The African forum tackled issues affecting the development of the game, from the top football association presidents providing insights on their nations' plans for the future to the fans, with presentations made by Optimize Chief Marketing Officer, Vivian Casaletti, on "Brand Development through Fan Engagement".
"Essentially the fans are at the heart of sport. Without them, there would not be commercial opportunities and in turn sport would not survive," said Vivian. "As such it is crucial to maximise fan engagement and attempt to transfer the love fans have of the sport to the sponsor's brand."
Another interesting presentation from Optimize was the 'Telkom Knockout' case study presented by Optimize Marketing Manager, Kabelo Bosilong. Here it was proven how sponsorships can achieve all their objectives both from a communications and business point of view as well as ultimately show a positive return on investment. "The Telkom Knockout tournament has been a huge success to date, growing in stature year on year. It makes for an interesting case study as it ticks all the right boxes from a sponsorship perspective. Moreover, it has achieved incredible measurable results, which every sponsor would like to see."
