Santa Sneaker Drop
An A/R-powered sneaker drop that delivered free kicks to sneakerheads around the country.
Background
In sneaker culture, it’s all about the drops. Retail stores get lines around the block and millions vye on mobile apps to snatch up super-limited stock. Unfortunately, most of the community is left empty-handed. As the world’s largest sneaker resale marketplace, eBay is celebrated for helping sneakerheads find hard-to-find kicks. So what if eBay tapped its reputation and vast inventory to host the biggest drop of the holidays?
What we did
The eBay Santa Sneaker Drop — an innovative new take on the sneaker drop with a holiday twist. It started with NBA All-Pro Anthony Davis trying to help Santa Claus deliver presents, but in the process, he lost 500 pairs of kicks. So eBay, being known for helping sneakerheads find hard-to-find sneakers, stepped in with an assist, creating an AR-powered mobile sneaker drop that the community could play from anywhere and win free shoes. In just 3 days, eBay gave away over 500 shoes for the ultimate holiday drop.
2021 Shorty Awards - Best Physical and Digital Convergence
2021 Shorty Awards - Best in Retail and E-Commerce
Enter The Drop
Anyone with an A/R-enabled phone could play. They simply visited the mobile site to enter the drop and choose a location for their virtual fireplace. It would build in and show players what dropped down the chimney. Players got to play 5 chances a day to win and eBay gave away over 500 shoes in just 3 days.
The Process
eBay partnered with a digital experience boutique specializing in custom A/R activations. Working closely together, the team concepted, designed, and built the full mobile experience in just 3 weeks.
Social Output
"Anthony Davis Is Dropping 500 Pairs Of Sneakers For eBay This Holiday, And You Can Win Them In A Virtual Experience.”
BroBible
The Reaction
2M+
entries over only 3 days as sneakerheads used the Santa Sneaker Drop game to win free hard-to-find kicks from eBay
“eBay has enlisted the help of NBA Champion Anthony Davis to launch its first-of-its-kind virtual "Santa Sneaker Drop...starting today, sneaker fans can score one of 500 sought-after pairs.”
Complex
875K+
social engagements in just 72 hours from those who loved playing the AR mobile game and experiencing this new style of sneaker drop
"With Christmas almost here, eBay and NBA star Anthony Davis will launch today a virtual “Santa Sneaker Drop.” During the event participants can get one of 500 pairs of coveted sneakers using augmented reality.”
Footwear News
2B+
earned impressions from 17 media stories, which included placement in Complex, Footwear News, Good Morning America, & ABC News
