With the World Cup on our screens this summer we examine retailers preparations and expectations for the world’s biggest football event.

John Lewis has a marketing campaign focused on the tournament.

From burgers to beer, and from sports clothing to new TVs, the World Cup represents an opportunity for retailers.

But by all accounts, this year’s World Cup isn’t exactly setting the retail world alight. Only brands that invest significantly in football anyway, such as Adidas, have been particularly visible in terms of marketing around the event and many retailers have been fairly quiet in the run-up.

“Brands have been noticeable in their absence at this stage,” says Drew Barrand, associate director at sport and sponsorship communications agency Pitch. “But people are keeping watch on this space.”

Apathetic mood

That muted response to the World Cup in retail so far is the result of a fairly apathetic national mood surrounding the tournament. Only a little over half of consumers plan to follow the games, according to research by Conlumino and Webloyalty, and the general consensus is that the England team won’t get far.

After 40 years of disappointing results from the England squad, it seems UK football fans have finally stopped hoping for a win. “It’s the least-hyped World Cup we’ve ever had,” says Barrand.

“Normally at this time in the year there’s a lot of patriotic banter in the national newspapers calling on us to support the team, and that gets reflected in marketing. But this year, there’s no genuine belief from the fans that we might win it.”

He points out that brands get involved with events such as the World Cup because they lift people’s moods and businesses want to be associated with that. “Marketeers get involved because it has an aspirational value to it. If you take that away they’ve got a problem.”

Conlumino predicts that total retail spend around the World Cup will be £814m, which equates to just £16 per head. Of that, £271m will be spent on food, £359m on electronics and £184m on souvenirs.

In 2010, more than 75% of people said they were interested in following the games, while this year, 40% say they will be avoiding them.

Conlumino managing director Neil Saunders says that much of shoppers’ World Cup spend will simply be displaced spending. “There’s uplift in spending, but the extent is fairly minor,” he says.

“A lot of what is bought is displaced spend, so shoppers might buy food products but it will mean other food products aren’t purchased. Or they might go to the pub to watch the games, but it will mean they won’t go to the pub another time as a result.” A lot of the spending, as a result, is not incremental.

Brazil’s political unrest hasn’t helped either. Protestors have clashed with police in the country’s capital, Rio, after eight workers died during the building of the stadium and as a result of discontent over the fact that money is being spent on hosting the tournament instead of infrastructure.

“Political unrest has hindered brands looking to activate [marketing campaigns] within the country,” Barrand says.

Limbering up

That isn’t to say that retailers aren’t trying to capitalise on the event at all. The grocers and electricals retailers have all launched campaigns and products that are aimed at getting shoppers interested in new TVs, World Cup souvenirs and party food.

The supermarkets have launched World Cup product ranges, John Lewis has a marketing campaign focused on the tournament and Dixons is running a series of TV ads themed around the event.

Barrand says: “Alcohol brands tend to be very good at point-of-sale marketing and supermarkets do very well because of their ability to package up everything you need to show your support.”

It could yet all change. The England team could surprise everyone at their first game tomorrow (June 14) and the national mood could take a turn at a moment’s notice.

“As soon as it gets to a situation where the whole country gets excited there will be more parties, more England flags bought and that kind of thing,” says Barrand.

As a result, he adds, marketing budgets are more geared towards PR and social media, where campaigns can move and change quickly. “They are the best form of rapid response. The main opportunity around this World Cup will be in real-time marketing – you need to be in a position to take advantage.”

Steven Richardson, UK regional director at Experian Footfall, agrees. He believes it is essential to have an agile strategy in place. “Big events like the World Cup require common sense. Those retailers that are able to react quickly to changing market trends will benefit most,” he adds.

Footfall during the 2010 World Cup

Match timings were different at the last World Cup. Many of the matches this year will be shown late at night UK time, meaning the footfall impact will be different. But these figures from Experian Footfall show the effect the World Cup can have on shopper numbers in-store. This year, Steven Richardson, UK regional director at Experian Footfall, says footfall is likely to increase in the afternoon before each match.

