Visa Rallies Fans to Join Worldwide Cheer with Launch of Global Olympic Games-Themed Marketing Campaign - Go World

Integrated Marketing Campaign Features Social Media Extensions, Advertising and Promotions Spanning More Than 70 Countries

TORONTO, May 7, 2012 /CNW/ - Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), is inviting fans around the world to use social media to "cheer" their favorite Team Visa Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls to victory at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The "global cheer" is at the core of Visa's Olympic Games-themed integrated marketing campaign, Go World, the largest in Visa's 25 year history as a sponsor of the Olympic Games. The campaign utilizes popular social media platforms, along with television and digital advertising and usage promotions, to turn the passion of fans into online cheers that will help inspire more than 60 Visa-sponsored athletes (Team Visa) around the world, as they prepare for and compete at the Games.

"Fans are drawn to the Olympic Games by the awe-inspiring feats of the world's greatest athletes and, in turn, those athletes are inspired by the cheers and support they receive from fans," said Brenda Woods, Head of Marketing, Visa Canada. "Historic and memorable moments in Olympic Games history are driven by cheers. Our global campaign puts fans at the center of the experience and aims to unite the world in a global cheer movement to inspire athlete performances and spread the Olympic spirit."

Cheering Across Social Media

Fans around the world can create and submit a cheer in the form of a one-click cheer, post, photo or video on Visa's Facebook page (www.facebook.com/visa) and can contribute to the global cheer by submitting one-click cheers on Visa's YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/visabrand).

Using Visa's Cheer application (http://cheer.visagoworld.com), fans will be provided with relevant athlete content based on their likes and preferences, offering a personalized user experience. For fans that prefer to cheer on the go, they will be able to submit one-click cheers through Visa's Facebook page via their smartphones and tablet devices.

Team Visa athletes will also be able to view fan-submitted cheers through Visa's Cheer application to help inspire them as they train for the Games.

Globally, fans will be able to cheer across other, locally-preferred social networks including Sina-Weibo (China) and VKontakte (Russia).

Television/Digital Advertising & Customization

Television commercials and digital advertising featuring the inspiring stories of Team Visa athletes and memorable moments of Olympic legends underscore the role that cheering plays in helping athletes achieve greatness.

The first of Visa's Go World commercials, "The Difference," will debut today on television in the U.S. and online in Canada. "The Difference" celebrates some of the closest and most dramatic finishes in Olympic Games history, including Michael Phelps' win by one hundredth of a second in the 100-meter butterfly at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, and reminds viewers that cheering together can help propel athletes to greatness.

Across Facebook and YouTube, fans can also view commercials and training videos of Team Visa athletes that provide behind-the-scenes stories into the journey of Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls.  Fans can also read up on Canadian Team Visa athlete bios.

Cheer in Person - Visa 2012 Olympic Games Trip for Life Sweepstakes

From May 1 - August 31, 2012, Visa cardholders in Canada and the U.S. will automatically be entered for a chance to win a trip to cheer in-person at the summer sporting events of the Olympic Games for the rest of their lives when they use their Visa card. Every four years beginning with the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, one grand prize winner of the Visa 2012 Olympic Games Trip for Life Sweepstakes and one guest will receive round-trip airfare and accommodations for two, round-trip event transportation, and tickets to Olympic Games sporting events held in the summer. Official rules, including details on non-purchase entries, are available at www.visa.com/tripforlife2012promo. No purchase or obligation necessary to enter or win. Winner will be randomly selected in September.

A Global Yet Local Campaign

The Go World campaign, introduced in the United States for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and rolled out globally for the first time ahead of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, has been customized to maximize local relevancy in markets around the world including the United States, Canada, Brazil, Russia, Australia, Mexico, Japan, and China, among others. More than 70 markets are participating in Visa's Olympic Games integrated marketing campaign, including Go World. Additionally, Visa is working with approximately 1,000 financial institution clients and retail merchant partners to build and strengthen their business with Visa and create excitement among their customers through participation in Visa's Olympic-driven marketing programs.

Athlete Support & Olympic Sponsorship Activation

For the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Visa is supporting more than 60 Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls (Team Visa London) along with national teams from more than 30 countries including Canada, the U.S., United Kingdom, Brazil, China, South Africa, and Russia. Since 1986, Visa has empowered more than 1,000 Olympic hopefuls to achieve their dreams by providing financial support and valuable marketing exposure to assist them in pursuit of their Olympic goals.

Visa is sponsoring six Canadian Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls including Brent Hayden (swimming), Emilie Heymans (diving), Nicole Forrester (high jump), Benoit Huot (Paralympic swimming), Karen Furneaux (Kayaking) and Richard Peter (Paralympic wheelchair basketball).

Visa remains the exclusive payment services sponsor and the only card accepted at Games venues throughout 2020. Visa card products - credit, debit and prepaid cards and Visa Electron - will be accepted at point of sale (POS) card acceptance devices and ATMs in Olympic Games venues. For the London 2012 Olympic Games, there will be approximately 3,000 contactless enabled POS devices in merchant locations in Olympic Games venues that include Olympic Park, North Greenwich Arena, Excel, Wembley Stadium and Wimbledon.

Editors Note:

To learn more about Visa's Olympic Games marketing campaign, Go World, or to view and download images, videos and assets, visit www.visa.com/olympicmediakit.

About Visa

Visa is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable digital currency. Underpinning digital currency is one of the world's most advanced processing networks—VisaNet—that is capable of handling more than 10,000 transactions a second, with fraud protection for consumers and guaranteed payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa's innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, ahead of time with prepaid or later with credit products. For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com.

Media Contacts
Erin Sufrin   
Visa Canada 
416.860.3869   
[email protected]

Janine Allen
Fleishman Hillard
416.645.3657
[email protected]