The Marketing Millennials

Why Marketing Works: How a 26 Year Old Created Cycling’s Greatest Marketing Spectacle

Mar 21, 2024

09:44

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Discover the genius marketing strategy of Geo Lefevre, a young journalist who created the Tour de France to promote his magazine, L’Auto. Learn how this iconic cycling event reshaped marketing strategies and captivated audiences worldwide for over 100 years.

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Quick takeaways

Creating unique marketing strategies can differentiate a brand and propel it to success.

Owning the audience and aligning communication within a company are essential for successful marketing campaigns.

Deep dives

Innovation Through Event Creation - The Birth of the Tour de France

LaAuto, a struggling sports newspaper in France, shifted its focus from political content to sports. Facing tough competition, a 26-year-old writer, Gio LeFave, proposed creating a cycling race, the Tour de France, to stand out. LeFave capitalized on existing one-day cycling races but innovated by organizing a full-blown tournament around France's border. This not only differentiated LaAuto but also captured the public's attention, leading to success and outpacing competitors.

Innovative Marketing Strategy: The Birth of Tour de France

4min

The Birth of the Tour de France and its Impact on Marketing

5min

Lance Armstrong might be the first name you think of when you hear the words, “Tour de France,” and sure, he’s certainly a marketing genius in his own right, but he isn’t anywhere near the same level as the OG marketer who turned the French cycling event into the marketing sensation it became. Who is the mystery man behind France’s biggest sports tradition?

Meet Geo Lefevre, a 26-year-old writer who just wanted to promote his magazine, L’Auto. Learn how through nothing short of a stroke of genius, Geo decided to take his magazine’s fate into his own hands, creating the idea for a grand cycling tour around France that his magazine would be first on the scene to cover.

Aidan breaks down exactly how Geo’s killer marketing idea propelled L’Auto into 40 years of news excellence and how the Tour de France became a cultural staple for over 100+ years.

What lessons can marketers draw from Geo’s genius ploy? And what can it teach us about the necessity of owning an audience and streamlining communication?

Tune in to find out!

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