The Eli Manning Show Featuring Pete Davidson

ABOUT THIS ENTRY

The Eli Manning Show is a Giants in-house produced show hosted by two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning. The show explores the connection between the Giants and celebrity fans, influencers and athletes.

On a special episode of the show, Eli hosts Pete Davidson. The two spend the day at Pete's apartment exploring Pete's fandom of the New York Giants and more specifically, Eli Manning.

Since neither one has an Instagram account, Eli and Pete decide to make one together.

How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?

No professional sports team has created content this successfully at the intersection of sports, entertainment, and lifestyle while securing this type of high-profile talent for content on team social media platforms.

Helmet-off content is a vertical that most sports teams are now trying to tap into. Through The Eli Manning Show, the viewership in this vertical has increased significantly across Giants social media platforms, unlike any other team-produced content across the NFL.

With guests like Pete Davidson, the Giants saw the engagement levels spike across social media channels. The Eli Manning Show has directly led to significant growth on the Giants social media platforms. The content has resonated with viewers so much that it has led to engagements per post across all social media channels to grow 134.8% YoY, raising the Giants overall ranking from 20th in 2021 to 8th in 2022.

In addition, the Giants Tik Tok account grew 28.6% YoY, the YouTube channel grew 20%, and the Instagram account grew 15.5% YoY increase.

The Eli Manning Show has directly led to significant growth on the Giants social media platforms. The content has resonated with viewers so much that it has led to engagements per post across all social media channels to grow 134.8% YoY, raising the Giants overall ranking from 20th in 2021 to 8th in 2022.

In addition, the Giants TikTok account grew 28.6% YoY, the YouTube channel grew 20%, and the Instagram account grew 15.5% YoY increase.

Objective

The organization has taken a social-first approach to content development over the last few years in an effort to accelerate the modernization of the brand. We conceptualized “The Eli Manning Show” because it would appeal to a broad demo that went beyond how the team was performing on the field.

The guests we curated appeal to all age groups but specifically look to target a younger demo by focusing on talent that resonated on social-first platforms. Pete Davidson in particular has helped the Giants tap into the entertainment audience in such a viral way, helping to reach the demo that is looking to consume non-football related content.

Strategy & Execution

The Giants marketing team put together innovative social and public relations strategies to tease out the launch of each episode and garner earned media.

The strategy behind launching the Pete Davidson episode was highlighted by the creation of a joint Instagram account that documented their day together through strategic mixed media to promote the show. The idea came about since neither personality has an Instagram account, so we knew it would generate significant buzz.

Organizations

• New York Giants

Athletes & Creators

• Eli Manning
• Pete Davidson

Credits

Nilay Shah
SVP, Marketing & Brand Strategy
New York Giants

Don Sperling
VP & Executive Producer
New York Giants

Emma Kaptein
Manger, Social Media
New York Giants

Cristina Sinofsky
Social Media Coordinator
New York Giants

Dan Culleny
Producer

Dylan Landon
Producer