No Product Placements on British TV

I find it interesting that British TV and films doesn't allow product placements and considering they have avoiding the temptation for so long is impressive. I believe product placements in films and TV works hand in hand with the shows and movies. They act as sponsors and financial leverage in producing the film in the first place. My say on product placement is that at the end of the day its all about business, the movie needs some financing and brands needs the media exposure so might as well help each other out. If the film turns out good because of good funding then we can thank the extra support from the sponsorship for doing it.

Product Placements

During the exercise sheet that was done in class I had fun doing the product placement exercise where as you have to link certain products that are being placed in the movies we all love to watch and to see the connection between the brand the movie itself. A good example of product placement and as mention in class was Wayne's world where they would literally advertise the products themselves and make a spoof out of it. Even before you wouldn't see product placements as evident but its funny how they were so vulgar in just exposing the products itself and them becoming their endorsers.

Definitely product placements in movies have always caught my attention since from my background in advertising and design these are the things I look out for. So its interesting on how companies would squeeze their brands in just for that media presence. I find it challenging to do the placements in the movie setting because of the fact that you don't want to see the brand overpowering for attention in the movies. It would just be subconscious key items that you would notice here and there but I find it interesting to spot the brands in the movies I've watch.

LOGORAMA ROCKS!!!

I still couldn't forget the video we watched in class last week about the different brands and all have different characters and personalities. Well I wouldn't really tie in their character with the brand they represent but it fun to see how much brands we are expose to everyday. Almost everything from food, cleaning, bank, cars and so on. I think the fun part in watching the video (especially in my perspective) is how many brands I can recognized and spot during the entire show. The film is just a great example of product placements with personalities.

Go Canucks

I really enjoyed last weeks class especially with our guest speaker. I gain new insights into sports marketing and how sponsorship work in that industry and environment. I appreciate how creativity comes into play when it comes to providing solutions for client to sponsor a certain area or spot to gain media presence and exclusivity throughout the stadium.

HSBC has definitely caught my attention in terms of branding a certain area or part of the stadium for high end clients. Having an entire suite customized to accommodate big clients for HSBC is a great marketing tool for selling the brand and building awareness. Not to mention it creates an image of exclusivity and prestige towards the brand giving HSBC more value and increase of brand equity.

I would also like to note how they actually analyze the different media spots and the value behind each of these area. Being able to determine which shot and how to present their client's product in such a way helps both the client and the stadium itself.

Ambush Marketing in Vancouver Olympics

Well one the examples I can site out would be Lululemon in their ambush marketing effort in riding on the Canadian hype. Some might say that they're playing dirty and doing business unethically but my opinion there are pro and cons behind this subject. Sure this move might affect some consumers especially those who are very patriotic about buying merchandise from the official Olympic stores but realistically some consumers just don't care about that. Whats important to some is the price and the design of the clothing line itself.

I find that Lululemon move definitely affect a certain number of people but they were also smart enough to ride on the wave itself to bring in some revenue and sales consider they didn't spend for the sponsorship fee. Like I mention earlier in my previous blog entry, Lululemon went through a different avenue in creating media presence as they went through CTV by sponsorship the clothing line for CTV correspondents, news team and staff. Good brand presence for Lululemon in increasing their brand awareness.

Vancouver Olympics 2010

Definitely an awesome experience of being a part of the winter Olympics, especially we got to win gold over here in our home turf. Kinda brings out the pride and patriotism in all Canadians. One thing I do notice during the games was the sudden hype and rushed of Canadian fever like when you go down Robson St. in downtown you'll see a sea of red cheering fans for the Canadian team. Amazing on how people would even line up at the Olympic store just to buy merchandise and see how that affected people to get into the Canadian High.

I felt that the sudden rushed started when we first won our first gold during the games thats where everyone started to slowly build up and continue cheering on for Canada. Everywhere from the streets of downtown, to the neighborhoods and even at the Ozone everyone was just having a great time all cheering together for Canada. It was great to see how everyone got together to join in this celebration.

Definitely things I looked out for was the sponsors during the event. I can see how Lululemon definitely tried to create it presence by supporting the jackets for the CTV news team. How Coke still manages to push their water brand Dasani to all the athletes to especially during TV spots during the event. Sadly I wasnt able to go to downtown to experience the big happenings but one thing is for certain after this event I can definitely see how people are really into seeing Canada as a strong brand and Hudson Bay being the official supplier has definitely made a difference and I wouldn't be surprise if they had an increase of sales during the games.

Sports Sponsorship

I find the most effective type of sponsorships in sport events are those who are always engaging and interactive. And its great when a sponsor gets to be involve with the sport they invest their time and funding in. I also great to appreciate how activation is being done in these sort of events because it gets the consumer involve and they get to be a part of the whole activity.

Movember

I love Movember! Especially how they designed and did the entire campaign. What I'm more impress is not only their commitment of not advertising but more importantly how the event itself created a whole new tribe which in turn they create their own tribe and people get to follow.

Also one of the things that I find humorous is that it takes a humorous approach in terms of creative execution on a very serious topic. Not to mention it also bring out the machismo into the target audience, that in turns everyone would slowly get into it.

Just A Few Days Before the Olympics

Within a few days Vancouver would be celebrating the winter Olympics and I have to say there has been a lot of discussion about this topic. Some are a big fan of having the Olympics in our city while others are aggravated by the upcoming tax increases and the burden that has been added on to tax payers.

