Football Ballot Scores Big for Small Market Newspaper Group

The Idea

Bessie Bosco and the team at My Horry News knew that the hype around local high school football was huge within their community, and wanted to capture that excitement and recognize the players, coaches, cheer/dance teams, athletic directors, mascots, and more that make the season one to remember.

The Execution

The team at My Horry News decided to launch a Football Fans’ Choice ballot where the community could nominate and vote for their favorite athletes, coaches, and all others included. Within the ballot, the My Horry News team got creative and secured:​

• A title sponsor that received their logo in the ballot header image and Facebook like options on the registration form
• Category sponsors for each of the categories within the ballot

They also included a full multi-media package to promote the ballot and their sponsors:

Print

• Half page ads run every week for the duration of the contest in weeklies
• Half page ads run monthly for the duration of the contest in monthly publication
• Full page ad promoting contest in Football Preview Special Section
• Full page ad announcing the winners for each category all papers

Social Media

• 21 social media posts on Facebook and Instagram created throughout the month

Emails

• 6 invite emails sent
• Local chamber also promoted campaign through their weekly newsletters

Digital

• ROS Promotional ads
• ROS Advertiser display ads

The Results

At the conclusion of the ballot, the My Horry news team also threw an event for their category winners. The event was held after the school day/workday was over and each winner was allowed to bring 2 guests. Principals, head coaches, and athletic directors from the schools of winners also invited to help support and celebrate the winners. The winner of each category also received a plaque that included the category sponsor’s logo.

Their community loved celebrating the students that won and the businesses that sponsored the promotion. My Horry News secured $13,000+ in revenue, 700+ newsletter opt-ins, and 600+ promotions and marketing opt-ins. The promotion was so popular that the My Horry News team had to create new categories because all original categories were sold out and so many businesses wanted sponsorship opportunities. They’re already brainstorming more categories for next year!