40 million college basketball fans have the same experience every March - their brackets bust.

 

THE CHALLENGE:  

 

We first began work with Realtime Brackets as an early-stage startup over 3 years ago, and fans have gone mad for the revolutionary and patented NCAA Tournament bracket app ever since. Only Realtime Brackets lets you make the call to switch a losing pick during live games.  Available points for a winning pick are dropping as the game clock runs, so the right pick made sooner scores maximum pool points. "Get into it and never be out of it" was the brand promise, and users told us that the Realtime experience was widely preferred over more well-known apps from CBS and ESPN. And asked that we expand it into more sports.  

 

In 2019, Sports Illustrated was the title sponsor, and they were looking for a long-term brand platform.

 

THE IDEA:  "BE UNBUSTABLE"

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The branding idea was built on the annual ambition of millions of college hoops fans - avoid the heartache of a busted bracket (remember UMBC vs Virginia?).  Website, video, social content and print were created to market SI's powerful platform and drive fans to sign up and play.

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