It’s one of those weekends you’ll never forget. It’s going to be up there with the best college road trip you’ve ever experienced or the really cool golf outing where you played a great course or even that time you got a free dinner…or hotel room…or gifts.
Now before I get started, I need to disclose that I am a loyal AT&T customer. I am a customer of theirs for my mobile coverage, home phone, internet and cable. That turns out to be a total coincidence but it helps to reinforce my decision to be a customer of this brand.
This ultimate weekend actually began a few weeks before as March Madness was raging on across the nation…
Are you the Ultimate Fan?
That’s the question communication giant AT&T asked in their on-line promotion for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, also known as March Madness, that leads up to the Final Four. Using the hashtag #BracketFanatic, they were looking to identify the most supportive (and social) fan of the teams that could qualify for the Final Four in Indianapolis. As the Elite Eight games wrapped up and four lucky but skilled teams punched their tickets to Indy, AT&T had their sights set of fans of Michigan State, Duke, Wisconsin and Kentucky to select as their #BracketFanatic winner.
Lucky for me, one of my good buddies is Michael McClure of Plymouth, Michigan. He just happens to be incredibly skilled on social media (with over 55K followers on Twitter and a founder of one of the largest Facebook groups) but is also a Michigan State graduate. He was contacted shortly after the Spartans punched their ticket to Indianapolis by some people from GroupCSE – a sports promotion company enlisted by AT&T to find the ultimate fans of each Final Four school. The immediate thought screamed “Internet Scam” the same way those tweets that guarantee “a free Mac from Bill Gates for everyone who retweets this” After a flurry of texts and emails between Michael and the CSE team, he realized this was as real as it could be and he was headed to Indy for an all-expenses paid trip to enjoy one of sports greatest spectacles…along with 3 of his friends.
And People Say There’s No ROI in Social Media
I’ve known Michael for about 5 years now. We met on Twitter. Ironically, we started one of our first conversations as I was sitting at an Ohio State basketball game when the Buckeyes were playing Michigan State. 5 years later and we have become great friends and collaborated on several business endeavors.
When Michael reached out and invited me to be his guest in Indianapolis, I think it took me about as long as it takes to Retweet one of Michael’s posts to say “yes.” Admittedly, the “all expenses paid” clause kind of comes through in ALL CAPS and made the decision easier but as a massive sports fan, the opportunity to witness the Final Four with a good buddy made it a simple decision. I would later get to meet Tracy (Michael’s college roommate at MSU) & Brendon (Michael’s nephew) who I now consider friends.
That innocent conversation about the Chicago Bulls championship teams of the 90’s on Twitter years ago that was basis of our relationship cost me $0.00 yet the return on investment has been priceless…and was about to get much better.
Surprise & Delight
The team from GroupCSE that was assigned to the “Ultimate Fan” winners was led by Bryan, Hannah and Jay. There was also a bunch of other amazing staffers who were in Indy to carry out the AT&T initiative to “surprise and delight” other customers and those who were socially engaged with the action during March Madness.
In order to keep this post shorter than it would if I gave “play-by-play” details of our weekend, let me just give you the overview of the awesomeness that ensued when we arrive in Indy:
- Check in at the Marriott Downtown Indianapolis. This was the home hotel for the tournament favorite undefeated Wildcats of The University of Kentucky along with #BigBlueNation, the thousands of loyal fans that follow UK on the road. [Had this been a “scam” I had warned Michael that he would end up the subject of an urban legend, lying in bathtub of a Motel 6 in Terre Haute, full of ice with his kidneys missing]
- As we entered our room, we suddenly realized how Oscars presenters feel with they get their “swag bag” of gifts from sponsors. AT&T had covered our beds with Michigan State apparel, NCAA Final Four apparel, Beats headphones and speakers, a Fit Bit, VISA gift cards, mobile chargers and more. I could have gone home and watched the games on TV and this would have been considered a win.
- We were rushed out of our rooms because the GroupCSE had arranged for us to enjoy dinner at the iconic St Elmo’s Steakhouse. Imagine being seated at one of the best restaurants in town and being told, “AT&T hopes you enjoy your meal.” An incredible menu, an open bar and a weekend of fun ahead. We didn’t go crazy but we did enjoy their world-famous shrimp cocktail, dry-aged steaks and amazing desserts. [Bonus “Right Place/Right Time moment when I ran into CBS Sport’s announcer Bill Raftery on the street after our meal while hailing a cab]
- What next? Oh, you want us to meet you across town for the Imagine Dragons concert, along with full VIP access to the AT&T Pavilion, front row mosh pit and backstage viewing areas? Who says there’s no ROI on social media?
- We visited the Hall of Champions on Saturday morning to see all the amazing things the NCAA encompasses. Great Final Four history as well as other collegiate sports and student athletes were featured.
- Access to the Turner/CBS Pre-Game party was a special treat before the semi-final games tipped off. This “VIP” section of Fan Fest included food, bars, pool tables, air hockey and celebrities such as Charles Barkley, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Dennis Miller.
- Amazing tickets to the Final Four where we witnessed Duke’s victory over Michigan State and Wisconsin’s amazing victory over previously undefeated Kentucky.
The weekend wasn’t over but with Sunday being Easter and my hometown of Columbus only being 175 miles away, I woke up early and headed home to spend the day with my family. Easter Brunch and golf with my kids was on my agenda so I ducked out early and made it home by 9am. I had a new class starting on Monday so my plan was to head back to Indy on Monday afternoon for the Championship Game between Duke and Wisconsin.
Little did I know what I was going to miss over the next 36 hours…but I’m not jealous or disappointed that I wasn’t there and I promise I’ll share details in another post.
Welcome Back to Indy
Traffic sucked getting back to Indianapolis but I made it back a few hours before game time. I was greeted by Hannah and Bryan and we headed back to the Turner/CBS Pre-game location for a little pre-game cocktail party. It was so much fun hanging out behind the VIP velvet ropes and relaxing with the other AT&T Ultimate Fans from Duke and Kentucky.
We headed into Lucas Oil Stadium and were excited to witness history. It was an amazing game that saw both teams take leads but in the end , Duke prevailed and won the school’s 5th National Championship. Love ’em or hate ’em (I lean toward the “hate ’em” side) there’s not disputing Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s greatness and the fact that Duke was the better team in this year’s tournament. 
The post-game gathering of the “ultimate fan” attendees and the GroupCSE staff was probably one of my favorite moments of the weekend. It was nothing fancy as we just gathered in the bar of the Marriott and enjoyed some post-game beverages. We laughed at stories about where we were from, what we have done and where we want to go.
Basically we sat there until 3AM building relationships, solving problems and having fun. My only regret is we weren’t allowed to stay there until 4AM.
I’m sure I’ll attend future sporting events but I’m not sure if I’ll have the chance to attend one like this. I’m sure I’ll receive amazing hospitality at future events but I’m not sure if it’ll will be anything like this. I’m sure I’ll spend time on social media participating in social chats, contests and promotions and I”ll undoubtedly retweet, share and promote hashtags but I’m pretty sure I’ll never be able to thank AT&T (and the team at Group CSE) for this experience. Everything about it was a surprise and a delight.
Imagine what might happen in your business if you could find a way to make your customers, clients, supporters and fans feel the “surprise and delight” we felt in Indianapolis?