4 lessons for current and future Olympic sponsors from the very heart of London where we spoke to over 30 people - Brits and visitors of the greatest show on Earth!

1. OLYMPIC SPONSORSHIP:
WINNERS AND LOSERS OF
THE LONDON 2012 OLYMPICS
RESEARCH FINDINGS FROM THINKTANK INTERNATIONAL
AUGUST 2012
konstantinpinaev@thinktank.uk.com
sionpayne@thinktank.uk.com
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2. About this presentation
• The London Olympics 2012 became the biggest
sponsorship show on Earth with brands spending
hundreds of millions of dollars
• At Thinktank International Research we were at the very
heart of this event and could not miss this opportunity to
find out more about:
– what people associate with the Olympics
– which sponsors people remember
– and most importantly - what lessons sponsors can learn
from London 2012.
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3. So we followed the news paying particular
attention to brand and sponsor stories
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4. But most importantly – hit the streets to talk to
over 30 locals and visitors
Londoners Tourists
4 Office workers Full time mums

5. Surprise!
• We found that a majority of people in the streets
struggled to name any sponsor apart from Coca-Cola
(and they were probably guessing!)
• In fact, a recent study showed that 24% of Britons could
not name a single Olympic sponsor with further 33%
saying they could hazard a guess, but would be unsure if
they were correct
• Here are our 4 key lessons on what works and what
doesn’t for the sponsors of the London 2012 Olympics
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6. Lesson 1.
Be Generous – Not Restrictive!
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7. Be Generous – Not Restrictive!
• We live in an age where people expect brands to give
rather than take
• Sponsors need to protect their Olympic territory (and
London 2012 is certainly the most territorial Games
we’ve seen so far!) but they need to do it in a way that
doesn’t leave regular people excluded
• Visa kindly taught other brands this lesson, restricting all
tickets purchases to Visa and taking only Visa or cash at
the Olympic venues. All ended with a system crash at
Wembley stadium where people couldn’t buy any food or
drinks unless they had cash
• If you become an Olympic sponsor, make sure you give!
7 Restricting is antithetical to the spirit of the Olympics

8. Be Generous - What People Say
The only sponsor I can
The Olympic Games are remember is Coke
about being together! because they were
You can’t put up a giving cans of Coca-
screen in the middle of Cola at the Torch Relay.
the street and charge That was nice!
£20 to watch it. And then
sell Heineken to people
– this is just nonsense.
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9. Lesson 2. Be ready for Sponsor Bashing –
Olympic spectator sport of the 21stCentury
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10. Be ready for Sponsor Bashing –Olympic
spectator sport of the 21st Century
• There is a growing anti-sponsor and anti-corporate
sentiment – both in social and traditional media
• But when we spoke to people in the streets we realised
that sponsor bashing isn’t necessarily a bad thing for the
brand - as long as you can hold your own
• A lot of people we spoke to remembered McDonald’s as
a sponsor because of the controversy that surrounded it
• Interestingly, most people didn’t really mind a fast food
sponsor as much as you would expect if you read the
newspapers
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11. Controversial sponsors - what people say
I think McDonald’s are
one of the sponsors.
Newspapers moaned
about it, but I don’t
It’s a bit controversial,
really mind. At least they
but beer brands always
invest in sport.
sponsor football –
everyone got used to
that.
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12. Lesson 3. Create Stories and Celebrate the
Atmosphere!
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13. Create Stories and Celebrate the Atmosphere!
• Don’t forget that the Olympics special!
• The Games is one of the few truly global events with lots
of positive connotations: achievement, energy, vitality,
fair play, excitement and aspirations – and community
• Brands are well placed to add to thebuzz, celebrate the
Games and share the excitement with the general public!
• Adidas managed to catch the mood in their Beckham
viralwhere regular shoppers who popped into the photo
booth to support Team GB were greeted by David
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14. What people say
It is exciting! There’s a
real buzz in the city and
I absolutely love it.
Everyone is positive,
cheering for the athletes
from different nations
and enjoying the
Games! It was good seeing
Beckham taking
pictures with people in
that shopping centre!
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15. Lesson 4
Don’t Forget The Link to Your Brand!
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16. Don’t forgetTheLink to Your Brand
• So the Olympics have a host of connotations that brands
want to tie into: global, festive, the best, exciting,
exclusive, big, proud etc.
• The real creative challenge is to come up with the right
angle for your comms to make sure that…
– the link between your brand and the Olympics exists not
only in marketing departments
– people remember your brand and its communications –
rather than the fact that this was an Olympic ad
– the effect stays after the Olympics.
• P&G ‘Thank you mom’ ad stood out creatively and has
been in the ‘top 10 most shared Youtube ads’ in June
and July
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17. What people say
P&G had an Olympic ad…
something about moms –
that’s right! There’s a
mom behind every
Olympic champion. Can’t
remember any other ads
though…
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18. A Few Words About Us
• Thinktank is an international qualitative research
consultancy based in London
• We pride ourselves on marketing thinking inspired by
real people
• For more see our website, blog or follow us on Twitter
www.thinktank.uk.com
www.thinktank-international.blogspot.com
https://twitter.com/thinktank_int
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19. THANK YOU!
Should you have any questions,
please do not hesitate to contact
Konstantin Pinaev
konstantin@thinktank.uk.com