Charlie Ebersol, CEO of the rapidly rising tech company 'Infinite Athlete', recently stated that the biggest challenge his company faces is ‘inertia’. Modern sponsorship strategy faces a similar challenge.
Sir Isaac Newton’s first law of motion is the principle of ‘inertia,’ which first states that “a body at rest tends to stay at rest…” and this is what Charlie was talking about. He has a new technology that can help sport to advance at incredible pace, but most sports executives are accustomed to doing things a certain way. Their current systems seem to be working (more or less), so the safest approach is to keep doing it that way. Despite knowing there is a better way, most opt not to change. The body at rest tends to stay at rest.
Sponsorship strategy is hampered by that same principle. We see it all the time. Even when big fees are paid for sponsorship rights and big budgets committed to activation campaigns, often the measurement and analysis only happen once the campaign is finished... and when positive results are easy to 'find'. Most of us know that clear and measurable objectives and KPIs set prior to campaign kick-off will not only make the measurement more valuable, but more importantly will lead to a more impactful and meaningful campaign. But then it doesn't happen.
When discussing this perplexing practice with experienced agency execs I’ve had more than one comment that “it feels like we’ve been having this conversation for 20 years…,” because we have.
Even in sponsorship awards submissions (which I’ve been judging a LOT of lately), where the application form clearly states that results must be based on clear and measurable pre-set objectives that tie back to the purpose of the sponsorship, the world’s biggest and most successful brands and agencies still fall short on this basic concept. Not because they don’t know better, but because that’s not the way they’ve been in the practice of doing it. Despite knowing and being reminded that there is a better way to do things, and that they’ll be rewarded/awarded when they do, they choose to keep on doing what they’ve always done. A body at rest…
So, what do we do about it?
Baby steps.
Brand by brand, agency by agency, sponsorship by sponsorship, one step at a time in the right direction. The industry IS slowly getting better. More and more, brands and rights holders are entering into true partnerships with collaborative objectives. More brands and agencies are developing better (not perfect, but better) measurement frameworks that facilitate this strategic process. We still have a long way to go before best practice is universally embraced, but there is positive movement… and this is where Newton comes back into play.
The second half of Sir Isaac’s first law of motion states that an object in motion tends to stay in motion… thankfully. This movement toward better sponsorship measurement and performance management done right is rolling forward and the pace will only increase. For every frustrating example of old-school post-rationalised sponsorship reporting, there is an opposing example (Newton’s 3rd law?) of a brand or agency doing it the right way – and these are the ones winning awards. Not simply on creativity, but on positive impact proven by proper performance measurement.
So that leaves many of us with a simple question. The industry is changing for the better. Modern sponsorship execs, one by one, are climbing on board. They’re still in the minority, but not for long. Newton’s inertia says the movement is likely continue and eventually the wisdom will become the norm. So, when do YOU want to put it into practice? When will you break your current complacent ‘body at rest’ inertia and join the inertia of the ‘body in motion’ movement that you know you should be practicing?
How about now?
If you’re motivated enough, bold enough, brave enough to take a step in the right direction, give us a call for a free no-strings chat about how you can start to break free from that paralysing inertia that has you stuck in your current level of modest success but is holding you back from the best your sponsorship can be. Even if there is no business to be done, the chat is usually inspiring enough to be well worth the time.
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