3AW Football Radio was steadily losing its audience. Once loyal listeners were now following the game live on their smartphones. And worse still, on rival radio stations. We didn't just need to win back listeners, but also their loyalty. Our solution needed to establish a bond between football fans and the 3AW commentary team.

Vivid, off-the-wall radio commentary has always been a hallmark of Australian Rules Football. With ‘It’s your call’, we reminded football fans that radio commentary could be more colourful than any screen. Using the 3AW Facebook page, we gave fans the chance to create live game commentary.

Footy fans were all over it “like seagulls around a potato cake”. Daily engagement on 3AW Facebook page increased 140% and average daily reach increased 280% (Source: Facebook Insights). We turned participants into listeners, gaining 72,000 unique listeners during the football season. 3AW Football went from 3rd and slipping, to Australia’s number 1 rated sports radio station (Source: GfK Group).

Using the 3AW Facebook page, we gave fans the opportunity to create and submit their own hilarious football commentary calls before each week’s big game. And each week, the funniest, most entertaining submissions were used during LIVE game commentary, read out by the 3AW commentary team. The commentators also engaged with fans directly by recording all their favourite calls and posting them back on Facebook. Calls that earned the most kudos on Facebook were featured in our print and radio ads.

We knew we couldn't rely solely on radio advertising to attract new listeners when they’re locked in on another station or watching the game on their phone. We needed to go where footy fans were: showing their passion for their footy team on Facebook. To spread the word about this unique opportunity, we leverag-ed the Australian Football League’s large fan base on Facebook. We also targeted fans of the football teams playing in each week’s big game, to spur on participation based on sporting rivalries.