Reebok 2013 Annual Report Download - page 93

adidas Group
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2013 Annual Report
Group Management Report – Our Group
89
2013
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02.6
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Other Businesses Strategy
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TaylorMade-adidas Golf Strategy
Tour validation critical to showcasing equipment
at the highest level
Golfers of all levels are influenced by the equipment that the world’s
best professional players play with and wear. Hence, TaylorMade-adidas
Golf’s leadership and presence on the world’s major professional golf
tours is imperative to increasing brand exposure and consumer traction.
The strength of the TaylorMade-adidas Golf Tour Staff lies in the number
and quality of its members, which include global stars such as 2013
U.S. Open champion Justin Rose, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Jason
Day, Martin Kaymer, Y.E. Yang, Sean O’Hair, Retief Goosen, Johnson
Wagner, Justin Leonard, Camilo Villegas, Paula Creamer and Natalie
Gulbis. In addition to TaylorMade Tour Staff members, dozens more
tour professionals also play TaylorMade metalwoods, helping to make
TaylorMade the number one driver brand on the world’s six major
tours – the PGA Tour, European Tour, Japan Tour, Champions Tour,
Web.com Tour and LPGA Tour. The visibility and credibility that
TaylorMade enjoys from this widespread use of its equipment is
instrumental to brand and product awareness. Adams Golf likewise
maintains a strong Tour Staff, having this year added global star and fan
favourite Ernie Els to a team that already includes Robert Garrigus, Aaron
Baddeley, Kenny Perry, Tom Watson and Bernhard Langer. Ashworth’s
tour presence was bolstered by Justin Rose’s highly successful year,
wearing Ashworth from head to toe, en route to winning the 2013
U.S. Open. Major Championship winners on the Ashworth Tour Staff,
such as Fred Couples, Justin Rose and Justin Leonard, will continue to
be featured in marketing campaigns to validate and promote the brand.
Marketing innovation and excellence in execution
Innovative and effective marketing is critical to TaylorMade-adidas
Golf’s success. Great effort is put into creating compelling messages
spread widely through a variety of channels. This includes television,
print, social media, point of sale, demonstration events, and carefully
choreographed activities at professional tournaments. For example,
in February 2013, TaylorMade had a promotion called the #OneBucket
Challenge to support RocketBlade irons, in which Tour Staff pros and
amateurs competing at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am were
asked to wear bright yellow bucket hats during practice rounds. These
hats were also given away to fans. For this challenge, TaylorMade also
made a commitment to give US $ 100,000 to charity if any competitor
made a hole-in-one on Pebble Beach’s famous 17th hole while wearing
a yellow bucket hat during competition. adidas Golf also had special
activities and campaigns to call attention to new products in order
to generate buzz. At the Open Championship in Scotland, to launch
adidas Golf and Gore-Tex waterproof outerwear, adidas Golf created
a weather simulator designed to replicate the most adverse climatic
conditions. The event, titled “weather the storm”, utilised tour players
Martin Laird and Dustin Johnson to demonstrate the product. Following
a rebranding at Adams Golf in 2013, including the unveiling of a new
logo, Adams Golf stepped up its marketing activities with several online
and on-tour activities, including teaming up with Southwest Airlines
to give away a million Southwest air miles. The Southwest logo was
added to the bags of Adams Golf Tour Staff pros, and a variety of Adams
Golf pros were included in a massive Southwest advertising campaign.
Ashworth likewise generated excellent attention with its “Pants Petition”
promotion, a tongue-in-cheek plea to the PGA Tour to allow pros to wear
shorts during competition. On a more serious note, the victorious U.S.
team in the 2013 Presidents Cup in Ohio, USA, wore Ashworth apparel,
creating invaluable exposure throughout the three days of this globally
popular bi-annual event. Original ideas like these and the keen execution
of them continue to set TaylorMade-adidas Golf’s marketing efforts
apart from the competition.
Effective retail and e-commerce strategy leverages
key accounts and assets
TaylorMade-adidas Golf makes it a point to create compelling point-
of-sale communications and displays designed to quickly and
clearly educate the consumer on product benefits and advantages.
Furthermore, TaylorMade-adidas Golf works closely with its key retail
partners to ensure a consistent and excellent retail experience for the
consumer. Core channels include green grass retailers, off-course golf
specialty retailers and sporting goods retail formats with golf-specific
departments. TaylorMade-adidas Golf also maintains a close relationship
with more than 3,000 golf professionals and assistant golf professionals
across the USA, who act as brand ambassadors in their green grass golf
shops, selling the products of all four brands and turning golfers into
brand loyalists. Additionally, in emerging markets around the world,
the company employs established adidas Group infrastructures to
distribute products, promote awareness and drive growth. This broad
global presence offers significant growth and leverage opportunities in
the future, particularly for Adams Golf and Ashworth, where penetration
is still low outside of the United States.