Case Studies
In fulfilling the company’s mission to “Put farmers at the center of creating a better world for everyone,” we first needed to convince their own employees that they were more than just a butter company. In fact, dairy is less than 10% of revenue. Land O’Lakes, Inc is really an agriculture company whose business units also represent animal nutrition, crop inputs and carbon offset marketplace, all in service of their owner: American Farmers. Because Land O’Lakes, Inc is actually a 125 year old cooperative.
Starting with the development of a new Brand Strategy that centered on a line, Rooted in Tomorrow, we developed a complete brand identity refresh. An updated logo, reflecting how each business unit contributed to the corporate mission, was followed by a full update of corporate standards, supported by a film intended to bring this new positioning and identity to life. Why? Because if your employees don’t believe in and live the brand, you’ll never be authentic enough to get consumers to believe it.
For anyone to truly believe that “farmers are at the center of creating a better world for everyone”, we needed to dispel common consumer misperceptions that farmers and farming were controlled by corporations and mass agriculture. The fact is, that 98% of American farms are family-owned. And 88% of all the food we eat come from those farms. And what better place to drive that message home than in our Farmer’s backyard? So we partnered with the Big10 Network right in America's heartland, the Midwest. We used TV, social, influencers, digital media and a heavy dose of experiential (on National Farmers Day) during halftime of the Nebraska Cornhuskers vs Purdue Boilermakers football game.
The results of this campaign were both powerful and impactful. We raised Land O’Lakes, Inc’s brand reputation across all levels: general reputation was up +7%, the brand authenticity up +8%, genuineness of purpose +9%. And at the end of the year, TIME Magazine named Land O’Lakes one of the 100 Most Influential Companies in the World and their CEO, Beth Ford, one of TIME’s 100 Most Inspiring Leaders in the World.
When, after 40 years, The Sundance Film Festival felt it had outgrown Park City, UT, it sent out an RFP for a new home. Over the course of several months, they narrowed the field down from about 70 considered destinations to three: Salt Lake City, Cincinnati and Boulder, CO.
In order to give Boulder, clearly the smallest of the three, its best chance, we needed to get the Sundance board, key decision-makers and our own citizens excited, motivating and involved. Colorado’s bid leadership tapped me to lead the development of a plan to do just that. The challenge? There was no budget. I had to do this pro bono, and so would anyone I hired to help. So we’re talking scrappy. But we’re also talking the Sundance Film Festival, so it had to look, sound and feel high end. That’s when I rolled up my sleeves alongside a couple of local filmmakers, Household Films. I developed the strategy and wrote the script. Household reached out to other Colorado filmmakers to donate footage that they’d edit. Then we need a powerful voiceover. So I reached deep into my contacts, crossed my fingers, and sent a text… to none other than William H Macy, resident of Woody Creek, Colorado. And not only did he say yes, he said he’d do it for free.
With the help of our film, Boulder prevailed. But as powerful as the film turned out to be, most of the credit goes to the hardworking people at our CVBs, government officials and local business people. See ya in 2027!.
What started as a small brand called BarkThins under the Hershey umbrella, I was hired by Crispin Porter + Bogusky to not only grow the brand, but the agency’s relationship with Hershey. Based on the breakthrough work on BarkThins, we were invited into a pitch for a new brand called Cookie Layer Crunch. Upon winning that pitch, we were awarded with the launch of the first new Hershey bar in 25 years, Hershey’s Gold. After that, came Ice Breakers and Twizzlers and Kisses. And after 6 months of running lead on BarkThins, I got news from the CMO that Hershey decided to consolidate all brands with the agency. Sales were up across the board on everything we worked on for Hershey and revenue skyrocketed for CP+B. Win win.
Woody Creek Distillers had been around for 10 years, making award winning spirits up in the Roaring Fork Valley, just outside of Aspen, Colorado. They had grown their distribution, but were lost in a sea of brands that claimed local, batch, craft, authentic, etc, etc. A classic case of commoditized brands all communicating the same product attributes, rather than building an emotional connection with their consumers. And though they had a truly compelling story to tell, would anyone want to listen to another story about ingredients, process and place? Well, we thought they would if it’s William H. Macy, neighbor, frequenter and fan of Woody Creek Distillers telling the story. Starting with a package redesign to bring the brand together and enhance its presence on-shelf, we then created a long-form film with cutdowns, social assets and on-premise signage to drive awareness and distinctiveness to the Woody Creek brand. And, people responded. Sales were up 44% in the first year we introduced the campaign. We’ll drink to that.