Of course the topics that really caught my attention is the fact VISA has made it a point that no one else could use their card except theirs. Its either you use VISA or cash and from the culture and lifestyle over here that isn't considered a good thing. My thoughts on that is split down the middle, from a business perspective it makes sense because it forces people to also get a heads up on what to expect but at the same time it would also create a negative outlook on VISA for doing that. But with a big brand like VISA I'm pretty sure they already had that figured out.

Not to mention the contraction of having McDonald's as a main sponsor conflicts on healthy eating and lifestyle, which kinda contradicts athletes and their diets. But as discussed in class McDonald's has always been a proud sponsor of these events since the very beginning, which they kinda imprinted their brand literally to every Olympic event. So I guess consumers wouldn't be surprise at all for them being one of the major sponsors.

Corporate Social Responsibility

When corporations do their part in being involve with certain events and do their part aside from just supporting the cause through means of funding creates a great public image. It means more to the community when you get to see big companies involve and doing their part to support the cause. Of course I wouldn't generalized that all companies have the same motive, I'm pretty sure other companies are doing these sort of events for the heck of publicity and promotion.

I think one of the more memorable campaigns that I can see corporations and companies that take part in their involvement would be the Red Campaign, where various companies such as Apple, Starbucks and etc. give a certain portion of their earning to such a larger cause. And the cool thing about it as well it gives the consumers themselves ownership that they also made a difference to the cause because by buying these products you become a part of it. The brings value to me as a consumer because through my simple purchase I create an opportunity for others.

Durex: Dance4Life

Something I wanted to comment on and share my insights is the discussion on how Durex played as the ideal sponsor for the Dance4Life program which is targeted towards safer sex and saving lives from AIDS and HIV. Well my thoughts are how come other companies such as Trojan, Lifestyle and other condom companies doesn't take opportunities such as these type of events to promote their own brand? Was is that Durex was there first to take the account or was it because Durex support these events because that how their brand is being perceive?

I went to the event last year on Taboo which Lifestyle was the sponsor for giving out free condoms to support the event of having safe sex. For me that makes more sense for Lifestyle to participate in that sort of event because that's is definitely who their market is and the culture that evolve around it. So if Lifestyle is for swingers and party goers, Durex is for just simple staying alive and preventing AIDs, then events such as Dance4Life wouldn't really interest other companies because that isn't within their market.

Peace, Love & Corporate Sponsorship

Definitely there has been a big growth in the music industry as well in music events. When the market's perception and demand evolve, corporations take opportunity of this to market themselves and penetrating their products and brand into these events. This is the best way to communicate and speak to their audience. And let's be honest, it doesn't hurt getting a lot of freebies from big concerts and events. I as a big fan of musical events look forward to the free stuff these events provide, which in turn generates more interest for me in going outside the fact i'm attending the event for my favorite band.

I find it interesting on how brands could market themselves this way, very discreet unlike advertising themselves through big media tools such as television, radio and print. I find that by doing sponsorship it makes me feel as a consumer that these brands want to get themselves involve with their market and makes the relationship more intimate and personal. I feel this is one of the great benefits sponsorship marketing and events would have on their consumers.

Sponsorship Class - Class 01

I've been reading through the early notes of the class where they discuss the importance and attributes of sponsorship marketing. I can definitely see how effective sponsorship is when it comes to reaching a specific market and not to mention helps sponsors improve their brand image and awareness to the public.

I would like to share my thoughts on the following question, "how can sponsorships be leveraged for internal marketing and recruitment?"

I believe sponsorship can help build confidence and awareness within companies. Similar to the effects of internal branding, whereas top management would instill pride and value toward their employees on how they would perceived their company and business. It would also benefit through additional funding to help productivity and build interests to other potential work force. Sponsorship is definitely something that can be used to attract people into collaborating with the business.

Sponsorship Class - Vodafone

When I got to read this article, definitely Vodafone is all about self-promotion through means of partnership with another strong brand in order to build brand presence. Definitely the person who wrote this article is not the less either working directly under Vodafone for it is clearly self-promotion on the company itself.

The attempts of using Ferrari as a marketing ploy through sponsorship is definitely a good move for Vodafone to create presence within another sport category, which is racing. This is aligned with their business motives in increasing awareness for the brand. They have been strong sponsors for the like of Manchester United when it comes to the football genre. When I think of this it would remind me of a similar brand who also takes an interest in sport sponsorship, such as Red Bull. Red Bull on the other is a strong supporter of extreme sports such as stunt airplane shows, which they are popularly known for.

Sponsorship Class - VANOC Guest Speaker

I would have to say that my first day in class was very interesting especially with the talk given by the VANOC guest speaker. It definitely open up my mind and interest in the field of sponsorship marketing and I'm eager to learn more about this industry. One of the questions that I'm curious in asking is how organizations such as VANOC make profit? II remember asking our professor about this and her response was that normally people who are in these type of events are just earning based off a salary level. But my curiosity is understand how event organizers make profit from doing the event itself. How much revenue can sponsors bring in to the company and would it be a good industry to invest on?

Another thing that interest me is how do you look for suitable sponsors. Due to my lack of experience in this matter I'm curious as to finding out the process or techniques in approaching clients who would be interested to become sponsors. What's the sales pitch? The in and outs of talking to potential sponsors and how it would benefit us in the end.