LONGINES AND THE HKJC PRESENT
“THE UNITED NATIONS OF TURF”.
‘LIVE’ IN HONG KONG ON DECEMBER 5 AND 9.
STARRING A CAST OF THOUSANDS!
The Hong Kong International Races and The International Jockeys Challenge are around the corner and here’s hoping it is marketed and promoted as where the Champions of the Turf meet and do battle and which will bring racing enthusiasts to their feet and also provide the people of Hong Kong with a sense of pride and a real understanding of all the planning and negotiations that have gone into making this week happen.
Posters, ads and stories in racing pages are fine, but surely this is talking to a captive audience? And isn’t even this captive audience wanting something new these days to get them excited enough to actually attend these very special races instead of staying at home and staring at a half empty glass? Create something memorable to say, I WAS THERE!
We cannot emphasize enough that recycling so-so ideas go against the strategy of bringing in better horses, the world’s greatest jockeys and trainers and the most powerful players in the racing industry. On the one hand, the emphasis is to make the races and prize money bigger and better than ever before and so the promotion and marketing of International Week must also be bigger and better- and with a very strong post-event campaign. It cannot be just shooting one’s load and then smoking a ciggie and thinking, That’s it for another year.There must be longevity attached to everything being done and which makes what will happen with the same event in 2013 and 2014 etc bigger, better and more global.
Today, it’s all about Change, not for the sake of Change but because consumers demand it and we need to demand it of ourselves.Look at Lady GaiGai’s plans for 2013: She will single-handedly revolutionize the Jumps industry in Oz. And this is what we admire about her: She never stops trying to improve her brand and her product. If someone- the great Lady herself- does not bring out her own line of merchandizing, she is madder than the wonderful Mad Hatter she is. Hear that, Lady GaiGai?
Meanwhile in Hong Kong, with a new sponsor on board in Longines who have taken ownership of horse racing worldwide and bought for themselves some prime brand real estate not owned by anyone else, the stage is set to not fix the wheel if it ain’t broke, but to enhance it and make sure it gathers no moss. Longines have proven what very smart marketers they are and with such a deft understanding of and passion for racing and Brand Ambassadors like Andre Agassi and Stefi Graf, Bollywood’s Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Actor Simon Baker, the star of the series “The Mentalist”, Actors Jude Law and Actress Kate Winslet who will be their special guest at the HK International Races.
The foreign raiders apart, Hong Kong has much to be proud of following the win of Brett Prebble in the Melbourne Cup, the win of Zac Purton at Ascot and the jockey recently taking out the International Jockeys Super Series in Japan.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkYF8CpXRXk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HC76qmlEfQ
There are then the exploits of championship winning and winning and winning jockey Douglas Whyte, the tremendous young talent that is Matty Chadwick, Hong Kong’s world class trainers who should be promoted and marketed, some equine rising stars coming through the ranks, and also the tremendous additions and improvements the HKJC has made in the areas of venues, new technology and catering more and more to those who might never have considered stepping into a racecourse before.
Here’s what baffles us: Racing people and even many with the HKJC who are as yet to even set foot in many of these venues and only have some rough idea of what The Beer Garden is all about. Why? No interest? The dreaded Not Invented Here Syndrome? How can anyone market and promote- and even criticize- these venues without ever having visited them? As Bob Dylan sang, Don’t criticize what you don’t understand ‘cos The Times They Are-A-Changing.
This is why many aspects of the new world of racing don’t belong on the racing pages.These pages hold squat interest to its handful of readers about Adrenaline, or the bands at the Beer Garden or why the so-called race simulator has become more than a novelty with regulars at the Gallery.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Tn0SFNOVWU
Finding alternative content providers and alternative content distributors is what’s needed so that the world- and the people of Hong Kong- can see the changing face of horse racing and how and why Hong Kong is way ahead of the rest of the racing world.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiqgXSlVCjY
With one of the unpopular Chief Executives, a flawed education system and rules, and a very pronounced Haves and Have-Nots chasm, the people of Hong Kong needs something to cheer about and it CAN be horse racing and pride in the city’s ownership of this world class event.
As we have said, some posters and ads and a few racing shows on television are all very nice along with some of the greatest jockeys in the world paraded around Happy Valley like Oompah Loompahs might work for some though it’s all a little Hello Kitty and Sesame Street for us. Let’s at least have some photo opps with these Kings Of Turf. Let’s have the chance to meet them at Adrenaline after the races. Perhaps, we shall. Still horses for courses and one man’s meat is another man’s sole.
Being constructive, let’s please have more creative use of the Diamondvision screen, for example. Right now, it is tremendously under-utilized and is like a very expensive white elephant or the equivalent of visual Muzak showing bib and bobs especially before the races have started. This should be specially created and produced content- especially for International Week that is relevant and bang on strategy.
Let’s have the Paddock Area dressed up, let’s have cheering squads made up of all the nationalities that make up a Happy Wednesday night supporting their countrymen in The International Jockeys Challenge- pity there is no one representing South Africa- and let’s ensure overseas visitors are not “imprisoned”‘in some media room or the Racing Club, but given all the freedom and shown what makes Hong Kong racing tick, that totalizator click over and why racing specialist Sarika Choy has such a strong twitter fanbase in Oz and Europe.
There is nothing better that word of mouth advertising and Instagram and clever use of Twitter is the new and instant word of mouth advertising.
Whether the night of the International Jockeys Challenge or the day of The International Races, building that buzz must start now and then ensuring it’s the most talked about racing event of the year long after the event has ended. Nothing less will do and as we all know, no one remembers yesterday’s news unless an event is truly memorable. And Hong Kong International Week has the main attractions and the supporting cast to make it all work. Sing it, Daryl.
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