To showcase its global reach and live environment, NBA 2K19 infused in-game statistics into its new ‘Everyone’s On’ campaign with multi-platform creative leveraging low latency game data such as the number of three-pointers made and/or how many times Michael Jordan beat LeBron James in the last 24 hours.
Bron & MJ go at it 534 times per day in #NBA2K19. Who's your favorite?… #EveryonesOn pic.twitter.com/LVvWf1wqMW
— NBA 2K19 (@NBA2K) November 26, 2018
The idea behind infusing the NBA 2K in-game statistics was to highlight the magnitude of the gameplay, the game, its community and its reach and to highlight some of the most impressive trends and data generated by the players themselves.
After all, for passionate hoops fans and gamers – basketball is life.
Some notable headlines include figures such as:
- The Lakers have won 291,342 championships this year
- The Bulls have 135,345 new GOATS.
- Boogie’s won the MVP 49,034 times this season
- The Knicks beat the Celtics 23,344 times last night
The campaign, developed in harness with agency Butler, Shine & Stern & Partners (BSSP), spans OOH, digital banners, video and social.
Do you usually win or lose when you face Bron? #EveryonesOn pic.twitter.com/FUJjRzzZS0
— NBA 2K19 (@NBA2K) November 26, 2018
The short video clips included ‘Goat’,
‘Dunk Split Screen’,
and ‘ Victory Dance’.
Whilst the digital OOH strand – which included low latency digital displays in cities such as Chicago, LA, New York and San Francisco – was regularly updated to match the most up-to-date in-game numbers: including an LA Live takeover at Staples Center for 2K fans to enjoy while watching a real life game.
Matthew Curry, chief creative at BSSP, said in the PR push around the campaign launch that the creative process began at the least creative place – the data.
“By combining the data that was most contextually and culturally relevant, we could use it to create unexpected headlines,” he outlined.
“We then worked with our media team to determine where the out-of-home placements would be so we could write for maximum location-specific impact.”
Curry argued that the gaming community is a cultural force and NBA 2K’s mass adoption has a significant role in the basketball and gaming worlds.
“Hundreds of thousands of players are active on NBA 2K at any given time. And when you start digging into that – what team, what players, what moves, what dunks, what reimagined rivalries – the data starts to tell an interesting story,” he argued.
“Combine that with all the hype and culture surrounding this game, the different people playing – gamers, NBA stars, celebs, musicians – and it’s clear it’s the party everyone’s at,” he added.
The campaign was created by a BSSP agency team that included Matthew Curry (Chief Creative Officer), Sinan Dagli (Creative Director), Hunter Fine (Copywriter), Chris Araujo (Art Director), Jim Vaughn (Executive Producer), James Sablan (Senior Producer), Tyler Neely (Producer), Jake Bayham (Associate Director of Strategy), Ashley Heltne ( Account Director), Mal Gretz (Account Supervisor) and AJ Marino (Account Supervisor).
The production was handled by Bonfire with Pete Fleming (Editor) and Julie Dominguez (Assistant Editor), with Pamela Tuazon (Motion Graphics), Phil Spitler (Lead Creative), Sheila Smith (Head of Production), Mary Mathaisell (EP) and Zach Rubin (Head of Business Development).
Comment:
Creative data has been a trend in sports and sponsorship marketing for a few years now.
With stand out work dating back to 2014’s award winning Honda ‘Sound Of Senna’
to the data led, projection mapping live event that bid goodbye to Tokyo’s old Olympic Stadium.
This admirable NBK 2K campaign show just how far (and how flexible) the tactic has developed since these kind of one-off events and initiatives that it initially emerged through.
This November marketing push follows on from the product’s summer ‘They Will Know Your Name’ launch and cover campaigns – also by BSSP (see case study).
Plus, BSSP is working with NBA 2K on the launch of the latest NBA 2K Mobile App – a free mobile experience that aims to rival consoles for the first time.
Links:
NBA2K
https://www.facebook.com/NBA2K
https://www.youtube.com/user/2KSports
https://www.instagram.com/nba2k/
BSSP
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