Many casual fans know the exploits of the Americas Cup, some will know the Volvo Ocean Race and its elite sailors, athletes and technology, but how about a brand effective sailing event on the high seas with great drama and stories that s maybe more akin to the marathoners who finish behind someone like Meb Keflezighi in Boston this year. Well there is one; an event that has grassroots support, strong digital, smart partnership activation and a global year-round footprint.
The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is the world’s longest ocean race at 40,000 miles and eleven months to complete. It is comprised of 16 individually scored races which take crews across four oceans and six continents, and it’s seen as one of the longest, toughest endurance events on the planet. Now in its ninth edition, the 2013-14 Clipper Race started Sunday, 1 September from St Katharine Docks London, and will return almost a year later on July 12, 2014 after completing its 40,000 mile circumnavigation route. This is the seventh consecutive time the race has visited New York. The New York Race Start on June 7th marks the start of the homecoming leg back to London.
It is the only global race for amateur sailors for the most part; with a mix of people on Bucket Lists along with wildly successful folks looking to give back or stretch the limits of average human endurance and teamwork.
The Clipper Race is a marathon of the sea, attracting sports and sailing coverage from its competition angle, with a strong lifestyle, business and technology appeal through its compelling crew human interest stories, and global sports business platform sponsors international business activations.
While not your conventional marketing play in sport, the powers that be have used their story and their global travel to promote destinations like the UK’s international GREAT campaign, brands and corporation around the globe during an eleven month record-breaking 40,000 mile race. Visiting major markets on six continents, partners use sailing events, shore-side forums and high-level networking and activation opportunities to inspire internal audiences, deepen business and government relationships, develop new markets and deliver social and environmental objectives. It may not be right for Coke or Gatorade or Bud, but for those destinations looking for the adventure types the fit is a good one with every activation level possible included.
Global media channels provide a virtual front row seat as every detail of the race action is captured in high definition and emotions felt in daily blogs from the boat. The matched boats are equipped with the latest multimedia, CCTV and satellite communication equipment to allow daily blogging and video capture. We also produce our own documentary. Shot on the boats and on land, the race uses its own production company and BBC Worldwide as its international distributor and are working on the ultimate production, a sports and human interest project called The Race of Your Life – out later this summer.
Is it big enough for brands outside the stories? The Clipper 2011-12 Race media figures make a compelling business case reaching a cumulative audience of two billion and provided a PR Value of £1.2 billion. Kantar Media provides full independent media monitoring and evaluation service for the duration of the Clipper Race to prove the value to justify a spend on any level.
The best part of the race and its story is its growth. As self-generated content becomes more important and alumni of the race grow and become even more global, he ability to leverage the race as a property becomes more value to marketers looking for a nontraditional reach. Also as more and more brands look to find niche platforms for social and cause related activation, the Clipper Race provides a unique opportunity.
Is it the spectacle of America’s Cup? No. Does it have the local charm or a Boston or New York Marathon? Nope. But for brands looking for an endurance vertical with global appeal and a long, consistent story, the Clipper race provides a very unique, and probably cost effective, experience.
Lessons Learned: Joyce Aschenbrenner