Skins' RWC 'My Other Team' Backs Pacific Island Underdogs (Via Twibbon)

Sportswear manufacturer Skins leverages the Rugby World Cup and its official partnerships with some of the tournament’s minnows via a crafty campaign – ‘My Other Team’ – which plays on fans’ underdog sympathies.

‘Rugby fans love their home team, but every fan needs another team to cheer on when theirs isn’t playing. This is normally a team that doesn’t have the advantages of the ‘big boys’ but is still bloody great to watch – a Pacific Island team.’

Skins, which supplies compression garments to several of the tournament’s underdogs (including Tonga, Samoa and the USA), is championing the Polynesian teams and has created what it refers to as the ‘Pacific Island Supporters Club’.

The brand is asking rugby fans around the world to join the club simply by using a set of Polynesian designed home rugby team badges and the hashtag #MyOtherTeam to show their second side support.

These badges, the campaign’s creative core, have been designed by a Polynesian tattoo artist and recreate the traditional, official badges of every rugby side playing in the competition.

Skins has posted then on its Facebook page and on its Twitter feed.

Favourite underdog? Support Pacific Island rugby with our Polynesian team badges #myotherTEAM http://t.co/yNOzTvmq2D pic.twitter.com/j5I2XnA2nv

— SKINS USA (@SKINS_USA) September 17, 2015

The campaign, which aims to recognise the contribution Tonga, Samoa and Fiji have made to world rugby, aims to drive sharing of the badges and is built around the #myotherteam hashtag and across Twibbon.

Twibbon is a free web tool designed to increase exposure, likes and support. A Twibbon campaign uses a dedicated microsite where users can support a company, campaign or cause in Facebook and Twitter in various different ways such as adding a Twibbon to their social media profile, posting support messages, adding timeline covers or Twiiter backgrounds

The initiative is being activated right across the brand’s own social platforms,

Favourite underdog? Support Pacific Island rugby with our Polynesian team badges #myotherTEAM http://t.co/yNOzTvmq2D pic.twitter.com/j5I2XnA2nv

— SKINS USA (@SKINS_USA) September 17, 2015

and it even benefits from a little non-rugby celebrity help.

https://twitter.com/ronnieo147/status/646310261478006784

It also cleverly includes local language variant executions to appeal to the underdog team fans themselves and to fans in nations not competing at the tournament.

Wir unterstützen die #PacificIslands Rugby Mannschaften! GO GO GO @officialTongaRU @fijirugby @manusamoa #myotherTEAM pic.twitter.com/B4nc63xiQP

— SKINS (@SKINSDE) September 17, 2015

There is also a local market sharing incentive strand in the form of a competition for those interacting with and amplifying the campaign to win Skins products.

WIN the ultimate SKINS package to suit your Training/Match Day/Recovery needs | http://t.co/CseA8TVP7b #myotherTEAM pic.twitter.com/UajixAsXmH

— SKINS GB (@SKINSGB) September 24, 2015

‘I certainly love my rugby team. But when your team isn’t playing, who do you go for?’ asks Australian-born Skins chairman Jaimie Fuller. ‘We’re encouraging all rugby fans support one of the Pacific Island teams of Tonga, Samoa or Fiji when their home team isn’t playing.’

‘Like Skins, these [Pacific Island] guys were built to play rugby,’ Fuller says. ‘They don’t have the financial advantages of the ‘big boys’ such as the All Blacks, the Wallabies or England – but they make up for it with pride, passion and flair. Imagine rugby without the people of the Pacific Islands. It just wouldn’t be the same.’

Comment:

Despite a lack of resources and funding, these three rugby-loving Pacific Island nations are incredinly passionate about the sport.

Furthermore, players from Polynesian heritage represent more than 25% of all of those competing at the 2015 tournament across all sides.

So they certainly deserve the support of the rugby family.

And most people certainly love an underdog!

But as an official partner of some big rugby names, Skins needs a nuanced approach to pull off this campaign tactic.

After all, while supporting the underdog might well be a universal idea, Skins sponsors some of heavy hitters of the rugby world – such as the Australian Rugby Union.

In late September Skins even rolled out a RWC-themed behind-the-scenes YouTube film with the Wallabies.

So the brand tweaks this campaign on a local basis.

For example its Australian Twitter feed is encouraging Australian fans to support Fiji against England.

So England are playing Fiji today. Support everyone’s favourite underdog #myotherTEAM #FJI https://t.co/Fjp5tWO4bA pic.twitter.com/ODYPwdLdyx

— SKINS Australia (@SKINSAU) September 18, 2015

And yet the same brand (on its SkinsGB Twitter feed) is encouraging England fans to support Fiji against Australia.

So Australia are playing Fiji today. Support everyone’s favourite underdog #myotherTEAM #FJI https://t.co/TC6iN6IwEF pic.twitter.com/SEOdqoXYfg

— SKINS GB (@SKINSGB) September 23, 2015

Will the brand pull it off?

I guess we will have to wait and see.

But if it does it could be a success story – not least because it keeps the competition and the brand in the front of fans’ consciousness even when their home team isn’t actually playing.

The idea continues Skins’ strategy of zigging while other zag.

As illustrated with its bold and brave ‘Official Non FIFA Sponsor’ campaign earlier this year in the midst of the FIFA corruption scandal (see case study).

Links

My Other Team Twitter:

https://twitter.com/hashtag/myotherteam

Skins Website:

http://www.skins.net/

Skins Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/skinscompression?brand_redir=DISABLE

Skins Instagram:

https://instagram.com/skinsgb/

Skins Pinterest:

https://www.pinterest.com/SKINSGB/

Skins Google+: