Sara Campbell and Blue Ewer launch the Blue Mile

Branded imagery, core social message and ambassadors where the key ingredients to the media launch of the Blue Mile - Race for the Environment. The launch, which took place over the Olympic Open weekend attracted Paul Deighton, CEO for London 2012 and a host of regional business leaders. Some of the results can be viewed on the following link

http://issuu.com/sportenvironment/docs/thebluemile_media

This could be one of the most rewarding agency roles in the build up to the Games and beyond. Community and Grass roots are key elements, but lets not forget the environmental legacy which London 2012 must deliver.

Conrad Humphreys, CEO Sport Environment.

London 2012 seeking ‘legacy’ ad agency- 2 Oct 2008

LOCOG, the organising committee for London 2012, is believed to be negotiating with a number of advertising agencies with regards to a long-term campaign to promote the positive legacy the Olympics will bring to the country after the Games has ended.

While LOCOG is speculated to be talking to predominantly creative agencies, the brief itself is set to be expanded beyond pure advertising into a host of integrated marketing initiatives.

The work will be produced separately from the main marketing campaigns planned for the Games and it is believed will not feature the central 2012 logo. The main scope for the brief will be to communicate the positive impact on the UK that hosting London 2012 will bring with a particular focus on grass-roots and community level involvement.

The successful agency will be responsible for explaining the legacy that the Games will bring to the UK after it has been held and will also be charged with countering any negativity surrounding budgetary fears.
The pitch is thought to be being handled by Charles Allen, the chairman of the Nations and Regions Group, a body of representatives from UK business and sporting networks that was set up to guarantee that the entire nation benefits from the Olympics.

If 2007 was the year that environmentalism 2.0 rapidly became part of the consumer conscious, it was not going to be long before our industry found new ways to target a more compassionate audience.

Sport and the Environment at first seems like an unlikely couple of bedfellows and there have been a few interesting alliances (Honda F1 for example) but if you put both words into Google, there is no surprise that top of the list is the Olympic movement, the second rather more surprising is the United Nation Environment Programme which has a large sports ambassador programme.

The Olympic movement has a very distinct environmental legacy and many of London 2012 tier one partners have chosen to use their sponsorship to promote their green credentials. Whilst London is hoping to replicate Sydney in the public eye as a “green” Games, in my mind it is still unclear how LOCOG’s sustainability strategy will leave a lasting legacy on the rest of the UK.

This is an area where a carefully managed marketing campaign could produce remarkable results.  Sebastian Coe’s vision for what Sport could do for young people was a key element that won the London 2012 bid, but a clear vision of how the Games will leave an environmental legacy is an opportunity still waiting to be grasped.

What’s more difficult is how to position your brand to an environmentally aware audience that is becoming increasingly sceptical of words like Sustainability and Climate Change. Both words now so commonplace in most corporate guidelines that the consumer is becoming confused as what either actually mean anymore.

The sports industry needs to be careful here. Clearly the brand and image must be carefully aligned. A miss-match like F1 and the environment is not going to convince our cynical media or the consumer unless the science is stronger than the spin.

There are however some great success stories and I think EDF Energy’s partnership with London 2012 is one to carefully watch. Global brands that are developing strong links with environmentally clean sports have an obvious advantage and this could provide a welcome boost for some of our minority sports.

Posted by Conrad Humphreys on September 26th 2008