Introduction
Marketing at Olympics is not a new phenomenon. Since the time of Stockholm Games, the symbols of Olympics have been successfully marketed as commercial products (Puig). The main aim of the marketing strategies employed for Olympics is to generate revenue (Ferrand and Torrigiani; Puig). Licensing which comprises of 2 percent of the revenue is through sale of Olympic symbols and mascots (IOC). So the commercialized sale of mascots forms a significant part in the revenue generation process of Olympics thus creating an interest in studying them more critically. Further mascots are supposed to be the best way for the host city to market itself (The Commercialization of Olympic Mascots). This marketing and commercial significance of the Olympics mascots lays the interest to study the 2010 Vancouver winter Olympics mascots and their commercial success.
According to official reports, the sale of the mascots for 2010 winter Olympics has been good (Penner). But there has been a high level of uncertainty regarding the mascot’s success commercially (Canadian Press). So it is unclear if the mascots themselves are a success or not. The question remains if the mascots of 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics have become a big commercial success? This creates the interest of understanding what the mascots really are and the marketing strategy being used to sell the mascot souvenirs. Some sources believe that these mascots have even increased retail sales when they were falling due to the low consumer confidence and economic downturn (Ogilvie). But does this demonstrate the commercial success of the mascots is significant? In this essay, I will discuss the mascots from the perspective of their background and relevance to the event and the financial benefit it is expected to reap through the mascots using them as a marketing tool for the event.
Background of the Mascots
Keeping up the tradition of sports marketing which stresses on external factors such as completion, cultural and economic background (Ferrand and Torrigiani), the Vancouver Winter Olympics mascots have been chosen for those specific reasons. This section discusses the myths behind the 2010 winter Olympics mascots and then tries to associate the significance it holds for the venue.
The 2010 Winter Olympics mascots are Miga, Sumi, and Quatchi. First, we will talk about Miga who is a young sea bear (VANOC). Miga is supposed to live in the ocean beyond Vancouver Island, near Toffino in British Columbia (VANOC). Miga is supposed to be originated as a sea bear in part and part killer whale. The story associated with Miga originates from Pacific Northwest First Nations. The tales talk of orca whales that transform into bears when they travel through land. Legend goes that Kermord bears, which are rare white or creamed colored variants of the black bear, were turned white by Raven to remind people of ice age. They are also known as Spirit Bears. Ocras are also considered to be the guardians of sea according to the West Coast First Nation art and stories. Quatchi is a little Sasquatch who lives in the forests of Canada. The native legends of West Coast are full of the legends of this creature in it. This animal is a reminder of the mystery and wonder of the wilderness and regarding the undiscovered animals in the Canadian forests. Sumi is also a mythical animal and it lives in the British Columbian mountains. Sumi is a combination animal of an orca, bear and thunderbird. Sumi’s hat belongs to an orca whale, its wings are that of a thunderbird, and it runs with the legs of black bear. The name Sumi which is originally a Salish word “Sumesh” meaning “Guardian Spirit” (VANOC). Sumi is believed to be the protector of land, water, and creatures in British Columbia. Transformation is the best part associated with this creature. These mascots show a connection between human, animal and the spirit world (VANOC). All these animals represent s a transformational character to depict this kinship. Sumi is an amalgamation of three creatures which makes it a transformed, unison of the spirit of all three animals i.e. orca, thunderbird and bear. All the three creatures look distinctly different:
“One is big, gentle and shy… one is small, mischievous and outgoing… and one is a natural-born leader with a passion for protecting the environment. All three are mythical creatures with roots in local legend. One is a sasquatch. One is a sea-bear. And one is an animal guardian spirit. They are all, to say the least, unique.” (VANOC)
Why were these mascots chosen by the Vancouver Olympics Committee? The answer is provided by John Furlong, Chief Executive Officer of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympics Winter Game, who said, “They had to appeal to children from all over the world, they needed to represent the people, geography, and spirit of British Columbia and Canada, and they had to personify the values and essence of the 2010 Winter Games…. In short, they needed to be many things all at once.” (VANOC). This is to ensure the spirit of the event is close to the culture and tradition of Canada. That is why the mascots were created. This is proven by the creator of the mascots Vicki Wong who said that the mascots were created “from a mix of different Canadian ingredients, legends and myths” and the idea was to “The ideas of transfigurations and animals that are different parts of beings and spirits that sort of represent our values on the West Coast came out in these characters” (International Herald Tribune).
