06 Mar 2009
6 March 2009: New alliance between Octagon and Healthy Interactions promises link up between sports sponsorship and health improvement programmes
Two world leaders, Octagon in sports and entertainment marketing and Healthy Interactions in health care education, have formed a strategic alliance in Europe to deliver an integrated offering to clients.
Football clubs, the Olympics and hundreds of other sports organisations and their sponsors are increasingly working with their local communities to promote healthier lifestyles. This new alliance will enable Octagon to reach out with their clients to the community, using a range of health initiatives that are already proven to be successful when it comes to helping people gain a better understanding of their own health and take more responsibility for it. Healthy Interactions, who are now involved in more than forty countries worldwide, will be able to create health education programmes tailored to Octagon’s clients specific needs.
“Corporations that use sponsorship to improve individual and community quality of life are inevitably more successful in influencing, attracting and retaining customers and clients.” said Bob Heussner Senior Vice President of Octagon. “A growing number of sports governing bodies are putting in place programmes designed to improve the communities in which their events are held or their teams compete and are looking to their sponsors to support these important initiatives,” he said.
“Health care education programmes (we call them engagement programs), developed by Healthy Interactions are ideal for integration into a brand’s sports sponsorship activities,” said Paul Lasiuk, a founding partner of Healthy Interactions.
“As an example, Olympic sponsors can create customised programmes which will engage their key audiences in supporting London 2012’s mission of inspiring a stronger, fitter nation which has a goal of an additional two million people being active by 2012,” he explained.
Octagon and Healthy Interactions are already working with corporations in the U.K., Europe and the Middle East that are seeking ways to activate their sponsorships of events, teams, leagues, NOCs, federations and other properties across the entire sports landscape. The cornerstone of the health care education programme is Healthy Interactions’ Conversation Maps™.
Conversation Maps are interactive education programmes using the power of small group dialogue and collaborative learning. Originally created to help people with chronic diseases improve the management of their condition and to positively change their behavior, Conversation Maps are being used in partnership with leading medical and disease associations, not-for-profit organizations, corporations, and healthcare professionals in 40 countries, and have proven effective in helping people not only retain information but also make long-term lifestyle changes, increasing their quality of life and reducing the impact of their condition.
“Conversation Maps can be developed for corporate sponsors to address a range of health topics, including nutrition, active lifestyles and fighting obesity, plus a host of programmes addressing sustainability which is of critical importance to many rights holders and their sponsors,” said Lasiuk.
“In a very competitive environment and particularly during these challenging economic times, marketers must derive maximum value from their sponsorship investments,” said Heussner. “Through this partnership of Octagon and Healthy Interactions, brands can establish a deeper and broader relationship with their various audiences. The timing couldn’t be better for bringing this opportunity to the marketplace,” he said.
- Ends -
Notes to Editors
A global leader in health education, Healthy Interactions is devoted to driving Personal Health EngagementTM, our term for helping individuals commit to healthier actions. We do this by creating innovative tools and experiences that inspire people to change personal health behaviors and live their best lives. Healthy Interactions builds partnerships with leading medical and disease associations, not-for-profit organizations, corporations, and caring healthcare professionals trained in our approaches, enabling millions of people to take control of their health make informed patient choices. Founded in 2003, Healthy Interactions is headquartered in Chicago, IL USA. For more information, visit www.healthyinteractions.com
Octagon, named “Sports Agency of the Year” by Sports Business Journal and ‘Sponsorship Agency of the Year’ by Marketing, is the world’s leader in sports and entertainment marketing with global expertise in consulting, athletes & personalities, event management, property representation, marketing solutions, licensing and merchandising and talent procurement.
A member of the global advertising and marketing services network Interpublic Group, Octagon employs marketing specialists based in major markets on six continents.
For further information please visit www.octagon-uk.com or contact Matt Hales on +44 (0) 207 862 0122 or email matt.hales@octagon.com