Scoring a Sports Marketing Hat Trick
Tapping into their active online community was key, but this community existed in various social networks across the web, making it difficult for the team and the fans to connect. With this knowledge, we had a clear direction.
Aggregate social content and make it mobile
Our in-house, social media management technology, DEQQ, was the perfect tool for the Canucks. We used DEQQ to aggregate their Facebook page activity and Twitter stream (including hashtags, keywords, and other influential Twitter accounts) into one simple social hot spot. We then created a widget for this hub that the Canucks could insert on their homepage and integrate into their mobile app. With their online community aligned in one easy-to-use stream, the Canucks now have a more comprehensive picture of their fan activity.
Let fans pick their player of the game with in-game voting
Recognizing that fans actively tune into their social networks while games are on, we saw an opportunity to further engage them. We built a 3-star voting tool that fans access through the Canucks website, mobile app, and Facebook page. While they watch the game, fans can now vote for their favourite player of the night and feel part of the action, whether they’re in the arena, watching on TV, or streaming live from the Internet. And the Canucks capitalized on a new sponsorship partnership by branding the app as the Mike’s Hard Lemonade 3-Stars of the Game.
Engage and reward fans through contests & prizes
The Canucks, like many organizations with a loyal Facebook following (600,000 strong), also wanted enhanced data on who these people were and better opportunities for collecting emails for newsletters, special promotions, and other permission-based marketing efforts. We developed a contesting tool in the form of a Facebook plug-in to capitalize on this fan engagement with the hope of gaining greater access to market. It worked. The fans loved the opportunity to enter contests, compete, and win prizes, and the franchise was able to collect excellent data on the level of their fan engagement.
Fuelling the Playoff Obsession
The historic 2011 run for the Stanley Cup presented yet another opportunity for deeper fan engagement. Tapping into Playoff fever, we built a special downloadable desktop application that could keep hungry fans up to date on game scores and player stats. The widget also provided the Canucks with valuable banner ad space – yet another opportunity for additional revenue.
Post-Game Analysis
Work at Play’s two-pronged approach of creativity and technological savvy won us another victory with this project. Our starting line of social media strategies allowed the Vancouver Canucks to deepen fan engagement and unite their online community. Our tools delivered business solutions that created new sponsorship channels while streamlining multiple social spaces.
When it comes to fan engagement, it’s important to be sensitive to their loyalty – you need to serve their interests while recognizing that they provide a potential opportunity for revenue. We understand this and as such we could help the Canucks solve a unique problem in a competitive space.
