American golf pro Webb Simpson hit the jackpot earlier this month with a four-stroke victory at the 2018 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Florida. The champion finished the four-day event with an 18-under-par, pipping fellow US golf pro Jimmy Walker to the post, and achieving his biggest title since clinching victory at the 2012 US Open.
Simpson and Walker’s 1-2-finish had a significant impact on global wholesale insurance broker and underwriting manager, Burns & Wilcox, the sponsor of both golfers. Over the four-day televised tournament, the Burns & Wilcox brand transformed into the ‘logo of champions’.
“Over the last few years, we made a strategic decision to use sports marketing in alignment with our global brand positioning goals,” said Alan Jay Kaufman, chairman, president and CEO, H.W. Kaufman Group and Burns & Wilcox. “As a global wholesale specialty insurance company, we continually manage and evaluate risk, and clearly, [the 2018 Players Championship] was a huge confirmation that we made the right choices in Simpson and Walker - winning and enhancing recognition for our brand and our company. The odds of our two sponsored golfers coming in first and second in a tournament of this significance were slim.”
Throughout the tournament, Simpson showcased the Burns & Wilcox logo on the left side of his golf shirt, while Walker wore it on the right. Both golfers’ respective caddies also featured the insurance logo. As front-runners they were both highly televised and so, therefore, was the Burns & Wilcox brand. As a result, the global firm had a significant spike in website visitors and Google search volume, which both increased by over eight times.
“There’s a tremendous amount of people coming to our website, finding out what Burns & Wilcox does and learning about the important role we play within the wholesale insurance industry. That translates into stronger brand awareness worldwide,” Kaufman told Insurance Business. “Successful branding is just as important internally as it is externally. Our workers are proud to work for a winning team and they like the excitement of being part of a company that sponsors winning athletes. It’s great for retaining and attracting top talent to the company. After Jimmy Walker’s PGA Tour win in 2016, we noticed a significant uptick in job applications, which put us in a really strong position to hire some great candidates.”
Golf isn’t the only sport Burns & Wilcox sponsors. In September 2017, the firm became an official partner of the Detroit Red Wings, and in February this year, it announced official sponsorship of Justin Abdelkader, alternate captain and left wing of the 11-time Stanley Cup Champion team. The Burns & Wilcox logo features prominently on centre ice of the Detroit Red Wings Little Caesars Arena.
“People associate sport with discipline, hard work, competition, grit and determination – all attributes we strive for at Burns & Wilcox. Results must be demonstrated on a consistent basis – whether on the golf course, in the arena, or in the boardroom,” said Kaufman. “On top of that, clients and prospective clients want to do business with champions. They want a winner, and that’s the connotation we’ve built for ourselves by supporting successful sporting individuals and teams.”
Sport sponsorship is not a one-way contract. Simpson and Walker are both involved in Burns & Wilcox advertising campaigns. They also attend meetings, events and client meet-and-greets with the insurance firm – all of which draw up long waiting lists of fans hoping to meet the stars.
