By SIMON HENDERY marketing writer
As Mitsubishi Motors has learned in the past week, corporate sponsorship is like a high-performance sportscar - potentially powerful but prone to crashing spectacularly when things go wrong.
Mitsubishi moved fast to axe its $1 million-plus sponsorship with the Holmes show following the "cheeky darkie" comments, and
there is corporate precedence to suggest that making a quick, clean cut was the best move.
Still, the decision would not have been easy - over the 18 months Mitsubishi has been linked with the show, it has developed that elusive marketing treasure that money alone can't buy: accumulated brand association.
There was a reason the deal brought in a seven-figure sum for TVNZ. Brand Paul Holmes has (or had) endearing "brand values" - authority, longevity, connectivity.
As one marketing professional put it yesterday: "Holmes looked pretty solid - he's been well-behaved for years and it's a very solid programme.
"This will be a real hit for Mitsubishi's marketing programme given it's a big part of their strategy and a big amount of their media placement. So it's a tough one for them."
Corporates who take a sponsorship punt on celebrities or sports teams run the same risks as broadcasters who dare to work with animals or children.
In 1983, Michael Jackson and Pepsi signed a US$15 million ($25 million) deal which, at the time, was a record for an individual sponsorship agreement.
The following year, Jackson confessed he was addicted to painkillers and the deal collapsed. The singer's increasingly bizarre behaviour indicates Pepsi's decision to get out early was the right one.
Closer to home, Vodafone dropped its sponsorship of the Football Kingz but maintained its relationship with the - until recently - long-suffering Warriors.
It is now clear they put their faith, and their money, behind the right code.
The prevailing corporate culture in Japan may have helped to expedite Mitsubishi's decision over the Holmes sponsorship.
Japanese corporates hate offending their export markets, and often issue standing orders to country managers to walk away when deals go sour and take on a national political element.
