حمایت مالی از رویداد و بازاریابی کمینی: درس‌هایی از المپیک پکن

Sponsorship of large sporting and cultural events has become a major marketing communication tool, particularly when firms obtain exclusive rights and garner the hype associated with this honor. Concomitantly, ambush marketing—defined as attempts by competitors to exploit the event—has also increased in prominence. This article outlines what is known as the Li Ning affair, whereby major Olympic sponsor Adidas was ambushed by lesser-known Chinese sportswear company Li Ning, whose namesake founder was the most decorated Chinese Olympian and who lit the Olympic flame at the 2008 Beijing Olympiad. Data collected immediately following the closing of the Beijing Games isolates what we call the Li Ning effect—or, being incorrectly identified as an official sponsor—and the positive effects this has on measures of brand attitude and recommendation likelihood. As presented herein, seven lessons about ambush marketing can be derived from the Li Ning affair, which sponsors and those considering sponsorship opportunity might wish to learn.

Our research demonstrates the persistent effectiveness of ambush marketing: Li Ning was the clear brand winner of the 2008 Olympics in the footwear category. The returns Li Ning received via its minimal investment in sponsorship—lobbying, perhaps?—were almost infinite in terms of brand attitude and recommendation. And while Adidas undoubtedly enjoyed some benefits from its sponsorship efforts, the company invested heavily to achieve these and the returns were still significantly lower than those accrued by Li Ning. There is a curious historical irony associated with this tale: Reebok was ambushed during the Atlanta Games by Nike, and shortly before the 2008 Olympics, Adidas bought Reebok. Clearly, ambush marketing is one of the major hazards facing high profile sponsorship. Why ambush marketing works—from the perspective of consumer behavior, discussed earlier—is also highlighted by a number of lessons from the Li Ning affair. First, consumers may have developed a schema for the “footwear brand” from Li Ning's opening of the Olympics, and when Adidas subsequently appeared in all the Games’ billboards and in its own television advertising, consumers still made the connection—because of the prominence and impact of the opening—between Li Ning and the Games, rather than Adidas. Second, had Adidas reacted too strongly to the Li Ning affair, either by demanding his withdrawal from the opening ceremony or by taking legal action, the company could well have faced negative effects as a result. Third, Li Ning's dramatic and spectacular lighting of the torch provides a classic example of salience. Amidst the background noise of multiple sponsorships, this highly poignant event stuck in people's memory such that when they were asked to recall who the official sponsor of athletic footwear was for the Beijing Games, more of our respondents thought it was Li Ning than Adidas. Herein, we’ve highlighted seven lessons regarding sponsorship that marketers should learn: 1. Expect the unexpected – ambush attacks won’t come in a form you anticipate; 2. Event organizers won’t always keep their word; 3. Don’t rely on governments to protect you – their own interests will always trump yours; 4. Be constantly aware of the likelihood of ambush; 5. Remember that customers don’t care – they won’t share your moral indignation regarding an ambush event; 6. Don’t overreact to an ambush – it will only compound the problem; and 7. Sponsorship is only the first stage of marketing in an event setting – a firm needs to be proactive in all marketing efforts and defensive in anticipating ambush. Marketers need to understand the psychological mechanisms that make ambush marketing effective, for they are the very devices that smart marketers might employ against ambushers.