(courtesy of Contagious)
Here’s a review of the recent Mountain Bike World Champs in Scotland, where Nissan were the headline sponsor courtesy of TBWA’s experiential peeps, Stream/ (very nice people they are too.)
“Nissan were the main event sponsor, and you couldn’t look anywhere without seeing red; tents, gondolas, hats, hoardings - heck, you couldn’t even cross a road without being run over by one of their massive 4×4s. Competitions and giveaways were held in the village, creating a bit of interaction with the brand, and a helicopter soared over the crowds following the action and relaying it onto a massive screen - it was a nice touch that made this feel every bit a world class event.
So Nissan had achieved the apparent prerequisite for sponsoring an outdoor event; presence, presence and token dose of crowd interaction, but in what way had they forked off from this well trodden corporate path? Enter Stream/, TBWA’s experiential and brand entertainment division, and the gang in charge of Nissan Sports Adventure. Having already thrown down a fine example with ‘how to promote a mud-retardent Qashqai in the adventure sports arena’ Contagious was intrigued to see what these guys were up to over the weekend.
It came in the form of a rather cool looking truck/stand equipped with large TVs and a DJ booth on top. During the evenings it would be entertaining crowds with the latest riding videos and an eclectic mix of music. The best part of this bit of experiential was the positioning - away from the event and in the local town centre. As well as grabbing the attention of riders and fans on a night out, this gave those passing by a chance to watch a bit of extreme sports.
Ben Robinson (managing partner, Stream/) gave us a little hint as to what’s going on with Nissan Sports Adventure over the next year and its exciting stuff; more Qashqai and Freeride tour events, including Russia as a possible location. Also planned in a mountain bike amnesty scheme in Africa, allowing people to donate their old bikes when buying a new one. Also, two great pieces of branded utility - in 6 top European ski resorts video runs of ski slopes will be sent to people as they pass through lift stations via Bluetooth. Stream/ also hope to be bringing resort information boards up to date with live video streams of the mountain, so you can check conditions and crowds before you join the lift queue, or even before you book your trip!”