From an event to a platform for partnerships, media attention and financial awareness.
One evening at Soulkitchen Amsterdam. More than 60 guests from the football world, seven event partners, five media partners and the launch of the Kikstart app. With the Kikstart Capital Winter Event we brought commerce, content and financial awareness together in a single event.
Location
Soulkitchen Amsterdam
Guests
60+ from the football world
Launch
Kikstart app, Money Playbook
1,868,761Instagram views
22,000+likes
€16,000estimated media value
900,000+views on content about financial topics
60+guests from the football world
7event partners
5media partners
The result: 1,868,761 Instagram views, more than 22,000 likes and an estimated media value of €16,000.
01
The challenge
How do you reach professional footballers with a message that goes beyond football? And how do you turn an event into a valuable experience for players, an interesting platform for partners and an appealing story for the media, all at once?
For Kikstart Capital four objectives came together. The challenge was not simply to organise an event. We wanted to create an environment in which all parties involved could both add and receive value.
1Attract players
2Connect commercial partners
3Launch the Kikstart app
4Generate substantial media attention
02
The approach: three audiences, one strategy
We started with the interests of the three main audiences: players, media and partners. Because if you want these parties to come together, it has to be clear to everyone why it is worth being there.
Players
Players had to be able to meet, exchange experiences and talk about their financial future in an accessible way. With good food, familiar faces and a strong setting we made the event socially attractive too.
Media
Media needed access to interesting players and stories. By creating interview opportunities we made the event journalistically relevant too.
Partners
Partners needed more than a mention in an email. We wanted to give companies relevant visibility and present them to the players in a playful, accessible way.
More interesting players→More attractive for media→More visibility for partners and Kikstart
These interests reinforced each other. More interesting players made the event more attractive to media. Media attention in turn increased the visibility for partners and Kikstart itself.
03
From strategy to execution
1
Activating players
With a creative Instagram approach we wanted to catch the attention of footballers and involve them personally in the event. We also invited well-known names from the football world, including Ronald de Boer, Hedwiges Maduro, Noah Naujoks and Julian Baas. In the end we brought together more than 60 guests in Amsterdam.
GuestsRonald de BoerHedwiges MaduroNoah NaujoksJulian Baas
2
Using media as an amplifier
We involved five media partners: VoetbalPrimeur, Voetbalzone, Life After Football, FC Afkicken and LinkedIn. Het Sportpaleis also created content during the event. Our approach was deliberate: not just inviting media to attend, but giving them the opportunity to create interesting content independently. That turned the event into a source of stories that could reach a large audience beyond the room.
Media partnersVoetbalPrimeurVoetbalzoneLife After FootballFC AfkickenLinkedInHet Sportpaleis
3
Connecting commercial partners to the mission
In parallel with the organisation we worked on bringing in commercial partners. In the end seven event partners joined the initiative. We wanted to connect partners substantively to the financial challenges of footballers. Not just a logo at an event, but a relevant position within a story that fits their expertise.
The event was the stage for the launch of the Kikstart app, the Money Playbook. With video and camera content we translated the launch to online channels. The players and media partners present then helped spread the message further. That combined the physical experience of the event with the reach of existing football media and the social channels of the players involved.
LaunchKikstart-appMoney Playbook
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04
The result
But the numbers do not tell the whole story.
60+ attendees from the football world.
7 event partners joined the initiative.
5 media partners involved in distributing the content.
More than 900,000 views on content about financial topics, such as saving, investing, silly purchases and preparing for life after a football career.
We brought the Kikstart theme to people’s attention through content with familiar faces from the football world, rather than solely through traditional advertising.
05
My role and the key insight
In this case we worked on bringing different interests together. Commerce and experience came together. That intersection is where the strength lies, and where my personal interest is.
Together we worked on the commercial and communication approach, connecting audiences and partners and creating an event that had to deliver more than just a successful evening. We constantly looked at how the players present, the media involved and the commercial partners could reinforce each other.
My key insight
Do not start with the resources you have, but with the value you can create for every party involved.
An event only gains real commercial and communicative power when players have a reason to come, media have a reason to publish about it and partners have a reason to commit to it.
That is what makes this case interesting to me. Not just organising an event, but building a platform on which relationships, reach and content reinforce each other. With the ultimate goal of taking the mission of Kikstart Capital further and putting financial awareness in the football world on the map.
