It is true that we are experiencing a combination of effects that makes this World Cup very different: it is winter for the northern hemisphere, which is a bit strange. While in the global south, they are about to experience a hotter event than usual.
The closure of some tournaments, or the suspension of competitions, the revelation of the final lists of players plus injuries to figures just a few days before the start of Qatar 2022 begins to add that “little flavor” that we thought was missing, because it begins to there be drama and anything, from this moment on, the fan feels that it increases or decreases the chances for a Selection as the case may be.
Let’s add to this environment the confusion of priorities that the consumer is going to have: closing of the year with the expenses that it represents, traditional festivities, planned vacations and in the middle of that, Qatar will be playing.
On the other hand, we have the game of brands, where by dint of being honest, they will have to measure the efficiency of activating their sponsorship (those who have the right) through indicators that not only measure Branding effects, but go further: to the “cash register”, leads, conversions, retention, repetition, ticket increase, unit displacement, etc.
But those who do not have rights also come into play. Those who have already started doing Ambush Marketing and Who do not want to be left out and play “on line” so as not to infringe intellectual property rights (IP Rights). These brands usually have more room for creativity because they are not tied to the rules of brand use of the federations, teams, players or the tournament itself, however they cannot use uniforms, emblems, logos, shields and they have to make do with generic elements.
Taking care of the consumer’s “journey” that includes the generation of demand, the generation of conversions, the retention and management of the client’s recommendation and finally the propagation; The World Cup becomes the event that can allow brands to establish themselves at any of the points of this journey according to their objectives. The key is to have a very clear, defined and measurable strategy. Especially the latter.
And this is where official sponsorships take hold. A sponsor has a great opportunity to complete the entire journey if his strategy is not only based on communication messages or emotional campaigns, but also on using these as the culmination of a multi-year construction. The most current studies and investigations indicate that to obtain good activation results (Partnership Activation), a construction of at least three years is required. That is why it is strongly insisted that this construction must have the three “C”: clarity, congruence and consistency.
The time has come to harvest for the brands, meanwhile, fans around the world are preparing for the big party, a little different, but at the end of the day it is a party.
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