Upper Deck Revives “Trade Jordan” Marketing Stunt From 1992
In 1992, decades before viral marketing was a thing, Upper Deck pulled off one of the most memorable marketing stunts of all time. The sports card company secretly put up a billboard in Chicago: It was plain white, with only two words: “Trade Jordan.” The effort instantly became local news, and then national news. Trade Michael Jordan? The Chicago Bulls superstar who had just led the team to back-to-back championships, earning an MVP award in the process? It was, of course, a ruse. Upper Deck was not trying to persuade the Bulls to trade MJ, rather they were eager to announce something new: An exclusive licensing agreement for trading cards, images of which ultimately replaced that stark white billboard. 35 years later and Upper Deck is reviving the billboard, featuring it in a new video marketing campaign about, of course, Michael Jordan, who has signed an extension with the brand, continuing the partnership that has lasted decades, even as the sports and media landscape has changed so dramatically. The new campaign’s tagline? “You Don’t Trade …
