How the Pacers teamed up with Netflix's 'The Night Agent' to upgrade a fan's seats
The streaming service worked with the Pacers and found a creative way to not only promote the return of "The Night Agent," but also create a memorable experience for two lucky fans.
[Disclaimer: I collaborated with Netflix on the return of one of my favorite shows and how they used an in-game promotion at a recent Pacers game to tease it.]
During Saturday’s Pacers win over the Philadelphia 76ers, team mascot Boomer answered the call.
At the second timeout, eight minutes into the game, the lights inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse dimmed and a special promotional video appeared on the giant video screen for the sellout crowd (17,274) enjoying the game.
First, a trailer played for Netflix’s hit series “The Night Agent,” which I cannot recommend more. It’ll rope you in quickly and leave you wanting more after the first episode.
Even better, “The Night Agent” is back for Season 2. And it's so popular Netflix already renewed it for Season 3. Created by Shawn Ryan (The Shield & SWAT), S2 follows Peter as a full-time agent, out of the White House basement and into the field where danger is everywhere and trust is in short supply.
This wasn’t just an ad for the series. No, it was much more than that.
After showing the trailer, the video board showed Boomer walking down a narrow hallway (resembling the White House basement) toward a black phone atop a table.
Boomer answers it and hears the voice of Peter.
“Boomer, you’ve got your own mission. You need to find the two loudest Pacers fans and move them to the lower level. Go find them now!”
The Hall of Fame mascot then entered section 210, went up about 12 rows and over six seats. He chose a father with a young child to upgrade from the balcony to lower level to enjoy what was a 115-102 victory for the Pacers, who’ve won 14 of their last 18 games.
Watch how it all went down during the in-game timeout below:
This was a fun and creative way for Netflix, which shared on Tuesday that they now have 301.6 million global subscribers, to get the word out about the return of one of its most popular shows.
It also demonstrated how an NBA team is willing to be a forward-thinking partner in teaming up to send fans to the streaming platform.
Further promotion for the TV series continued to rotate on the ribbon boards throughout The Fieldhouse during the game (as seen above). And perhaps it had fans turning to their phones, opening up the app to find the series and request a reminder.
Leading up to its return on Thursday, Jan. 23, the series has returned to Netflix’s top 10 most-watched TV programs.