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Panasonic’s Formula 1 partnership selected as best practice example in sponsorship casebook

Sponsorship | Sport | Technology

Leading Sports Business publication Sponsorship Works, the self-titled casebook for brands, agencies and rights holders, has used a case study presented by Panasonic Europe and Sine Qua Non in its latest edition. The case study focuses on how Panasonic used its nine-year long sponsorship of the Toyota Formula 1 team to enhance its brand image and reputation internationally.

Working together with Panasonic’s European marketing team, we looked in depth at how the over-arching objectives of the sponsorship were met by accessing a large target audience of potential customers with a technology biased demographic and highlighting Panasonic’s credentials as a technology leader. The sponsorship had to offer a flexible foundation for delivery of multiple brand messages, provide a platform for leverage through the year, while demonstrating the values of teamwork and commitment in pursuit of a long-term vision.

With such as wide range of products and solutions Panasonic seeks engagement with a diverse worldwide audience of technology savvy, consumers and business decision makers. As Formula 1 is the ultimate global sport in terms of size of audience and frequency of interaction with up to 20 races during a 9 month season, it was an exceptional platform to enhance the Panasonic brand and sat well alongside sponsorship of the intense but infrequent Olympic Games. In particular the high tech image of F1 resonated very closely with the brand image and positioning of Panasonic as a leading provider of cutting edge technology.

From image rights to branding presence and from team member and show car appearances through to meaningful technology transfer, a long term partnership with an F1 team was the best way to achieve business aims within the context of the Panasonic brand vision. But such a partnership could only work with a team with similar long term vision, guiding principles and management philosophies. Toyota took on the challenge of building a successful F1 team from scratch in all areas including both chassis and engine. The partnership was in place from the team arriving on the grid to the time it left, delivering a platform for Panasonic to integrate global and local programmes to drive awareness, loyalty and sales in accordance with its responsibility as a corporate citizen.

Despite such as long standing relationship, one that naturally grew and evolved over the years, the sponsorship was able to work effectively at so many levels. A review by Formula Money estimated the global media value of Panasonic brand exposure at $53.2m during the first half of 2009, representing a market leading 15.5 per cent share of voice in terms of lights to flag coverage of on-car brands. Individual race analysis through the year showed that this performance stemmed from a consistent top three ranking, ensuring regular audience reinforcement for the brand. In the more crowded total Formula 1 market, IFM Sports Marketing Surveys indicate that Panasonic was vying for sixth place in the overall ranking after the penultimate race with a 3.9 per cent share of the entire TV coverage. But the numbers are just the tip of the iceberg.

The real ‘driver’ of the long term partnership was the quality of the interactions with the key target audiences. Here a jointly held commitment to continual improvement ensured that Panasonic and

Toyota learnt from both success and occasional failures to extend the reach and the impact of the partnership, forever pushing forward and generating ideas for life. Building incrementally on the long term platform has enabled Panasonic to gain more than the sum of the parts while reinforcing its vision of enriching people’s lives around the world, today and tomorrow.

From motivated employees to loyal dealers to enthralled school children to engaged journalists to eager customers, the Panasonic Toyota Racing collaboration offered Panasonic new and exciting ways to engage and enhance its brand image.

As a result of its presence in Sponsorship Works, Panasonic’s Formula 1 involvement sits alongside case studies from the worlds of rugby, football, sailing, cricket and tennis as a best practice example of how sports sponsorship can be done most effectively.

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