Hankook Tire America Corp. has announced it is a finalist for the 2016 North America SABRE Awards for its public relations and social media campaign to support its Formula Drift racing sponsorship. The SABRE Awards, organized by The Holmes Report, a publication focused on analysis and trends in public relations, stand for “Superior Achievement in Branding, Reputation and Management.”
Hankook Tire was selected as one of five finalists in the “Sponsorship” category for its “Hankook Tire Kicks it into High Gear with Championship Program” campaign.
Developed by Hankook Tire, along with its public relations and social media agency Brodeur Partners, the campaign was designed to leverage the visibility of the sponsorship to drive engagement with media, fans and consumers through social and earned media. Formula Drift is the premier drifting series in the United States. Last season, Hankook won the tire manufacturing championship, and Hankook drivers took the championship podium finishing in first, second and third place for the season. The competitive motorsport series involves professional drivers intentionally maneuvering their high-powered cars into well-executed, controlled sideways slides at high speeds through a marked course.
The integrated campaign implemented by Hankook and Brodeur included driver interviews, experiential events, a multimedia series and social programs offering the chance to win Hankook motorsports prize packaging, to optimize brand engagement and attract more brand advocates.
Hankook stands among four other brands in the SABRE Award sponsorship category, including JetBlue, Microsoft, Benzac and Humana. The shortlist of award finalists includes close to 300 campaigns, selected from among more than 2,000 entries in this year’s competition. Entries were evaluated by a jury of more than 40 industry leaders, and Hankook was praised for its superior achievement in branding, reputation and engagement.
The SABRE Award winners will be announced on May 3 in New York.