This clearly demonstrates that the mascots were intentionally chosen to be a close representation of British Columbian aboriginal culture and people. This inclusion of the aboriginal people in the event has been observed in the summoning of the aboriginal people to participate in the opening ceremony of the event (Boyde). The clear indication is to connect to the locals as well as to uphold the local culture and tradition to the world. For this reason these three mascots have been picked from the legends of British Columbia and are now being portrayed tot eh whole world.
A mascot to Olympics is what Brad Copeland, President and founder of Atlanta-based design firm Iconologic says:
“Olympic mascots are the host city and country’s ambassadors of the Games…cultural relevance are one of the most important criteria in the creation and selection of the mascot. The truly memorable mascot brings a warm, welcoming personality to the Games, appealing naturally to children, and in the most successful cases, to adults as well. In addition to supporting the themes of the host city, the mascot must align with and reflect the Olympic ideals — such as friendship, participation, and fair play.” (Copeland)
The mascots are definitely a true bearer of the spirits of the culture of the country as well as that of Olympics and thus can be stated as a true representation of the city. The mascots bonds the cultural tradition of the country with that of the Olympics in its true spirit. They are lovable and represent culture, friendship, and truthful value which uphold the sports event. So as far as the mascot’s relevance to the city is concerned, Sumi, Miga and Quatchi have been brought out from the very culture of the region and thus instantly merge with the event.
Marketing Strategy behind the Mascot
In this section, the paper discusses the marketing strategies employed by the committee to popularize and commercialize the mascots. The marketing mix of the mascots i.e. place, price, promotion, and product are discussed in this section.
The products i.e. the three mascots are three Pokémon type figures which can easily be turned into soft toys or key chains and can be used for commercial purpose. Apart from this, they are rich in the culture and heritage of the land. The mascots are a means of earning revenue through their licensed sales. They form 2 percent of the total revenue of the Olympics revenue. These mascots have been traditionally been used by the Olympics marketing committee as a tool of generating revenue. The sale does not only limit to the sale of mascot toys to children but also of pins, clothing and other items. At the Vancouver Olympics, the items have been increased to the sale of downloadable video games, etc. The present list consists of 115 items related to the mascots. The goods that the committee aims to sell are “hard good products and collectibles, including pins, ski and snowboard accessories, glassware, sunglasses, umbrellas, gloves, mitts, toques and activewear” (VANOC 106). The items available are marketable to both kids and adults.
The promotion has been through various means. The strategies employed for the marketing of the mascots has been through the internet as well through propaganda to the schools. The mascots were unveiled through a ceremony and then the mascots were introduced in schools in order to make the children more aware of the products. The sale has been through internet as well as through retail sales. The management aims to sell the product both before and during the sports event. The licensed marketing of the mascots which are a trademark of the committee are sold through the retail market. The main aim of the marketing is to generate loyalty revenue of the Olympics Games.
