Campaign: Delivering the Exceptional
Case Study Overview:
Nelson-Jameson was founded more than 76 years ago and operates as a successful family-owned business. Its past growth as a dairy distributor stemmed from industry word of mouth and long-term client relationships. The company relied exclusively on traditional and event marketing, yielding nominal recognition beyond its regional locations and headquarters in Marshfield, Wisconsin.
When a new president arrived, accelerating growth became a top priority. Recognizing the need to shift customer perception of Nelson-Jameson’s and rebrand from ‘Mom & Pop’ to a trusted industry leader, he secured board approval to expand the marketing team with a new VP of Marketing, embrace digital channels, and establish formal brand communications and public relations initiatives to drive business growth.
The Nelson-Jameson team proudly stands in front of the “We Supply America” bus at their headquarters, celebrating their commitment to serving the food and dairy industry nationwide.
Challenge(s):
The goal was to increase visibility and brand awareness for Nelson-Jameson, a leading dairy and food processing distributor known in local markets but lacking established marketing practices to support national expansion and future growth plans.
The focus was also on amplifying the expertise of key employees to position the organization as a leader in the dairy and food processing industries and developing consistent messages to optimize media relations.
Case Study Results:
Nelson-Jameson had 0.3% of the share of voice when we began our partnership and had relied on ad-hoc marketing and word-of-mouth for most of its 75+ year history. Acting as a full-service extension of Nelson-Jameson’s marketing department, Winger developed an integrated strategy and executed all its elements, resulting in increase of 733% and over 1.11 billion online readers, hundreds of thousands of media mentions, increased brand mentions by 931%. and a share of voice over 10%. As a result of our public relations efforts, organic brand searches increased from 3,800 per month to 5,900 per month, and total Potential Editorial Reach is up 2879%.
Winger’s work also elevated Nelson-Jameson’s employee visibility, positioning them as experts through effective thought leadership placements, greater website traffic, increased social media impressions and authentic audience engagement. Winger also led the marketing and media strategy for the grand opening of a new distribution center garnering regional business, television and local news as well as industry news coverage. Winger’s partnership with Nelson-Jameson earned the firm the prestigious Golden Trumpet Award from the Publicity Club of Chicago in the Media Relations – Business to Business and Business Services category for its campaign, “Delivering the Exceptional – Family Biz Steps Up.”
Editorial reach: 1.11B
Total mentions: 161K (up 931%)
Press Releases Issued: 38
Thought Leadership Placements: 12
Awards Secured: 7
Speakerships Secured: 2
Documentary Film Produced: 1
Women’s Leadership Video Produced: 1
Industry Report Placement:1
Case Study written: 1
Company Bios Created: Dozens
Blogs and Owned Media Communications: 4
Internal Communications: (letters to staff about the rebrand, new site, annual report, Foundation launch, sustainability initiatives, etc.): 10
Winger Marketing team members celebrate their success at the Publicity Club of Chicago (PPC) award ceremony, where they were recognized for their outstanding work in media relations and brand strategy.
How We Did It:
Winger partnered with Nelson Jameson’s newly formed internal marketing team as they grew their department, providing hands-on guidance and marketing deliverables as they rebranded their website, opened a new distribution center, and launched a new charitable Foundation. Winger created strategic marketing, public relations and content plans, and delivered the elements of those plans, to increase brand awareness and elevate thought leadership for Nelson-Jameson and its Foundation.
- Created a comprehensive strategic marketing plan including key messaging, branding, social media marketing, advertising, and event marketing support.
- Developed expert-level knowledge of dairy and food distribution industries and processes to create marketing, PR plans, and thought leadership
- Developed a robust public relations system including messaging, distribution, expert profiles, and media monitoring for a high volume of projects.
- Collaborated on strategic initiatives with idea generation, creativity, and impact.
- Cultivated strong industry association relations, PR and business relations to raise brand awareness.
- Media trained the executive team for content and speaking opportunities, and created bios for the leadership team and key personnel
- Researched and wrote award applications to showcase company’s experts.
- Partnered with owners and executives on launch marketing and brand awareness for the Nelson-Jameson Foundation
- Managed and wrote case studies to demonstrate industry expertise.
- Pitched media and fostered relationships with editors and Nelson-Jameson staff to author thought leadership articles for publication
