NFL star Drew Brees and Olympic softball gold medalist Jennie Finch know hard work and great gear can add up to being a star on the field. Now they're helping amateur and aspiring athletes get a leg up on the competition through a Facebook-based contest from Dick's Sporting Goods.
You can enter the Untouchable Moment Sweepstakes through a tab on the company's Facebook Page. Fans are entered to win a one-hour shopping spree with Brees or Finch to get the best equipment and, hopefully, the best performance.
[More from Mashable: eBay Virtual Garage Pimps a Million Rides]
Dick's Sporting Goods is promoting the hashtag #Untouchable for fans and consumers to chat about the brand and memorable athletic moments.
Both athletes told Mashable the combination of equipment and social media is one that works.
[More from Mashable: Consumers Believe Facebook Users Should be Older than Age 13 Requirement [INFOGRAPHIC]]
Brees said an "untouchable" moment occurs when an athlete reaches a sort of nirvana where nothing can go wrong. It's a "moment that will live for ever and no one can ever take away from you," he said.
Finch said such moments are hard to come by even for top athletes, but "that's what you train and those moments make all those hours of training and sacrifice well worth it."
Appropriate for a contest based on a Facebook Page, Brees and Finch are both enthusiastic users of social media.
"My target audience is the younger girls," said Finch, who has been playing softball since age 5. "I hope to encourage and inspire them and social media is where they are."
Finch maintains active Facebook and Twitter page. Brees, meanwhile, spends most of his time on Twitter.
"I'm on Twitter quite a bit to connect with fans, to keep them updated on what I'm involved in, and then follow others as well for news and information," he said.
Suzanne Guzzo, senior manager of digital consumer engagement for Dick's, also sees social media as an essential component of the Untouchable campaign. By hosting the sweepstakes on Facebook, she said, "we’re providing our fans with an amazing opportunity to gear up for an upcoming season at a Dick’s store with Drew or Jennie, but we’re also giving them a venue to continue the conversation with others that share their same passions.”
Do you think the Dick's Untouchable Moment Sweepstakes is an effective use of social media? Let us know in the comments. Also, check out the campaign's TV commercial, below, just because it's a cool ad:
This story originally published on Mashable here.
