Sponsorship

What’s working in sponsorship

Article • WARC Category Intelligence, January 2019

Global strategies, campaign updates and trends in sponsorship.

What we know about sponsorship effectiveness

Article • WARC Best Practice, July 2018

Examines how brands can build awareness and increase loyalty through effective sponsorship.

How to plan an effective sports sponsorship strategy

Article • Neil Hopkins, WARC Best Practice, March 2018

Provides marketers with key best practices on planning an effective sports sponsorship strategy, which is dependent on a rigorous strategic planning process to ensure effective targeting.

What we know about marketing at major sporting events

Article • WARC Best Practice, January 2018

The current thinking and reading on the subject of sports marketing – aligning a brand or product with an event or team – including major sporting events such as The Olympic Games, FIFA World Cup or The Super Bowl.

KFC is clear winner of Big Bash sponsorship

News • 13 February 2019

Fast-food giant KFC has emerged as the standout sponsorship winner of Australia’s Big Bash League (BBL), new research finds.

Li Ning has big plans for India

News • 06 February 2019

Li Ning, the Chinese sportswear and equipment brand, is setting records in India for non-cricket sports sponsorship, with top badminton players Kidambi Srikanth and PV Sindhu having picked up major endorsement deals recently.

Coles and MasterChef: Commercial sponsorship in Australian TV

Article • Brooke Hemphill, Event Reports, Mumbrella Entertainment Marketing Summit, November 2018

The decade-long partnership between Australian grocery chain Coles and MasterChef is a standard setter for brand integration within a television setting.

Australian alcohol brands in the spotlight again

News • 15 January 2019

There is renewed pressure on the alcohol advertising industry as a study finds alcohol ads encourage young Australians to engage in risky drinking.

Virgin Radio's new Chris Evans show will have no ads

News • 21 December 2018

Chris Evans, the British celebrity radio DJ, will present his final show for BBC Radio 2 on Christmas Eve before moving to Virgin Radio, where a pioneering deal with Sky means the commercial station will broadcast his new show completely free of ...

After fake news, now it's fake sponsored content

News • 20 December 2018

Sponsored content on Instagram user feeds was once seen by many as “selling out”, but now it’s considered cool and a sign of success.

Team Sky leaves 'sponsorship template'

News • 13 December 2018

Sky’s decision to end its ownership and sponsorship of cycle road-racing’s Team Sky after the 2019 season opens a major new opportunity for a brand with deep pockets.

Virgin Media: Sharing awards love with TV superfans

Case Study • Direct Marketing Association - UK, Silver, 2018

Virgin TV, a cable television service, put UK viewers front and centre of its sponsorship of the BAFTA's treating them as a 'plus one' from the red carpet to backstage.

Courtyard by Marriott: Where winners feel at home

Case Study • Stuart Wareman, WARC Media Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Hotel group Marriott created a partnership with football club Bayern Munich, in order to rebrand its Courtyard offering and boost loyalty and sales in Germany.

Dacia: The Auction

Case Study • Viviana Sampugnaro, WARC Media Awards, Silver and Successful Sponsorship Special Award, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Car brand Dacia used old football shirts donated by fans and worn during the Serie A match between Udinese and Lazio to communicate its 'Much more than you expect' strategy in Italy.

Hyundai Ioniq: Better Drives Us

Case Study • Peter Watkins, John Hubbard, WARC Media Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Hyundai, the car brand, used video content marketing to improve brand metrics and sales in the US.

Age UK: The Loneliness Documentary

Case Study • Anneka Dew, WARC Media Awards, Gold, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Age UK, the charity dedicated to older people, co-created a TV programme in order to explain the issue of loneliness and increase donations and volunteering in the UK.

RAM Pro Master: Rapid Your Business Partner

Case Study • Marco Cordero, Yuridia Ruiz, WARC Media Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Automotive brand RAM launched a new small van model in Mexico by appealing to small business owners.

Soccer help Copa Airlines take flight

News • 05 December 2018

Copa Airlines, Panama’s national airline, effectively leveraged its connection with soccer in order to build more powerful bonds with consumers.

Hotlink: PokéMobile

Case Study • Chan Su Ling, Jacinth Lum, Lau Su Lin, WARC Media Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Telecoms company Maxis partnered with ride-hailing service Grab to piggy-back on the Pokémon trend to raise awareness of its mobile phone payment service Hotlink Cash Online (HCO) in Malaysia.

Clear: NBA Live in-game sponsorship

Case Study • Kel Alegre, Nol Christian Calimbahin, Loren Saguil, WARC Media Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Anti-dandruff shampoo Clear changed its brand proposition and used its sponsorship of the NBA Live app to increase brand awareness of its Cool Sport hero variant, and drive engagement in the Philippines.

Wiko: La Notte del Maestro

Case Study • Simone Foggiato, Francesca D’Auria, Michele Ciccarese, WARC Media Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Mobile phone brand Wiko used sponsorship of a football event to increase brand awareness in Italy.

EPICA: EPICA in the show 'Tantsy'

Case Study • Natalia Kudryavtseva, WARC Media Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Ehrmann, the food manufacturer, launched a new yoghurt brand, EPICA, in Russia using a partnership with a TV show.

Secrets Resorts: Leveraging broadcast television and custom content

Case Study • Katherine D. Perez, Monica Olivio Crane, Caity Lamb, WARC Media Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Secrets Resorts & Spas, a luxury hotel chain, used a partnership with TV network ABC to appeal to affluent women in the US.

Axe: Cybersport

Case Study • Natalia Kudryavtseva, WARC Media Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Deodorant brand Axe used a cybersports sponsorship to connect with young men in Russia and increase market share.

Diageo: The Welcome Drink

Case Study • Anouk Kalaf, Linda Fagerlund, WARC Media Awards, Silver, Effective Use of Partnerships and Sponsorships, 2018

Drinks manufacturer Diageo joined forces with TV cooking show MasterChef and created a multimedia strategy to boost spirit sales in Australia.