2011 SAMMY Award Finalist, Best Social Creative, R/GA for Nike Black Mamba
Agency: R/GA
Brand: Nike Black Mamba
ampaign Brief: When Kobe Bryant steps on the court, he transforms into his alter ego—The Black Mamba—a force that can take over a game at will. Millions of fans watch Kobe transform into Black Mamba throughout the season, and millions talk about his performance, game in—game out. This mass appeal sparked Nike to give fans the power to unleash the Black Mamba online, through chatter on global social media networks.
We set out to mimic Kobe’s transformation at NikeBasketball.com, so when he changes, the site changes with him. We developed a custom algorithm based on keywords about Kobe. When enough fans tweet about Kobe, the site transforms to its Black Mamba state, where fans can access exclusive content—like Kobe interviews, Black Mamba wallpaper, and the chance to win Zoom Kobe VI kicks— for the next six hours. For every Mamba Moment, fans were alerted via social networks around the globe, like Twitter, Facebook, Ren Ren, and Weibo, driving more traffic to Nike Basketball. As Kobe clinched his fourth All Star MVP, the site had seen over 2 million visitors since launch. During All Star weekend, a short film starring The Black Mamba himself, alongside Danny Trejo, Bruce Willis, and Kanye West dropped, driving even more fans to the site.
Nikebasketball.com has logged over 2 million visitors since launch. During the 2011 NBA All-Star game the site drew in 91,000 fans and unlocked the Black Mamba in the first quarter. Fans have since unlocked the Black Mamba dozens of times and continue to do so today.
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