Velocity: High Jumpers
How do you follow up a No. 5 ranking in the 2004 PROMO 100? Velocity Sports & Entertainment climbed a little higher. The Wilton, CT-based sponsorship and events agency rose to No. 2 in the 2005 ranking, thanks to strong two-year growth and solid campaign work.
It’s poised for more growth since its December sale to London shop Aegis, whose cash infusion (up to $35 million over three years) gives Velocity the heft to buy or build expertise in key vertical disciplines and to grow globally. It lets Velocity strike even bigger deals for its clients, while Aegis — whose forte is research — lets Velocity retain its autonomy.
“We were approached by quite a number of holding companies and we had talked to a few of them,” says Mike Reisman, one of Velocity’s five principals. “Aegis told us we were the pirates, not the Navy, and that they’ll let us run the business our way. That has absolutely been the case.”
Velocity reports 2004 net revenues of $14.2 million, double its 2002 earnings and up 40% from 2003. Velocity’s top three clients — FedEx, pharmaceutical company Lilly ICOS and Cingular Wireless — accounted for 49% of its 2004 net revenues.
The shop has helped FedEx showcase its services with a PGA Tour sponsorship that touts the shipper’s reliability. The Most Reliable Player in the Game program pairs the PGA Tour’s most consistent players with FedEx. Branded content aired during the PGA’s weekly TV coverage and season-end TV special. A Swing for the Green retail sweeps awarded golf prizes. A booklet of tips from top PGA pros was distributed in magazines, FedEx stores and at events. Business customers played Pro-Am events with PGA pros and attended Tour events; a FedEx Invitational incentive program targeted 50,000 b-to-b accounts. The effort won a 2004 PRO Award for Best Sponsorship or Tie-In, and was a PRO Award finalist for Best Long-term Campaign.
Velocity understands FedEx’s business, and takes time to foster relationships, says Kevin Demsky, the shipper’s director of sponsorship marketing. “[Velocity is] very engaged in the world of sports and sponsorships and has created some excellent relationships for us. It’s a bonus when an agency has a real kinship with the brand.”
Velocity also brought Lilly’s erectile dysfunction drug Cialis to the PGA Tour via a three-year sponsorship. It built brand awareness and differentiation from rivals Viagra and Levitra by tapping into golf’s attributes of relaxation, integrity and excellence.
“You have to be careful when you market pharmaceuticals in a regulatory environment, but you also need to demonstrate knowledge of the consumer. Cialis responded to that kind of thinking,” Reisman says.
World Wrestling Entertainment asked for ideas to build WrestleMania, held in April in Los Angeles. Velocity prepped a pre-event mall tour that included viewing parties, a hall of fame display, WWE Superstar Q&As, video and game kiosks and temporary tattoo stations.
“They were instrumental in planning and conceptualizing the Road to WrestleMania 21 mobile marketing tour,” says Dan Levi, VP-marketing at WWE. “The tour enabled us to connect with tens of thousands of fans, increased interest in our retail products, and made WrestleMania 21 one of our most successful Pay-Per-Views.” WWE named Velocity its AOR in August 2004.
