PATH TO MARKETSUCCESSFUL BRAND PROMOTION THROUGH CORPORATE SPONSORSHIPS OF GROWING ELITE SPORTS

AbamsaQuafSports. Media. Entertainment

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. OBJECTIVES OF THE PAPER2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY3. CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP4. CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP AS AN OPTION5. THE OPPORTUNITIES IN NIGERIA6. THE FIRST STEPS

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This paper is aimed at providing the following;

a. An overview of corporate sponsorship and the benefits to both the sponsors and consumers

b. Factors to consider before becoming a corporate partner/sponsorc. Global trends and best practice

OBJECTIVES

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Over the past decades, the major focus in Nigeria has been on football and the sport has enjoyed the required funding for development. This has made other sports suffer and steadily decline. With this reality and the fact that the required funding is not forthcoming from the government, stakeholders are now clamouring for reduced government involvement in sport and more corporate partnership.

For every relationship to be beneficial to all parties involved, there should be value added to all parties. Corporate sponsorship is a form of marketing in which a corporation pays for all or some of the costs associated with a project or program in exchange for recognition and brand visibility. The sport gets value from a sponsorship deal in terms of funds needed for the sporting events. How do the corporate sponsors get value from this partnership?

Corporate sponsors will get incredible value from well-organised and executed sponsorship opportunities through several means including;

a. Increased brand visibility and awarenessb. Enhanced customer loyalty, advocacy and brand perceptionc. Access to prospects

Depending on the sponsorship package, sponsors can have certain rights (title, media, official sponsors) to a sporting event thereby providing a good platform to reach a large audience. Some of the audience is likely to become customers due to this publicity provided by various media coverage, some will be informed

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

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of new products and some will have a new perception of the brand. An ideal sponsorship will benefit the sponsor as well as the event and the consumers.

At the end of every sponsorship event, it is necessary to evaluate the level of exposure/awareness gained, the communication and sales effectiveness, feedback received and cost-benefit analysis.

Expert estimated a 5.3% growth in corporate sponsorship from 2010 to 2015. The growth is attributed to successful partnership and achievement of goals. The growth rate is expected to increase. However, in choosing a sport/event to sponsor or organisation to partner with, corporate brands need to align their marketing objectives to the benefits of the sponsorship. It will only be beneficial if the sponsor can achieve both its broad corporate objectives and its brand promotion/product-related objectives from the partnership.

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It is said that the success of a company or brand depends on its interaction with the environment within which it exists. Sponsorship is one of the bridges that connect the company to its environment. It can be categorised as a form of marketing under the promotion segment of the traditional marketing mix’s 4Ps.

Corporate sponsorship is one of the many forms of sponsorship, where companies pay to be associated with certain events. It involves financial backing of a public-interest program or project by a firm, as a means of enhancing its corporate image

Regardless of the form of sponsorship chosen, there has to be a relationship between the company and an event/property that will help the company achieve its objectives – brand, product, sales etc.Objectives of corporate sponsorship

a. Increase public awareness of a company/brandb. Alteration or strengthening of public perception of a brand i.e. image

buildingc. Build goodwill, create relationships and achieve media coveraged. Establishing association with particular market segment

There are a number of alternatives or areas where corporate sponsorship can be achieved. A fast growing option is sports sponsorship.

Sport sponsorship involves investing in a sports entity with the aim of achieving an organisation’s marketing goals and strategies; and the overall objectives.

CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP

Sports sponsorship can be in the form of

sponsoring an individual, a team within a competition, a competition with a sport, a specific sport or sports in general.

Sport sponsorship plays a significant role in the promotional

aspect of the marketing mix because of its widespread appeal and because sports offer a global stage of mixed emotions – happiness, satisfaction, sense of association and sometimes tears. A very large percentage of people are

also involved in sports either as professionals, supporters or through fitness and general well-being. This give sports grand media

coverage.

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In the 4Ps of the marketing mix, promotion is a quite important area as it provides the medium through which a brand or product is connected to the market/consumer. They include activities that communicate the qualities and benefits of a product/brand, persuade target customers or consumers to buy it and build the reputation of the company.

All promotional activities must be integrated to deliver a consistent and positive message. These activities include advertisement, personal selling or telemarketing, publicity or public relations, short term sales promotion and direct marketing.

Another key form of promotion is online/digital marketing which largely involves the use of social media for brand promotion.

Corporate sponsorship is becoming a convenient and more effective option for brand promotion. According to the PwC’s outlook for the global sports market for 2015, corporate sponsorship for sporting events was estimated to increase annually at 5.3% from 2011 – 2015 in the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region and an onward increase of 6.3%.

