Going for gold with the Asian Games

PR: With less than 100 days to go until the start of the Asian Games, Doha is warming up for an invasion of sports fans. Richard Abbott asks if the event's branding will sink or swim.

The Asian Games will be one of the biggest events ever to hit Qatar.

For two weeks in December, athletes from 45 countries will converge on the Gulf country's capital, Doha, to compete in 39 sports at 14 stadiums.

It is the first time the Asian Games has been held in the Gulf, and only the second time it has been held in the Middle East, after the Tehran Games of 1974.

So the Doha Asian Games Organising Committee (DAGOC) is pulling out all the stops to ensure that all eyes are on Qatar come 1 December.

The event has a strong heritage and is most popular in the Far East, but some observers have questioned the choice of the Gulf as a venue because the time difference with countries like Japan and China will impact on TV coverage.

There have also been concerns over whether some of the stadiums and access roads will be ready in time.

On a global scale, the Asian Games is widely regarded as a regional event rather than a premier international brand such as the Olympics and World Cup. Indeed, few people outside of Asia are familiar with the event. So DAGOC has focused its marketing activity on the Middle East and Asia.

The corporate identity of the Games has been designed to reflect the host city: that is, modern and progressive but based firmly on cultural traditions and beliefs.

The lead marketing slogan adopted by DAGOC is 'The Games of Your Life' and the simple logo depicts an athlete in motion.

The 'look' of the Games is being unveiled in two stages. The initial push, which is already visible, stars the official games mascot, Orry the Oryx. Life-size statues of Orry are in place around Doha city centre and building wraps have been erected on prominent towers and hotels, in an attempt to build a sense of community around the Games.

The second phase of the campaign will launch in September, and will include more building wraps and giant banners, along with lighting installations.

Outside of Qatar itself, a big budget TV campaign, created by DAGOC's advertising agency Grey Worldwide, has been airing. DAGOC's public relations, meanwhile, is being handled by Bates PanGulf, which has a dedicated media relations office in Doha.

In terms of sponsorship, three of the four headline sponsors are Qatar-based businesses: Qatar Airways, Qatar National Bank, and Q-Tel. Samsung is the only multi-national.

Attracting any multinational sponsors has been tough in a year that also includes football's World Cup, the African Cup of Nations and the Winter Olympics.

As the Games draw ever closer, there are still questions over whether the two-week sporting exravaganza will live up to its billing as the 'Games of Your Life'.

Anthony Ryman is Managing Director of grow, Doha

The Doha Asian Games is the launch pad for promoting and positioning Qatar on the world stage to produce a powerful brand that reflects not only its cultural heritage and tradition, but also threads into its vision for the future.

Does it achieve this? In short, yes and no.

The advertising is the most visible manifestation of integrated branding in Doha.

It has set a benchmark for quality and for positioning Qatar internationally. It has paved the way for other brands to sit up and take notice of how a brand should be rolled out across all media and communication channels.

From a design perspective: the running man is the device/trademark for the Games - but it has little cultural relevance beyond the colour blue and yellow being associated with the sea and sun. It's also remarkably familiar with other games logos - see Barcelona in 1992.

The visual language tacked on to add colour and vibrancy - the paintbrush and distressed material look, are pretty but do they reinforce the tone of voice or emphasise what country it's in?

The tagline "The Games of your life" is meant to be inspirational, distinctive and memorable - it certainly does that, but can they live up to this promise as it's a tall order for any brand?

For advertising and marketing, the key seems to be let Orry do the work.

Orry is the good-looking mascot adorned over countless buildings and water towers. 'Kudos' to DAGOC for coming up with Orry and judging from how much they have used him, they know a good thing when they see it.

As advertising or marketing director, I would get closer to the people I am trying to communicate with - and not just in Qatar. I would already have concession outlets in GCC and Asian airports selling Orry merchandising, along with advertising in those countries.

REMEDY

• Make it relevant - bring the rich cultural heritage of Qatar into the mix.

• Make it ubiquitous - "an Orry in every home" via TV animation, games, merchandising, co-branding.

• Make it true - express the spirit of the Games and link to the vision and values of Qatar.

• Start earlier - it's a four-year-long experiment in social engineering; start earlier to weave into the fabric of our daily
lives ? seems to be too little too late.