God said 'Let there be light' but this time apparently, you can decide what color. At least on the Empire State Building!
In the latest round of social media marketing, The Empire State Realty Trust and Verizon, the telecom giant, have teamed up to create what is being touted as the first ever 'social media driven' light show. The event aims at promoting the upcoming Super Bowl XLVIII where the iconic structure will either be decked in 'Denver Broncos' or 'Seattle Seahawks' colors.
On the official website, Verizon says:
Your tweets light up the Empire State Building
All week long, Verizon is turning your Super Bowl XLVIII tweets into the first social media powered light show on the Empire State Building. Tweet your answer to the daily question with #WhosGonnaWin and you can light up the night with your team's colors.
Verizon will be collecting answers, in the form of tweets, for a daily fan question with the hashtag #WhosGonnaWin. They will be scoring each team on a scale of 0-100 based on the incoming tweets. The team that has the highest number of 'positive mentions' gets to see its color on the legendary building for an hour, starting 6.00 pm.
Verizon also released a video promoting the event:
The lighting tradition that started Monday, Feb 27, saw the Seahawks dominate. The first question of the day was "Which team will own the running game?" For which the Seahawks scored 69 percent and the Broncos, 51 percent.
The Seahawks also led with one percent on Tuesday when people voted the team as the dominating defensive team. However, Wednesday was a draw. Both teams scored 71 percent on the question, "Which team will dominate the passing game?"
Thursday's question is perhaps the most debatable and interesting - "Which team has the best fans?" As of now, the Seahawks seem to be leading with 87 percent, while the Broncos are close behind at 82 percent.
Check the stats out, here. You can also find the real time response to the question of the day at the twitter feed.
"It's the fans' votes, their tweets, that will light up the Empire State Building, which I think is a really cool idea," Martin Brickman, lighting guru who also serves on the NY Super Bowl Host Committee Board of Trustees told CBS New York.
On Super Bowl XLVIII Sunday, Feb.03, the lights on the building will be synced with the game. A red, blue and white light show will appear during the national anthem. Fan predictions will be featured during half time as well.
While not decked up in a sports color, the building will be shimmering in red and gold to celebrate the onset of the Chinese Lunar New year, from Thursday through Friday. The lights will remain on until 2.00 am, according to an official press release.