The place of sale is through aggressive distribution of the products. Further, the distribution of the mascots has been another strategy wherein the Olympics committee aimed at the retail outlets, as well as the retail chains. The distribution of the souvenirs and products are done through local retailers and Bay and Zeller’s stores (Mackin). The number of independent retailers amount to 1300 (Mackin). The mascots are expected to generate revenue of $46 million (International Herald Tribune). The Vancouver Olympics committee aims to attain maximum sale from the sale of the souvenirs of the mascots, which are being marketed aggressively:
“The existing Vancouver 2010 Olympic souvenir department will expand to cover two-thirds of the main floor at the West Georgia Street Bay store, 24 hours has learned. Grand opening of the Vancouver 2010 superstore is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 1 when Canadian Olympic team uniforms will be revealed.” (Mackin)
Commercial Success of the Mascots
Critics believe that the mascots of 2010 Olympics cannot be a marketing success as they are not easily recognizable and requires a lot of explaining (Canadian Press). But the sales figures of the mascots prove otherwise. The sale of the mascots through the retail stores have been soaring continually. The sale of mascots in the quarter of November 2008 and January 2009 has been 49 percent higher than the sales of the same time the previous year (Mackin). The sale figures of the mascots are increased from 207000 in 2008 (Penner) to more than 300,000 in 2009 (Mackin). Further, the sales estimated from the sale of mascots are shown in this figure: “Proceeds from the sale of mascots, 2010 clothing, pins, and other items are a drop in the bucket in terms of Vanoc’s overall revenue ($9 million of $336 million raised to date and a projected $46 million of a $1.63-billion budget).” (Penner) The 2002 Salt Lake winter Olympics revenue of licensing figures which comprises of mascot sales, was 2 percent of the total revenue (IOC) and that in Turin 2006 was around the same as that in 2002 (IOC). Here the data represents the sale of licenses which includes mascot sales along with other products. And the share of mascot sale alone in the total revenue in 2010 Olympics is 2.6 percent. Thus, the sale of the mascots is much higher than that of the mascots in other winter Olympics games. This shows that the revenue generation and commercial success of mascots in 2010 Olympics is more than the previous events.
So what are the key to the success of the revenue generation of the mascots? The reasons for such huge mascot sales are due to its closeness to the aboriginal culture and tradition of Canada. The mascots being so close to the region’s culture and legend has become a figure that is easily acceptable to all. Further, these mascots are lovable creatures which can easily be transformed into toys for children or merchandise for elders. Apart from these, the excellent merchandising plan of the products is said to be responsible to generate 80 percent of the budget which is estimated to stage the event (Penner).
Conclusion
The mascots are a vital part of the Olympics games and the marketing of the sporting event (Copeland). They represent the culture, tradition and the theme of the event as well as the region where the event is being conducted. In the case of the three mythical mascots 2010 winter Olympics, they are adopted from the mythical culture and lore of the land and they present a high allegiance to the extensive aboriginal population of Canada. Apart from that, the three mascots in their own way signify the spirit of the game, friendship, and transformability. These mascots being from the legends of the aboriginals seamlessly merge with the theme of the 2010 game. Further, these mascots are also seen to be successful in being commercialized s they have generated a lot of revenue for the game. The mascots are lovable and look very good as toys for children or as logos on T-shirts. The sale of Olympics coins with the mascots looks good as they belong to the land where the coin will be used and are widely accepted. Clearly, the mascots portray a true spirit of the game as well the region.
References
- Boyde, Pam. ” Aboriginal People across Canada Invited to Get Involved in the 2010 Olympic Torch Relay.” 2009.
- Copeland, Brad. “Mascot History.” 2009. Vancouver 2010.
- Ferrand, Alain and Luiggino Torrigiani. Marketing of Olympic sport organisations. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 2005.
- International Herald Tribune. “Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games organizers unveil trio of mascots and sidekick.” 2007. International Herald Tribune.
- IOC. “Introduction To Oympic Marketing.” 2004. Oympic Marketing. Web.
- Mackin, Bob. “VANOC planning souvenir superstore.” 2009. Vancouver 24 Hrs.
- Ogilvie, Clare. “Sales of Olympic merchandise remain strong.” 2009. Pique news Magazine.
- Penner, Derrick. “Mascot sales fuel Vanoc’s optimism.” 2008. Tha Vancouver Sun.
- Puig, Josep Maria. “Olympic marketing: historical overview.” 2006. Bellaterra: Centre d’Estudis Olímpics (UAB). International Chair in Olympism (IOC-UAB).
- Vancouver Organizing Committee. Vancouver 2010. 2009.
- VANOC. APPENDIX 1: MARKETING AND SPONSORSHIP PLAN. Marketing report. Vancouver: Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, 2009.