Mobilizing Brands - Benchmarking the Tour de France

Monday, July 19, 2010 at 11:16PM
Brian Gainor in Partnership Ideas, cycling marketing, cycling sponsor, guerrilla marketing, mobilize sponsors, partnership activation, slide share, sports marketing, tailgate activation, tailgate sponsor, tour de france, tour de france marketing, tour de france sponsor

With thousands of fans tailgating outside stadiums and arenas every given night, ample opportunities exist for brand marketers to drive consumer impressions and partnership affiliation awareness. As organizations and brand partners continue to analyze opportunities inside stadium parking lots, it's hard to ignore what has become a common practice at the Tour de France.

With limited marketing opportunities along the course, Tour de France sponsors invest their activation dollars into building mobile vehicles designed to entertain fans lining the course. These vehicles, traveling as a parade of sponsors, serve as effective awareness drivers for partnering brands.

Sports organizations in the United States can benchmark this practice of mobilizing sponsors by incorporating them in:

• Tailgate lot activation (on display; strolling through the tailgate lots)
• Pre-Game Team Walks (Tiger Walk, etc.; serving as a prelude to the team's arrival)
• Race Track Activation (driving along a NASCAR track prior to a race or during a caution)
• Championship Parades
• Team Festivals
• Guerrilla Marketing (Operating Co-Branded Vehicles)
• Retail Activation Displays
• On-Field Vehicles (Drive on the Warning Track or On-Field During Pre-Game; Stretchers, etc.)
• Pace Cars During Marathons / Endurance Events

Check out how sponsors are being mobilized at the Tour de France below:

Article originally appeared on Partnership Activation (http://partnershipactivation.squarespace.com/).