London 2012 Tier 3 Sponsors - Special Report
With this month's opening of volunteer applications to the general public, the buzz is certainly building towards London 2012. With the inevitable increased interest, we decided it's time to revisit some of the companies involved in London's biggest ever sporting event. Having covered all of the Tier 1 sponsors of London 2012, this time around we decided to investigate another category of partner, often forgotten.
Tier 3 sponsors are official partners of the Games, although in the majority of situations the amount of money changing hands to ensure participation is more limited. These sponsors provide services to the event mainly in exchange for marketing benefits. While this is arguably a more cost-effective route to getting involved, it does not mean there won't be large sums of money spent leveraging the tie-up.
We spoke to 14 of the 19 Tier 3 Olympic sponsors (we deliberately left out those working in marketing services) about what their sponsorship packages involve, how they're planning to use them and invest in them for marketing purposes - and of course how agencies are involved.
These sponsorships don't tend to lead to the brand association you'd expect with a Tier 1 or Worldwide Partner. As such, the marketing intentions of these businesses differ. Throughout our conversations, we noted internal employee engagement as a major theme. This includes events and staff incentives, through to allowing employees secondments to work at London 2012.
Another investment area we've noted across these companies is the emphasis placed on CSR. With London set to be the "Green Games" sponsors are most certainly trying to take advantage of this in their messaging.
A significant challenge for Tier 3 partners is that many are not allowed to use the London 2012 logo in their external marketing. And despite the internal benefits of being involved in 'Our Olympics', there are restrictions on how bold these companies can be without upsetting Lord Coe and the fundraisers. As such, we found these brands struggling to work out how they can use the partnership most effectively. A perfect example of this is that the manufacturer of the track on which Usain Bolt shattered world records, isn't able to make reference to this whatsoever. Another example would be that the suits worn by GB athletes at the games are provided by Next at no cost, although the company is limited in what it can say about this partnership.
So the challenge for marketers of Tier 3 partners is in using subtlety to find ways of leveraging the association, and they need to work harder than the companies at Tier 1 or Worldwide Partners to make sure their contribution doesn't go unnoticed.
Airwave
Communications provider Airwave is the Private Mobile Radio Services Supplier to London 2012. The Head of Integrated Marketing has spoken to us about efforts to promote the partnership to a global audience.
Atkins
Atkins is the UK's largest engineering and design consultancy and the Official Engineering Design Services Provider of London 2012. Here, the company's Marketing Comms Officer discusses the objectives behind the deal.
Boston Consulting Group
Boston Consulting Group is Strategic Consulting Provider for London 2012. With the company's marketing department in a state of transition, the acting Head of UK Marketing talks about the company's plan to leverage the deal in-house.
Eurostar
In its position as International Rail Services Provider to London 2012, Eurostar is aiming to use live events and social media to promote the association to customers. One theme is to boost the firm's CSR creds, given London 2012's positioning as the "Sustainable Games".
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
The Official Legal Provider to London 2012, FBD's 2012 Programme Manager discusses the focus on using the association to drive employee engagement. One challenge is ensuring simple internal comms initiatives have a wider community and environmental context.
GlaxoSmithKline
GSK is the Laboratory Services Provider to London 2012. Here we have spoken to the only employee at the business with a remit dedicated to the Games, about GSK's efforts around ensuring it builds its corporate profile and a legacy for the brand.
Gymnova
This sports equipment business is the Official Gymnastics Equipment Supplier to London 2012. Here we talk to the UK General Manager about the fact that brand building isn't the main aim - it's about diversifying amongst new customer groups.
Holiday Inn
InterContinental Hotels Group is using its position as the Official Hotel Services Provider to London 2012 to support the global relaunch of its Holiday Inn brand. Here, the Marketing Manager for London 2012 discusses the agencies on board to activate the deal.
John Lewis
John Lewis is Official Department Store Provider to London 2012. We've spoken to a senior communications executive about how the sponsorship is supporting the launch of a new store in the Stratford area as well as employee engagement opportunities it brings.
Mondo
Mondo is a specialist in sports, commercial and industrial flooring. We've been speaking with the UK Sales Manager about the company's global marketing structure and its ambitions when it comes to leveraging London 2012's sustainability credentials.
Next
A challenge for Next is that while Team GB athletes will be wearing Next products at the games, the company isn't able to say much about it. A digital marketing manager at the business has highlighted to us the brand's approach to the Games and his thoughts on SEO trends.
Trident
Cadbury chewing brand Trident was signed as a Tier-3 partner in March 2009, adding on to Cadbury's position as a Tier-2 sponsor. We have spoken to a Corporate Affairs Manager at Kraft Foods about how the new parent company is building Cadbury's partnership into its outreach.
Ticketmaster
Ticketmaster is, of course, running the ticketing operations for London 2012. Here we speak to the CRM Manager about the challenges that exist due to the fact the company's opportunity to use the Olympic logo is limited.
Technogym
Technogym is a fitness equipment manufacturer and the Official Fitness Equipment Supplier to London 2012. Its Product Manager has talked to Pearlfinders about both legacy and sustainability being the key things it wants to achieve with the deal.
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