The reality is that we usually look for the “recipe” so that everything works well and if I have learned anything it is that it does not exist, however there are several elements that must exist to reduce the risk of failing miserably.
I have studied the subject carefully and although it seems like a recipe, certain guidelines can be followed, which I managed to translate into a model that is a guide to creating these activations or experiences in sport.
However, there are certain guidelines that led me to those conclusions, which I share with you in this column.
The first thing is to analyze the profile of the audience you want to reach with your activation. And although this usually seems very obvious, many times we fall into the trap of wanting to reach the largest possible audience when an activation by definition is going to find a certain market reduced (people who can and want to).
Another very important thing. Having a plan is better than not having one. Plan everything in as much detail as possible, including what can go wrong. Think in terms of sport: What happens if we lose? What if we win? Imagine all the possible scenarios of your activation.
What follows is important, know the third parties that you are going to involve: agencies, influencers, players, former players, production team, etc. This usually brings problems at the time of execution by not having everyone aligned with the expectations or the tasks to be carried out. This becomes basic to making experiences interesting, relevant and memorable.
Then comes another matter of vital importance. The media. Although today we usually say that everything is transmedia, the reality is that one thing is to say it and another is to do it. We must know the dynamics of the media that we will use to publicize our activation or experience. What needs to be done in Social Media is not the same as in traditional media. Measure well if your activation requires digital only or needs mass media push. That is a factor by which I have seen that many activations do not have the desired effect. “That we announce it digitally is enough” and it is not always like that. I link this a lot to the knowing-your-audience point of activation.
Creativity. Perhaps the most valuable of the activation. Being creative gives you that sense of originality that makes everything memorable. You just have to be careful, because if you are a brand, you want to be the one remembered as well as the asset (the player, the team, etc). You have to make sure that the participant understands that everything happens thanks to who activates. What you have to achieve is to stay in the memory of the audience. You were the one who made this possible. They were able to live it thanks to you. Authenticity in this case is given by creativity. And it is not about doing something different, perhaps a slight twist to something that works is enough.
This is key. The emotions and the fan have to go to the center. Many brands succumb to the temptation to break what can benefit us because we want to see ourselves everywhere. For example, in the creation of hashtags; we tend to fall into that temptation to put our brand out of place, ending up with a hashtag totally out of digital context, difficult to read, and that does not create empathy. If the hashtag is good and you execute it well, it should drive users to your brand because you dominate the conversation. And for that, you must appeal to emotions, values and put the fan at the center. You do this to connect with your consumer. It’s for him, put him in the center. Let it connect
Then comes the holistic view. What can your activation include? I leave you a list:
- traditional media
- Social mediaProducts (jerseys, tickets, access)
- Trivia, prizes, giveaways
- hospitality
- Meet & Greets, presentations, press conferences
- Social responsibility activities
Finally, stay up to date so that your mind and creativity continue to be fed continuously: subscribe to newsletters, LinkedIn groups, attend sports industry events to find that inspiration.
There is much more we can talk about activations, but if you consider these practices, you will surely be closer to performing those that are kept in the minds of sports fans.