Blog

There is light at the end of the long COVID-19 pandemic tunnel.

Heading into 2022, brands are more optimistic than ever of what sponsorship can do in support of their measurable business and brand objectives.

As we look forward, with COVID-19 transitioning to endemic, sports, arts, culture, community, and music properties offer Canadians the opportunity to come together for human-scale experiences, leaving public health restrictions behind them.

Latent Demand for Live

IMI, the Canada-born global consumer research firm, has been tracking consumer sentiment related to the pandemic across thirty-nine country markets since early 2020. During that time, latent demand for live experiences has steadily grown.

As of December 2021, Canadians’ intent to attend live festivals was 43% higher than it was pre-pandemic, intent to attend community events was 48% higher, and live concerts 32% higher.

Of little surprise, the COVID-19 pandemic will have an impact on how brand marketers should be thinking about sponsorship for the remainder of 2021, and at least into 2022, if not longer. Consumers expect the pandemic to continue to be a concern until December 2021. It will likely be between 15 and 18 months between their ‘normals’.

We expect consumers to reengage with the world around them in stages, moving from household and neighborhood to their wider communities and regions, and then to national and international travel. It is the trusted brands that are alongside Canadians on that journey that can build relevance and earn attribution.

With 2015 coming to a close, ACA is asking the experts to predict the trends they think will shape the industry in 2016. So far, Stephan Argent has written about Agency Search Management and Grant Le Riche looked at media. Next up is Brent Barootes, President and CEO, Partnership Group, with his forecast for sponsorships.

By Doria Rahmani, Éditions infopresse The 4th RDV Commandite (in French), the annual sponsorship conference organized by Infopresse took place recently in Montreal. During the event, David Pontbriand, partner at Substance Stratégie, presented Focus on major issues, the results of an exclusive joint survey on current and emerging industry trends conducted among 21 sponsorship marketing experts

Dan MacKenzie, Vice President & General Manager of NBA Canada, is the incoming Chair of the Sponsorship Marketing Council of Canada. “There are more opportunities than ever for sponsors to engage consumers, whether through traditional means or constantly changing digital and social media channels,” said MacKenzie.