But - and let's be frank here - most
brands rarely have anything relevant or interesting to say. So the
content frequently becomes too brand-centric to retain consumer
attention.
To overcome this hurdle, brands need
to find issues to talk about and some of the most successful
examples brand content are those where smart people have created
causes that resonate.
Great case studies include the
Pepsi Refresh Project, Gatorade
Replay or T-Mobile's Life is for Sharing
campaign. But such solutions are not right for every brand.
Campaigns of this scale are massive and the on-going work with
keeping the platforms vibrant and relevant is a huge
operation.
Then there's also the risk that
because these causes or events are made up by commercial brands,
they can be very fragile and open to cynicism or criticism.
The solution for brands that want a
lower-cost entry into the world of interesting and engaging content
is sponsorship. Not only does this guarantee a
solid platform but, used correctly, it can also provide a stream of
relevant, exciting content that kick-starts the conversation.
Sponsorship experts have spent a lot
of time in recent years focusing on activation, to ensure that
sponsors understand that success isn't just about signing a
deal.
However this has lead to messages that
are focused on the act of sponsorship rather than the brand
message. So instead of activating the brand, you end up activating
the sponsorship and that doesn't bring the brand into the
dialogue.
However, if you can put the brand at
the centre of the message it's possible to create great content via
sponsorship that makes dialogue with consumers much more
realistic.
A great example is
Audi's US work around the 2010 Winter
Olympics. For many years Audi has been the title
sponsor of the International Ski Federations 'Ski World Cup' and
has gradually expanded the association with high performance
skiing.
At Vancouver, Audi faced massive clutter from competitors with much
higher budgets. Its response was to take ownership of skiing, one
of the highest-profile Olympic events, not by advertising but as
one of the main sponsors of the US Ski Team.
Audi became part of the story by creating a cinematic
documentary Truth in Motion - The US Ski Team's Road
to Vancouver. The film debuted on NBC Sports in
prime time in the run up to the Olympics.
Backing up the content were
interstitials, tweets, behind the scenes material and seeded
trailers. The film was also available for download from iTunes and
Hulu and the message was actively promoted via Facebook.
This strategy allowed Audi to access
consumers for a long period of time in a much more engaging way
than their competitors and at a lower investment level.
It's a great example of the way that
sponsorship not only offers a short cut to great content but also
provides a credible and trustworthy platform to initiate and
maintain dialogue with the consumers.
But brands can only do this if they
put the brand - and not the sponsorship itself - at the heart of
their message.
First published here on contagiousmagazine.com.
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