award of merit
damundson@drakecooper.com
Butter is a parity category. Most brands compete on price, recipes, or vague claims of quality. Challenge Butter had something its competitors didn't: an elk on the package. The question was how to turn that static mascot into a living, breathing social presence that could earn attention in a category where no one expects personality.
The answer was Elk. Not "the Elk." Just Elk. Simple. Bold. Iconic, just like Prince.
We developed a comprehensive organic social playbook that transformed Elk from mascot to social media manager. His personality was carefully defined: a Champion of Challengers who's relentless in his pursuit of betterment, a Proud Hero who carries himself with gravitas and never backs down, and a Butter Believer who speaks about butter with the conviction of a patriot and the tenderness of a poet. He's not chronically online, but he knows his way around social media. He's vaguely familiar with trends but considers himself a trendsetter.
The content strategy was built around three pillars: Cultivate Character (deepening the relationship between Challenge and its audience through Elk), Spread Butter Culture (sparking conversation with butter-related tensions and bold declarations), and Elk Knows Best (inspiring people to think, "Yes, I could be using more butter").
The results speak for themselves. Facebook engagement rate nearly doubled from 2.18% to 4.26% even as reach declined, proving we were earning attention, not buying it. Comments per post more than doubled. Positive sentiment rose from 39.6% to 61.5% while negative comments dropped nearly in half. And 70% of the top-performing posts came after the Elk voice was established, showing a compounding effect as the audience recognized the personality and played along.
In a parity category, Elk gave people a reason to have a favorite butter.
