Drake’s Toronto Takeover Generates 127.2 Million Earned Media Impressions
Gail Chiasson, North American Editor
We’re are more than a little late with news of this campaign, since we just received it from Clear Channel Canada, but thought it worth showing our readers.
Aubrey Drake Graham, better known as Drake, is a Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor, born and raised in Toronto, Ontario. He’s no stranger to out-of-home advertising. His ‘Started From The Bottom’ video, released in 2013, features him dancing on a large-format billboard emblazoned with the song’s refrain.
In Nov./15, he bought a single billboard alongside Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway that become a viral phenomenon, racking up 86 million earned media impressions. Drake saw how out-of-home can capture attention and drive online engagement.
Well, all eyes were on the hiphop superstar heading into the 2016 NBA All-Star Game, held in the rapper’s hometown, Toronto, in February. The first ever NBA All-Star Game held outside the US would feature Drake as an official ambassador and coach of the Canadian team in All-Star Weekend’s celebrity match. Adding to the stakes, Drake’s fans were increasingly clamoring for his highly anticipated ‘Views From The 6’ album, slated to drop two months following All-Star Weekend.
Drake saw an opportunity to use the platform of All-Star Weekend to amplify buzz around his album, but also a chance to show love for Toronto, the city he calls ‘The 6ix’ (or 6). His team came to Clear Channel Canada with a strategy to pepper the city with out-of-home assets that contain insider references to Toronto. The campaign artwork didn’t include glam shots of the star or explicitly promote his forthcoming album. Instead, it featured simple expressions, graphics, and photos that made subtle reference to Toronto and his early days in the city.
During the week-long prelude to game day, Drake quietly released a crescendo of out-of-home assets across the city. The staggered release teased fans. The campaign seemed to pop up everywhere, and no one knew where or when another asset might appear. As banners, posters, and billboards sprung up in malls, airports, and alongside highways, fans and media outlets took notice.
Social media conversation quickly escalated to a torrent. Drake’s fans took to Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter to share and discuss campaign visuals. Drake himself posted Instagram shots of several campaign assets as soon as they went live. The results far exceeded expectations
To better understand the campaign’s earned media performance, Clear Channel used Sysomos, a social analytics and insights tool provider that measures social media success across earned, owned and paid channels. The resulting analytics report revealed a ton of insight into the campaign and how it unfolded.
Among the report’s highlights were:
- Earned media impressions in seven days: 127.2 million
- Top day: 3,393 unique mentions
- Unique social media mentions: 5,260
- Total impressions on Twitter: 42.2 million
- Total impressions on Instagram: 85 million
And the story was covered on a raft of various media outlets.
Certainly a coup for both Drake and Clear Channel Canada!
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