Ambush Marketing

By: Lakshya Khanna

Naveen Tushir
Deepak Bansal
Nishi
Deeksha

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 “AMBUSH MARKETING”

– “Ambush marketing takes place when a trader seeks to

utilise the publicity value of an event, for instance a major
sports tournament or concert, to gain a benefit from it
despite not having an involvement or connection with that
event and more particularly having made no financial
contribution to entitle him to derive benefit from it.”

– “Ambush Marketing” by O H Dean, De Rebus, June 2000

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 Why Ambush

• High Cost of Rights Fees

• Consumers Not Offended by Ambushers

• Attitude Within Industry May Be Changing

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 Piracy Versus Ambushing

• Piracy Is Illegal

• Ambushing Represents an Ethical

Dilemma for the Marketer

• Ambush Marketing Is Legal in Most

Countries

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 TYPES OF AMBUSH MARKETING

Association

Intrusion

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 Association

• “In this form of ambush marketing, the

ambush marketer misleads the public into
thinking that he is an authorised sponsor
or contributor associated with the event.”

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 INTRUSION

• “The ambush marketer seeks not to

suggest a connection with the event but
rather to give his own name, trade mark,
or other insignia exposure through the
medium of the publicity attracted by the
event; this is done without any
authorisation of the event organiser.”

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 Ambush Marketing Strategies

 Sponsor Media Coverage of the Event

 Sponsor Subcategories
 Make Sponsorship-Related Contribution to the
Players’ Pool
 Purchase Advertising Time During the
Broadcast Replay
 Engage in Advertising to Coincide with the
Timing of the Event
 Use Other Dilution Strategies

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 Sponsor Media Coverage
of the Event
• Advertise During the Original Broadcast

• Example: Fuji Film Was an Official

Sponsor of the Olympic Games, but One
of the Major Advertisers during the
Broadcast Was Kodak

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 Sponsor Subcategories

• “Ambushing Up” – Sponsor at a Lower

Level with Objective of Being Associated
with the Property at a Higher Level

• Example: adidas Was the Official Sponsor

of the 2006 World Cup of Soccer, but Nike
Sponsored the Brazilian National Team
that Competed in the Tournament

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 Make Sponsorship-Related
Contribution to the Players’ Pool
• Payments Made to Competitors Who in
Turn Acknowledge This Involvement. May
Serve as Performance Incentive

• Example: Speedo Promoted a Plan to

Reward Olympic Swimmer Michael Phelps
with a $1,000,000 Award if He Wins
Seven Gold Medals in the 2008 Olympics

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 Purchase Advertising Time during
the Rebroadcast of the Event
• Events Are Often Shown on TV Many Times
After the Live Broadcast. There Are Fewer
Restrictions Regarding Who Can Purchase
Advertising Time.

• Example: The World Cup of Soccer Prohibits

Advertising by Ambushers on Original
Broadcast, but the Championship Game Will Be
Rebroadcast on Various Sports Channels Where
that Prohibition Will No Longer Be in Effect. This
Represents an Opportunity for Nike to Ambush.
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 Engage in Advertising to Coincide
with the Timing of the Event
• Even if the Ambusher Cannot Advertise on
the Event Broadcast, It Can Advertise on
Other Programs within that Timeframe

• Themed Advertising: Wendy’s Ambushed

McDonald’s and the Winter Olympics by
Showing Ads Featuring Winter Sports and
Former Olympic Athletes

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 Engage in Advertising to Coincide
with Timing of the Event (Cont’d)
• Traditional Advertising: Using Advertising
that Represents a Normal Creative
Execution for the Nonsponsor.

• Coors Light Was the Official Sponsor of

Super Bowl XL. Budweiser Ran
Advertising Throughout the Football
Season on Many Networks and During
Regular Season Games.

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 Other Dilution Strategies

• Purchase Tickets to the Event

– Distribute Tickets; Use as Contest Prizes

• Confusion Technique
– Duplicate Effort of an Actual Sponsor

• Create Own Event

– Similar Event that Appeals to Same People

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 Other Dilution Strategies

• Sponsor Other Events at the Event Venue

– Association with the Venue or Secondary
Event May be Mistaken for Association with
the Original Event

• Wear Nonsponsor’s Logo Clothing at the

Event
– Giveaway Shirts for Fans to Wear

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When Should Ambush Marketing
Be Considered?

