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August 6, 2014 | Volume 12, Issue 29
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RAPTORS SEE BRAND GROW WITH DYNAMIC CAMPAIGN
The Raptors use their outside perspective to their advantage, creating a campaign that brought their brand to the forefront of professional basketball.
By: Rebecca Cave
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Click the image above to check out the Raptors We The North campaign video!
Dear Faithful Readers,
The Toronto Raptors were one of the most exciting teams in the NBA last season. With young players such as Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan the future is looking bright. Using these young players and the team’s success, the organization launched a campaign that will definitely change the franchise in the near future.
The Raptors did a fantastic job at jump starting their fan base as they headed into the playoffs last season. The We The North campaign was a giant success as you will see from the results section in the feature below.
The way the community and even outside the city of Toronto reacted to the campaign was great to see. I am excited to see what the Raptors have in store for next season as they look to build on this already tremendous campaign.
Hope you enjoy the read.
Ryan
P.S. - Feeling creative? Send in your best marketing and advertising campaign from 2014 and your team could be the next feature in "Selling It"!
PROGRAM TITLE
Toronto Raptors: We The North
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OBJECTIVES
There is nothing quite like home court advantage. But when you are the only NBA team in the country, home court advantage takes on a whole new meaning. Rather than allow their distance to separate themselves, the Toronto Raptors have used an “outsiders” state of mind to define who they are. The We The North campaign launched during NBA playoffs this past spring, not only did it boost the Raptors brand, it became their brand manifesto. By using their distance from other teams to their advantage, they managed to create the largest market in the NBA, the entire country of Canada.
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
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The campaign started with teaser ads that caught the attention of many Raptors fans. There were three short 10-second videos with quick shots of slam-dunks, team huddles, and basketball hoops engulfed in flames. At the end of each of these clips, the video goes silent and the flag that became the symbol of the team ripples in the wind. These videos started the buzz around #WeTheNorth, even before the release of the full minute ad that brought the campaign to the forefront of the playoff scene. This video brought the campaign to the fans, and the fans quickly embraced it.
The hashtag #WeTheNorth was used to continue the talk about the campaign and keep it in the public eye on social media. The Raptors used all forms of social media to continue the buzz about the campaign, making sure to reach every fan they could with this new brand identity. The fan section of Raptors games even took on the name “Jurassic Park” and used the #WeTheNorth flag from the videos as their defining feature, bringing the new team identity with them everywhere they went. .
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Click above to check out one of the teaser videos of the We The North campaign!
PARTNERSHIP
The Raptors partnered with Sid Lee advertising agency to create this new identity for the team. Vito Piazza, President of Sid Lee said, “We the North is based on a very clear vision co-developed by both Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment and Sid Lee. By working together we were able to uncover a dominant truth uniting team and fans. And then, client and agency brought it to life holistically as a team. This collaborative approach is what made it so powerful and anthemic.”
RESULTS
The results from this campaign are staggering. The #WeTheNorth video released on YouTube received over 700,000 views, making it the most viewed video on the Raptors YouTube account. After the release of this video, the Raptors recorded the most activity in the history of their website, Raptors.com, an increase of 70% from last season. Between the advertising campaign, story circulations, and social media, #WeTheNorth had an overall impact of 546 million impressions. Mentions of the Raptors on various forms of social media increased by 700% after the release of this ad. All of this publicity led to an increase in ticket sales as well, with the Raptors selling 3,000 new season seats for next season.
LOOKING AHEAD
With such success after the launch of #WeTheNorth this past season, the Raptors are looking forward to building off of the publicity it created. They are looking forward to creating an even larger presence with this campaign, making it even more extensive than this past season. What started out as a campaign became the team’s identity, and the Raptors are looking forward to continuing to embrace the anthem of We The North.
CONTACT
For more Information, contact:
Shannon Hosford, VP Marketing & Communications , Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment
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