For decades we had great brands based on solid
value propositions.

They'd established their worth in the consumer's mind. Then in the 1980s and 1990s, a lot of companies sold out their brands. Today brands are back stronger than ever. In an age of accelerating product proliferation, enormous customer choice, and growing clutter and clamor in the marketplace, a great brand is a necessity, not a luxury.

Some categories may lend themselves to branding better than others, but anything is brand-able.

Nike, for example, is leveraging the deep emotional connection that people have with sports and fitness. Almost any product offers an opportunity to create a frame of mind that's unique. Almost any product can transcend the boundaries of its narrow category.

To keep a brand alive over the long haul, to keep it vital, you've got to do something new, something
unexpected.

It has to be related to the brand's core position. But every once in a while you have to strike out in a new direction, surprise the consumer, add a new dimension to the brand, and re-energize it.

From my experience at Nike, I can tell you that CEO Phil Knight is the consummate protagonist for sports and the athlete.

That's why Nike transcends simply building shoes or making apparel. As the protagonist for sports, Nike has an informed opinion on where sports is going, how athletes think, how we think about athletes, and how we each think about ourselves as we aim for a
new personal best.

Emotions drive most, if not all, of our decisions.

Not many people sit around and discuss the benefits of encapsulated gas in the mid-sole of a basketball shoe or the advantages of the dynamic-fit system. They will talk about Michael Jordan's winning shot against Utah the other night – and they'll experience the dreams and the aspirations and the awe that go with that last-second, game-winning shot. A brand reaches out with that kind of powerful connecting experience. It's an emotional connection point that transcends the product. And transcending the product is the brand.

A brand is a metaphorical story that's
evolving all the time.

This connects with something very deep – a fundamental human appreciation of mythology. People have always needed to make sense of things at a higher level. We all want to think that we're a piece of something bigger than ourselves. Companies that manifest that sensibility in their employees and consumers invoke something very powerful.

The Castrol brand has begun its endeavour into the unique arena of football as it has become the official sponsor of 2010 FIFA World Cup™ and 2014 FIFA World Cup™, demonstrating its long term commitment to building the reach of the brand amongst consumers.

Motorsports are the foundation of the Castrol brand. However with the changing market dynamics such as:

    • demographics

    • new and varied opponents and

    • shifts in consumer interests

using motorsports to differentiate a brand is narrowing.

Therefore to give the brand further reach, Castrol has used football as the platform to stand out from the clutter.

The role of football…

We will use football to increase our REACH with consumers.

Football is the fastest growing major national sport and in terms of interest is ranked 3rd slightly behind cricket and AFL, both of which are very cluttered environments. From a local perspective football has the highest participation rate of any sport, and with the interest in the code growing rapidly it now has the momentum we required for a brand such as Castrol to add a new dimension.

People are becoming less connected to their engines, so we will use football to ENGAGE with them on their love of winning, country and football. As the consumer experiences the FIFA campaign with Castrol as the official sponsor they will connect emotionally to the Castrol brand.

The FIFA World Cup sponsorship is our license to talk football and as we sit alongside world super brands like Sony, Coca Cola and the like we will build a larger than life image.

Football will be Castrol’s brand exclusive POINT OF DIFFERENCE .

“It’s about connecting our expertise with our consumers’ passion”.

Castrol’s expertise lies in finding ways to improve performance through analysis, technology and innovation. We are always looking for new insights into what improves performance and why.

Applying these attributes to the football world gives Castrol fascinating bite-sized insight on the game. Sharing these insights is one way of connecting with consumers as they use them for social currency with their peers, all the time creating a link with the Castrol brand through their emotion for the game.

The Castrol Football website (www.castrolfootball.com) packages insights in a way that is appealing to consumers;

   • Castrol Rankings: is the world’s first 12 month ranking of footballers from          across Europe’s top leagues

   • Castrol Predictor: Analyses players and teams, making an objective          prediction on who will win the 2010 FIFA World Cup™

The consumer will have a greater bonding and emotional attachment

with the Castrol brand and it will apply to a broader audience.

    • Achieve a higher acceptance of the brand/products

    • Enhances trade-up opportunities
    • Lessens the sensitivity on price

    • Eases the selling process.