We broke the mold of a typical sports sponsorship by creating The Hoopers. An original series, starring the NBA’s top players as a faux sitcom family—along with a helpful friend next door who proves “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.”

The show was an instant hit, resonating in basketball culture with witty, insider humor. So much so, one of the characters—NBA All-Star/rapper Damian Lillard—launched an official music video called "Droppin Dimes." Basketball slang for making an assist, "Droppin’ Dimes" showed fans that State Farm can assist them with home and auto insurance.

The Hoopers were introduced to the world via an integrated launch on Christmas Day, the unofficial start of the NBA season. From there, the family and their State Farm agent were ever-present across the NBA landscape throughout the season.

From new chapters unfolding in broadcast, to intercepting fans on sports-endemic sites, to in-arena and broadcast integrations at major NBA games and events, The Hoopers did it all. They even took a road trip to the NBA playoffs, which fans followed on their social channels, and interacted with in local markets via items that The Hoopers left behind.

All in all, The Hoopers and their friendly neighbor were present wherever basketball fans were, using the context of basketball to convey that even an All-Star family could use an assist from State Farm.

During The Hoopers' run on TV, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube, State Farm owned 88% of the conversation among all competitors—reaching 100% share twice—a record-breaking statistic.

In just 4 days, the brand drove 18.6 million Twitter impressions, and the "Droppin’ Dimes" music video gained 1.5+ million YouTube views. PR efforts led to over 1 billion impressions and generated over 24 media placements. All of which helped State Farm change the game of what a true sports sponsorship could be.

The Hoopers is a story about a faux sitcom family, which naturally unfolds across the media landscape. Fans could watch the commercials like a TV show, follow the family’s adventures on social, and watch their hip-hop music videos. Once The Hoopers story was introduced to the world, fans, sports personalities, and even award-winning authors got in on the action, all leading to over 1 billion impressions and millions of video views.

To show NBA fans the value of having a State Farm agent, we created an original series starring the NBA’s top players as a sitcom family—along with a helpful friend next door who proves “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.”

To deepen the experience, fans could follow the family’s adventures on Instagram and Twitter. In basketball stadiums, we featured Hoopers Bloopers. Best-selling author, Shea Serrano, started writing backstories about the characters. And we launched an official music video. The song was such a hit, fans made it their own, and it was celebrated across sports media.

Most sports sponsorships are superficial at best. Brands spend millions to wrap arenas with logos, but rarely give fans a reason to care. So, how did we make State Farm—a 95-year-old insurance company—matter to today’s basketball fans?