The Sports ExperienceTHE BRAND EXPERIENCE AGENCY

ISSUE 09|| DECEMBER 2014

THE PLAYREPORT A brief study on the changing

landscape of brand experiences.

Featuring BNP Paribas, Moov, 2014 FIFA World Cup viral content, Sport Club Recife and the NFL Superbowl

CHARITY COLLABORATION

VIRAL VIDEO MARKETING

WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY

GAMIFICATION

CTV CCG W

CREATIVE TECH

CTVIRAL VIDEO MARKETING

V CHARITY COLLABORATIONCCGAMIFICATIONG WEARABLE TECHNOLOGYW

Artificial intelligence is shaping the future of “personal training”.

Brands steal World Cup sponsors share of voice via viral video content.

Loyal fans will go much further than you ever thought.

BNP Paribas make sports and social media history as fans train a tennis pro via Twitter.

The Superbowl - the biggest marketing opportunity in the world.

CREATIVE TECH

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE

HelloThroughout the records of human history, one cultural artefact always crops up: sport. Whether in old frescoes or ancient cave paintings, it’s clear that sport has always been an integral element of human life.

However, over time, the significance of sport has developed into much more than a fun fitness activity; it has become deeply ingrained in our national cultures and personal identities and a vast and serious industry.

With the advent of mass media and global communication, sport has only furthered its popularity and scalability. Today, global and national sporting events top TV viewership and demand premium advertising rates. 

For example, even though soccer is not a major sport in Australia, a staggering 9 million+ Aussies (about 40% of the country's population) watched the FIFA World Cup on SBS in spite of its early morning games.

Many pundits have suggested that 2015 will be Australia’s biggest ever year in sport as the country hosts a multitude of world class events including Asia’s biggest football tournament, The Asian Cup in January and The ICC Cricket World Cup in February.

Crowds will also flock to annual events such as The Australian Open, the Melbourne Cup Carnival, the Santos Tour Down Under and the 20th Melbourne Grand Prix. 

In the 21st century, the entertainment extends way beyond the pitch, field or track. Brands have become so creatively integrated into the sports industry that they are becoming a part of the event itself -whether they have permission or not!

In this issue of The PLAY Report we look at how brands exploit the world's enthusiasm and excitement for sport - on and off the field.

Don’t forget to click on the bold case studies for more information.

The team at PLAY.

PS – We’d love to hear your feedback on this issue.

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE

Did you know?

35.6Million

tweets were sent during the 2014 FIFA World Cup final

of fans were active “in game” on social networks during the World Football Cup 2014

The cost of the 2012 London Olympic Games

$3.8BILLION

Nike’s 2013 endorsement commitments 68,305,500

Approximate number of views of the “The Force” TVC by Volkswagen (made famous in the 2011 Superbowl)

$2 Billionthe purchase price of the Los Angeles Clippers in 2014

In 2012, Nike USA reduced its spend on TV and print advertising by 40%

72.4%

The price of a 30 second TVC at the 2014 Superbowl

Source: CBS News

Source: Forbes

Source: Bleacher Report Source: MobileMarketingMag

Source: Forbes

Source: The Guardian

Source: Thenextweb.com

Source: Thenextweb.com

$4 Million $14.6 Billion

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE

BRINGING YOU CLOSER TO THE ACTION

From mass audiences to one-to-ones, sport offers it allOne of sport's greatest advantages is that it allows us to talk to a range of consumers in all sorts of ways. 

The following case studies all illustrate different ways brands are using a sporting platform to connect with their audience; what is most interesting is the level of proximity that sport permits. 

At a macro level, sport lets us reach mass audiences - offering unique opportunities to engage with millions of people.

One level below are those brands that hijack big events - reaching a wide audience without necessarily paying for the right to do so, by using a more creative and clever suite of communications. 

At an individual level, sport lets brands share consumers’ specific passions and can add and exploit these to create very personal relationships with their targets. 

Finally, brands can operate at a very targeted and focussed level where they can use sport to build a genuine ‘one-on-one’ connection with their consumer - a connection that can build and grow over time through a mutually shared beliefs and interest.  Mass events, mass audiences

Mass events, targeted audiences

Niche events, targeted audiences

Personal events,

one-to-one audiences

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE

PERSPECTIVE: Merging digital and physical

touch points lets brands deliver unique brand experiences to a mass

audience.

