Summary
A Million Cheers
Challenge
COVID-19 had altered the lifestyle and mindset of people across the world. Social distancing was the new normal and inspite of the world moving ahead there was no way it was ready to go back to how it was earlier. People had become more value and health conscious, international events continued to happen but lacked the old zeal and enthusiasm. Hence, like other events, The Tokyo Games were devoid of audience. No one to cheer for the athletes – no support of friends and even family. Visa wanted to show PV Sindhu that her effort, strength and courage, during this already difficult time, had not gone unnoticed. We wanted to tell her that while she was on the field giving her best shot, there are more than a million people cheering for her.
Objective
Given the pandemic situation, Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 restricted the foreign visitors and fans to attend The Games. We saw it as a landmark opportunity to support and cheer for our very own Team Visa Athlete – PV Sindhu as she strove for the Golden Shuttle. We wanted to aid her in this journey considering it was the first time when Visa had one of their athletes representing India at The Olympic Games and we wanted to make it count in every possible way. Objective :- Be a catalyst in garnering a million wishes & cheers for PV Sindhu as she represents millions of us at The Games.
Strategy
We started a 360 degree digital campaign covering a dedicated microsite, social media amplification, challenge video, influencer amplification, and brand videos with PV Sindhu. Social Media: On July 4, we launched the #SmashItSindhu campaign! We encouraged the TG to send their cheers and messages for PV Sindhu on Visa’s social media platforms through – Comments, DMs, Tweets and Posts. Microsite: On July 9, www.millioncheers.com was taken LIVE! It displayed the counter of cheers received on various social media touchpoints along with a Tap to Cheer button to add the cheers directly. Apart from the cheer counter, it displayed conversations happening on the social landscape around #SmashItSindhu. Tap-the-shuttle challenge: On July 10, PV Sindhu initiated the Tap-the-Shuttle Challenge with an aim to raise awareness about badminton and drive conversations about the same. While the challenge was to do maximum taps in 30 seconds, we received over 50 entries with some of the participants reaching as high as 90 taps in 30 seconds. Influencers: To further amplify the challenge, we collaborated with these Mega Influencers in order to drive more conversations around #SmashItSindhu. A brand integrated series of videos, starring Team Visa Athlete promoting the Tap to pay with Visa. Under the theme - You tap for India; we tap for you. We encouraged users to send in their cheers and wishes while she taps at the court. The Final Film: We accumulated cheers (Comments + Messages + DMs + Tweets + Videos) from various touchpoints and accumulated them into a cheer culmination. Meet and Greet: The top 3 winners of the Tap-the-Shuttle Challenge got an opportunity to interact with PV Sindhu through an e-Meet and Greet session.
Data
The primary data used was focused on the zero on-ground support at the venue due to Covid restrictions. This data with the insight that a sportsperson at some level draws their energy during the match from the crowd present was the core for building the idea.
Solution
We developed a campaign #SmashItSindhu and encouraged users to send in their cheers for Team Visa Athlete PV Sindhu, basis which the digital communication was developed for various touchpoints. We made it digitally possible for the people in India to send their cheers to PV Sindhu at a time when the world was still reeling from the restrictions of the lockdown. The campaign was executed with minimal on-ground intervention and reached out to a huge set of people who were excited to show PV Sindhu their support.
Results
We generated nearly 6 Mn conversations about Team Visa Athlete PV Sindhu and the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. 3 Cr Reach (6x of the committed initial set target)
