5. Marketing
Putting The Event First

"You can have the greatest teams playing the greatest games on the greatest grounds - but today, the success of even an international event as inherently exciting as the RWC 2007 ultimately depends on immaculate, professional marketing. Only marketing can build public anticipation and up-front revenues. Only marketing can trumpet the success of the World Cup so helping to grow the game both internationally and well into the future. And the marketing must be as great as the game it markets."

Sir Martin Sorrell - Group Chief Executive, WPP

"It is well understood that in order to make a success of an event such as the RWC, a thorough knowledge of marketing is required. The RFU has just such an understanding."

Sir Frank Lowe - Chairman, Lowe & Partners Worldwide

The Vision

'Arriving at Heathrow Airport, the overseas rugby fan is greeted by advertising hoarding boards promoting the RWC 2007. He makes his way to the official greeting desk where he is given advice and directions as well as a pack of useful information. He also took up the option of downloading the information into his XDA through the appropriate short code.
He knew where the greeting desk was because he had read about it in the in-flight magazine as well as seeing a promotional trailer on the in-flight video system.

Moving into London on the Heathrow Express and then on the London Underground, both trains are full of fellow rugby fans in their various international shirts and he notices the World Cup sponsors are busy promoting their links to the Event with posters on the train and in the stations.

The train journey allowed him to catch up on the pre-tournament highlights that were shown on TV the previous evening, through the 3G technology in his phone. A text alert told him that there were some tickets available at one of the new RWNC games in Exeter during the week. Why not take the opportunity to visit his uncle and take in another game, he thought. He bought two tickets and had the cost billed to his mobile with an interactive video alert going to his uncle's widescreen 3G enabled mobile. Stepping out into the sunshine from the tube station, he sees street banners proclaiming the Event and London buses and taxis driving past with the logo of the RWC 2007.

Retailers that he passed were doing a roaring trade in official merchandise while spectators gathered around a television shop looking at ITV's tournament preview through the shop window. He touched the smart ticket in his pocket that would not only give him access to the games he had bought, but would also enable him to take advantage of the many offers from the official partners of the Event. Picking up a newspaper, he flicked through the eight-page pull-out on the Tournament and the participating teams, while he made his way to one of the official hotels to drop off his luggage before meeting up with friends and heading for the game…'

This is not a piece of fiction. This is a preview of the level of visibility that we expect to generate for the RWC 2007 in England. It is also not limited to London, nor to England and the UK, but extends to all the nations that are participating in the RWC and the RWNC. We want to touch every supporter and interested party whether in their home country or in England enjoying the Event.

However, in order for this vision to be a reality, we need to have clear objectives and a long term marketing plan to ensure that this is deliverable.

Marketing Objectives

There are three key marketing objectives for the RWC 2007:

To maximise awareness of the Event in all countries where rugby is played, both during the build up to the Tournament and, of course, during it. This will lead to:

• strengthening the popularity of rugby worldwide so that it competes more effectively with other sports
• recruiting new players to the game - both children and adults
• building the spectator and television audience support base for the game
• ensuring that all the matches in the Tournament are well attended by the spectators from home and abroad (thus ensuring that commercial objectives can be met)

To assist RWC Ltd in maximising its revenue from centralised income streams:

• ensuring that there is wide ranging commercial interest in the Tournament in order to create a competitive marketplace for the sale of the rights
• looking after RWC Ltd's commercial partners to build long-term relationships with the sponsors, licensees and broadcasters and to help the IRB's future negotiations.

To assist England 2007 Ltd to maximise revenues under its control to:

• meet the expenditure and eliminate any commercial risk in organising the RWNC
• meet the financial commitments to other Home Unions as set out later in this Tender Response
• enable payments to be made under the Playing Windows Compensation Scheme should the IRB so agree.

Who are we going to reach?

The RFU will be using the four-year build up from the end of RWC 2004 to market to domestic and international audiences to ensure that the Event is well attended and that viewers worldwide tune into the matches on television. As well as targeting traditional rugby followers, we will be aiming to bring new audiences into the sport as players, fans and enthusiasts.

The Travelling Fan

Overseas fans, many of whom will be current or former players, will be encouraged to come to England to support their team and enjoy a holiday in the United Kingdom. These people will largely be from countries who are sending teams to the RWC or RWNC - and, in the case of the latter, this will be the first time that they have been actively marketed to.

