PACESETTERS
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Wimbledon; the old embracing the new
JAGUAR #FEELWIMBLEDON
wearable technology and court sensors to measure
Wimbledon is infamous for their sponsorship
the mood and emotion of the crowd. Fans were
strategy, particularly for not allowing sponsors
given biometric wristbands to capture heart rate,
to have branding on show during the
movement and location. Sociometric tracking
tournament. This limitation has caused
also followed the conversation amongst fans on
sponsors to be more innovative with their
social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) to
activations. With increasing digital platforms
provide further insight.
available, Wimbledon launched a digital
strategy involving Snapchat, Instagram and
Twitter aiming to create an experience for fans
that is the next best thing to being there.
This campaign utilised consumer’s demand for
entertaining content and was attractive to more
than tennis fans. If the core objective was to
increase brand profile rather than reliable data
Moving inside the Wimbledon grounds, new
then this campaign certainly has been a success,
sponsor Jaguar launched a social media
and has raised the profile of new sponsor Jaguar
campaign, #FeelWimbledon, that used
in a positive light.
IBM SLAMTRACKER
Meanwhile IBM, sponsors of Grand Slam
tournaments, showcased their skills and
targeted tennis fans through ‘Slamtracker’
delivering every point in every match to fans
worldwide in real time.
Serving up uninterrupted access to real-time
Wimbledon match records and trends allowed
IBM to showcase the benefits of delivering
insights at speed. The combination of these
streams is hoped to bring a new level of
analysis and awareness to the total amount of
Wimbledon digital output.
IBM’s ‘Slamtracker’ app analysed players
performance on the pitch and provided live
scores and statistics during Wimbledon. This
data was used in IBM’s consumer–facing
gaming strand #MakeTheTeam which offers
tennis fans an insight into life as an IBM data
capturer.
Alongside their sponsors, Wimbledon is
continuing to embrace the new, encouraging
interaction and participation with the
tournament through digital platforms. IBM’s
consumer facing strategy is a great evolution of
a 15 year old partnership, changing the
perception of a technological brand.