Toyota Racing today unveiled Tweet Race, a first-of-its-kind
virtual NASCAR race that puts the power into the fans' hands by allowing them to tweet their favorite Toyota
driver to a "virtual" victory.
The Tweet Race, which kicks off during this Sunday's (September 15) Sprint Cup Series race at Chicagoland
Speedway, enables fans to virtually participate in the excitement of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship
- the 10-race playoff to determine the 2013 champion. Racing fans can tweet a hashtag of their favorite driver's
name alongside the hashtag #TRTR during each of the final 10 races of the year, which will move their driver
along the virtual Tweet Race track. Ultimately, the driver with the most tweets that week will be crowned the
Tweet Race winner.
"The Tweet Race is a way for fans to virtually participate in the Chase for the championship, as well as support
their favorite Camry driver," said Keith Dahl, Toyota National Motorsports and Engagement Marketing
Manager. "This is yet another activity that highlights Toyota's continued commitment to providing unique and
immersive experiences for our consumers."
In addition to a winning driver following each of the 10 races, three Tweet Race participants will be selected to
win a weekly prize. Two participants will be selected from the pool of the winning driver's supporters, and the
third will be a wild card, given to the most creative tweet of the week. At the end of the 10-week Chase, a
Grand Prize winner will receive tickets to the 2014 Daytona 500.
Toyota tapped iCrossing, its digital agency of record, to create and manage the Tweet Race. The agency is also
partnering with Toyota to promote the Tweet Race through Toyota Racing's social media channels, including
efforts to engage the drivers themselves in the social media outreach.
"We're thrilled to partner with Toyota to offer consumers a chance to participate in the excitement of the Chase
for the Championship," said Brian Powley, global president of iCrossing. "We believe in the power of the
connected brand, and this experience will continue to build fan loyalty for Toyota by connecting the brand with
its audience in a distinct and engaging way."
The Tweet Race is the first social media contest and sweepstakes partnership between Toyota, NASCAR and
Twitter.
"My fan base has always been pretty active on Twitter so I'm certainly looking forward to them supporting me
in the Tweet Race during the Chase," said Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M's Camry. "It would be
awesome if I could virtually win a bunch of races along with capturing the real wins during the Chase."
Follow us on Twitter @SpeedwayDigest
Latest posts by Speedway Digest Staff (see all)