Visma’s rapid growth calls for new strategies to raise global brand awareness
Leading European software company Visma has decided not to renew its title sponsorship in Ski Classics after 7 seasons. Visma’s European expansion means it will shift to other ways of reaching its growing international audience.
Ski Classics began in 2011 as a long-distance cross-country ski tour, and has since become the world's most famous and prestigious cross-country skiing competition. Birken, Vasaloppet, and Marcialonga are among the approximately 14 iconic races that take place every year.
Visma became title sponsor of Ski Classics in 2015. The sponsorship has allowed Visma to connect with its audience through the unique context of cross-country skiing.
The partnership has also been a good fit for Visma in terms of principles. Passion, commitment, and team spirit are values that the athletes bring to every competition and that Visma brings to its delivery of world-class software.
Visma’s CEO Merete Hverven says, “We are both proud and thankful to have had the opportunity to be title sponsor of the Ski Classics for the past 7 seasons. We have had a long and fruitful partnership, and together we have created positive experiences between our brand, the skiers, the audience, and our partners and customers.”
Since becoming title sponsor, Visma has worked with Ski Classics to extend the global awareness of the tour, with a total dedicated audience in the 2020/2021 season of over 23 million. In addition, Visma launched Visma Ski Classics 4Kids, a free annual event where children get to compete on a short ski track, win prizes, and learn about sportsmanship and camaraderie in the process. Over 5,000 kids have participated since 2016.
Visma will continue its strong support of Ski Classics through the end of the 2021/2022 season.
“Visma has grown a lot over the last 7 years,” says Hverven. “When we began our partnership, we were primarily a Nordic company focusing on building our Nordic brand. Now we are present in more than 20 countries across the Nordics, Benelux, continental and Eastern Europe, and Latin America.”
“Our focus going forward will be on building Visma’s brand awareness internationally through a diverse set of initiatives in both our core and newer markets,” concludes Hverven. “We wish Ski Classics the best of luck together with a new title sponsor.”
For more information, please contact:
Aase Settevik, Director of Brand & Communication, Visma: +47 920 49 559
