The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) teamed up with social streaming partner Twitter to celebrate the start of the league’s 25th season on 14 May with a fresh approach to fan engagement in the form of a branded hoodie with a hidden QR code.
The innovative hoodie – which will be worn by all 144 WNBA players, and by supporters, coaches, friends and influencers around the league, at the start of the season – features a large orange (the league’s primary brand colour) ‘W’ across the font which is created from a series of small markings alongside the tagline ‘Watch Us, Stand With Us’.
Within the trademark W is a hidden QR code which aims to transform the way fans engage with WNBA games: supporters who point their smartphone at hoodie QR code link through to a pre-written tweet (ready to be published by the user) reading “With this Tweet, I’m standing with the WNBA and the entire W community to elevate women in sports and shine a light on the social justice causes they’re fighting for. Retweet or Tweet using #WNBATwitter, and watch on WNBA Twitter Live.”
By posting the tweet (with the linked hashtags), the WNBA aims to make it easier for fans to connect with one another on social media and spark conversations about the league.
The hoodie activation was promoted by a campaign running across the WMBA’s Twitter feed and supported by a PR push.
Not “just” a hoodie.
Co-created with @Twitter, this hoodie includes a "hidden" QR code that gives the #WNBA community a direct line for sparking conversation about the game and causes they stand for. pic.twitter.com/nfIG4vjUNP
— WNBA (@WNBA) May 13, 2021
Starting today, you'll see this hoodie whenever there's a WNBA Twitter Live game to watch or a cause to speak on.
Whenever you see it, simply retweet or tweet using #WNBATwitter to stand with us.
— WNBA (@WNBA) May 13, 2021
Comment:
The 25th WNBA season officially got underway on 15 May starting with New York Liberty vs Indiana Fever, while the reigning champions Seattle Storm will be seeking to retain their crown and become the side with the most WNBA titles (five) in history.
This idea was created with the pandemic’s restrictions on live at-match audiences in mind and aims to help recreate the sense of togetherness absent while fans are present in arena.
While at Activative we certainly support the objective and we feel that the WNBA deserves and demands more attention for the skill of its stars and for the fact that its players have arguably been even greater champions of social justice than their male NBA counterparts, we can’t help but wonder whether launching a generic tweet by taking a picture of a hoodie is likely to be an efficient, or even a particularly fun way to support the league.
Especially that, as of the season launch, there doesn’t appear to be a way for fans to purchase the hoodie themselves: which means the WNBA and Twitter are relying on fans to seek out the hoodie while watching a game with phone in hand or come across it on their timeline.
It feels a touch too gimmicky.
Interestingly, this isn’t the first hoops hoodie marketing initiative in the USA this month. The WNBA initiative follows hot on the heels of the Coors Light Toronto Raptors ‘Weighted Hoodie’ which aimed to keep Raptors fans chill during the NBA season climax.
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