Hacking A Big Game

New Balance wanted to enter the e-sports arena while remaining true to their “Fearlessly Independent since 1906” mantra. We wanted to create an experience for gamers that connected with the brand’s hometown of Boston and didn’t come off as another Gen X brand trying too hard to be one of the cool kids.

Research revealed 65% of our Millennial and Gen Z consumers were heavy gamers, with 30% gaming for 20 or more hours per week. They were three times more likely than the average consumer to be on the Twitch platform (YouTube was a close second) and 4x four times more likely to engage with influencers.

Armed with those insights, we signed Fortnite gamer Jack “Cizzorz” Cizek, an independent gaming influencer popular on Twitch and YouTube with a passion for charities on the New Balance roster. Using Jack’s exclusive Fortnite creator code, we built a racecourse in Fortnite with seven obstacle-filled levels inspired by famous stages of the Boston Marathon.

When the campaign reached the finish line, 1M players from 34 countries had attempted the Fun Run, 35M+ race video views were created (14x the number of paid views), and 2.1M social engagements fueled a 6% engagement rate, more than 6x brand benchmarks.