It is Spring and that means it’s almost time for the return of baseball, so Major League Baseball (MLB) and official hat supplier New Era are teaming up again to get fans excited for the first day of the season with a revised #CapsOn campaign that encourages fans to wear their team hats and celebrate the game’s biggest rivalries.
To celebrate the 2017/17 season’s Opening Day, 3 April, the #CapsOn campaign sees players, celebrities and fans show off their team caps on social media.
Launched in mid March with social executions and a spearhead spot on both New Era and MLB’s Facebook pages
and YouTube channels.
The #CapsOn campaign is designed to remind fans what they love about baseball.
‘Opening day is one of the most exciting days of the year,’ says Noah Garden, EVP of business at MLB.
‘People come up with excuses not to go to work to go to the game, and everybody’s excited that their team has a chance to win. This is a fun way to trash talk with your friends on social media. Tugging on those heartstrings from day one, when everybody’s still in first place, is what makes the season great.’
It’s the second year of the #CapsOn campaign and this year’s effort includes a focus on celebrating baseball’s biggest rivalries: such as the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers, and the two previously perennial underdog teams from the 2016 World Series -the Cleveland Indians and Chicago Cubs, who won the series by ending their 108-year World Series championship drought in epic fashion.
‘It was a storybook ending last year,’ adds Garden.
‘The way the Cubs won was so exciting, and the Indians weren’t far behind. There are so many iconic rivalries in baseball, and it’s one of the things that makes it so special.’
The campaign is promoted by multiple supporting content pieces from both New Era,
Who’s ready for some baseball?! No matter where you are, don’t forget to wear your cap on Opening Day #CapsOn pic.twitter.com/WAMeF1TKNR
— New Era Cap (@NewEraCap) March 8, 2017
We’re less than a month out from Opening Day! Gear up with your favorite team and get your #CapsOn https://t.co/HGAw1PnQd8 pic.twitter.com/8n9FwVFcS3
— New Era Cap (@NewEraCap) March 6, 2017
and from MLB itself.
On April 3, everybody’s got their #CapsOn. pic.twitter.com/c2unQ7SRL3
— MLB (@MLB) March 17, 2017
Alert: #OpeningDay is almost here. Wear your team cap on 4/3! #CapsOn pic.twitter.com/7gb6Oyj79k
— MLB (@MLB) March 14, 2017
With further social amplification from some of baseball’s biggest stars (such as Noah Syndergaard),
Who's ready 4 Opening Day besides this guy. Get your #CapsOn w/me and my fellow @NewEraCap ambassadors 4.3.17https://t.co/aA2LHxm0OT pic.twitter.com/xZnIHghplP
— Noah Syndergaard (@Noahsyndergaard) March 15, 2017
and from MLB teams too (like this Phillies tweet).
#OpeningDay is 2 WEEKS AWAY!
Put #CapsOn on 4/3 to show your support.
Need a cap? Here's a good place to start: https://t.co/HkgnnLT8Zy pic.twitter.com/NpLK1Hcyt9
— Phillies (@Phillies) March 20, 2017
As well as the awareness driving executions, the campaign spans multiple competitions (incentivised, of course, by cap giveaways).
You'll have another chance to win next week as we and the @MarinersStore help you get geared up for Opening Day. #CapsOn pic.twitter.com/0x5vj3RLCA
— Mariners (@Mariners) March 19, 2017
There is further campaign support in-store in harness with participating retailers across the USA.
Everyone come in and pick up your teams @NewEraCap before opening day! #CapsOn pic.twitter.com/U751w6EtAy
— Pro Image Sports (@ProImage_309) March 10, 2017
‘People were really excited about it last year, sharing photos with their friends on social media and celebrating the rite of spring, the baseball season,’ said Tony DeSimone, senior marketing director at New Era.
‘We’re looking forward to hopefully an even better result this year.’
Activative Comment:
It is no surprise that New Era and the MLB are looking to replicate the success of last year’s #CapsOn campaign (see case study).
After all, the campaign was a big hit last year for New Era and MLB: with 500,000 social media posts and more than 250 million video views, iit yielded a 154% increase in caps sold.
Perhaps showing how the power of a partnership, linking to a call to fan action, can drive both excitement and sales.
Links:
New Era
https://www.youtube.com/user/NewEraCapCompanyInc
https://www.facebook.com/neweracap
https://www.instagram.com/neweracap/
MLB
https://www.youtube.com/user/MLB
https://www.instagram.com/mlb/
https://plus.google.com/u/1/+MLB/videos
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/subscriptions/index.jsp?c_id=mlb
