Finish Line lets customers pursue hoop dreams

The Finish Line Inc. is continuing its efforts to become an omnichannel lifestyle experience with a new social media campaign.



For the second year in a row, Finish Line customers will be able to demonstrate their basketball skills via social media platforms by using the hashtag #theFundamentals on Twitter and Instagram, or submitting them via Snapchat. The digital entries will be judged by a group of NBA athletes.



“This contest showcases our comprehensive, digital engagement campaign and focuses directly on our target customers and what matters to them,” said Max Mandel, digital brand manager for Finish Line. “Through key social media influencers and elite professional athletes, we will engage with these consumers online and watch them share their talent with Finish Line’s digital community on a high level.”



Each week, the contest will focus on a different fundamental of basketball, such as dribbling, and be judged by a different NBA player, including Jerian Grant of the New York Knicks, Patty Mills of the San Antonio Spurs, Delon Wright of the Toronto Raptors, and Greivis Vasquez of the Milwaukee Bucks.



In addition, individuals who submit their videos will have the chance to travel to Under Armour’s headquarters in Baltimore, where they will meet with a designer to create a one-of-a-kind pair of Micro G Pros.



Finish Line sneaker influencers have teased the campaign. These influencers, along with the athletes, will continue to connect with customers and the brand throughout the competition by sharing contest information and promoting their favorite submissions.

Once each category’s finalists are determined by the judges, fans can vote for the overall winner on Finish Line’s blog beginning Nov. 30. The ultimate winner will be announced on Dec. 2.



In early October, Finish Line launched an omnichannel brand repositioning initiative called Epic Finish. The initiative includes digital content such as videos, media advertisements and still photography of initial celebrity partners NBA player Anthony Davis and rapper Big Sean. Customers can interact with Epic Finish online and via social media.



Finish Line also intends to make Epic Finish visible and integrated across all touchpoints. This includes in-store messaging, as well as personal interactions with store personnel, to seamlessly integrate Epic Finish across brick-and-mortar as well as digital channels.



While #TheFundamentals is not technically part of Epic Finish, it reflects the same broad thinking of how to associate Finish Line with the everyday lives of consumers, especially young consumers who closely follow and interact with athletes via social media.