The Home Supporter

England and the Home Nations in general have a large fan base. There are nearly 700,000 regular players - at all levels - in England and this is bolstered by a further 1.5 million fans that regularly watch live club games or international matches. Attendances at Zurich Premiership matches have almost doubled in the last five years, with nearly 45,000 spectators attending every week of the season.

The Armchair Enthusiast

The global armchair audience is important because they are predominantly from a high socio-economic sector with disposable income that is attractive to sponsors and advertisers and can be encouraged to take more active interest in the game.

In England alone, there are a further 3-4 million people who watch rugby regularly on television or follow it in the newspapers. many of these supporters watch on television because they usually unable to obtain tickets to international matches.

This therefore provides the Event with a prime source of potential revenue by giving them access to a wide variety of attractive and entertaining games.

The Large Event Supporter

This audience may have once played the game. This basic understanding of the rules and principles of the game, allied to a general interest in sport, makes them an attractive 'conversion' opportunity when a large international event appears in the sporting calendar. They are the same group that becomes absorbed by the football World Cup, the Olympics and the Commonwealth Games. They can be encouraged to become more actively involved in rugby commercially or as more regular devotees.

The 'Ex-pat' Supporter

This group tend to have an above average income with a focus on all things from home. Planning a trip home to coincide with the Event will be the key lever to maximise this group's attendance.

The Future Generation

There are 350,000 under 18's playing the game in England and a further 130,000 playing in the rest of the UK. This is the lifeblood of the game for the IRB and all the respective Unions. We are committed to the IRB's objective of increasing the worldwide number of future players as a result of the of the RWC 2007 and RWNC

The New Recruit

The RWC represents an opportunity for the IRB to Showcase the sport every four years to fulfil its objectives to foster and promote the game at all levels. This audience - both domestic and international - is made up of parents encouraging their children to take up mini or schools rugby, the children themselves to play the game, teachers to decide to coach rugby, or teenagers or twenty somethings to convert from football or athletics to the game of rugby.

The Commercial Sector

Sponsors, prospective sponsors, the media, broadcasters, licensees, the corporate hospitality sector and business partners are all crucial to the commercial success and awareness of the Event at home and abroad. The IRB commercial family and wider commercial interests will be a priority for regular information and dialogue.

The Communications Programme

There will be five phases to the communications programme, details of which are set out below.

The priorities of the communications programme will change and develop over the course of the four-year campaign, however the key principles behind our communications programme will be:

• an international and domestic focus
• integrating marketing activities to reach as many people as possible, with the right messages, through a number of different routes such as advertising, PR, online and direct marketing
• working in partnership with the IRB, RWC Ltd, other Unions and RWC Ltd sponsors and broadcasters
• embracing the heritage and nostalgia of the previous five RWCs
• encouraging endorsement using the power of personalities from inside and outside the game to promote the Event
• using expertise - both in~house capability and external resource
  

The communications programme will have five phases:

Build awareness - January 2004 to December 2004

Use the excitement of RWC 2003 to set expectations for 2007.

Establish meaning - January 2005 to December 2006

Establish what the RWC will mean to participating countries

Generate enthusiasm -Event mInus.6 months

Create/maintain excitement by launching a series of initiatives to keep RWC 2007 high on the sporting agenda.

Embrace anticipation - During the Event

Capitalise on the arrival of the international rugby circus to capture the world's imagination

Create legacy - After the Event

Communicate the success of the Event and its impact and legacy

What elements are we going to address?

Advertising

'We propose to spend approximately 50% of the £5.5 million marketing budget on advertising with two core aims: to create broad awareness of the RWC2007and to tactically support the sale of tickets. The RFU will also work in partnership with RWC Ltd and the tournament sponsors and broadcasters to support parallel advertising programmes.

Television Programming

ITV, as the RWC's chosen commercial partner, offers a number of opportunities to pre-promote the Tournament.