Saturday June 12, 2010

  • England vs USA – 7.30pm kick-off.
  • During the build-up (9am-7pm) for the match there was a 2% decrease in footfall compared with the same day in 2009.
  • During the game (7pm – 10pm) there was a 21% decrease in footfall.

Friday June 18, 2010

  • England vs Algeria – 7.30pm kick-off.
  • During the match build-up (9am-7pm) footfall fell  2% compared with the same day in 2009.
  • During the game (7pm – 10pm) there was a 23% decrease in footfall.

Wednesday June 23, 2010

  • England vs Slovenia – 3pm kick-off.
  • In the build-up (9am-3pm) for the match there was a 1% decline in footfall in comparison with the same day the previous year.
  • During the game (3pm – 6pm) there was a 16% decrease in footfall.

Sunday June 27, 2010

  • England vs Germany – 3pm kick-off.
  • During the match build-up (9am-3pm) there was a 4% decrease in footfall compared with the same day the year before.
  • During the game (3pm – 6pm) there was a 35% decrease in footfall.

When World Cup gimmicks backfire

Asda merchandising gaffe.

Asda merchandising gaffe.

Asda decided to join in the World Cup fun by producing a wearable England flag designed to keep fans dry in unpredictable British weather (pictured). But the plan backfired somewhat when some people claimed it resembled an outfit worn by racist US organisation the Ku Klux Klan. Asda said store managers could refuse to stock the flag if they did not feel comfortable selling it.

Mobile phone chain Three was forced to quickly remove WAG zones from its stores after the scheme drew accusations of sexism on Twitter. The brand introduced the pods in 345 of its stores that contained “female friendly” devices, but was forced to retract them after complaints.

What John Lewis is doing for the World Cup

John Lewis has a marketing campaign focused on the tournament.

John Lewis has a marketing campaign focused on the tournament.

  1. John Lewis has launched a ‘Get Closer to the Action’ campaign for the World Cup and some elements will run throughout the summer until the football tournament finishes.
  2. Most of the nation plans to watch from home and John Lewis hopes shoppers will make the most of the event by buying the most up-to-date technology to watch it on.
  3. The campaign will include in-store point-of-sale material, windows, an online hub, omnichannel advertising, social media, a 16-page catalogue and app as well as a ‘travelling experience’ called The John Lewis Tech Lounge. The elements of the campaign are:
  4. Point-of-sale marketing material in branches. Grass is being used to display products in some shops.
  5. Seventeen branches will feature Sony-branded window displays that focus on technology products as well as ‘multi-screen’ messaging, which is a key trend for John Lewis this year
  6. and reflects the growing numbers of shoppers who use tablets or mobiles while watching television. 
  7. John Lewis has also created a ‘Get Closer to the Action’ online hub with product stories, content and offers across electricals and home technology, home and fashion.
  8. Advertising material features a range of technology products, and will focus on the idea of enabling shoppers to ‘get closer to the action’. The ads show how customers can watch, listen, catch up with and share content. The brands featured include Samsung, Sony, Microsoft, LG, Panasonic and Intel. The omnichannel media approach includes national press, digital displays, email and search and social media through Facebook and Google+. The advertised products also feature on the online hub.
  9. John Lewis has created distributed a 16-page catalogue showcasing technology products. 900,000 copies have been inserted into ShortList, The Times and The Guardian. The catalogue will be included with 80,000 Johnlewis.com deliveries. An app, using the information from the catalogue, has also been created for Apple and Android devices.
  10. The John Lewis Tech Lounge has been designed to inspire customers to purchase new technology and will be located in four shopping centres in Manchester, Newcastle, Bluewater and Westfield Stratford. Technology products will be showcased and demonstrated, and customers will be able to have their pictures taken and superimposed over the Brazilian World Cup stadium.