Record Rack®View Work
As of December 2010, Record Rack® sales exceeded projections by 35%
Marketing situationtop
Record Rack®—a division of the Sportsman's Choice® brand from Cargill—is a national producer of high-nutrition deer and elk feeds. They approached Wingnut to develop a new, complete marketing plan for 2010. This included building a stronger web presence, engaging and educating hunters on year round feeding, and guiding Record Rack® through their expansion into more than 900 Tractor Supply Company® stores, coast to coast.
Marketing challengetop
  • Perceived high cost of feeding.
  • To supplant corn as the default feed for those feeding the deer on their property.
  • Educate the audience about the importance of feeding year round rather than just in the fall.
  • Create messaging that appealed to not only the hunter but the professional deer rancher.
    • Marketing Solutiontop
    Wingnut responded with a complete 360-degree plan including in-store, print and television support. Based on Cargill's five-plus decades of animal research, the theme "Buckology™" was created. Buckology™— the science behind the sport™—covers education on everything from the eating habits and nutrition requirements of deer, to the feeding guidelines and tips that give hunters an edge when it comes to landing the biggest rack in the area.
  • A print and online "Buckamonial" campaign ran in various hunting publications.
  • Fifteen and thirty-second TV ads ran in the fall on the Pursuit network to educate hunters on the benefits of year-round feeding programs.
  • Multiple tactics within the Tractor Supply Company® retail environment.
  • Educating the sales force and giving them hats that identified them as a "Resident Buckologist."
    • Real resultstop
    Our efforts helped expand distribution to more Tractor Supply Company® stores and created a foundation to further build upon the Record Rack® brand.
    The College of St. ScholasticaView Work
    In just over a year, St. Scholastica saw new student inquiries increase more than 550% above projections.
    Marketing situationtop
    The College of St. Scholastica is a private Benedictine university based in Duluth, MN. For years, they were perceived as a single-campus, traditional-offering university with less recognition than their St. Thomas, St. Catherine's, St. John's and Gustavus counterparts. Over the last 8 years, they began expanding into non-traditional learning by offering online and accelerated programs and four other locations including Rochester, St. Paul, St. Cloud and Brainerd.
    Marketing challengetop
    • With a change in product, they needed a change in messaging.
    • They needed to communicate convenience and accessibility to the rest of Minnesota.
    • They were previously considered a "Northern Minnesota" option.
    Marketing solutiontop

    Wingnut focused on St. Scholastica's ownable points of difference to help them stand out in a state full of private education options. By taking "The College of"—a descriptive and ownable vernacular—and expanding it into sharp, memorable headlines, a consistent and identifiable campaign was born.

    The College of St. Scholastica was now "The College of higher standards," "The College of more choices," and "The College of earning your degree at home in St. Cloud."

  • Launched a TV campaign of back-to-back fifteen second spots designed to highlight single features.
  • Created a social media hub called Connectica where students and non-students alike could interact.
  • Outdoor advertising in campus specific corridors.
  • Outdoor signage to highlight the St. Paul campus location.
    • Real resultstop
    By creating a consistent brand message—one of flexible programs and multiple locations to better serve students—St. Scholastica began to level the playing field and compete with other highly regarded private universities, even during a slow economic period.
    Vote Yes MinnesotaView Work
    The Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment passed with 59% of the vote!
    Marketing situationtop
    In November 2008, the Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment gave the voters of Minnesota the opportunity to fund protection of Minnesota’s most precious and endangered resources; namely its polluted waters and endangered, natural habitat. The amendment would provide the funding to preserve these resources.
    • Polling data indicated that, when informed, younger voters (age 18-30) overwhelmingly supported the amendment.
    • Young voters had low awareness of the problem and the amendment itself and were at great risk of voting only for the top races, but not the full ballot.
    • Any incomplete ballot, that is any ballot without a clear vote to support the amendment, would be the same as a vote against it.
    Marketing challengetop
    • Educate younger voters about the perils facing Minnesota’s natural resources.
    • Persuade these voters to “Vote Yes” in support of the Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment.
    Marketing solutiontop
    We developed a fully integrated online marketing strategy to generate awareness and engagement among these critical swing voters. And we hit these voters where they live–online.
    • Designed and deployed a website designed specifi cally to maximize engagement and optimized for users and search engines.
    • Created a branded presence on leading social media sites including Facebook and MySpace.
    • Generated on-going awareness and engagement using bi-weekly application deployment, Twitter feeds and regular reminder messaging to social media groups.
    • Deployed targeted, online advertising on Facebook and other top-ranking sites used by this age group.
    • Executed an extensive paid search campaign that generated nearly two million impressions within the first week alone.
    Real resultstop
    Drop-off voters and Minnesota’s younger audience voted for the full ballot, securing a victory and validating the importance and effectiveness of online marketing to inform, engage and persuade this audience.
    HALO InnovationsView Work
    Halo outperformed other advertisers in Fit Pregnancy Magazine by nearly 100% in converting readers into product buyers.
    Marketing situationtop
    Halo Innovations has been working passionately for years on developing sleepwear that ensures a safe, comfortable sleep for baby. Halo originated the wearable blanket category but lacks sufficient brand differentiation. Our charge was to introduce the Halo safe sleep message to an audience that is not fully aware of the dangers of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). We needed to position Halo as a leader and authority in safe sleep for babies while facing generally low category and brand awareness.
    Marketing challengetop
    • Create messaging that stands out in an already saturated maternity market.
    • Educate consumers on the dangers of SIDS while balancing comfort and compassion.
    • Differentiate the Halo SleepSack® brand.
    • Create brand preference and establish Halo SleepSack® as the icon brand in the category.
    • Combat growing pressure from newcomers into the market.
    Marketing solutiontop
    Wingnut designed a simple, engaging campaign for Halo that tied the product to the key consumer benefit of safety. We featured a beautiful baby as the letter A in the word SAFE. This simple, poignant message helped raise awareness and boost sales. Our SAFE message appeared in print ads, online banners ads and product packaging. Facebook and other social media outlets helped educate new parents to the importance of safe sleep and the quality and reliability of Halo products.
    Real resultstop
    In a study from Fit Pregnancy magazine that polled more than 450 readers about their response to a specific issue, our SAFE ad had higher recall and spurred a higher response rate than the average of more than 80 ads in the magazine. In fact, readers were moved to purchase Halo products at a rate nearly double the issue average, 21% to 11%.