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Olympian Duncan Armstrong joins Mumbrella360 for session on sports sponsorship

duncan armstrongGold medal winning Olympian Duncan Armstrong is to join a panel at June’s Mumbrella360 conference discussing how to get the most out of Olympic sponsorship.

In a session curated by marketing and sports sponsorship specialists Octagon, the discussion will also feature Telstra’s GM of media, sponsorship and awards Toby Dewar.

The presentation – Gold Medal Passions and Starting Line Fumbles: The evolution of Olympic Sponsorship and Advertising on the eve of the London Games – will be led by Octagon’s strategy director Adam Hodge

The session will include TV, outdoor, print and experiential case studies, as well as Armstrong’s demonstration of the emotional connection to sport as he tells his story of winning gold at the Seoul Olympics despite being a rank outsider. There will also be a Q&A session with the audience.

toby dewarDewar has worked with a string of major brands and agencies including DDB, Universal McCann and Ikon on clients including Vodafone, Coca-Cola, MasterCard and Microsoft. He was McDonald’s media and sponsorship Manager, leading their World Cup and Olympics projects. In his current role with Telstra, he manages the company’s significant media and sponsorship portfolios.

hodgeHodge works with clients including Lion, MasterCard, Telstra, Samsung and Energy Australia.

According to Octagon’s session proposal:

The Olympics has always been a time for celebration and passion – a two week festival that unites the world, celebrates incredible performance and showcases indomitable human spirit.

The reality is that the Games is much more than this. They have been used for political messaging (Hitler’s Germany, the Munich terrorist attack, the Black Panther demonstrations in Mexico and the Beijing Torch relay). Have played a part in sinking an economy (see Greece…) and most interestingly for our industry, have become one of the most powerful and engaging marketing platforms in the world.

This presentation will focus on the Passion of The Games and will discuss the role that sponsorship and advertising plays in the modern Olympics. From the first athletes who found a way to promote their shoe sponsor by tying their spikes around their neck, the way governments capitalise on these moments to market themselves to the most controversial and effective Olympic marketing campaigns (official and ambush).

Adam will provide an agency point of view drawing on Octagon’s 25+ years of experience in Olympic Advertising, Talent Management and Sponsorship.

Toby will reference Olympic marketing from a client perspective having managing IOC and AOC sponsorship campaigns for both Maccas and Telstra at multiple games.

Finally hear from an Olympic Legend on the passion all athletes have for The Games and how this can translate into powerful communication opportunities for brands.

With only weeks before the London Games begins, we will look at the evolution of Olympics marketing over time and predict those brands we believe will come home with the Gold medal for their efforts in 2012.

So, some food for thought…

· Why did 60% of Chinese people think that Pepsi sponsored the Beijing Olympics when Coke shelled out millions for exclusive rights?

· With strictly enforced ‘black out’ periods and highly regulated IOC rules around wording, trademarks and references to The Games in place, what are smart advertisers doing to ensure they are visible?

· How will the social Olympics play-out online and in people’s pockets?

· How do official sponsors protect their investment against competitive ambush and what are some of the more imaginative ambush campaigns of the modern games

With the line between amateur and professional sports having blurred to almost invisibility, brands today have evolved to be as much part of the culture and excitement as the athletes themselves. This session tracks that evolution, highlights the Gold Medallists and warns of the pitfalls that can result in an Eddie the Eagle style plummet back to earth.

mUmBRELLA360logo 2012Mumbrella360 takes place on June 6 and 7 at the Hilton Hotel  in Sydney. Earlybird tickets – with a discount of $600 are available on the Mumbrella360 website for a further 14 days.

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