B-to-C Events

EVENT SPONSORSHIP is an effective and efficient way for brands to reach their target audience—racecar fans via NASCAR baseball lovers via Major League Baseball. But sponsoring a regional event or a small team of people with specialized interests can offer a more laser focused consumer connection.

Who she is: Fontaine is the driving force behind Ford’s mission to get more people into its cars a key strategy as the company launches new vehicles including the 2009 Flex. Grassroots programs multicultural marketing the Ex Award-winning Warriors in Pink breast cancer initiative and placement in key TV programs from “American Idol” to Lifetime’s new series “Army Wives” are part of the plan.

Who she Is: When Pollack joined Google four and a half years ago she was the first “official” events person at the company bringing 13 years of experience from the production side. That knowledge helped her build an in-house agency of nine people including herself as part of Creative Lab Google’s internal creative agency. Her group will handle 400 events this year supporting YouTube which Google acquired in 2006; enterprise and search-related events; investor relations and Google’s global communications and public affairs department.

To connect with an African American demo Nestle Coffee-mate is hitting the road to bring its café experience to events in four markets. It kicked off its tour last month at the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans followed by a stop at the National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta. Next it hits the African Festival of the Arts in Chicago and concludes at the Congressional Black Caucus in Washington D.C. On site Nestle Coffee-mate sets up a café shop filled with tasting stations serving hot and iced coffee flavored with Coffee-mate flavors.

Lexus has extended its agreement with the United States Tennis Association and the U.S. Open through next year; as part of the deal the brand is introducing new activations this year including an event this month that gave USTA members in New York New Jersey and Connecticut the chance to interact with notable tennis players including Billie Jean King Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova.