Know-How Exchange : Advertising/PR

I'm sure you had something in mind when you decided to sponsor this person. What was it?

You knew then that your budget was limited, and that there isn't much relevant connection between what a car company does and downhill skiing. So WHY did you sponsor this person?

If it was to help a struggling athlete (a noble pursuit, IMHO) then you've accomplished your objective and don't need to "use" the partnership any further. If you had an ulterior business motive, perhaps you can share that with us and let us know why that motive doesn't answer your question.

Something here doesn't compute (for me). What am I missing?

The normal method would be to have the sponsored athlete as part of your advertisements. If you are not advertising, then this may be a challenge.

An alternate method would be to hold a special event and invite key customers/prospects who would have the opportunity to meet the athlete. This is not necessarily any cheaper than advertising, as you would have to pay for the event (food, location, etc.).

I have the same uncertainty as mgoodman: You must have had something in mind. (Well . . . maybe not. I've worked for places where a top person gets an idea, spends some money, then says, "OK, now what do we do?" Maybe this was some top guy's/gal's impulsive action and now you have to make it work?

The idea I had was similar to Peter's. Hold a skiing clinic, and invite your best customers and best prospects to it. Not everyone likes to ski, but then not everyone golfs, either, and golfing events are pretty popular. Your skier, of course, will be the featured instructor. Invite spouses, if your budget allows for it, and develop an alternate program for spouses and non-skiers. Allow plenty of time for interaction between your sales force and the prospects, at meals, on the slopes, etc.

I'm not sure that qualifies as a "clever" idea, but it is one that makes good use of your sponsored athlete and advances your marketing efforts.

Hope that helps.

Can you use their image and create some car wraps (such as: https://carwraps.net/)?

1) In the winter the skier ties in to safety issues - need for control on ice, and to sports cars.

2) Presumably water skiing is relatively easy for a world-class skier to learn, so there could be a summer tie-in as well.

3) Skis are long, awkward baggage, and someone at that level presumably has considerable other baggage -- ties in to showing how convenient the large trunk or the roof racks are, how practical a station waggon is.

4) I like the sking clinic idea, especially if a portion of it is aimed at children.

5) Videos are becoming ever more popular on the web (YoutTube), etc. and tieing some skiing footage into winter ads for your cars does not require a Hollywood studio. It can be outsourced to someone who knows video editing software such as MAGIX, Screenflow (for Mac) or Sony Movie Studio for PC.

The cost of the software is not the issue. (The Sony software mentioned above runs about $40.) Rather it is the expertise in using it.

6) Besides skiing, what other major interests does the athlete have? For example, George Foreman, the heavyweight boxiing champion, was the key to one of the most successful celebrity campaigns of all time -- and it had nothing to do with any products related to boxing.

He liked to grill. A company named its product "the George Foreman grill" and wound up selling over 100 million units, largely thanks to George's tireless and enthusiatic support. (Along the way the grills have earned him an estimated $200 million.)

People liked George anyway, and seeing his honest enthusiam for the grills made him compelling. If your skier is personable and really crazy about one of your cars (jeep, convertible, station wagon), focus on that accordingly.

Regards,
JH