Mtn Dew's Indy 500 Campaign Blends In-Person and At-Home Promo

By Brendan Menapace

Mtn Dew is giving Indianapolis residents a chance to show their local pride and gratitude toward the people who helped keep the city moving during the pandemic by sharing inspirational messages throughout the city.

The “Project Green Means Go” campaign will allow residents to submit messages that will be printed onto 500 branded flags and placed around town before the Indianapolis 500 race on Memorial Day Weekend.

It’s a nice gesture for the people of Indianapolis, as it boosts the profile of the city during a major event, and affectionately recognizes the locals who worked so hard during the pandemic. Also, each submitted message will result in a $40 donation to the Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana.

But the bottom line here is that it really looks good for Mtn Dew.

Robert Williams from Marketing Dive described the positive impact it has for the brand:

Mtn Dew's campaign also has an inspiring message that should help to encourage good will toward its brand. By urging people to share their civic pride and appreciation for people who helped to sustain the city during the health crisis, Mtn Dew is positioning itself as a brand that gives back to communities. With studies indicating consumers tend to favor brands that show how they're supporting others during the pandemic, Mtn Dew is more likely to ingratiate itself with Indianapolis residents.

Williams also noted that this is a shift away from the home advertisement used during the pandemic, as vaccine rollouts and dropping infection rates allow for in-person sporting events once again, albeit at reduced capacity in some cases. The Indy 500 was canceled last year, so having it back this year is a big deal for the city.

"The Indy 500 race weekend has always been a weekend of celebration—for not only the drivers and the fans, but the entire Indianapolis community," driver Marco Andretti said in a press release. "The return of this year's race brings back that celebration for all of us, which is why I'm excited to be partnering with a brand like Mtn Dew who's bringing the fans together and is helping to make local community support to my partner Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana a priority."

As fans flock to the city once again, brands like Mtn Dew no longer have to rely on promotional campaigns that appeal only to TV viewers. With live events returning, products like signage and flags strategically located around an event are viable again.

Still, that shift to in-person advertising isn’t fully there yet, and Mtn Dew was smart enough to make this “Project Green Means Go” campaign sort of a hybrid of “you need to be there” and “you can enjoy this from home” promotion.

Part of the campaign entails people buying specially marked Mtn Dew products and scanning codes to receive racing-themed promotional products. The grand prize is the “Ultimate Race Day Starter Kit,” which sounds a lot like other home kits for sporting events.

This is really a well-rounded campaign. It involves printed flags, personalization, promotional products, an interactive component, social media through the special hashtags, and labels for the specially marked Mtn Dew bottles. Kudos to the marketing minds behind the multichannel promotional effort.