FANS HAPPY BEING BLUE IN LEADING-EDGE DIGITAL ACTIVITY

2015/06/2

Victoria Royals WHL hockey club in partnership with
Pug Pharm Productions has concluded a pilot fan loyalty activity that has
forever modernized the sports fan club into the digital age – setting a new
standard for sponsored sports fan interaction in the process.

The “Be Royal Blue Challenge” is a themed, sponsorable online fan
contesting activity that extended throughout the Royals’ team-fan touchpoints:
in-bowl, on concourse, broadcast/radio, Facebook, Twitter, sponsors, and
website. Fans who showed their passion for the team gained entry into the
online activity, which was available on mobile and web at GoRoyalsGo.com. Fun
activities earned fans colourful collectible virtual items, including their
favorite players, coaches, Marty the Marmot, sponsors, and even special instant
win sponsored prize tokens. Grand prizing events awarded valuable prize packs
throughout the season, with the most loyal Royals fans having the best chances
of winning.

Launched as a mid-season program, Be Royal Blue Challenge was able to
deeply engage fans, both during and even between games. Fan
participation in the program grew continuously, with over 76% of the total
community participating repeatedly.

According to SVP Sales & Marketing Darren Parker, “Be Royal Blue
helped our team boost sponsorship value while driving fan engagement,
participation, and sentiment. It gave us another way to reach and entertain our
fans, all while building a new revenue stream.”

Participating Be Royal Blue Sponsors included VictoriaHomes.com, The
Zone @ 91.3 FM, 100.3 The Q!, and McKays Electronic Experts. Supporting the
program was Pug Pharm’s award-winning FanGage™ Engine, a loyalty activity
platform built over the past 6+ years by a team of veteran game designers, web
technology experts, and a charismatic talking dolphin name Skip.