Wimbledon readies global campaign to boast its unique personality to Asian audiences and safeguard its future
The All England Club (AELTC) is launching a global campaign ahead of Wimbledon as it looks to grow its brand beyond traditional audiences and into Asia.
The ‘In Pursuit of Greatness’ campaign will launch tomorrow (16 June) across digital and social media before hitting cinemas next week with 60-second films showing throughout the UK. The AELTC has said it will focus particularly on Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat in an effort to target the younger demographic.
It will also span out of home with ads at tube and railways stations local to the event. The BBC is expected to show the content as part of its build up coverage to the tournament, which starts on 3 July.
Created by McCann Erickson London, the campaign was given a soft launch at last year’s event, however it will now extend to the US, Europe and Asia as part of the AELTC’s plans to champion the Wimbledon brand as a truly unique grand slam.
James Ralley, the AELTC's head of commercial and marketing, said the campaign would help international fans better understand the experience that audiences at the event feel.
“Our research shows that while Wimbledon's English garden positioning works for people visiting the event and the UK audience, we need to explain the tournament's unique personality in Asia. There is an element of humility in this campaign," said Ralley.
China and Japan will be particular target markets for the campaign and are regions that the AELTC believes it can grow its fanbase with the help of its broadcast partners there: Fox Asia and NHK in Japan.
Broadcasters will play a major role in the campaign’s activation strategy with Ralley describing it as an "earned media" campaign in light of its distribution across 60 international broadcasters who hold the rights to show the tournament.
Wimbledon’s history and traditions are central to its brand, however Alexandra Willis, head of communications, digital and content for the AELTC, has admitted that in order for it to safeguard its future, Wimbledon must grow its audience in fast-growing economies such as Asia, where fans often fail to differentiate it from the other grand slams.
Ralley added that for Wimbledon to “progress its leadership position”, it needed to “invest in the global understanding of Wimbledon".
"By investing in content, not only do we aim to enhance the global presentation of Wimbledon, we also hope to demonstrate that everything we do at The Championships is in the service of our guiding principle – continual improvement," he said.