Created by Translation, “Hopes” asks die-hard fans what they hope their team will accomplish this season. Like any loyal fan, they want their team to dominate.
A Lakers fan hopes LeBron James brings the showtime back to Los Angeles, while a weatherman (and Oklahoma City fan) hopes the country sees a lot more thunder. Look for cameos from hip hop artist Travis Scott, social media influencer Famous Los and former NBA player and current on-air broadcaster Kenny Smith.
Subsequent spots will ask new questions and include cameos from past and present players Paul George, Julius Erving and Walt Frazier; on-air personality Rachel DeMita, and chef Eddie Huang, among others. Launch dates will be spread throughout the season; in addition, tailored ads will run during Christmas, MLK Day/Black History Month, Saturday night primetime, playoffs and NBA finals.
Pam El, Chief Marketing Officer of the NBA and inductee into the Diversity Hall of Honors on January 9 at the 2019 Advancing Diversity Honors during CES, recently explained the evolution of “This Is Why We Play” to MediaVillage.
“The first year was emotional-based storytelling from the view of the league," she began. "The second year was anecdotes on players. The third year we presented 30 different stories -- one for each team -- on what inspires them and was important for fans to know. This year, the fans are the stars. Each ad starts with a question. Research shows that every fan wants their team to win!”
This year’s campaign features the first custom spot to run in Canada -- both in English and in French -- to promote the Canada Series where the Toronto Raptors play the Portland Trail Blazers in Vancouver on Sept. 29 and the Brooklyn Nets in Montreal on Oct. 10.
A Mandarin ad will air in China to promote the China Games -- Oct. 5 in Shanghai and Oct. 8 in Shenzhen -- and the showdown between the Dallas Mavericks and Philadelphia 76ers.
El attributes the longevity of the "This Is Why We Play" branding strategy to strong numbers and a successful platform. “After a certain period, brands have to decide whether to continue with same brand campaign," she said. "We have the stats to prove that this campaign works. [Throughout the 2017-18 season] #ThisIsWhyWePlay generated over 1.9 billion impressions seen, 289 million video views and 94 million actions (likes, comments or shares) -- all increases from 2016-17. The hashtag was also used more than half a million times on Twitter and Instagram.”
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