MINNESOTA LYNX
Standing for more than sport.
THE PROBLEM
Single game ticket sales were down for the back-to-back champs.
THE PLAN
Remove sexist, timid brand position, “Lynx Unleashed.”
Attract recreational liberals by standing for more than sport.
Cross-promote w/other local heroes.
THE RESULT
Broke multiple franchise attendance records:
Most regular season tickets sold
Most post-season tickets sold
Highest single game attendance.
3rd & 4th time champs. Now a dynasty.
Pretty sure that last one isn’t our doing, but it didn’t hurt right?
Hey you know what's sexist?
The former platform "Lynx Unleashed."
First of all, wild Lynx are never put on a leash - and we all know only weirdos walk house cats. Turns out Women aren't possessions that you should collar and tag. Whattya know.
I was warned we were walking into an "old boys club" and would have to tip toe our way through the politics. (That wasn't close to true and Chris Wright is totally awesome.) So why the hell would we be careful when:
The team are 2X champs (at the time.)
The starting 5 of the US Olympic team includes 4 Lynx players plus their coach.
Maya Moore, both the greatest in league history, and the first Nike endorsed WNBA player, is on the team.
They have the best all-time league record.
A rabid season ticking-holding fan base.
Though they are the most successful sports team in MN history, their games weren't being attended.
In fact, only 3% of Timberwolves fans buy Lynx tickets.
And their scores aren’t even read on the radio for fuck’s sake. Clearly, they have a bigger issue.
THE LYNX DON'T HAVE A BASKETBALL PROBLEM
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THEY NEEDED TO STAND FOR MORE THAN SPORT
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THE LYNX DON'T HAVE A BASKETBALL PROBLEM ▪ THEY NEEDED TO STAND FOR MORE THAN SPORT ▪
The ROAR campaign seems obvious now, because it's become more than a campaign but the entire position of their brand.
These women are fierce through and through. It was time to stop acting so polite.
But our strategy was deeper than that. Dominating the game wasn’t enough to attract new fans. So we aimed to attract recreational liberals that don’t necessarily care about, “sportsball” as they’d call it. To do that, we’d have to cross pollinate with a social campaign.
As Champions, the Lynx would declare other badass people in the community Champions. In turn, they would invite us into more visible conversations by sharing what's made them great like us. Everyone from Mayor Betsy Hodges, to Dessa told us how they #ROAR.
SOCIAL STRATEGY
Influential fans win tickets to the game
I don't know if you've heard of these things but we ran some banner ads too.
Live 360 video from 1st row seats
The Players' Tribute video story.
Can you keep up with the Champ's workout routine? Lifetime Fitness Core 3 Virtual Trainer featuring Maya Moore.
ENVIRONMENTAL
Summer in MN is a very limited resource, so getting fans indoors is tough. Instead, we brought the games to them at a park by Lake Bde Mka Ska.
During the ROAR campaign, the Lynx went from 2X to 4X Champions - earning the title Dynasty.
Ads didn’t make that happen.
But breaking attendance records certainly didn’t hurt.
STANDING UP
To be clear, this wasn’t a publicity stunt nor did I or any ad agency put them up to it.
But we do believe that the notion that this team could and should stand for something more than sport was an infectious one. Without the conversations propelling this campaign they may have not gotten here so boldly.