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 Example of Ambush Marketing

• Sydney Olympics:
Official Sponsor Was
Nike; the Ambush
Marketer Was adidas
– adidas had hospitality
centers and media
centers where press
could meet with
adidas-backed
athletes

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 Example of Ambush Marketing

• Major League Baseball All-Star Game:

Sponsor Was Coca-Cola; Ambusher Was
Pepsi-Cola
– Pepsi Sponsored MLB, but Not the All-Star
Game; The Ambush Marketing Effort Also
Involved the Flying of the “Pepsi Balloon”
Over the Stadium During One of the Official
Competitions of All-Star Weekend (the Home
Run Derby)

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 Examlpes
1984 Olympics; Kodak sponsors TV broadcasts of the games as well as the US track team
despite Fujifilm being the official sponsor.

1988 Summer Olympics; Fujifilm sponsors the games despite Kodak being the official sponsor.

1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona; Nike sponsors press conferences with the US basketball
team despite Reebok being the official sponsor. During ceremonies, the players covered their
Reebok logos.

1994 Winter Olympics; American Express sponsors the games despite Visa being the official
sponsor.

1996 Atlanta Olympics; sprinter Linford Christie wore contact lenses embossed with the Puma
AG logo at the press conference preceding the
100 metres final, despite Reebok being the official sponsor.

1996 Atlanta Olympics; Messages On Hold strategically infiltrates a banner within the camera
frame as US runner Jon Drummond prepares for the opening leg of 4x100 relay final. The
moment is broadcast live across the world.

1996 Cricket World Cup; Pepsi ran a series of advertisements titled "Nothing official about it"
targeting the official sponsor Coca Cola.

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• 1998 World Cup; Nike sponsored a number of teams competing in the Cup despite Adidas
being the official sponsor.

• 2000 Sydney Olympics; Qantas Airlines’ slogan "The Spirit of Australia" sounds strikingly
similar to the games’ slogan "Share the Spirit." despite Ansett Air being the official
sponsor.

• 2002 Boston Marathon; as Adidas-sponsored runners come off the course Nike are treated
to spray-painted messages honoring the day of the race, but not the race itself.

• 2003 Cricket World Cup; Indian players threatened to strike over concerns that the anti-
ambush marketing rules were too strict. Of particular concern was the length of time before
and after the cup that players were not allowed to endorse a rival to one of the official
sponsors. Players argued that if they had pre-existing contracts that they would be in
breach of them if they were to accept the ICC's rules.

• 2006 FIFA World Cup; fans of the Netherlands had to disrobe Bavaria Brewery's
leeuwenhosen because Budweiser was the official beer sponsor.

• 2008 Beijing Olympics; entire countries were tuned into the Opening Ceremonies, and
worldwide, millions more saw Li Ning light the torch and learned that he owns a shoe
company with the same name, a direct rival of Adidas and quite famous in China, but not
an official Olympic sponsor.
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 Protection from Ambushers

• Sponsors Should Learn How to Ambush

• Leverage with Collateral Support

(Remember: Sponsorship Is Not a Stand-
alone Promotional Activity)

• Clean Stadium (Devoid of Nonsponsor

Signage)
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 Protection from Ambushers
(Cont’d)
• Establish More Control Over Advertising

• Restrict Use of Virtual Advertising

• Limit Ability of Players to Endorse Brands

of Nonsponsors

• Educate Consumers

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 Protection from Ambushers
(Cont’d)
• Engage in Surveillance Programs

• Limit Number of Sponsorships

• Prohibit Pass-Along Strategy

• Incorporate Sponsor’s Name

• Lobby Governments to Enact Legal Restrictions

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 Are Preventative
Measures Effective?
• No Event Is Immune to Ambushing

• Sponsor Who Understands How to Ambush Is

Better Prepared to Assess Its Own Vulnerability

• Many of the Techniques Are Effective

• Many Events Now Require New Laws and Clean

Stadia as Conditions for Staging an Event
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 Closing Capsule

• Ambushing Is Cheaper Than Sponsorship

• Ambushing Can Be Effective

• Ambushing Reduces Sponsor’s Benefits

• Sponsors Must Effectively Leverage

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 Conclusion

Ambush Marketing should be understood as a marketing strategy occupying

the consumer mind space for an event. What Ambush Marketing is not, is
some underhanded attempt to take advantage of sponsored properties
without paying the associated fees. The marketing decision around
sponsorships is really a question of whether or not the sponsorship, as
currently offered, is really commercially viable.

Successful ambush strategies feed on ill-conceived sponsorships and inept

sponsors; in that regard, Ambush Marketing is the natural result of healthy
competition and has the long-range effect of making sponsored properties
more valuable, not less, in that successful ambushes, over time, help to
weed out inferior sponsorship propositions.

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 Ethical issues

• Is it ethical for a company to ambush an

event? Why do brands with excellent
reputations get into this & are they
justified?

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Any Questions?

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