TWEET AND SHOOT

Train a tennis pro via TwitterFrench bank BNP Paribas wanted to celebrate their 40th year  partnership anniversary with Roland-Garros by establishing a unique connection between French tennis pro, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and fans.The brand sought to close the gap between fan and player by bringing the two together in a unique way. For the first time ever, a professional athlete would be trained by the entire world! Through Twitter, fans ‘set’ the tennis ball’s positioning, trajectory and spin and served it for Jo’s return. Three days before the French Open, Jo took to the court and faced the most challenging of the 5,865 shots.BNP Paribas demonstrated its tennis credentials and helped the whole country get behind one of its heroes, while fans were given the opportunity to test a superstar. For Jo, the benefit was a unique training experience that exposed him to an unpredictable series of tests.The campaign clearly worked, as the activation was watched online by 183,600 fans (enough to fill centre court 12 times) and BNP Paribas made sports and social media history. Most significant of all, Jo made it through to the Grand Slam’s semi final (a personal best).Complementing the activation, BNP Paribas built an editorial driven community called “We Are Tennis”, which provides a one stop shop for all things international tennis and continues to demonstrate the brand’s innovation and commitment to the game.

CTW V CCG

Watch the Tweet & Shoot

case study

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE CTW V CCG

Watch theMoov

case study

PERSPECTIVE: We talk of people having

relationships with brands but that has always been an abstract concept.

Now that computers are adopting persona’s, we can imagine how people and products can have

genuine, emotive partnerships.

THE FUTURE OF WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY IS PERSONAL

The world's first Artificial Intelligence sports coachAs Nike once said, ‘we are all athletes’ - but not everyone has access to the training, resources and instruction that can help us excel in our chosen field. Until now. Making a dramatic leap forward from current wearables like Nike+, Moov integrates performance tracking with real-time coaching to help users exercise correctly and more efficiently. With various wearing and mounting options, Moov monitors movement in a multitude of ways and analyses these to improve the user’s technique in real time, providing users with activity-specific data post-training to help improve their performance. Moov partners with specialist coaches and athletes to develop a wide range of programs for all fitness levels and motivations that encourage performance whilst preventing injury. Currently the technology offers coaching for cycling, running, swimming, boxing, strength workouts, golf and yoga. Brands that want to capitalise on sports and exercise need tounderstand that simply sharing content is no longer enough; brands need to help people do it, rather than merely shouting ‘just do it’!

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE CTW V CCG

THE VALUE OF QUALITY STORY TELLING

Hijacking the 2014 World Cup Big sporting events draw massive audiences, and with them, exorbitant advertising rates. Not all brands can, or want, to afford to sponsor events like the FIFA World Cup, but that doesn't seem to be so much of an obstacle anymore...

Whilst it’s true that only official sponsors can mention the event in their advertising, brands are finding ever more creative ways of integrating their message. Therefore, it is perhaps no surprise that it’s often the non-sponsors whose campaigns are the most memorable. 

During the 2014 World Cup, Nike and Beats By Dre used viral video marketing to gain a greater share of attention than official sponsors. Nike’s ‘The Last Game’ received 10 million views within 24 hours and a further 58 million+ since. In comparison, Adidas’ ‘All In or Nothing’ only received 39 million views in the same period.

Beats by Dre gained media attention for not only ‘The Game Before the Game’ but also for FIFA’s reaction - banning players from using Beats, on their way to, in or back from the stadium. Sony tried to win players  over by providing free headphones, but players still chose Beats.

It is increasingly clear that mere association is not enough; consumers and athletes want a deeper story. Sponsorship can be subverted, partnerships can be found in unexpected places and brands can build bonds based on understanding the 'why' not just the 'what' of sport. 

