SUPER BOWL DUNK

In a few special moments every year, Gatorade becomes a cultural phenomenon that captures the hearts and minds of a global audience. These moments are intrinsically linked to the Gatorade Dunk – a tradition where world champions across sport douse their team’s coach with Gatorade to celebrate their collective athletic achievement. 

This tradition, which began organically in 1984, had been off-limits for Gatorade’s marketing department for over 30 years. The sound rationale was that the best forms of marketing for the brand were these types of organic experiences tied to sports culture. In 2016, the Gatorade Digital team and VML pitched a bold idea to Brand Leadership: to market the Gatorade Dunk for the first time ever by turning it into a participatory vs. passive experience.

The team partnered with Snapchat to develop one of the first-ever Sponsored AR Lenses on the platform. The AR Super Bowl Dunk was available nationally in the US, allowing sports fans everywhere to experience the thrill of this championship moment – and even more importantly, to share it with their friends.

MY ROLE
As Brand Director, I led this project from brief development through concept creation and campaign launch. Our Digital team collaborated closely with our exceptional partners at VML, OMD and Snapchat to deliver a consumer experience that matched every single detail from the texture of the cooler to the buoyancy of the liquid. Gatorade’s Executive Leadership took a leap of faith on our team’s pitch. It was our responsibility to set an even higher standard for the brand.

THE RESULTS

• The most-viewed ad of the Super Bowl while never appearing on TV.

• 8.2MM User-generated videos

• 40% increase in Brand Favorability

• 5 Cannes Lions