It’s over then.
The Olympics and the Paralympics are done, and we’re all patting ourselves on the back about how successful they’ve been.
It will all wind up in today’s Victory Parade through Central London where 90% of Britain’s Olympic and Paralympic medal winners are expected to appear.
The weather is, appropriately, cooling down and we’re headed for the seasonal norm.
But what does normal mean for us? And what kind of legacy will London 2012 really leave us?
A colleague of mine attended the British Business Embassy’s Global Sports Business Summit last week, looking at the legacy of the Games and encouraging the businesses involved to make themselves visible and win post-olympic contracts.
Suddenly the use of the 2012 logo in their marketing materials, previously denied to participating businesses, was given to them as a golden opportunity – part of the Great Britain campaign, enhancing our status as ‘the Country that hosted the best Olympic and Paralympic games ever’.
Right from the very beginning, when we made our 2012 Olympic bid, the government laid down all sorts of promises, from inspiring young people to take part in sport, to improving volunteering, increasing grass roots sports opportunities and meeting our health targets – especially those on obesity http://www.culture.gov.uk/images/publications/DCMS_Beyond_2012_Legacy_Story.pdf .
Our targets on obesity are not looking good – and if they aren’t achieved all those pre-olympic promises will ring somewhat hollow.
Jeremy Hunt’s move from Culture to Health gives him the ideal opportunity to realise those targets underpinning our olympic legacy – time to put your money where your mouth is Jeremy.
From a marketing perspective, the ‘Legacy’ is a timely lesson on the propositions we make as businesses.
When you’re publishing your business goals - particularly if you’re offering a service, are a charity or, dare I say it a government department, or making clear pledges as part of a campaign think very carefully about whether you can deliver.
We all yawn when we have to put together ‘key performance indicators’ or impact measurements but they do serve a purpose and are the part of clear and transparent marketing.
So when you’re watching all those Olympians getting the credit they deserve today have a little think about your own legacy. Maybe it’s time to do that vision, mission and strategy review you’ve been putting off for so long and ask yourself if you can come up with the goods.
P.S. A big thank you to everyone who supported my niece after last week’s blog. There’s still time to take her over her target at https://www.justgiving.com/catherineFord2012
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