In the first two days of submissions for what Pepsi is calling the first-ever crowdsourced Super Bowl halftime introduction, the soft drink giant says it has received thousands of photos.Beginning December 29, fans have been able to submit images of themselves in pre-determined poses for a chance to appear in an on-air introduction for performer Beyonce.In order to participate, fans must visit www.pepsi.com/halftime to find the daily pose and submit a similar photograph. Poses include shouting, head bopping, feet tapping, and hip shaking.
Participants can enter up to 50 photos a day, per the official rules.Hundreds of photos submitted with the hashtag #PepsiHalftime will be used in an on-air video introduction to the Pepsi Super Bowl XLVII Halftime Show on CBS on February 3. In addition, Pepsi says it may feature submissions on the website and/or in advertising materials during the promotion period.
Photos submitted by January 11 will be eligible for the grand prize. Photos can also be submitted through January 21 for consideration in the Super Bowl ad, but they will not be eligible for the prize.
Photos will be judged on originality, creativity, and Pepsi spirit.The grand prize includes round-trip airfare, hotel accommodations, ground transportation, and $500 cash. Grand prize winners and their guests must participate in the Super Bowl halftime show practice in order to be present on the field during the halftime show. The prize does not include tickets to the Super Bowl XLVII game and Pepsi says winners will not have access to view the live game.
Fifty fans will be selected for the on-field experience.
In addition, because Super Bowl XLVII will take place at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Pepsi has a promotion for New Orleans residents in which an additional 50 winners from local retail partners will also receive an on-field experience.In a prepared statement, vice president of marketing Angelique Krembs said, "Pepsi is bringing to life its 'Live for Now' mindset which places fans at the center of this experience."Live for Now is Pepsi's global pop culture campaign that launched in April 2012.A Pepsi rep did not respond for comment by deadline.
In order to promote the campaign, @Pepsi, which has 1.1 million followers, is tweeting with the hashtag #PepsiHalftime. Pepsi is also using promoted tweets and pulling in tweets with #PepsiHalftime and #LiveforNow on Pepsi.com.Pepsi is posting similar content on its Facebook page, where it has 9.3 million fans.As of Thursday, @Beyonce, who has 6.8 million followers, had not tweeted about the promotion. Her Twitter profile photo, however, is tied to the campaign.
And, on December 29 - just in time for New Year's Eve - Pepsi put up digital billboards in Times Square to call on fans to submit photos.