This growth may be because corporate sponsorship encompasses other activities attributable to the conventional promotional activities

CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP AS A OPTION

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COMPANY’S MOTIVATION FOR SPONSORSHIP

Whilst the rationale for companies decision to invest in sports sponsorship varies widely, what can be said is that the key motivation is no longer about maximizing brand visibility and awareness only but also about gaining deeper and more emotional engagement with fans and staffs, and even managing the perception of the sponsoring company.

BENEFITS TO THE SPORT

Since sponsorship is largely a financial support of activities, events etc., there are many benefits that come with sponsorship to the “sponsees” (event, individual, etc) which provides an opportunity for all involved parties to reach their goals. These benefits include but are not limited to

a. Availability of fundsb. Provision of needed equipmentc. Addition of credibility to event

IMPACT ON THE CONSUMER

The contact between the corporate sponsor and the consumer is the event being sponsored and this forms the basis upon which the consumer is impacted. The success of an event most times is determined by the amount of financing obtained from the corporate sponsors and the organisation of the event. The experience at an event is the first impact of corporate sponsorship at an event. Also, the consumers have the opportunity to know more about the product or company and gather enough information to aid its purchase intention.

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OPPORTUNITIES IN NIGERIA

With about half of its population within the active ages of 15 – 54 and an unwaning passion for sports, Nigeria offers a very worthwhile atmosphere for sports partnership. With a population estimated at 179m in 2014 and an estimated annual growth rate of 2.47%, corporate organisations have access to an enormous amount of potential customers. This connection can be made via corporate sponsorship.

African population lives in Nigeria

Most populous country in Africa

16.1%

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The popular sports in Nigeria include football, basketball, boxing, table tennis, lawn tennis, etc. Some of these sports have organised professional leagues including football, basketball and rugby while some have tournament schedules e.g lawn tennis and golf.

Top ten most populous countries in the world.

20503rd

most populous country by

Sokoto

KebbiZamfara

Niger

Kaduna

Katsina

Kano

Jigawa

Bauchi

YobeBorno

Gombe

Plateau

Taraba

Adamawa

NassarawaFCT

Kwara

Oyo

Ogun

Lagos

Osun Ekiti

Ondo

Kogi

Edo

Delta

Benue

CrossRiver

EbonyiEnugu

Anambra

Imo

Rivers

Bayelsa

AkwaIbom

Abia

STATE COVERAGE OF SPORTS

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Luckily and as a matter of fact major cities in Nigeria like Lagos, Kano, Ibadan, Abuja, Port Harcount have active sport activities.

Football - Nigeria Premier Football League

Basketball - Dstv Premier Basketball League

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As expected, there is a downside to corporate sponsorship and this includes possibility of a getting a negative brand image as a result of its sponsorship/partnership. In 2013, Reebok was petitioned and pressured into dropping deal with rapper Rick Ross over rape lyrics as it was believed that every single day that Reebok continues rewarding Rick Ross with a lucrative endorsement deal, Reebok is condoning rape.

There is a wide range of areas in which corporate sponsorship can come in. Leagues, events, academies and individual can be sponsored. Every sponsorship deal has to be evaluated separately as there is no standardisation. The company will have to spend a great amount of time needed to plan and execute each deal.

Therefore it is very important to ensure that the corporate sponsorship aligns with the company’s existing objectives and strategy as finding the right synergy between corporate sponsorship and marketing objectives is the key to success. It is also very important to leverage on corporate sponsorship in ensuring that customers’ perception of a brand is positively influenced both at the event and beyond.

THE FIRST STEPS

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OUR APPROACH

At AbamsaQuaf, our objective is to help corporate organisations identify and partner with the most ideal sporting activity that meets their brand and marketing objectives. We leverage on our experience, expertise and relationships to optimize corporate sponsorships in line with their medium and long-term growth and financial strategy. We strive to represent and be associated with the best brands at every level.

Our partnership/strength/focus areas include;

• With sport federations and agencies: We help in identifying the opportunities for sports federations and agencies; and matching them with appropriate corporate brands. Also in drafting long and short term media strategy

• With sport event organisers – We partner with organisers to in planning and coordination to optimise brand awareness and media outreach

• With sport clubs/teams – We have working relationships with clubs in the sports leagues in Nigeria on strategy and branding

• With individual athletes – We work with successful and promising athletes in identifying sponsorship opportunities and managing their brands

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If you have plans on promoting your brand and engaging the audience; if you want to learn more about how sponsorship can help achieve growth and the available opportunities; or if you need fresh perspectives on effectively activating partnerships; please contact

Adedamilola AdedotunHead of Business Development and Relationship ManagementAdedammy@abamsaquaf.com+234 805 710 2300