If you’ve ever strapped on a pair of skis, you will undoubtedly be aware of Salomon. Endemic to skiing in its every form, the brand highlighted Strava as the cornerstone of their Fall/Winter 2019 campaign around which they sought to build a community of nordic skiers. The outcome of the campaign would prove that there is a great opportunity to reach a diverse and engaged group of athletes on Strava beyond runners and cyclists.

At the beginning of 2020 Salomon continued to show their commitment to innovating how people play outdoors with the Salomon Nordic Ski Challenge. This was the very first of its kind on Strava – a challenge that gave athletes the chance to put their cross-country skiing skills to the test and cover 90km in a six-week period. In addition to earning the very first trophy for a nordic ski challenge, athletes who completed the challenge would receive a discount code for 15% off at Salomon.com. The challenge was available globally to maximise engagement across all athletes interested in the sport, and alongside the exclusive discount for completers was an incredible grand prize offering: the top 5 athletes on the leaderboard once the challenge concluded would be invited to the Red Bull Janteloppet. Here, they would join the complete cohort of Salomon’s sponsored professional winter athletes, some of whom would also be taking part in the Nordic Ski Challenge on Strava.

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As further motivation for participants, Salomon added an extra level of competition. Their sponsored athletes Jens Burman, Sophie Caldwell and Andrew Musgrave also joined the challenge, giving everyone the chance to test themselves against the pros and get a taste of what it takes to train at the sport’s top level.

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Kicking off on the 4th February, athletes had until 16th March to cover a total of 90 km whilst cross-country skiing – a lofty yet challenging goal for those on a week-long skiing trip, or great training motivation for athletes fortunate enough to live close to the trails. The clear and simple goal of the challenge meant that participation climbed to over 43,000 athletes from all over the world – a great debut for the first challenge of its kind.

EMBRACING A NEW FEATURE
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Whilst the challenge was live, a new feature was released on Strava: a challenge completion activity banner, which is inserted into the athlete’s activity that takes them over the line and completes the challenge. This new innovation gives athletes a chance to be motivated by their friend’s accomplishment, and is a useful addition to the challenge mechanism – for Salomon, this drove a 20% uplift in challenge joins.

Launched alongside the sponsored challenge, the Salomon Nordic club was created to act as the central hub for all nordic ski-related content on Strava. Surfacing the club alongside the challenge meant that immediately, there was a new home for these ambitious nordic skiers to share their achievements, compare their efforts and to identify themselves with Salomon as a brand. Clubs and challenges go hand in hand, and the Salomon Nordic club went from 0 members to over 6,000 during the duration of the challenge. Throughout the challenge, athletes shared photos, messages of support and comments encouraging each other on to complete the challenge. The club is still thriving today!

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Inspired to engage with a community of 50 million athletes on Strava? Get in touch to find out how we can work together!