In last week’s BritSport Weekly, Rupert Pratt, managing partner of sponsorship consultancy, Generate, questioned LOCOG 's communication strategy with the sponsorship industry.
In light of the debate opened up by Pratt’s commentary, this week, BritSport asks practitioners from the sports PR industry the question…Has LOCOG got its PR act together?
[b]Helen Gorman, director, Perfect Motion Sports Marketing[/b]
“The sponsorship section of the London 2012 website enthuses about the benefits of getting involved with the Games and how sponsorship is going to generate income. What you can't do is register your interest or get in contact with anyone to do so.
There's nothing to explain how the sponsorship process works, when tier two sponsors can get involved and examples of forthcoming opportunities. There's a real opportunity to do something different here, start a bidding war, engage businesses directly.
Why not make it really easy for businesses to get involved? We in the industry will get our slice of the cake when it comes to leveraging investments and making sure sponsors get the most out of their involvement with the greatest sporting event on the planet.”
[b]Hugo Sharman, new business director, FastWeb Media[/b]
“If LOCOG has doubts about its ability to handle its public image, then it is doing a very good job of hiding it as criticism rains down from all sides.
Of course, much of this is to do with the new and much derided logo. The logo, incidentally, must already be the most recognisable Olympic logo ever - and Beijing hasn’t even happened yet.
The adage that all PR is good PR will have been tested like never before during this episode, but time will tell. Even on the most vociferous blogs, it looks like soon it might be ‘cool’ to like it.
But LOCOG has always realised that it can’t control the inevitable online debate on everything it does. Instead it wants to be part of it, which like the logo is a bold and ambitious step. LOCOG’s own blog promotes pro and anti remarks in equal measure but by simply providing a platform for debate, it also promotes its bona fide credentials and the inclusiveness of London 2012.”
[b]Mark Thursfield, founder, MTA Media[/b]
“There is a perception in parts of the industry that LOCOG has chosen a go-it-alone approach, and therefore has something of a closed shop mentality. To this end it hasn’t really been part of their core aim to communicate widely with the UK sports and sponsorship industry at large.
We know and understand that they want to ensure a smooth and continuous dialogue with brands as they seek to secure the major packages. But not engaging is probably something of a mistake as it has the potential to cause antagonism between LOCOG and parts of the sponsorship industry.
Nobody should forget that the British press is capable of bouts of orgiastic feeding frenzies when a story is in the offing, and having unhappy industry insiders is not ideal in times of delicate negotiation.
Overall though, they are still running with a good wind, and everyone wants to see a hugely successful Games on all levels, but the feeling seems to exist that they should better communicate with the industry as a whole.”
