Dunlop: #1 Ball on Tour
Corporate Communications, Events
Tennis is a quintessential summer sport in Britain, and with some of the world tour’s best tournaments happening in England, it’s no surprise that powerhouse brands like Dunlop look to strengthen their campaigns within the UK scene. Their #1 Ball on Tour campaign included our very own PT2+, and who took the win? Join us as we recall the 2019 activation.
Tennis is a game of endurance, tact, strength and immense fitness. It’s a sport that has a huge global following, and boasts athletes that double as worldwide celebrities embodying professionals at the peak of their sport. The likes of Serena Williams, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are household names, and represent a sport that has transfixed its fans for generations.
When it comes to British tennis, and it’s iconic tournaments like Wimbledon, it’s no surprise that fans are aplenty. So, when the 2019 ATP Finals went to London’s O2 Arena, and saw the likes of Djokovic and Nadal take centre court – the event promised to be a who’s who of global tennis.
BRIEF
Dunlop is a name synonymous with tennis. The iconic brand has seen tennis courts littered with their bright tennis balls for decades, and above all else – it’s become a name that promises quality. With the 2019 ATP World Tour hosting its finals in London, the event called for spectacle, for world class tennis, and most of all – an engaging experience for audiences both on court, and off. With Dunlop as the ‘Official Ball’ of the ATP Tour, they chose to host a retail store within the O2 Arena as part of the wider tournament experience, and they knew it would be a crowd pleaser.
Dunlop approached the event experts at Bright Partnerships to ensure their iconic brand storytelling would continue to draw crowds and inspire customers; and with the BRIGHT team behind the project, their creative and innovative flair would ensure the retail activation was not just going to be a winner, but their #1 Ball on Tour campaign was to be truly unforgettable.
With a desire to interact with their client base in a new, tactile way and to draw people in for more than just their products, but their brand quality and expertise too; Bright Partnerships knew just where to come. To Pufferfish!
SOLUTION
When you think tennis, you think tennis ball. The felt, round, bouncing ball that can be the difference between winning and losing a tournament (with a few skills in between too, of course!). So, when BRIGHT were asked to find a piece of technology to enhance the Dunlop experience, technology that would engage audiences, would increase foot traffic, and would fit with the overall brand experience – they knew to come to Pufferfish, the world’s leading specialists in spherical display technology.
With a multi-touch screen and ultra-high definition laser projection capabilities, we knew our PufferTouch2+ could play the part of tennis ball for the 4-day event, and ensure the retail space was captivating and truly memorable.
Our PT2+ (600) might not bounce (or survive behind a Federer serve!), but the magnetic qualities of its touch-engaged screen would spark attention, conversation and would enhance customer experience in a fun, tactile way. The powerful marketing capabilities in our custom content development would also mean the Dunlop experience was going to make a real impact on audiences – like never seen before.
CONTENT
With the retail space designed and our solution decided upon, next came the question of what customised content was to tell the Dunlop brand story. Working in collaboration with our in-house team of creative experts and motion graphics artists, BRIGHT offered key data on the Dunlop brand and the overall ATP World Tour, and we created a customised world map in the form of a florescent yellow tennis ball – the Dunlop ATP world map. Needing something that could draw in crowds, but also keep them in the retail space to discuss the Dunlop offering, they wanted something that was eye-catching and dynamic in its functionality.
To deepen the engagement further, the world map featured hot spots across the globe that represented locations where the ATP tournaments occurred. Audiences could then touch those hotspots and partake in a general knowledge quiz, with questions relating specifically to each ATP tournament (or host city) sponsored by Dunlop. Audiences could also watch a "How We Make It" video surrounding the special characteristics that make Dunlop balls so good.
This again increased engagement and curated fun, shared experiences for visitors to the space - and with the strong visual assets in the quiz created by the BRIGHT team, it was a nod to their truly dynamic vision for Dunlop.
Not only would the native format of the sphere represent the brand in shape, the quality of laser projection would glow bright and catch the attention of audiences, and the touch screen application would ensure conversation and debate. The custom content ultimately meant the Dunlop brand story, and the wider #1 Ball on Tour campaign, was about dynamic marketing, about the world-class tennis ball, and about how the sport of tennis connects people all across the globe.
OUTCOME
They say pictures say a thousand words, and for us these images of the retail activation truly do. The bright, eye catching space not only represented the iconic Dunlop brand with true gravitas, but audiences were able to discuss the tennis balls, buy the tennis balls, and interact with a fun, memorable quiz about their passion – tennis.
With the sport of tennis being such a global phenomenon, the Dunlop / BRIGHT team were able to draw crowds in a truly unique way, and ensure innovation and creativity joined the already stellar line up of a historic sport. We’ll chalk that up as a win - Game, set, match.
Thank you to Sophie and the team at Bright Partnerships, we can’t wait to work with you again! Follow them on social channels @brightpartnerships and Dunlop @dunloptennisofficial.
“Working with Pufferfish for the interactive element of the Dunlop retail activation at the 2019 ATP Finals was a great success. The Puffersphere product was a perfect brand fit for Dunlop's #1 Ball On Tour campaign. The Pufferfish team were very collaborative and they implemented our creative concepts efficiently and to a high standard, ensuring we were satisfied with the result. The Puffersphere provided a visually impactful, interactive and creative way for us to draw in fans and educate them on Dunlop's ATP partnership. We look forward to working with Pufferfish again in the future.” - Bright Partnerships