director South East Asia & Greater China, joins us on the show.

You can connect with Claude on LinkedIn and download a copy of Nielsen's Commercial Trends in Sport 2017 here.

Also joining us on the podcast, as usual, is our MD, Mark Thompson, who, whenever we welcome a Nielsen staff member on the show to discuss one of their commercial trends, will blog about the topic through the lens of what the trend means for the sponsorship industry. In this episode, Mark provides his take on China and outlines four things sponsorship managers should know.

You can also read Mark's blog here - How the Emergence of New Sporting Powers, Led By China, Impacts Sponsorship

Enjoy.

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You don’t often come across brand’s, or their staff, who are vocal about sponsorship on social media. Sure, there are those that are vocal about promoting or activating their sponsorships but not many that share their thoughts, ideas and experiences on sponsorship in a way that contributes to the industry.

Dan Frystak, Senior Manager, Brand and Sponsorship at CDW, is different. Not only does Dan post on LinkedIn about things others don’t, he does so in a way that generates discussion and the sharing of other people’s ideas. That’s really valuable and that’s why we invited him on the show.

It is an insightful chat, with someone on the brand side, who is willing to share their thoughts, views and experiences in an open way. You are going to love it.

In the show, Dan talks about CDW's sponsorship of the PGA and how they've integrated it with their support of Operation Homefront. Check out the video here.

You can connect with Dan on LinkedIn and find out more about CDW at www.cdw.com.

Mark also joins us and builds on our recent blogs and podcasts around sales. Mark chats about his latest blog which looks at the three key people in an organisation, that you are trying to sell sponsorship to, that you really need to understand and navigate if you want to be successful.

Enjoy.

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How do you measure and report on sponsorships when there are so many moving parts?

If you are a brand, measuring what you are receiving, and the ROI and ROO, is imperative. It’s at the pointy end of your marketing activities and, no doubt, you need to report internally on how you are achieving success with spending company budget.

If you are a rights holder, you need to be measuring and reporting to your sponsors so that you can show you are an important part of that marketing budget.

At a bare minimum, if you are both following good goal setting process, and setting SMART objectives for the sponsorship, then measuring those objectives is a non-negotiable. That’s the M part of SMART!

No surprises there but, again, how do you measure and report when you have so many moving parts?

The answer is Unified Measurement and it isn’t just more industry jargon. Instead, it is something that you cannot ignore anymore.

Recently, Nielsen Sports produced a whitepaper, Unified Measurement – Defining A New Sponsorship Currency, and in this episode, I speak with Michael Tange, SVP Global Head of Strategy & Solutions, at Nielsen Sports & Entertainment, to take a look at the whitepaper in depth and unpack what it means for you.

You can download Nielsen Sports’ whitepaper here - Unified Measurement – Defining A New Sponsorship Currency - and you can also connect with Michael on LinkedIn.

Mark also focuses his regular blog on the topic of measurement and discusses the importance of understanding your data and consistent measurement.

Enjoy.

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Some people are sales naturals while some have worked hard to be good at it, some struggle with it and some hate that part of sponsorship. However, if you aren’t involved in upfront sales then your delivery and management elements will most likely flow into renewal discussions and so sales come into play then.

There are many traps to fall into in sales and we all have areas we could be better at or even just benefit from some fresh, non-sponsorship industry, views. Besides, there aren’t too many people in the sponsorship industry that can call themselves sales experts and have nothing left to learn.

One person who is an expert, is Trent Leyshan, Founder of Boom! Sales and Trent joins us on the show to provide advice so you can sell effectively.

If you want to find out more about Trent, BOOM! Sales or his books, connect with him on LinkedIn or visit www.boomsales.com.au

Also on this episode, our MD, Mark Thompson, joins us to discuss the key to sponsorship relationships. Of course, it is delivery but not the kind you think!

Enjoy

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Most of us will never know the horrors of combat. Many servicemen and women suffer life-changing injuries, both visible and invisible, while serving their countries. How do they find the motivation to move on and to not be defined by their injuries? How can they be recognized for their achievements?

Prince Harry asked these questions. Following a visit in 2013 to the US-based Warrior Games for wounded, ill and injured military personnel and veterans, he was inspired to create an expanded international version. The first Invictus Games took place in London in 2014 and attracted more than 400 competitors from 13 nations. The second Invictus Games took place in 2016 in Orlando, Florida, and built on the excitement of the London Games with more than 500 competitors from 14 nations. The Invictus Games demonstrate soldiers’ and veterans’ tireless drive to overcome and the power of sport on their journey to recovery.

The Invictus Games is about much more than just sport – it captures hearts, challenges minds and changes lives.

It is a fascinating story and that’s why we invited Tim Hodgson, Chief Commercial and Marketing Officer, at Invictus Games Sydney 2018, on the show to take us inside their commercial program.

During the chat, Tim mentions a few awesome projects he's been a part of and you can find out more about them here.

