May 1, 2023 - This February, Netspend joined the legendary lineup of Shaquille O’Neal, Snoop Dogg, Diplo and Myles O’Neal for a larger than life kickoff to the Big Game weekend in Scottsdale, Arizona. As the presenting sponsor, Netspend helped bring the event to life with the Netspend Ferris Wheel experience, as well as the Nothing But NETspend basketball carnival game. With media coverage and the support of celebrities and influencers on-site, Netspend reached an audience of more than 5 billion over the course of the sponsorship.
Additionally, as part of the promotion, Netspend hosted the Big Game Weekend flyaway sweepstakes where one grand prize recipient received a flyaway with round-trip airfare to attend Shaq's Fun House, meet Shaq himself, and take home spending money from Netspend. Additionally, Netspend awarded 100 sweepstakes winners with prize money, alongside spending money and Netspend gear at the event.
For Shaq, the event was an incredible way to connect with his fans. "It's been amazing to see the growth of the Fun House over the last five years and we're excited to bring it to the people of Phoenix. We continue to set the standard for FUN," said O'Neal. "We're thrilled to have Netspend come on board this year and allow us to go bigger and better and even fly in fans to experience what the Fun House is all about."
As part of the event, Netspend partnered with Papa Johns to bring the Fun House experience to fan’s own living rooms. In what was Netspend’s first Augmented Reality activation, Papa Johns and Netspend launched an augmented reality (AR) experience through an eGift promotion in partnership with Shaq’s Fun House presented by Netspend. Consumers learned about the campaign courtesy of the Instagram hub hosted by basketball great Shaquille O’Neal.
The AR experience began when users pointed their phone camera at a dollar bill. As a result of the WebAR technology developed by Videobomb, the image of the dollar bill connected users to the promotion, which invited them to sign up and receive a $10 eGift discount for Papa Johns. The promotion launched the Friday before the Super Bowl, a busy weekend for food orders. By Saturday morning, 5,000 eGift codes had been claimed.
"We've long been drawn to Shaq's incredible commitment to generosity, giving, and community support. With Shaq's larger-than-life Fun House event, we're thrilled to celebrate an incredible weekend with fans and attendees," said Kelley Knutson, President of Netspend. "The opportunity to participate in Shaq's Fun House was a unique way for Netspend to align our commitment to financial access and inclusion. Through our mobile accounts, Netspend is focused on empowering people to achieve their financial dreams and build a better financial future."
Netspend's mission is to empower people to achieve their financial dreams by providing access to innovative financial services. Netspend's mobile accounts help people manage their money and build a better financial future. For over 20 years, Netspend's modern everyday payment solutions have helped more than 10 million people on their journey to financial freedom — with perks like the ability to shop, pay bills, budget and manage your money anytime, anywhere.
