FORT MILL, S.C. — Indianapolis-based Act(s) Marketing has been named the sponsorship marketing agency of record for Continental Tire in the U.S. and Canada.

Continental Tire currently has significant sponsorship marketing programs with Major League Soccer (MLS) and the NASCAR-owned GRAND-AM Road Racing Series. Act(s) will serve as the official and exclusive agency representing Continental Tire in the ongoing activation of current sponsorship programs along with exploration and evaluation of potential new partnerships throughout the U.S. and Canada.
 
"Our work with Act(s) Marketing over the past several years has allowed us to successfully drive our business through our partnerships with MLS and GRAND-AM," said Travis Roffler, director of marketing, Continental Tire. "As our exclusive sponsorship marketing agency, we trust Act(s) to help us continue maximizing these relationships as well as identify new opportunities to expand our presence in the marketplace."

Continental Tire first engaged Act(s) in 2009 to provide consulting and property evaluation as the brand sought to make sponsorship a more significant part of their overall marketing effort. Act(s) negotiated with MLS and GRAND-AM on behalf of Continental Tire to secure beneficial partnerships with each, and has continued to manage all aspects of the program’s execution along with property relationships.

"We believe that a proactive approach is the most effective and efficient way to approach sponsorship investments, and Continental Tire has experienced the benefits of that approach," said Garret Mudd, Act(s) founder and chief opportunity officer. "We evaluated a wide-variety of properties on behalf of Continental Tire before engaging in complimentary partnerships with MLS and NASCAR for an involvement with GRAND-AM. Each of these deals brings unique aspects to Continental’s overall sponsorship program and we are excited to continue to work with Continental Tire to enhance their overall marketing efforts."

In a deal that began in 2010, Act(s) negotiated a partnership that saw Continental Tire become the official tire and exclusive supplier to the GRAND-AM Series. In addition to their role as the tire supplier to the Rolex Sports Car Series, Continental Tire became the title sponsor of the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series, a road racing series for production-based sports cars. Continental Tire receives a variety of broadcast and on-site exposure elements along with hospitality.

Additionally, Continental Tire has also leveraged the program to provide consumers and dealers exclusive VIP experiences such as a two-seat Daytona Prototype (DP) race car that provides hot lap rides with professional drivers at selected venues.

That same year, Act(s) directed the brand’s entry into the North American soccer landscape as Continental Tire was named the official tire of MLS and all 18 (now 19) MLS clubs. In addition to category exclusivity across all league and team assets, the agreement delivers a program that provides visibility for Continental Tire at all MLS games and associated television broadcasts, as well as on-site activation, tickets and hospitality throughout regular and post-season games in both the U.S. and Canada.

"As much as we love to see the Continental Tire brand on site during events and on TV during MLS matches and GRAND-AM races, our sponsorship isn’t about making us feel good, it’s about the overall impact that it has on consumers and tire dealers," Roffler said. "We constantly evaluate our partnerships based on the criteria and metrics Act(s) helped us establish up front. Because we knew exactly what we were going to measure, and how we were going to measure it, we can clearly tell that our involvement with both MLS and GRAND-AM are delivering an exceptional return on our current investments."

Currently in the third year of their partnership with GRAND-AM, Continental Tire has seen a 25 percent increase in unaided brand awareness within the GRAND-AM audience which has translated into direct tire sales with a similar increase in Continental Tire’s market share within the GRAND-AM fan base. Similarly, in just over two years of the partnership with MLS, Continental Tire has directly engaged more than 30,000 MLS fans and realized a dramatic shift in the perception of the brand among the MLS audience that has generated new Continental Tire consumers.