The San Francisco Marathon was the perfect way to promote Biofreeze on our mobile billboard truck screens and be part of the race, encouraging runners in a personal way.
The San Francisco Marathon is an annual event held from June to August in San Francisco, California since 1977. Participants can run the entire marathon, two half marathons, an ultra-marathon, or a 5K, depending on their preference.
The event is certified by the USA Track & Field (also known by its acronym USATF), which is the non-profit entity in charge of athletic sports in the United States.
The race currently consists of a circuit that begins and ends in the same place, the Embarcadero near the Ferry Building. But throughout the route, the participants run by many of the city’s most memorable landmarks, such as Fisherman’s Wharf, Aquatic Park, Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park, and AT&T Park.
The strategy for this campaign took the runners by surprise and encouraged them to push their limits kilometer by kilometer. Why? Because the message each one of them received through our screens was personal and personalized! In our campaign, we connected with runners’ families before the race began, and we asked them to record a special message from them for each runner. We also added some extra incentives. Next to our first advertising truck, there was a group of people cheering the runners, which encouraged them to continue the race smiling. And next to our second truck, there was a band that played the drums to the beat of the runners’ step, giving them some energy back. These incentives gave the runners the push they needed to continue running their way to victory.
¿What did we do with the videos? We placed two digital billboard trucks along the race route, one at the beginning and one at the end. When runners passed in front of the four hi- definition screens, we played the videos encouraging and cheering them on to the finish line.
None of the runners expected to see something like this during the race, and beyond surprising them, it also filled their hearts with joy and motivation to continue running. We thought being at two crucial parts of the race was a great way of reminding runners that their loved ones were behind them 100%.
This was possible thanks to the technology and innovation of our out of home advertising trucks. They became the perfect allies of the families and loved ones of the participants to show them how pride they were of the effort and dedication they kept putting in the race as the ran towards the finish line.
No matter how long or how far they ran, all participants should be admired for their effort, commitment, and dedication. Biofreeze knew that and wanted to make them feel so special that they would never, ever forget the victory they took home just by deciding to enter The San Francisco Marathon 2019.