GoPro started in 2002 as a technology company specializing in rugged action cameras that allowed adventurers and athletes to capture their most spectacular moments. From the beginning, the brand focused on experiences that you want to share yourself, making GoPro less of an electronics brand and more of a community brand from day one.
One of the smartest and most influential steps in GoPro's marketing strategy was the introduction of the GoPro Awards in 2015. This global competition invites users to share their best footage and photos for recognition, rewards, and visibility. This proved to be an incredibly strong example of activating marketing and ensured that GoPro established its name once and for all.
What are the GoPro Awards?
The GoPro Awards consist of a series of content challenges where owners of GoPro cameras can participate by uploading their best clip or photo. GoPro rewards top entries with cash prizes, gear, or global exposure on official channels. Users can participate in various categories—from "Photo of the Day" to larger challenges like the Million Dollar Challenge, where participants can win a share of $1 million if their clip is used in the year highlight video.
The best submitted images are shared via GoPro's social channels, integrated into commercials, product launches, and social campaigns, allowing customers to literally become part of the brand story. That is the essence of activating marketing, which relies on your users to promote products. It fits in the same vein as Lay's with 'Make the Flavor', for example.
A Powerful Source of Brand Value
What makes the GoPro Awards so valuable for the brand is that they transform users into brand ambassadors. By rewarding and sharing content from real customers, GoPro showcases what their cameras can do, and in an authentic way. This form of user-generated content (UGC) makes campaigns more credible and inspiring than traditional advertisements could ever be.
In 2020, the company reported nearly 1 million submissions from over 180 countries, with tens of thousands of clips circulating around the world in year highlight videos.
Thanks to the awards, GoPro continuously receives new, high-quality content at relatively low marketing costs. This content showcases the capabilities and uses of the cameras in real situations, from extreme sports to breathtaking travel footage, thereby strengthening the association of GoPro with adventure, authenticity, and community.
A Community That Promotes Itself
In addition to activating and showcasing brand value, the GoPro Awards also foster community building. They create a sense of community among adventurers, athletes, travelers, and filmmakers. By keeping the barrier low and rewarding visibility, cash prizes, and hardware, GoPro encourages consumers not only to create material but also to share and connect with other creators.
For many participants, the awards are not an endpoint but the beginning of a creative career: some become full-time content creators, speak at events, or even collaborate with GoPro itself later on.
The GoPro Awards as a Marketing Breakthrough
The power of the GoPro Awards lies in three core principles:
- Authenticity over script: the emotion and energy in user-generated footage feel undeniably real and resonate widely on social media.
- Community over campaign: instead of a classic advertising campaign, GoPro builds a vibrant community that actively contributes to the brand's image.
- Content that multiplies itself: every submission can be reused, translated into TV, online, billboards, or product launches, allowing GoPro to continuously have stories that would otherwise have to be paid for.
It is one of those marketing ideas that creates value for both the consumer and the organization, and concretely fulfills GoPro's brand promise - capture life's most thrilling moments.
Put Your Users at the Center
The GoPro Awards demonstrate what happens when a brand puts its users at the center instead of its product. By putting the camera in the hands of the creator, and rewarding creators for their creativity, GoPro has transformed itself from a camera supplier to a cultural platform for adventure and storytelling.
Not only do the awards increase the brand's visibility worldwide, but they also strengthen the emotional bond with the community—something that many brands never achieve with traditional campaigns.
