Coca-Cola Hoping Olympics Leads To Furthering Inroads In China
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Coca-Cola Spending Estimated
$75-90M On Olympic Sponsorship |
IOC TOP sponsor Coca-Cola’s estimated $75-90M spend to activate around the Beijing Games underscores the company’s “heavy bet on China,” according to Craig Simons of the ATLANTA CONSTITUTION. China already is Coca-Cola’s fourth largest market, with consumer spending on soft drinks “more than doubling since 2001,” and execs “expect China eventually will surpass the [U.S.] as the company’s top market.” Coca-Cola Dir of Worldwide Sports & Entertainment Marketing Kevin Tressler said that "during the three-month period surrounding the Olympics, Coke typically sees a bump in sales while longer-term research shows that brand loyalty rises." The company will run three centers in China during the Games -- the 40,000-square-foot Shuang Experience Center on the Olympic Green will include a “gallery about Coke’s history,” while two smaller Olympic zones in downtown Beijing “will let residents learn about Coke’s history, trade Olympic pins and sample Coke products.” Coca-Cola also will host “10,000 VIP guests, about 8,000 to 9,000 from China” (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 7/21). In Atlanta, Joe Guy Collier notes Coca-Cola’s planning for an Olympics begins “years in advance.” The company used the ’04 Athens Games and ’06 Turin Games to “conduct marketing research that shaped its approach to this year’s Summer Games.” Coca-Cola “assembled groups in eight countries, meeting with consumers at a W Hotel in Seattle, a villa in Greece and poolside in Italy.” The company “began its marketing campaign in earnest in China in February 2007, coinciding with the Chinese New Year celebration.” But Tressler said that Coca-Cola’s marketing push is “strongest in countries such as the [U.S.] and Russia, which historically do well at the games” (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 7/22).
DIGITAL APPROACH: AD WEEK’s Shahnaz Mahmud reports digital is a “core component” of Coca-Cola’s marketing strategy, as the company has a program that focuses “mainly on the social-networking space.” Coca-Cola also has created a program called “WE8” where it has commissioned eight graphic artists to “create different designs based on themes such as perseverance, happiness and health” to be featured on aluminum bottles. Eight musicians will then compose songs based on each design, and the design and music will be featured in a music tour that will play eight cities around the world (AD WEEK, 7/21 issue).
SAMSUNG: AD AGE’s Laurel Wentz reports IOC TOP sponsor Samsung is “hoping 100,000 people in the U.S. will sign up to play Medal Mania, an online scavenger hunt for gold medals hidden throughout the web before and during the Olympics.” Samsung beginning Thursday will text or e-mail daily clues “leading players to sites such as ESPN.com where medals can be uncovered.” Samsung VP/Strategic Marketing Paul Golden said that participants are eligible for “more than 200,000 prizes, from ringtones to Samsung phones and home-theater systems.” Meanwhile, Samsung on July 28 will break a TV spot in the U.S. based on the global theme “The Olympics and You” (AD AGE, 7/21 issue).
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Lenovo Hopes Beijing Olympics Campaign
Will Raise Brand's Profile In U.S. |
LENOVO: AD WEEK’s Eleftheria Parpis notes IOC TOP sponsor Lenovo hopes a campaign beginning during NBC's broadcast of the Games "helps raise the brand’s profile among U.S. consumers.” Lenovo, which has about 600 technicians and 30,000 pieces of equipment on the ground in Beijing, also will have a “large presence on NBC.com, sponsoring coverage such as the ‘Performance of the Day’ with pre-roll footage and a sponsored RSS feed for video content” (AD WEEK, 7/21 issue).
SHOPPING SPREE: In S.F., John Crumpacker reported the first wave of U.S. Olympic team members lined up Saturday at San Jose State Univ. “for a shopping spree.” The athletes, who “loaded up on approximately $3,000 worth of goodies,” had the items paid for by the USOC and sponsors. USOC sponsor Nike “provided most of the swag,” and swimmer Natalie Coughlin said of the Nike gear, “I’m not really allowed to wear it because I’m a Speedo athlete. But my friends and family will enjoy it.” There also were phones from partner AT&T, and athletes were fitted for blazers by sponsor Ralph Lauren that will be worn in the Opening and Closing ceremonies. View a list of what U.S. Olympic team members received. All items were provide by Nike unless otherwise noted (S.F. CHRONICLE, 7/20).
AD INVASION: In N.Y., David Barboza wrote under the header, “Seeking To Tap Olympic Pride, Western Ads Cheerlead For China.” The Olympic ad campaigns for Western companies “are part of an advertising blitz the likes of which [China] has never seen.” A record 63 companies “have become sponsors or partners of the Beijing Olympics," and Olympic-related advertising in China “could reach [$4-6B] this year.” Leo Burnett, China, CEO Michael Wood said, “You’ve never seen the Olympics in a market that has such domestic, commercial scale.” However, Interbrand Strategic Dir Jonathan Chajet said, “For most international brands, this is a double-edged sword. They’re premium high-tech and status brands. But there’s rising nationalism, and the Olympics is a rallying cry for the Chinese, who are looking for a reason not to buy foreign” (N.Y. TIMES, 7/20).
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