Caution: Think Before You Promote

Legal Trademarks

It can be fun to leverage a major sports or awards event to promote your food business. People gathering and celebrating means there is food involved. How can you present your brand and products with a theme for the event?

You’ll want to use some caution. It may seem smart and trendy to take advantage of an event’s hype so your business stands out, but there are rules.  Let’s look at what that may entail.

Here are three major events that get a lot of attention, where it’s tempting to leverage the excitement:

• The upcoming global athletics event about to happen in Paris, where 206 countries compete in 32 team and individual sports.
• The recognition ceremony hosted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences honouring achievement in film including performance and technical aspects.
• The NFL’s big championship football game at the end of their season, that is noted for a huge half-time show, and big-budget advertisements.

Why such generic descriptions of each event? Because almost everything about them is strictly trademarked!

Only accredited media outlets (e.g., newspapers, magazines, broadcasters) and paying sponsors (e.g., Nike, Disney, Pepsico) can legally use anything to do with these brands; and this is not an exhaustive list, just a few examples.

You can’t use the title of the event or any portion or nickname; their logos, icons, imagery; mascots, statues, flags/banners; even hashtags are monitored for compliance.

You certainly can’t use the event brand entities for commercial purposes – in a promotion, advertisement, or commercial publication like this blog, for example.

However, you can be creative to get around the trademark rules. For example, if you’re promoting your food product in a social media post in relation to the big event, you could reference it using alternative nouns or phrases – something like The Big Game, or this Hollywood Celebration.

Value Alignment

It may appear easy to use these types of events to promote your food business, because most people know they’re happening and are seeing news items or advertising. So, why not take advantage of that exposure.

Even if you creatively get around the trademark challenge, you have to consider the event’s relevance to your food business, products, values and vision. Is there an alignment there or are you using the event, just because?

Although there may be many positive aspects to each event (for their ideal audience), these occasions may not resonate with your customers’ values. So, you really need to understand your ideal customer.

Underlying controversies can surface during these occasions, including cultural, political, religious, and economic positions that your brand shouldn’t be aligned with. You may think you’re just promoting your cheese, or mustard, or beverage, or whatever your product is. But consider that your involvement in presenting content around the event may cause a negative implication as these topics arise.

Campaign Ideas

Now that we’ve shared what to be cautious about when leveraging large events for your content, there are still some creative things you can do to get impactful exposure for your food business.

Once again, knowing your customer is imperative. Who are you targeting? Where do they hang out? Why do they buy your product? Are they sports fans and/or movie fans?

Will they attend an event or gather to watch a big event? That will inevitably involve food, so how can you make your brand front and centre to be included in their experience. This can become even easier to promote on a local level.

Local Hero

Do you have a local hero (or team) who is involved, or has participated, or is the local expert on a big event that they can become your celebrity and brand representative? Interview them, cross promote by showcasing them and your food business/product (without naming the event, of course). They could even be your brand advocate, promoting your products.

Viewing Party

If a big competition or sporting event is going on, it can be fun to have a Viewing Party. And a party means food! Sponsor an event or collaborate with others at your location, a local restaurant or sports facility. Showcase your food product, brand and community spirit as you promote the big event.

Try highlighting a local sports team or performing arts group with a fundraiser, using your food brand as the key supporter.

In-store Décor

If you have a farm store, farm gate or other retail space, enhance your food displays with some themed items to reflect the event’s spirit, creating an inviting and memorable customer experience. What kind of sample or taster could you include?

Creative Promotions

Draw attention to your food products with event-themed specials, contests, giveaways, menus and recipes. Collaborate with other food businesses to expand your reach even further. Does your product pair well with another company’s fare? Plan to cross-promote with them through social media and your email newsletter so that you both get more exposure.