Public events and operations are on hold and facing an uncertain short-term future, and the ramifications for the sports marketing industry are significant.
Large-scale, showpiece events are being shelved by the day as a precaution, leaving brands and rights holders across the globe wondering where to turn in light of the outbreak.
In our world, we’ve seen Formula 1’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix cancelled, Formula E’s season postponed and almost every sporting league across Europe and North America either called off or forced to be staged behind closed doors. This has had big consequences for many in our industry, whose activations and participation at such events have suffered the same fate.
There is no blanket solution to the problem, but we, as a consultancy, can help provide practical alternatives to ensure the best is made of this unfortunate situation. From closed doors come new opportunities.
Wellbeing and safety is critical to our clients, so we have been proactive internally in advising the best route and offering contingency plans that make sense for the audiences our clients still need to reach – coronavirus or no coronavirus.
While this is undoubtedly a huge challenge, we want to help use this as an opportunity to differentiate. We believe there are alternative approaches, be it digitally interactive, virtual or a combination of both, that can offer thought-leading, immersive experiences. These are just a few thought provokers as to how brands can change their methods to stay agile and active during the coronavirus crisis.
It’s clear to all of us working within sport that this is a significant challenge that affects our industry in new ways. However, as with everything, the world doesn’t stop turning so it’s important to use challenges such as this as an opportunity and seek new, alternative ways to ensure your brand continues to thrive.