HUGH REINBOLTSTRATEGY DIRECTORSOCIAL, CREATOR & CONTENT
London, UK
VELO / McLaren campaign.
20TEN

VELO /
McLaren.

A place for fans on the grid.

Social & CommunityCreator & InfluencerContent & Platforms

The challenge

F1 and gaming fans shared a passion for competition but experienced these worlds separately. VELO needed a compelling way to connect both communities through its McLaren partnership.

The idea

Give fans the chance to race their heroes. A creator-led esports series connected racing, entertainment and participation through bootcamps, masterclasses and open qualifiers.

My contribution

I developed content and engagement strategy alongside the Strategy Director and creative team, co-developing the content strategy and media plan and translating creative concepts into a campaign ecosystem and channel-specific plans.

Selected Executions

The Results

136m

Campaign content views

104%

Subscriber growth

715m

PR reach

34%

View rate

Strategic Approach

Make the audience a participant.

YouTube culture made the series entertainment worth following, rather than a sponsorship announcement. Rory Reid, Craig David and Supercar Blondie brought distinctive voices to racing challenges, bootcamps and masterclasses; open qualifiers gave fans a way to join them.

The engagement strategy connected these moments across channels so the series could move from anticipation to active participation. It was developed collaboratively with strategy and creative colleagues.

Inside the Strategic Thinking

What I brought to the work

  • Strategy and YouTube cultureCo-developed the content and engagement strategy, joining F1, gaming and YouTube culture in a shared fan experience.
  • Participation ecosystemConnected Rory Reid, Craig David, Supercar Blondie and open qualifiers through bootcamps, masterclasses and Beat Your Heroes.
  • Agency collaboration and briefingReported to the Strategy Director, briefed the creative team and translated the campaign into channel-specific plans.

What this demonstrates

A sponsorship becomes more distinctive when the audience has a role inside it. Creator entertainment and a genuine participation route can make the partnership useful to two related communities.

Original Global Champions strategy matrix.

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