CHICK-FIL-A BOWL

Client:

Assignment:

Position the Chick-fil-A Bowl as one of the premier bowl games in the country through effective use of new media to build momentum around the event and deliver increased brand value to its title sponsor. 

Strategy/Implementation:

Jackson Spalding utilized social media tactics to engage media and fans throughout the weeks leading up to the Bowl. Because reporters and college football fans often see the bowl team selection process as convoluted and secretive, weekly blog and video messages about the process were implemented to bring an unprecedented level of transparency to the selection. To increase enthusiasm about the game, Jackson Spalding created a Facebook profile for the Chick-fil-A Bowl Cow and a public profile for the Chick-fil-A Bowl.  College students, and an increasingly older audience, used both Facebook profiles as a forum to cheer for their teams and discuss team selection.  We also utilized Facebook to promote bowl week events to the fan bases.

Results:

Starting with the 2006 game, the Chick-fil-A Bowl became one of the first Bowl games with a presence on Facebook (ChickfilA Bowl Cow). In subsequent years, we created a fan page on Facebook and a Twitter feed. All lead back to the blog which has seen increased traffic each year. Our team selection process appeared on an ESPN.com feature that garnered more than 400,000 page views. In addition to the social media outreach, our strategy and implementation resulted in more than 300 print and television placements, including national feature stories in the Sports Business Journal, CNBC.com and the New York Times, largely thanks to the broader awareness achieved through social media.