Could you define the Havas Play agency in a few words?

Augustin Pénicaud: We are 160 talents from all areas of communications, exploring every territory: sports, gaming, music, fashion, food, TV series and shows… We believe that great ideas have the power to bring people together, but also to move society forward. The agency deploys a unique approach on the market, combining creation, media and thinking to deploy high-impact campaigns with committed communities.

With just a year to go until the opening of the Games, how is the Havas Play agency approaching the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games?

A.P: We’ve been preparing for a long time, and with great enthusiasm! For us, this is a major event whose vision we strongly share, that of Games open to society, that of a sport that can change lives. It’s a source of great pride for the whole agency to be able to contribute to it, either by working directly with the Organizing Committee (COJO) or with all the French and international partners we support. It’s also an opportunity for us to progress in our profession a little more each day: the context of the Games is very demanding, and pushes us to constantly surpass ourselves in terms of creativity and the quality of our campaign implementation.

How many brands are you working with for the Olympic Games?

A.P: Sixteen!This makes us the agency with the most involvement in the Games, and it’s a real strength to be able to capitalize on this expertise to increase our impact with each of our clients and also attract the best talent on the market.

Over the past year, we’ve already delivered a number of excellent operations in this context, such as the Orange Night Run, which saw 5,000 people run through the heart of Paris on an exceptional course that in a way prefigured the Marathon pour Tous, which will take place during the Games.We also have a number of advertising campaigns starting to roll out this week, and our actions will be increasingly visible right up to the Games.

For some advertisers, we are active at all levels, and for others only in certain professions. In concrete terms, this covers a wide variety of missions: assistance with negotiations right up to the signing of a partnership, organizational consulting, studies to analyze fans’ expectations, strategic planning and positioning, creation of advertising campaigns, event operations, brand content, influence or social media operations, internal engagement and animation systems, creation and management of athlete teams (more than 40 athlete contracts negotiated over the last two years), production of showcasing spaces during the Games, management of systems, and so on.

Do you observe any major differences in approach among the advertisers you work with?

A.P: The Olympic and Paralympic Games are a very specific event to understand and activate, and quite different from classic sponsorship platforms like a soccer club, for example.So first of all, we see real differences in approach between long-standing partners and newcomers discovering the region. Then there are the very different stakes and implementation realities between BtoB and BtoC players, for example.On another level, some are much more focused on internal issues, while others are more external.In reality, the Games can be a tool that serves a wide range of corporate objectives, provided that it is activated powerfully and over the long term.Those who have understood this make the most of it, and we succeed in working with them to build truly tailor-made strategies.

What do brands expect from this event?

A.P: The Games have the power to contribute to many corporate objectives, whether in terms of external and internal communication, contribution to brand preference, acceleration of innovation, sales and sales force promotion, institutional influence, hospitality, or even contribution to corporate transformation.

Is there a common thread?

A.P: That’s the great strength of the Games: to bring together teams from all over the company, get them to work together and surpass themselves.It’s quite spectacular to observe this catalytic power from the inside!

“hospitality means industrializing the exceptional”.

What are the major challenges that Havas Play has identified for the Games?

A.P: There’s the creativity and quality of campaign implementation I mentioned earlier. There’s also the issue of recruiting the best talent, because the market is clearly under pressure. Finally, there’s CSR, a subject to which we’ve been very committed for a long time, but on which we’re continuing to make progress because the COJO is particularly demanding on the subject and is moving the lines for the better.

How do you define hospitality?

A.P: Industrializing the exceptional!

How does Havas Play view customer reception and hospitality during the Olympic Games?

A.P: The Games are an unparalleled experience, which can be enjoyed in a variety of ways: as close as possible to the sport or to the great moments of celebration, in complete simplicity as you move from one event to the next, or in a unique setting. Our partners have an extraordinary opportunity to create tailor-made programs for their customers and employees to enjoy these exceptional experiences, while discovering their businesses and companies through a showcase of their contribution to the Games. These are very special moments of meeting and sharing.

Interview by Titouan Laurent