Australia's Greatest Athlete

XXXX Gold Beach Cricket

Speights Great Beer Delivery

Also, in this episode, Mark Thompson, our MD, joins us to talk us through 5 steps to managing a crisis in sponsorship. Here’s Mark.

Enjoy

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While there are lots of things that go into making a partnership successful, there is probably one element that is more important than others – ensuring that the benefits you offer a sponsor are done so in a way that will help them meet their marketing objectives.

We all know that sponsorship is really just one element of a brand’s marketing and that brand’s will cut marketing that isn’t delivering results. That makes sense. Yet, we also that the industry, by and large, still struggles somewhat in ensuring that partnerships kick off on a strong foundation in the sense that the benefits being delivered are the right ones.

That’s why we developed a step-by-step guide to help you uncover a potential sponsor’s objectives, position suitable benefits, achieve buy-in and ownership from the sponsor and then set agreed goals around the partnership’s objectives.

That’s what this episode is all about. You’ll walk through, in detail, the steps on how to do all of that. Further, if you follow the advice in the guide, the end result will change your success rate in signing sponsors but also that they will be much more beneficial and long-term relationships.

You can download the eBook Aligning Benefits to Sponsor Objectives here.

Also, in this episode, Mark Thompson, our MD, joins us to talk about something that he is a massive advocate of – storytelling and how important it is within sponsorship.

Enjoy.

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Banks have big budgets and there aren’t many that don’t utilise sponsorship as part of their marketing plan.

In New Zealand, in 1906, after many years of lobbying the government, a Special Bill was passed enabling excess funds to be directed to community projects. Since that time ASB has been recognised and respected for the support it gives to the communities in which they operate.

ASB's Corporate Responsibility Report talks ASB’s values and the work they are doing to build and support sustainable New Zealand communities.

ASB has a wide-ranging sponsorship approach, from involvement in community-based events right through to the all-conquering New Zealand All Blacks and in this episode, Mike Wotton, Sponsorship Manager takes us inside sponsorship at ASB.

You can connect with Mike on LinkedIn and find out more about ASB at www.asb.co.nz/about-us

Mark Thompson also joins us to talk about his latest blog which examines the areas that, as sponsorship managers, you might consider enlisting some help in.

Enjoy

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The English Premier League commands a worldwide audience. Current values of shirt sponsors, across the 20 teams, totals £233.6M per season. It’s clearly big business and attracts big brands and especially international ones.However, it is a market that is crowded, and for some clubs, it’s not just about saying “We are a Premier League team; sponsor us” and brands just saying “Yes”.

As such, some clubs are building sustainable commercial programs including alternative sources of revenue. Southampton FC is one of those clubs and Stuart Ramsey, Head of Sponsorship, joins us in this episode to take you inside their commercial program.

You can connect with Stuart on LinkedIn and find out more about the club at https://southamptonfc.com

Mark Thompson also joins us to build on last episode’s chat about reporting and the four key principles that you need to follow for good reporting. This time around, Mark talks about the key ingredients for a good report. You can read Mark’s blog here.

Enjoy

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Gambling sponsorship has grown significantly; especially in the sports sector. It creates a lot of debate both within the industry and the general public.

Increasing legislation and controls means that both rights holders and gambling brands need to ensure they work more closely together to maintain the integrity of both brands. As such, gambling brands are increasingly looking to blend their sponsorship with their wider corporate social responsibility.

So, in this episode, we speak with Ed Owens, Chief Marketing Officer at CrownBet. 

You can connect with Ed on LinkedIn and find out more about CrownBet at www.crownbet.com.au

Mark also joins us to discuss the foundations of good reporting and provides four principles to follow. You can read Mark’s detailed blog here.

Enjoy.

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In this Inside Sponsorship episode, we speak to Jason Cornell and go inside a wide range of sponsorship programs including the Hong Kong 7s and the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

Jason has over 15 years’ leadership experience initiating, negotiating and maintaining multi-year sponsorship agreements with leading international brands. His career pinnacle has been introducing commercial sponsorships to the Hong Kong Jockey club for the first time in history. Through conceiving, negotiating and activating multi-year and multi-million dollar agreements with top brands such as Cathay Pacific, HSBC, Mercedes Benz, Citibank and Audemars Piquet, Jason was able to establish the Cathay Pacific HK International Races, the HSBC Premier Series and the Citi Triple Crown elevating the club to being one of the largest and most respected in the world.

Leveraging an extensive background in sport, before moving into sports management and organisational leadership positions, Jason understands exactly how to maximise the commercial benefits from sponsor partnerships, applying over a decade of expertise and a portfolio of achievements to transform revenue models and performance.

If you want to get in touch with Jason, you can connect with him on LinkedIn , visit www.alicespringsturfclub.org.au or follow #outbackraces.

Mark also joins us to delve into, and add clarity, around the age old debate of the difference between Return on Investment and Return on Objectives in your sponsorships and which is the source of happiness.

As always, if you have an idea for a topic, a segment, someone you’d like us to have on the show or just a question, then be sure to get in touch.

Enjoy.

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