Consumers can tell when a brand slaps its name on something and walks away. Challenged to show support in a more meaningful way, organisations are innovating.
If you are an Aucklander, you will probably remember what Spark Arena used to be called.
The name changed in 2017, but even now my dad insists on referring to the venue as “Vector Arena”. He can’t be the only one – and that’s the power of sponsorship: brand awareness.
Those were the days. Over the years, the model changed, with brands now having to show customers why a partnership exists.
In 2024, with marketing budgets being cut and consumers becoming smarter every day, some question whether sponsorships are worth the investment.
Managing Director at AO Studios Paul Courtney recently worked with Auckland Zoo on a brief that he says is an evolution in ‘sponsorship offering’.
“Back in those days it was very much sign up for naming rights and hand over the money, walk away,” he explains.
“Today, it feels like you need to do a lot more proper marketing work to make it worthwhile.”
Brands must deliver more than just naming rights, Courtney says, so consumers can wrap their heads around the partnership and give that ROI that stakeholders are looking for.
“A clever idea in the middle that helps you take advantage of your sponsorship, no matter how big or small it is, can amplify it so much further,” he adds.
“Before you buy into a sponsorship, think about how you are going to message it as a brand, and how you’re going to create it as a little win-win-win for everyone.”
Sparking memories
After 10 years of being dubbed ‘Vector Arena’, the agreement lapsed and telecommunications company Spark won the naming rights to the highly popular Auckland venue.
In 2017, it was rechristened Spark Arena. It might seem like a simple name change, but the partnership extends further than just swapping the sign on the front of the building.
Spark Managing Director at the time, Simon Moutter, says the telco bought the naming rights because it wanted to deliver “unforgettable” audience experiences through technology in an innovative way.
Spark swept in with a deal, based on one of its strategic pillars: music.
“We see music and entertainment as cultural beacons for the business. And what you see through music often is depicted in real life,” says Sean Ingram, Spark’s Brand, Entertainment and Partnerships Product Owner.
“Our positioning for Spark is around getting customers closer to the music and closer to the entertainment they love.”
Spark’s arena sponsorship aligns with its values but also privides opportunities to be in front of customers.
Ingram says the highest form of brand awareness comes from being with consumers in real life and in moments of emotional connection.
“Two-thirds of Gen X, Y and Z attend live music events throughout the year.
“Being able to play a crucial role in amplifying someone’s experience within that space is so important,” says Ingram.
Spark wanted to elevate its sponsorship and offer something for telco users who come to the arena. Found on the top floor, the S Lounge is a premium hospitality space for Spark customers and guests.
With free food, drinks and more, Spark made this lounge a true premium experience.
Ingram says the lounge helps the Spark brand become more than just a logo on top of the arena, it becomes a part of the event.
“It really helps enhance that brand credibility and association within the entertainment and the arts,” he says.
Music is one of its pillars, but Spark’s offering doesn’t end with hospitality at gigs.
Spark’s main positioning is ‘Hello Tomorrow’ – an initiative to drive New Zealand forward and bringing the best to our shores.
The past few years, Spark has staged the Future State conference, an event that brings some of the world’s biggest brands and industry leaders to the arena.
“Spark, now, is in the position where we can take our own properties into those spaces and put on our own events within the arena as well,” he says.
The sponsored sidekick
One of the most recognisable sponsorships in New Zealand is the Westpac Chopper Appeal.
It’s hard for Kiwis to say ‘The Chopper Appeal’ without adding in ‘Westpac’.
Westpac has been sponsoring the rescue helicopters for more than 40 years. Head of Sponsorship Todd Johnstone says the appeal has been “the heart of our business and our culture”.
“The Westpac Rescue Helicopter is an instantly recognisable partnership that gives our brand meaning beyond banking, and demonstrates that connection and care for communities,” says Johnstone.
“Any time Kiwis see a Westpac Chopper in the air, people see Westpac working together with skilled and dedicated rescue crews to keep Kiwis safe.”
Customer of the bank or not, the brand association to a charitable cause goes beyond the name and branding of the helicopters. Thanks to Westpac’s sponsorship, the rescue helicopters are used in 10,000 missions every year to help save lives.
It’s not cheap to keep them flying, but for Westpac, the appeal is being able to reduce financial pressures on a vital service.
“New Zealanders increasingly expect big businesses like Westpac to go beyond their core commercial role and take action on issues that are important to them – whether it’s climate change, reducing financial exclusion, or keeping communities safe,” says Johnstone.
“Our partnership is geared towards giving the local rescue helicopter trusts the resources they need.”
But 40 years is a long time for customers, who are increasingly frugal. So to keep the partnership top of mind, Westpac makes the heroes of its campaigns the heroes behind the Chopper Appeal.
