beards unite the world

In November 2013, I am Second set out to launch its first longer format film featuring the Robertsons from the hit show Duck Dynasty. The team was challenged to tap into viewers who may not specifically be fans of the show, but maybe fans of the Robertsons for some other reason: duck hunting? country living? Then we had it: beards. Mustaches were in but beards were the next hottest thing - and the beard following is PASSIONATE.

Could we develop an unexpected brand in a very short amount of time and gain the trust of an unreached audience? Could we then introduce a Christian-based media to a non-Christian focused audience and have a good response?

The project launched in October 2013, a month before the official film launch, across Facebook, Instagram, Vine, Twitter and Pinterest. Building on an already popular term (Novembeard), a popular interest (beards), and the quickest growing sharing method in the social world (video or “TV”), the bearded social brand, NovembeardTV,  was born.

A masculine, humorous approach was used with both the graphic visual execution as well as the language for the posts.  While the audience took their beards seriously, they found community in their shared beard humor. An online, bracket-style beard competition (#TheBeardOff) spearheaded the rapid growth in engagement and followers in early November. A unique and fresh brand experience appealed to followers already dedicated to their beardy interests.

Thanks to smartly delivered content and consistent social interaction, the audience was primed for the jump to the I am Second film experience.

the results:

In total, the social media channels garnered 15K followers in a little over a month, 90% of which were men primarily between the ages of 25 – 44. The Robertsons’ films posts alone reached 23,400 people.

This campaign proved social and online marketing tailored directly to the audience’s interests earns trust and a strong following, allowing us to later introduce them to something they normally don’t think about – Jesus. In total, the Facebook page alone garnered over 3,371,569 impressions to date.