• programming which reviews the history of the RWC and previous Tournaments
• promotional trailers which build up excitement in the prelude to the 2007 Tournament
• vignettes such as 'Greatest moments in the history of the RWC', 'Greatest tries of the RWC', 'Greatest players of the RWC' etc. These would be similar to the Lions Legends shown recently on Sky Television

Public Relations

PR is an effective means of developing long-term awareness and understanding, and would start much earlier in the campaign than advertising and television promotions

We would use PR to:

• launch the 2007 Event, following the RWC in Australia in 2003, outlining the objectives and plans for the 2007 Tournament
• lead the international campaign to promote the 2007 Tournament by working in conjunction with other Unions and building and targeting an international media database
• communicate the progress and milestones along the way
• broaden the media reach by appearing not just to the rugby and sports correspondents but also to the travel, transportation, business and lifestyle sectors
• negotiate media partnerships with leading domestic and international newspaper, radio and on-line outlets.

Community Relations

This international event wiIl be given local relevance by using the RFU's network of Rugby Development Officers and the infrastructure of the club network with central guidance and core materials from the RFU.

This will ensure that:

• the RWC and RWNC are well supported in terms of organisation, local profile and ticket sales and attendance
• rugby clubs, local authorities and local tourism authorities work together towards a common purpose
• the 2007 Tournament is utilised to grow the game at junior/local levels and to leave a legacy for the future of the global game
• the Volunteer network is used effectively to deliver a well-organised Event
• officials and Volunteers from visiting rugby nations are looked after and integrated into the regional structure

Political Relations

The UK Government, through the Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport has expressed full support for our bid to host RWC 2007. The letter from the Secretary of State is included in the Introduction page.

A political relations programme will be put in place to ensure that the UK Government, MP's, regional and local authorities are fully informed of all Event planning and progress in the period from the bid award to the conclusion of the Event to ensure a well supported and efficiently run Tournament.

Educational Communications

The proposed 2007 Event represents an opportunity to involve the younger generation and provide a legacy for the future. A schools programme that encourages the adoption of the RWC as the school project for 2007 will be supplemented by:

• player visits to schools and junior Sections of clubs
• competitions to meet the teams, become a team mascot for a day and win match tickets
• rugby pen-pal project with schools in other countries around the world via the internet and by post
• active promotion on childrens television programmes

As an example of how this may work, let's take a look at the following scenario. Georgia is playing Holland in Exeter. The Regional Development Officer works with the Local Education Authorities to encourage school children to 'adopt' a team. This is linked back into the curriculum through a project to find out about each country - its geography, culture and history. This work is presented to the teams at the school visit where the players also conduct a coaching clinic. School children attend the match as supporters and converted rugby fans.

Relationship Marketing

We will use its contacts and understanding of the domestic market to help RWC Ltd and its sponsors and licensing partners, to maximise the return on the investment they are making in the Event.

Publications and On-Line Marketing

We will support the RWC Ltd's licensing deals with publishers, as well as using the RFU's publications such as Touchline, the official RFU newspaper (which has a monthly circulation of 60,000 copies and a readership of 240,000) and on-line portfolio including both rfu.com and rfu,.tv to pre-promote the Tournament

The RFU will help to support any official on-line sites of RWC Ltd and its commercial partners.

Database Marketing

The RFU has a substantial database of some 2,000 rugby clubs and 3,500 schools. It also has or active relationship with the 1.5 million spectators who are frequent and regular spectators at International and club games.

This resource can be built upon, adding the names of those who access official websites, purchase tickets, subscribe to official magazines and respond to media competitions and marketing initiatives. In this way, a substantial and important universe of rugby supporters will be established. This can be used to enhance our understanding of rugby supporters, to create a two way dialogue on issues in the game, and to provide a potential additional commercial revenue stream.

Maximising all Potential Commercial Revenue

The Commercial Environment

England is a vibrant market with a strong and growing economy, and with its position within the UK, enjoys a stable political environment with little industrial unrest. As an international transport hub, it houses the corporate headquarters of many of the world's blue-chip companies as well as the second largest international stock exchange. As a result, England is well positioned to provide RWC Ltd with exceptional commercial returns.

Television

Although this strand of revenue is central, it is worth exploring the potential benefits that the RWNC can bring to enhance the values of television income for the Event. Firstly, ITV have agreed to produce the pictures as described in the Broadcast section, which delivers a very valuable resource. Secondly, we believe that although the feed would be given free to the underdeveloped markets, there is an opportunity to raise between £0.5m and £1m of additional income from the bigger television markets, and although this is a relatively small sum, it offsets the costs of running the RWNC. This together with the sponsorship revenues takes the RWNC towards break-even.

