That’s the question the Charlotte, N.C.-based financial giant will try to answer as it considers the value of being a sponsor of the Winter Olympics to be held next month in Turin, Italy. BoA won’t say how much it spent for the sponsorship – some estimate about $8 million a year for the period leading up to the event – but the bank reportedly spends more on athletic sponsorships than any other of its peers, according to Associated Press. In addition to the Olympics, which it began sponsoring with its “Hometown Heroes” campaign for the 2004 Summer Games in Greece, BofA puts it money behind major and minor league baseball, the PGA Tour and NASCAR. So, does it pay? That’s for Cathy Bessant, BofA V.P. for Global Marketing, to determine. Armed with research, Bessant says the bank gets positive feedback from its customer sports fans, 57% of whom have a highly favorable opinion of the bank because of its sponsorship. According to Bessant, about one-third of consumers would consider buying from an Olympic sponsor. The fact that BofA is a global company, and the Olympics is a global event, sponsoring can be a winning marketing strategy.
