…or better still, don’t go there in the first place. Never more poignant as England are now out of the World Cup, the point of my missive this week is my advice to align your business with popular events with circumspection and extreme caution.
I have an ex-client who (I know for sure) will be embracing world cup fever throughout every aspect of its tourist attraction, from the food to the entertainment. The business has absolutely nothing to do with football or sport and, in reality, probably attracts a completely different sector of the population (yes there are people who don’t take the nation’s favourite sport to their hearts believe it or not). My local newspaper is littered with adverts with world cup headlines (“We are your world-class estate agent”, yes really). Supermarkets are world cup merchandised to the max… Why?
By jumping on any kind of bandwagon you are risking blending in with hundreds of others who are blindly doing the same. You are also diluting your own brand message you’ve probably spent a long time building up. Unless there is a direct reason to show you are a football supporter, have green credentials, source products locally or are part of whatever current trend is in the offing, leave it alone!
Genuine brand alignment with good, strong values that are relevant to your business is a fantastic idea. Getting excited about Rooney & Co? Unlikely unless you are Nike, Adidas or Carling and even then, proceed with care. This week, England’s deflated, sagging spirit doesn’t look good against anyone’s logo.
This entry was posted in Communications, Branding, Marketing, Business advice and posted on June 21, 2014