Sponsorship

There is an opportunity to enhance the returns for RWC sponsors by extending their involvement in the RWNC and in turn improving the overall revenues. For example, if each of a planned eight main sponsors were to increase their investment by £400,000 each this would generate £3.2m of revenue for the RWNC. This does not have to be in cash as value in kind would reduce the cost base of the RWNC delivering the same result.

We believe that this is the simplest and most efficient way to generate funds for the RWNC whilst ensuring that sponsors have a truly global opportunity to market their Brands.

The sponsorship market in the UK is sophisticated and highly developed. We have been successful in attracting some major corporate names to the sport in England, such as Nike, O2, Carlsberg-Tetley, Guinness, Powergen, Hardys Wines and Bollinger. The sophistication of the market can be seen by the presence of many of the world's leading marketing communications agencies who can advise clients on developing leverage programmes to get the most out of their marketing investments.

Compared to some other countries, the sponsorship market in the UK is relatively unregulated. The only current restrictions apply to tobacco and prescription drugs. This means that there is a bigger universe of sponsors for RWC Ltd to approach, particularly alcoholic drinks.

A number of leading drinks brands are active sponsors of rugby in Europe. These include, in addition to the RFU sponsors listed above, Heineken, Bass and Famous Grouse. We would be happy to work with RWC Ltd and any commercial partner to help identify and source potential sponsors and would be willing to supply relevant data and insight to help secure the relationships.

Corporate Hospitality

The corporate hospitality market in England at sporting events such as Wimbledon, Lords, Henley and Ascot is well established and lucrative. This is because there is a strong cultural demand for such events and a large and active corporate world to support this demand.

Recent research from Total Research Ltd demonstrated that Twickenham as a venue tops the list for corporate hospitality in the UK, ahead of the events listed above.

Further research by Ipsos in 1999 shows that rugby union as a sport leads the way for blue-chip companies when choosing how to entertain their guests.

The RFU has established its own hospitality company, Twickenham Experience Ltd, in conjunction with The Compass Group, one of the world's largest and catering and hospitality organisations, and Peter Parfitt Sports. This gives the RFU unrivalled knowledge and expertise in managing corporate hospitality at major events. This knowledge and expertise will be available to RWC Ltd and its commercial partners

Match Day Programmes

The purchase of a match day programme is a long tradition and part of sorting culture in England. Over 60% of visitors to Twickenham on an international match day purchase a programme and this represents a very substantial revenue stream. Of the 1.907 million ticket sales at RWC 2007,
the opportunity of for programme sales is in the order of one million copies. The strength of the demand for match day programmes should enable RWC Ltd to secure a substantial seven figure financial guarantee for this element of the commercial programme.

Merchandising

The proposed introduction of the RWNC to run alongside the RWC 2007 will have a significant effect on merchandise sales.

As Well as opening up the possibility of having a second RWNC range to run alongside that of the RWC, it will also mean significantly more points of sale and demand for RWC Ltd merchandise.

The RFU has significant experience in this area as evidenced by the growth in Rugby Store sales which have more than doubled over the last three years to £3 million per annum.

The RFU has also established an on-line merchandising capability which now accounts for over 20% of our total sales, and continues to grow.

After the Closing Ceremony

The success of the marketing and communications programme will be judged by the sentiments of expressed by the key stakeholders in the Event. We will be striving to achieve the following:

Players "This was a well-run and successful event. It was enjoyable to play in and the high point of my career."

Officials "It was great to be part of the experience. It has helped me to encourage more officials into the game."

Fans and spectators "It was memorable to be part of this six-week spectacle."

Rugby clubs/venues "We benefited, both generally and in financial terms, from hosting matches and teams."

Sponsors "This helped to build my brand and achieve my business objectives."

Broadcasters "Audience figures and demographics were excellent."

Sport has become a much more competitive marketplace and, in order to meet these new challenges, rugby union has had to become more professional and innovative. The RFU and the other professional Unions have had to adapt to new methods of working.

As part of these new working practices, the RFU has embraced relationship with many outside marketing groups. Our current roster includes:

We will be able to draw upon this depth of expertise as we build towards the Event, in particular the wealth of data on television and consumer markets.