Transworld Skateboarding’s Skate and Create is the mother of all made-for-magazine contests. In it’s second year, the contest delivers exclusive, unique and interesting editorial, creates a branded format, has multi-platform applications, has the support of top athletes and brands, has a huge reader interaction element and even generates revenue.
Skate and Create is a four-team contest where each team is given free reign of a warehouse full of skate obstacles for nine days to create a skate-able concept that makes for dynamic videos and images. The result is displayed in a 64-page edit piece and some of the best, most creative videos of the year hosted on the TW Skate website.
The anti-contest...
Editor-in-Chief Skin Phillips says the concept was a team effort. “We knew we wanted to do an event. We started by deciding what we didn’t like in traditional contests and what we would like to see instead. Everything about it was an anti-contest.” In addition to its unique format, Phillips says the real purpose is to give TW Skate controlled content. “The trouble we were facing in contests is that we’d be there with ten other magazines so our coverage looked the same as the others. We wanted it more like the NBA where we could control everything, that’s what makes it fresh.”
Planning starts in October and the skating and shooting goes on from February to May. The issue is created in July or August and the winner and all the content is in the October issue. Phillips says his edit team works seven months on this one issue, “but it’s so different it’s worth it.”
Results: Some of the best content of the year unseen anywhere else.
Other applications: Any magazine can create a made for mag contest. TW Snow did a great version this year (which we'll profile next month).
For more info: Skin.Phillips@transworld.net
This is awesome. I wish we could build skate parks for windsurfing!
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