WatchNike’s

“The Last Game”

here WatchBeats by Dre’s

“The Game before the Game”

here

FANS REMAIN CHEERING AFTER DEATH

World’s first organ donor card for a football team.For the passionate fans of Sport Club do Recife in Brazil, not even death can stand in the way of their desire to support their team. When the club was looking for new ways to engage their fan-base, it decided to look beyond their wallets and into their hearts, using passion to promote a bigger social cause that could generate a much more powerful conversation around the team.Their solution was to create a new class of fans - the Immortal Fans - who agreed to donate their organs after death so they could keep cheering for their team. This was particularly important, as organ donation in Brazil is a taboo subject with little national awareness. Since the campaign began, 51,000+ donor cards have been distributed and organ donation has increased by 54%, breaking all time records. Here is an example of a brand galvanising its audience through a deep understanding of who they are and what matters to them - and then aligning that with a suitable cause to raise awareness for both. When we think about tapping into people’s love for sport it is clear we can go so much deeper than mere ‘fandom’. Sport can have a transcendental nature that gives people from all walks of life a sense of belonging and identity. 

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE CTW V CCG

Watch theImmortal Fans

case study

PERSPECTIVE: Sport, and supporting, is never

black and white. There may be a winner and a loser, but the deep

emotions that surround sport means there are more opportunities for

engagement and connection than may first be apparent.

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE CTW V CCG

111.5 MILLION VIEWERS AND COUNTING

The worlds biggest marketing opportunity? How could we write a report on the Sports Experience without showcasing the Superbowl? In 2014, became the most-watched American television program in history with 111.5 million viewers, the fourth time in five years the game has set the record. The Superbowl is more than a football game, the day is now considered a de facto national holiday. Brands pay millions of dollars to reach such a mass audience, with their content now evaluated as critically as every play of the game.Tugging the emotional heartstrings is key, but brands take a range of approaches, with two being notable in recent years. First is the fiercely patriotic agenda of brands like Chrysler which play to the all-American ethos of the game with raw propaganda pieces designed to restore the feel-good factor to a nation bruised in recent years by politics, economics and terrorism.Secondly, and very differently, brands like Volkswagen offer a form of surreal escapism, using humour and warmth to distract viewers from reality and subtly convey key product benefits. Whatever your view on American Football, its clear the world can learn plenty from how advertisers use their precious seconds to wring as much emotion and heart from their audience as possible.

PERSPECTIVE: Big sporting audiences are only valuable if you can get

them to feel something beyond irritation at interrupting

their game.

WatchVolkswagen’s “The Force”

hereWatch

Chrysler’s “Imported From

Detroit”here

111.5 MILLION VIEWERS AND COUNTING

The world’s biggest marketing opportunity? How could we write a report on The Sports Experience without showcasing the Superbowl?In 2014, Super Bowl XLVIII became the most-watched American television program in history with 111.5 million viewers - the fourth time in five years the game has set the record. The Superbowl is more than a football game, the day itself is considered a de facto US national holiday.Brands pay millions of dollars to reach such a vast audience, and their content is evaluated just as critically as every play of the game.Tugging at the emotional heartstrings is key, but brands take a range of approaches, with two being notable in recent years. First, is the fiercely patriotic agenda of brands like Chrysler with All-American propaganda pieces designed to restore the feel-good factor to a nation bruised in recent years by politics, economics and terrorism.Secondly, and very differently, brands like Volkswagen offer a form of surreal escapism, using humour and warmth to distract viewers from reality and subtly convey key product benefits.Whatever your view on American Football, it is clear the world can learn plenty from how advertisers use their precious seconds to wring as much emotion (and dollars) from their audience as possible.

THE SPORTS EXPERIENCE

PLAY is the agency for the Experience Economy. In 2003 we opened our doors as the pioneers of experience thinking. Today we are a game-changing, strategically driven business and the most awarded Brand Experience Agency in Australia, servicing clients in Australia and Asia Pacific.

We strategically design digital and live experiences that activate brands. PLAY delivers at every stage of the creative process - fusing strategic thinking, sharp design, digital insight and production expertise.

WHO WE ARE

We are experience thinkers. We place the customer experience at the centre of what we do. This enables us to identify channel neutral, high impact marketing opportunities for our clients and ensures a relevant and meaningful dialogue with consumers.

WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT

WE HAVE AN EXPERIENTIALMIND AND A DIGITAL SPIRITConsumers don't differentiate between a digital and real life experience with a brand. Neither do we. We fuse our strategic, creative, digital and activation capabilities into a seamless experience, delivering against defined business objectives.

For business and press enquiries please contact:Simon Horauf // Founder & Head of MarketingSimon.Horauf@playcomms.com

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