Vodafone Hutchison Australia (SA)
In 2007, communikate et al was charged with the role of bringing to life Vodafone Australia’s (now Vodafone Hutchison Australia) newest sponsorship, TeamVodafone, at its first outing of the season, the Clipsal 500.
Having only been appointed to manage Vodafone’s public relations in SA in late January, communikate et al had less than a month to deliver a publicity campaign to highlight Vodafone’s key sponsorship and demonstrate its passion for motorsports.
communikate et al worked closely with the national sponsorship, public relations and state marketing teams to develop a series of events to leverage the sponsorship through the media, the cornerstone event being the TeamVodafone Pit Stop Challenge held in Rundle Mall on February 27.
The Pit Stop Challenge, a concept developed by communikate et al, saw Port Adelaide Football Club players, media personalities and TeamVodafone fans battle it out against the clock to be the fastest to change a tyre ‘pit stop style’ for the highly coveted number one position on the podium. This maximised the celebrity attraction for media whilst reinforcing the synergy between Vodafone and its other major sponsorship recipient, the Port Adelaide Football Club.
The event, hosted by Sunrise’s Mark Beretta, also featured demos by the TeamVodafone pit crew, branded giveaways, previews of the TeamVodafone exclusive content and interviews with the drivers.
Hundreds of fans turned out to watch the event and throngs of media attending resulted in TeamVodafone being the most visible team in the lead up to the Clipsal 500, with widespread coverage achieved throughout the campaign.
Other sponsorship leveraging activities included VIP hospitality at Clipsal, Shane Warne’s visit to TeamVodafone’s garage and hospitality marquee and hosting media at the intimate TeamVodafone dinner with the drivers and key business customers.
Not only did communikate et al deliver a campaign that has been recognised by Vodafone Australia’s senior management team as one of the best, it was done while establishing a relationship with a new client.
Since this time, communikate et al has continued its success in delivering Vodafone’s communication objectives in SA with an average of four media ‘hits’ a week across SA media. Media activity includes sponsorship (PAFC locally), handsets and products, corporate social responsibility initiatives, issues management, corporate profiling and business.
Hundreds of fans turned out to watch the event and throngs of media attending resulted in TeamVodafone being the most visible team in the lead up to the Clipsal 500 with widespread coverage achieved throughout the campaign. 