At Upper Deck we pride ourselves on bringing fans closer to the game and the game’s greatest stars. By producing premium trading card releases and the world’s greatest memorabilia, the company has no shortage of fans, but unlike other corporations, Upper Deck thoroughly enjoys engaging supporters in new and exciting ways. Lots of times that engagement comes through hobby shop partners or at events, but in this new age of social media, there are some great opportunities to create engagement online.
There was the time Upper Deck partnered with spokesman Landon Donovan to surprise a fan with a personalized holiday card. Then Upper Deck surprised some college football fans with their very own trading cards. And of course the time a die-hard fan on Twitter was give a special anniversary card for Valentine’s Day. One of the best Valentine’s Day surprises had to be the Ultimate Wedding Proposal where Upper Deck worked with a fan to have his wedding ring embedding in a trading card that his fiancé opened during a “box break” video.
With this history established, it is not surprising the company wanted to do something fun with Michael Crew who is a devout Rory McIlroy fan, a golf enthusiast and a very vocal Upper Deck supporter on Twitter. One thing I always thought would be very cool was to send a fan a personal note from an athlete they love on Upper Deck stationary. When we approached Rory and his team with that idea, they were on board. During our recent signing session for trading cards and memorabilia, Rory was able to take a moment out and put pen to paper thanking Michael for his support and reflect on Michael cheering Rory on to victory at the BMW Championship. After he signed it, Upper Deck Authenticated staff added the hologram to the piece along with a certificate of authenticity for Michael.
Imagine getting a package one day that had a personalized note from your favorite athlete. That’s EXACTLY what happened to Michael Crew when he received a special note from superstar golfer Rory McIlroy.
Now here is a very unique sports collectible I don’t think you will ever see Michael sell on eBay!
Talk about a one-of-a-kind collectible!
Upper Deck sent the card to Michael on Monday and several of us at the office were monitoring Twitter waiting for it to explode when he received this very unique gift that he had no idea was coming. Take a look at what happened when he got word of the package and later received the note from Rory.
@indianagolfpro – @UpperDeckSports wife just called and said a pkg arrived via fed ex!!! Wasnt expecting anything! OMG what did you do!
@indianagolfpro – @UpperDeckSports @PGA_rorymcilroy Ooooooooooooooooooooooo Myyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy Goooooooooooooooooosssssshhhhh!!!
@indianagolfpro – This is the most insane gift I have ever received @UpperDeckSports @PGA_rorymcilroy! You just made this 31 yr old man, CRY! Glorious tears!
@indianagolfpro – @UpperDeckSports @PGA_rorymcilroy you just made me sooo happy! My 11 yr old son was with me at the BMW. He’s goin nuts right now!
Upper Deck would like to thank Rory McIlroy for being a part of this “social surprise.” At Upper Deck we look forward to producing some of the most innovative cards and collectibles in the market, but we also like to be innovative with programs we run that engage our fans. Expect more of that in the future!
