OREANDA-NEWS. June 08, 2015. Nissan, the leader in zero-emission mobility around the world, will showcase its innovative range of electric vehicles at Saturday's UEFA Champions League final between Barcelona and Juventus in Berlin.

As the official automotive partner of the UEFA Champions League and producer of the biggest selling electric vehicle (EV) in the world, Nissan will be supplying over 100 electric vehicles to UEFA and associated sponsors to transport guests and officials in the build-up to the Final in Berlin. To further support this, Nissan is installing 129 electric car charging stations around Tegel International Airport, various Berlin hotels and the Olympiastadion, several of which will remain as a lasting legacy for the city.

Nissan's record investment in the UEFA Champions League is already seeing a return, thanks to a tried and tested strategy aimed at becoming part of its customers' lives. After the first year of a four-year partnership with the most prestigious club competition in world soccer, Nissan's corporate vice president and head of Marketing and Brand Strategy, Roel de Vries, says the company is delighted with the way things have gone. Below, de Vries shares his thoughts about Nissan’s involvement with UEFA, and with soccer around the world.

"We are recognized quite strongly for the fact that we sponsor, and we also see that the opinion those people have of our brand is strongly improving, which is very encouraging. We're obviously not doing this just for the fun of it; we're doing it to change perception of our brand.

"After six months, the number of people having a good opinion of our brand, but not knowing that we sponsor football, was 30 percent; when they know we're a sponsor of the Champions League – so they've actively seen what we're doing – that was 60 percent.

"That was a massive swing we managed to do, and for us that confirms that if you as a brand do things that people enjoy and you're a part of their world and things that interest them, then they will look at you favorably too.

“Partnering with the UEFA Champions League is all part of Nissan's Innovation that Excites commitment, bringing the brand into households all over Europe and, over the next three years, into homes worldwide.

"In the first year, all of the advertising around the games itself was in Europe; for the (next) three years we have coverage all over the world.

"In terms of creative direction, we need to make sure we've got stuff that works in Asia and South America, because global expansion of the marketing activity is big for us."

Looking for a way to engage and excite potential customers, Nissan approached the UEFA Champions League, thanks to its international appeal, especially in Latin America and Asia. Making the connection with people through football, de Vries said, was crucial in promoting the Nissan brand.

"If you're a large brand like us, the most important thing is that you become part of your target customer's world and environment – that you are part of the things that excite them," said de Vries. "We spend a lot of marketing dollars like all brands do, but to find the real connections is difficult. So when we communicate with people, when we have a car or a special offer or something to talk about, we refer to our vehicle.

"But we don't often connect with people when they are more in the relaxed atmosphere, when they're enjoying themselves or when they are doing what they feel like doing. I feel it's important that as a brand you're also part of their life.

"To be frank, the majority of people are not thinking about buying a car every day of their lives. We therefore decided that in addition to all the communication of vehicles, we need to invest more in becoming part of people's lives, and we felt the most engaging activity is watching sports. We felt football was a very good brand fit for Nissan. It is a strategy borrowed from the likes of Coca-Cola.

"If you as a brand do things that people enjoy, and you're a part of their world and things that interest them, then they will look at you favorably too. We're in a different path (to Coca-Cola), but the principle is the same. If you are visible in those things that engage people then you become part of their world."

Improving the environment through the zero-emissions of electric vehicles was a key message to get across, and de Vries said the aim is to make driving an EV as much fun as regular vehicles.

"Electric vehicles are part of where the industry is going and where the industry has to go," said de Vries. "If we'd start investing like we're doing now, and more and more people are following us and investing in these type of technologies, these vehicles will become more and more fun to drive. The range of these vehicles will get longer and longer, and you get to a stage where electric vehicles are just as much fun to drive as any other cars, maybe even more fun."

Nissan in Berlin: Quick Facts

  • 100 electric vehicles including the Nissan LEAF and e-NV200 will be supplied by Nissan for use in Berlin in the build up to the Final
  • 129 charging points will be installed in locations including the Olympiastadion and Tegel Airport to charge Nissan's fleet of vehicles
  • Several of these will be left in place so EV users in Berlin will benefit from an improved infrastructure
  • These will add to the 1400+ quick charging points Nissan has already installed across Europe – the most of any brand.
  • The UEFA Champions Festival will feature a special installation that will encourage fans to create an equivalent amount of energy which will go towards powering the "trophy ride" to the Final
  • A custom designed e-NV200 will transport the trophy from the UEFA Champions Festival to the Final on match day