Threepipe Research Shows Lack Of Sponsor Impact

Research commissioned by marketing agency Threepipe suggests that sponsorship of top sporting stars by brands is failing to make an impact on consumers. The survey of 18-24 year olds found that 77% claimed that an association with a sports star does not make them more likely to consider purchasing a brand.

The results showed that sports brands appear to suffer from an overall lack of impact with consumers, with 68% of 18-24s reporting that they rarely or never notice the brand that individual athletes wear on the field of play.

Just 8% of those surveyed correctly associated Usain Bolt with long-term partner Puma and 6.8% could identify adidas as Lionel Messi’s. Non-sports brands achieved the highest levels of recognition, with 38% associating Jessica Ennis-Hill with Santander, followed by 31% linking Usain Bolt with Virgin Media.

Eddie May, co-founder of Threepipe, said of the results and their possible ramifications:  ‘Brands make big investments in athlete sponsorship deals and often spend large amounts communicating their association through various channels.  We wanted to get an idea of what impact this actually has on consumers and in many cases it seems that brands are struggling to convert their sponsorship into awareness or desire to purchase. ‘

‘An association with a top athlete should be one of the best ways to engage with this audience, so brands may need to take a step back and evaluate their communication strategy to enhance awareness and to better explain why a connection with an athlete should make their brand more desirable to the consumer.’