2019 Holiday Campaign

Hard Truth Distilling Co.

Work > Hard Truth Distilling Co. - 2019 Holiday Campaign

Situation

Hard Truth Distilling Co., founded in 2015, is one of three companies under the Big Woods Restaurant Group, Quaff ON! Brewing Co. and Hard Truth Distilling Co. umbrella. Despite the uniqueness of the brand and spirits, Hard Truth Distilling Co. was not getting the desired level of earned media traction across Central Indiana media markets. Hirons was engaged in 2019 to increase awareness of Hard Truth Distilling Co. and its products through earned media, with an ultimate goal of driving product sales.

Strategy

Hirons began by developing in-depth target audience personas to identify the demographics, psychographics and media behaviors of individuals likely to purchase Hard Truth Distilling Co. products. Hirons targeted television outlets, reporters, producers and segments with high viewership from the target audience. Customized pitches were sent to each outlet, leveraging the approaching holiday season as a time to showcase Hard Truth’s products.

Pitches were followed up with hand-delivered product boxes accompanied with notes summarizing each email pitch. Within a week of sending out the product boxes, four of the five targeted Indianapolis TV stations confirmed they wanted to film on-air segments. Hirons provided interested reporters, hosts and producers with detailed web-ready recipes, talking points and high-resolution images of the products.

Results

Hirons’ holiday campaign exceeded all measurable objectives. In total, coverage resulted in a reach of 24,362,474 over more than 10 media outlets, including digital articles and TV segments. The total advertising equivalency for all placements was estimated at $40,352. In the final three months of 2019, sales for Hard Truth Distilling Co. Cinnamon Vodka and Toasted Coconut Rum increased, making the Cinnamon Vodka the top-selling Indiana craft spirit and Toasted Coconut Rum the fourth best-selling. Additionally, the FOX59 holiday dish recipe segment resulted in two distributors asking to sell the spirits.

Social Media

Social media content was optimized for channel performance, heavily featuring high-quality images and video.

Hard Truth Distilling Co. Holiday Social Media

Earned Media

Multiple broadcast coverage opportunities were secured, showcasing the client’s team members and products on local news channels and lifestyle segments.