Bond Brand Loyalty wins Best Creative Solution for the Ford Motor Company x MLSE Playoff Parties.
Ford Motor Company is the Official Automotive Partner of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors. Through the partnership, Ford typically engages with fans in arena. With the 2020 Playoff campaign approaching and fans not able to gather due to COVID-19, Ford needed a new strategy to engage with fans to help boost favourable opinions, generate leads and most importantly, give back to the community.
The Bond XM team took on this challenge and identified two key insights that helped shape the solution:
– Watching sports was one of the only distractions or pastimes available to Canadians, but fans were still missing the “in-arena” experience and excitement.
– At a challenging time, there were so many amazing Front Line Workers and community members who had stepped up to support their communities.
Identifying these two key insights shaped the solution of how Ford could best engage with Leafs & Raptors fans.
The solution was for Ford of Canada to reward fans who’ve gone above & beyond in their community by helping them celebrate with the ultimate Ford Playoff Party. Ford encouraged fans to nominate a front-line worker or someone they knew who had stepped up during this difficult time & supported their community. Winners received a fully catered pre-game meal from RS (Real Sports) Bar. MLSE’s executive chef Matthew Sullivan virtually walked winners through the entire process of how to make their game-day meal. At intermission (Leafs) or halftime (Raptor), winners were treated to an exclusive virtual VIP Q&A session with a Leafs or Raptors legend.
The 2020 Ford x MLSE Playoff Party Campaign was successful beyond measure. Ford received countless emails, messages & calls from winners and their families expressing their gratitude for the experience. At a time when everyone was stressed & overwhelmed, Ford was the brand that helped give Leafs & Raptors fans something special to look forward to and help get their minds off the current state of the world, at least for one night. Countless fans took to social media to share their playoff party experience and thank Ford for providing an unforgettable experience. This experience was a great solution to not being able to gather in person. We are sure planners will continue to find a way to create the same kinds of intimate experiences when we’re fully back to in-person events.