“We’re giving them a platform to tell their stories through social media, TV and print media campaigns,” says Johnstone.
“In recent years, we’ve expanded into associated safety initiatives. This includes the Westpac Rescue Rashie activity over summer, that reminds all of us to be safe and to keep our kids safe around water.”
Ways to donate have also expanded. Johnstone says in recent years, Westpac has integrated QR codes to marketing campaigns to offer Kiwis a “frictionless online donation option via their phones”.
It’s a successful move. The Westpac Chopper Appeal can run a commercial on breakfast television that brings in tens of thousands of dollars by afternoon tea time.
Every May is the Westpac Chopper Appeal month, and in 2024 it reached a new record, raising $1.44 million.
“It sounds cliched, but partnerships need to add value to both organisations, achieved through alignment in strategy, values and delivering benefits on both sides,” adds Johnstone.
“These days partnering needs to go deeper, where staff feel a real connection to the organisation that they are partnering with.”
Grassroots to the big stage
Not all sponsorships are about seeing a return.
One of ASB Bank’s longest running sponsorships is Polyfest – a cultural festival for secondary schools and one of Auckland’s biggest regular events.
Jonathan Rea, Sponsorship Marketing Manager at ASB, explains that Polyfest was set up against the backdrop of the Dawn Raids in the 1970s to celebrate Pacific culture at a time when morale was at its lowest.
The event struggled until ASB signed up 40 years ago to help Polynesian languages and culture survive.
Now ASB Polyfest is a mega event, running over four days and involving 100,000 visitors – a far cry from the four schools who took part in 1976.
“The transformation has been huge, but I still think the ethos of why we continue to sponsor it remains the same,” says Rea.
The bank wants the next generation to get one step ahead and ASB saw that supporting Polyfest could help rangatahi develop a cultural connection, purpose and identity.
In turn, the partnership lends ASB a fresh and energetic air – it’s a “great synergy”.
Polyfest has grown, as has ASB’s contribution.
“Obviously as the festival has evolved and it’s grown, so has our financial commitment. But we’ve also got involved in so many different ways,” says Rea.
“We had over 120 staff volunteering across the four days. We’ve had our cultural groups up on stage performing. We host the launch event here at ASB. We also support the behind the scenes events team.”
Rea says this is two organisations coming together to put on a massive event for the kids.
Being a grassroots sponsorship immediately makes it “authentic”, says Rea.
“Sometimes you try and look for a partnership that ticks every single box,” says Rea. But Polyfest is different.
It reaches a wide-ranging audience of young and old, as well as families.
After four decades, ASB is determined to stick with the event, supporting the festival during the height of the Covid pandemic, when its future wasn’t certain.
“We always go back to the core of what it’s set up for, and that’s for the kids,” he says.
Rea says ASB’s partnership with Polyfest wasn’t dependent on ROI and that continues to be true, making the sponsorship even more authentic.
Which is not to say ASB doesn’t see a benefit – it’s the bank that springs to mind for many rangatahi who’ve taken part when it comes to opening an account.
In 2025, Polyfest will celebrate 50 years and ASB is putting in extra effort to mark the milestone, ensuring it can support the festival for generation after generation.
The chemistry of sponsorships on the small stage
For a few years now, Schick has been a sponsor of Basketball NZ, but instead of plastering its logo on uniforms and courts, the razor company focuses on creating “consumer engagement”.
Schick’s partnership with Basketball NZ came about as brand awareness that the razor company is there “from when you first shave”.
“You then tend to stick to the brand for a very long time – or for life. That’s why we chose to work with Basketball New Zealand: we wanted to reach that grassroots of pre-teens, then look to see them look to Schick when they start to shave,” says the Chemistry team.
Chemistry says taking the grassroots approach means more time for nurturing the partnership with the brand and audiences.
Schick’s partnership with Basketball NZ saw the birth of sponsorship campaigns Everyday Ballers and Neighbourhoop, which won awards for creating “impactful leverage”.
Everyday Ballers is an outreach campaign that allows people to vote for a “baller” – someone who just loves basketball.
Now in its fifth year, the campaign is an annual success with a cult following.
But wanting to make a deeper connection to the community, Chemistry decided to introduce a campaign with a group approach.
Understanding that basketball starts in neighbourhoods, Schick identified that there were not enough hoops to keep up with the demand.
Neighbourhoops is a campaign that allowed communities to vote for 10 Schick-branded hoops to be placed across New Zealand.
Schick, alongside Basketball NZ players, turns up at the opening of chosen hoops and makes it a community event, emphasising once again the grassroots nature of the sponsorship.
Instead of partnering with a big brand, Chemistry says there are big benefits that come from smaller sponsorships on a grassroots level, that benefit both the brand and sponsor.
This was first published in the 2024 September-October NZ Marketing Magazine issue. Subscribe here.
