Tennis stunt stops traffic

[Source: Sony Ericsson Open]

If only I had the time I would have posted this early, so I'm sorry it is kind of old news. I still feel like it is worth noting, because I think that Sony and Mercedes did a great job. To promote the Sony Ericsson Tennis Open in South Beach tennis stars Venus Williams and Andy Murray volleyed a tennis ball from on top of a new Mercedes GLK across the street from South Beach's News Cafe. Obviously watching two people playing tennis on top of a car isn't typical, so this brought a lot of attention to the stunt. Check out more photos on BizBash.

This isn't the first time Sony Ericsson conducted a stunt like this. Last year they did almost the same stunt with Serena Williams and Rafael Nadal who played a match on the Gansevoort South Hotel's rooftop pool. Similarly in 2007 they held a glow-in-the-dark night tennis match.

Great partnership between Mercedes and Sony Ericsson for this. Not only did it stir excitement for the Tennis Open, but it also gave Mercedes credit for being a main sponsor. The objective of the stunt was not only to build buzz around the Tennis Open, but also to broaden the viewership of the event. Not sure they accomplished that, but overall well done.