With the Tour de France in full swing, some of the marketing efforts this year has begun to come to light. With 21 stages set up along the race, which began July 5th until July 27th, each location is an opportune location for advertisers to target fans.
When the cyclists passed through the western France city of Saint-Malo, promoters tried to sell the canary yellow bags to fans.
According to Trendunter: "Judging by the photo, spectators seemed disinterested in the merchandise and fixated on the racing track. When the cyclists aren’t present, however, shopping could become therapy to deal with boredom."
Marketing efforts are also underway online, with sales of featured Lance Armstrong posters which read, “Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”
There are also other Armstrong items like the Lance Armstrong 7X Champion Commemorative Framed Photographs selling for $225.
With dedicated fans lining each of the stages, and millions more following their favorite cyclists online, it seems that there would be many more opportunities for marketers to engage with their audience. Sadly, judging by the feedback provided by Trendhunter, brands did not really apply all that much imagination to their efforts and yet another great opportunity has been missed. Maybe next year....
