adverblog: interactive marketing and other great advertising ideas
Interactive marketing and other great advertising ideas since 2003
home   about   advertise   archives   contributors   submit a campaign

June 01, 2009
The man who motivated Michael Jordan

According to the records, Leroy Smith was the kid that took the last spot for the varsity basketball team at Emsley A. Laney High School, leaving Michael Jordan out and being this the fact always said as the beginning of the Michael Jordan's basketball legend from then on. Taken this as the core idea, this website called "Leroy Smith" tries to honor the name of Leroy as Jordan's first motivator.

leroy3.jpg

Introducing him as a motivational guru, the site recreates the usual look-alike of this kind of stuff, selling DVDs with practical drills and even asking for people signing a petition to induct Leroy into basketball Hall of Fame, all of that in a fully delirious mood and more important, being everything shareable, which makes the experience larger than the site itself.

leroy4.jpg

There is a really well crafted videogame in which you can play two by two against Leroy, making the whole site a universe about this character, released the same week of the beginning of the 2009 NBA finals, and also some presence in Facebook or a Twitter account written in the first person and with a real purpose, constantly updated and also aware of who's following it to follow the follower back, making us part of the SHAZAM trip.

I don't know exactly what's the site for, although assuming that Nike is the registrant it's probably related to a new Air Jordan shoes model, and if it is then it's really cool that they created such a story, taking a new direction in the way they've usually advertised this.

Comments on this entry

Best site I have seen all year. Amazing use of media!!

Posted by: Toby at June 2, 2009 09:11 AM

--------------------------------------

Hi, the guy is Eddy Murphy, isnt't it ?

Posted by: Publigeekaire at June 2, 2009 02:25 PM

--------------------------------------

I just found a Wikipedia page for Harvest Smith. I guess Leroy's real name is Harvest Leroy Smith Jr.

Posted by: Anthony at June 2, 2009 06:41 PM

--------------------------------------

is his older brother, Charlie Murphy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Murphy

i read it here at ESPN: http://twurl.nl/6uzow2

Posted by: Daniel Granatta at June 2, 2009 07:10 PM

--------------------------------------

Great Art Direction in the website! was created by Blast Radius :)

Posted by: Marcelo Lima at June 3, 2009 08:39 PM

--------------------------------------


Archives by category

Archives by month
Subscribe to the feed

Subscribe with Bloglines

Add to netvibes

Add to Google Reader or Homepage

Subscribe in NewsGator Online

Inside Adverblog