Leveraging Endorsements and Sponsorships for Effective Product Positioning

1. 2.04 Product Positioning

2. Reasons for obtaining endorsements • Add to credibility of product/company • Cut through commercial clutter

3. Benefits obtained from endorsements • Fans will buy endorsed products • Viewers less likely to turn commercial off • Consumers believe celebrities

4. Considerations in obtaining endorsements • Must be positive, charismatic, trustworthy • Must be someone consumers know • Career must be active…usually • Someone who presents few risks • Must be believable

5. Variety of admission and seating plans • Opportunity for fans of varying income levels • Appeal to hardcore fans vs. “the experience” fans

6. Types of admission plans • Box/suite seating • Reserved seating • General admission • Lawn seating

7. Types of seating plans • Stadium as sections • Premium seats • Mid-level seats • Cheap seats • Stadium as general admission

8. Considerations in selecting admission plans • Type of event • Frequency of event • Opponent • Time/Day of event • Stadium configuration

9. Terms: • Trademark: identifies that an organization has registered its brand name and thus prevents others from using it • service mark: identifies services • trade dress: a product’s physical appearance, including design, size, shape, color • Collective mark: identifies an association/organization • Mark: symbol or design used to identify a company/product • registered mark, • trademarked property: trademarks are owned by the entity that registers them

10. Reasons for licensing programs • Increase revenue potential • Increase brand awareness • Increase brand equity

11. Coalition to Advance the Protection of SportsLogos (CAPS) • Enforce trademark rights • Educate about counterfeit goods quality • Work with law enforcement

12. Distinguish between internal and external administration of licensingprograms

13. Exclusive Fast food Soft drinks Video games Non-exclusive Clothing Toys Exclusive/nonexclusive merchandise categories

14. Components of license agreements • Ownership: who owns the intellectual property • Exclusive vs. non-exclusive: who else has rights • Payment: royalties vs. fees • Other: liability limitations, penalties, non-disclosure

15. Purposes of co-sponsorship in SEM • Reach a target market • Increase brand awareness • Increase market share

16. Challenges to effective co-sponsorship opportunities • Measuring ROI (Return on Investment) • Success of event • Time & resource commitment

17. Types of co-sponsorship strategies • Raise brand awareness • Battle the competition • Reach target markets • Relationship marketing • Increase sales

18. Developing sponsorship opportunities • Contact sponsors • Make the presentation • Event • Attendance • Demographics • Marketing/Sales Opportunities • Media

19. When employees interact with customers • Telephone • In-person • Web contact (e-mail, chat)

20. Training employees to provideeffective customer service • Review rules/procedures • Role play • Educate on products/services

21. Using technology to enhance customer-service programs • Database of customers • E-mail and text alerts • Loyalty cards

22. Developing a customer-service program to attract customers • Frequency of event • Price of event tickets • Customer demographics & psychographics • Extra staffing/training necessary

23. Demonstrate procedures for developing a customer-service program toattract sport/event customers

24. Product positioningstrategies • Attributes (Crest fights cavities) • Price (Wal-Mart rolls back prices) • Competitors (Avis-We try harder) • Application (Raid kills bugs dead) • Product user (Miller is a for blue-collar drinkers) • Product class (Folgers is coffee for breakfast)

25. Reasons for using SEM product positioning strategies • Distinguishes product from competitors • Achieve a position in the consumer’s mind

26. Tools for product positioningstrategies • brand name • packaging • advertising/communications • Price • location/distribution • associations

27. Demonstrate procedures for developing sport/event product positioningstrategies

28. Creating value for sponsors • Increase sales • Change attitudes • Heighten awareness • Build/maintain relationships with customers

29. Describe considerations in identifying strategies to create value for sponsors

30. Demonstrate procedures for identifying strategies to create value forsponsors

31. Benefits of building brand equity • Reduced marketing costs • Increased leverage with distributors/retailers • Able to increase price of product • Easier to launch brand extensions • Able to defend against price competition

32. Stages of branding • Unbranded: little effort to brand product • Brand as reference: change physical attributes of product to differentiate it • Brand as personality: because brands can be indistinguishable, brand is given personality • Brand as icon: brand is “owned” by consumers • Brand as company: has complex identity, many points of contact between consumer and brand • Brand as policy: alignment with social and political causes

33. Building brand equity • Brand identity: who are you? • Brand meaning: what are you? • Brand response: what do I think about you? • Brand relationship: how much of a connection would I like to have with you?

34. building a relationship with the customer to build brand equity

35. Consistency in building brand equity • Consumers expect consistency from brand • Inconsistency can devalue brand equity

36. Factors that influence brand-equity building • Primary characteristics of product • Product reliability, durability, serviceability • Service effectiveness, efficiency, empathy • Style and design • Price

37. RFPs Request For Proposals

38. Comparative and absolute evaluation • Comparative: ranking proposals against one another • Absolute: proposals ranked against a list of criteria

39. Describe criteria used to evaluate proposals • Graphic rating scales: various aspects of proposal are rated • Narrative: written in paragraph form • Weighted checklist: weigh high/low points and determine overall rating • Critical: accounts for only best & worst of proposals

40. Disadvantages of basing selection solely on cost • Failure to account for value

41. Procedures for evaluating sponsorship proposals • Quality of proposal • Qualifications of organization • Adequate personnel/resources • Past performance • Cost proposal

42. Reasons for developing a Request for Proposal (RFP) • Gain business

43. Components of an RFP • Name of company • Financial data • Interviews/negotiations • Formal contract • Oral presentation • Deliverables • Timeline • Costs

44. Characteristics associated with effective RFPs • Clearly written • Logical flow • Understanding of technical issues • Reasonable costs • Realistic timeline

45. Demonstrate procedures for developing RFPs.

46. Factors to consider when selecting a venue • Event type • Size • Location • Amenities

47. Importance of venue to event success • Appropriate size for event • Easy to get to • Able to host event properly

48. Mistakes made in selecting a venue • Wrong size • Venue can’t accommodate event • Age of venue