Visa USA's multimillion-dollar ad and promo "blitz"
centering on the Nagano Games starts tomorrow with a new TV
spot featuring five U.S. athletes, according to Stuart
Elliott of the N.Y. TIMES. Visa USA VP/Event Marketing
Michael Lynch, on its Olympic involvement: "As long as our
member banks can take advantage of our sponsorship, as long
as our merchants get excited about the Games and as long as
the Olympics delivers a return on investment, we will
continue to be a part of it." Lynch said that since the
company "aligned" with the Games, Visa's "preference rating
as the best overall" credit card has risen "dramatically,"
from 44% in '86 to 59% in '96, and its market share has
increased from 40% to 52%. Elliott adds that Visa is also
"spending extensively" on Olympic-related promos, including
its "Pull for the Team," intended to raise $2.5M for the
USOC, and its "Visa Olympics of the Imagination," which will
send 25 children to Nagano. Visa paid $40M for its TOP
sponsorship and is spending an estimated two to three times
that on marketing (N.Y. TIMES, 11/21).
