Pizza chain Papa John’s is great at tapping into their audience using social and digital media tactics. Though they are not a client of Fanscape’s, I am a personal fan of the brand (I very much enjoy my pig-out on junk food Saturdays), and find many of their initiatives extremely smart and forward thinking. Today, Papa John’s announced a promotion where anyone that becomes a “fan” of their Facebook page from now until March 24 will be entered to win two tickets to the NCAA Men’s Final Four in Detroit. Not only is this a great way to get exposure for their brand and fans on Facebook but a great way to connect with the right customers. Papa John’s knows their audience and is very clear about the kind of brand they want to be. This isn’t the first college basketball campaign launched by the brand – during last year’s NCAA Tournament, Papa John’s launched the microsite PapasPanFan.com where basketball fans could upload their photos in celebration of the tournament and get a coupon for discounted products.

Aside from basketball, Papa John’s has launched promotions around the NFL including their “Count Down to Kick Off” promotion, which promised to giveaway pizzas for 25 cents (in honor of their 25th Anniversary) to everyone who registered online if the opening kickoff of Super Bowl XLIII was returned for a touchdown. In 2008, the brand launched “TEXTra Points 4 Pizza” allowing fans to register via text message for their chance to get 50% off a large pizza if the score in either NFL playoff game was 50 points or higher (cumulative). They followed this with a 75% off promotion if the Super Bowl score was a cumulative 75 points or higher.

Many brands fancy themselves great at promoting products to their target audience through sponsorships and events, but Papa John’s is providing a real value to their customers. By providing targeted incentives they continue to prime the landscape for the growth of brand loyalists and positive brand association. I’m interested to see what they do next!