Home » Expert Tips The Aussie Olympians Most Likely To Win Gold With Marketers’ Dollars

10 August, 2021

Expert Tips The Aussie Olympians Most Likely To Win Gold With Marketers’ Dollars

In this guest post, RMIT’s Associate Professor Con Stavros, a leading expert in marketing, casts his eye over the Aussie Olympic team and picks his standout athletes that’ll most attract marketing dollars…

Australia’s amazing golden run at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games is great for a sports crazy nation that is clamouring for positive news.

However, ironically it will likely mean individual medallists will find it harder to ‘cash in’ on their fame.

Sponsorship support has always been strong in Australia, but the size of the market means there is only so much that can go around, especially with powerful domestic football leagues and cricket offering a plethora of bankable stars.

Unfortunately, winning gold is probably not enough to secure sponsorship, unless the event is high profile.

Athletes need to sustain the success in regular, ongoing events to avoid fading from view, and also ensure that their own personality matches that of potential sponsors.

Financial institutions might want athletes who are perceived as consistently solid performers, while energy drinks might want those who push the boundaries of adventure.

Every medallist and Olympic competitor is marketable to an extent just for making the Games.

However marketing fame skews heavily to the few at the very top of the tree in any sport, so the following three are particularly well placed.

Emma McKeon – the Australian swim team is marketing perfection given the national profile around the team, and the typically outstanding way these athletes present themselves.

Emma has a simple line on her CV – Australia’s most successful Olympian – which is marketing gold.

What brand wouldn’t want an association with her?

The challenge for Emma and her management team will be to make the right choices: keeping the list of brands and opportunities measured, and focused on long-term relationships that suit her style.

Logan Martin – the first gold medallist in BMX freestyle is not just an accomplished rider; Logan also has over 400,000 followers on Instagram and is part of a global sport that has regular high-profile events that produce spectacular footage.

Sponsors looking for adrenaline and adventure, particularly in targeting a youthful audience would love Logan and his family, who he actively includes in his messaging.

Peter Bol (main photo) – not a medallist, however his story is so compelling that marketers would be itching to explore the possibilities that come with a track athlete that is clearly on an upward trajectory.

Bol is humble and courageous, traits that Aussie brands love, and features in the men’s 800 metres a sport that is high-profile.

Gold medals on the athletics track are few and far between for Australians with just three in the past eight Olympics.

So should Bol take gold in Paris in just three years, his life would change beyond recognition. Sponsors would be willing to take a gamble on that happening given what he has already shown.

I believe another piece of marketing gold is Channel 7 who have done a masterful job capturing the joy and excitement of these Olympics under extremely challenging circumstances.

The time zone has made it a ratings bonanza, however 7 has also got their streaming approach and commentary teams perfectly balanced, including the necessary mix of background and action.

The standouts are the track and field team of Bruce McAvaney, Tamsyn Manou and Dave Culbert. Those three are the gold medallists of track and field commentary worldwide.

These past few weeks will stand as a great success for the almost 500 athletes who have competed for us; many of whom will return to a new relationship with brands and the public given their achievements.

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2020 Tokyo Olympics Games