Sharecare and the Atlanta Hawks Basketball Club received the NBA Partnership of the Year award for delivering the best partner-driven campaign for the 2017-18 season, having faced competition from some of the world’s leading brands. Prior to the season, the two Atlanta-based organizations entered into an innovative, multi-year collaborative agreement and launched the Sharecare Movement, aimed at making Atlanta and Georgia among the healthiest places to live in the country.
The multi-platform strategy utilized a combination of unique co-branded digital and social content, major community events with access to wellness programs and education, in-arena and media branding along with the visibility of their jersey partnership to grow the Sharecare Movement.
The Hawks and Sharecare also collaborated to onboard local organizations and employers to extend the reach of the Sharecare Movement. Throughout the season, Sharecare announced key partnerships with the Georgia Department of Community Health to bring Sharecare’s comprehensive wellness resources to more than 400,000 members of the State Health Benefit Plan (SHBP); and Emory Healthcare on the upcoming launch of the Emory Healthcare Innovation Lab powered by Sharecare. Emory Healthcare, with more than 17,000 employees and seven hospitals, is the most comprehensive academic health system in Georgia and the official sports medicine provider of the Hawks.
“We are proud to be recognized for our landmark partnership with Sharecare. As we began having conversations and sharing our respective goals, it was clear that we both wanted to establish a relationship that benefitted our home state and local Atlanta community through technology, innovation and the promotion of healthy living,” said Hawks Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer Andrew Saltzman. “Through content creation and distribution, numerous community engagements, in-game visibility and digital activations, the Sharecare Movement has reached hundreds of thousands, and continues building momentum toward making Atlanta and Georgia among the healthiest places to live in the country and establishes Sharecare as the preeminent leader in the digital health space.”
“Our partnership with the Hawks has always been about much more than a patch on a jersey. Together, we made a commitment to use the power of sport to rally the people of Atlanta and Georgia around better health and – with the support of incredible partners like Governor Nathan Deal, SHBP and Commissioner Frank W. Berry, and Emory Healthcare – have made great progress,” said Jeff Arnold, founder and CEO of Sharecare. “Through the Sharecare Movement, we’ve created a blueprint for change, and we look forward to building on its success to help everyone – regardless of which team they root for – live their healthiest, happiest lives, no matter where they are in their health journey. We are honored that the NBA has recognized our ability to deliver on that promise.”
Marquee events throughout the season were highlighted by the following:
- The Hawks and Sharecare tipped off the season with the Atlanta Hawks Sharecare Scrimmage at Woodward Academy for students, youth groups, Sharecare employees and area youth basketball coaches. The live-streamed scrimmage followed a special coaches clinic led by Hawks assistant coaches for over 300 area youth basketball coaches. (https://www.nba.com/hawks/gallery/hawks-players-take-part-in-sharecare-scrimmage)
- Atlanta’s NBA franchise and the Atlanta Track Club teamed up for the fourth-annual Atlanta Hawks Fast Break 5K presented by Sharecare, a race held in downtown Atlanta around Philips Arena. Sharecare provided racers with premium prizes and special race photo. The race, in part, benefitted the Atlanta Police Athletic League, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing a safe environment for Atlanta youth. (https://www.nba.com/hawks/hawks-fans-run-town-2018-fast-break-5k)
- The signature event of the season was the Sharecare Heartbeat Festival in April. Held at Central Park, home of the Hawks largest outdoor court renovation project, the festival was a free and family-friendly event celebrating and rallying Atlantans around the Sharecare Movement through a variety of wellness-driven activities – from free yoga and fitness classes to health screenings, cooking demonstrations and CPR training. The event also featured the club’s first-ever city-wide 3-v-3 basketball tournament, which gathered more than 400 registered participants. Hundreds more attended the event that culminated with April 14, 2018, being declared Sharecare Day by the Atlanta City Council.
The partnership will continue to grow inside the soon-to-be transformed Philips Arena. Sharecare will have high-impact branding with a new Sharecare section, where fans who actively participate in the movement can be rewarded with free seats at home games, as well as in the arena’s new unique Atlanta Social suites, which Sharecare will utilize to reward members of the community who embody the spirit of “sharing care” – such as nurses, firemen, law enforcement officers and public school teachers – for hitting certain healthy living goals. Additionally, Sharecare and the Hawks will offer healthy food choices at the arena, and co-create ergonomic chairs to be used for both the Hawks and visiting team benches, slated to launch in the 2018-19 season.
Follow @eldorado2452 on Twitter and Instagram for all your Atlanta Hawks, NBA and sports news.
© 2018, Eldorado2452. All rights reserved.
