An advertising strategy and campaign for millennials
Brand Strategy & Advertising
A creative campaign to help people give the "gift of the outdoors"
Realigning REI with millennials
REI is a leading outdoor retailer, founded in 1923 by a group of climbers with the honorable intention of creating quality outdoor gear. Helping it reach a new millennial audience was our responsibility - as one of its primary brand development and design agencies - and we worked with the brand to establish a new advertising strategy for brand, digital and retail.
We needed to align REI with today’s youth culture. Our strategy identified the following opportunities: evolve and express the brand’s personality through copy and visuals; communicate the diversity and flexibility of the products; rethink the brand’s approach to advertising by moving away from deals and discounts, and towards a brand-first approach; increase efforts in larger campaigns around strategic key days.
A powerful holiday campaign
During the holiday season, purchasing power rests solely with the consumer. With REI, we created a holiday campaign focused on a simple and powerful concept: the holiday shopping season is about giving, not receiving. Whether the consumer is purchasing outdoor adventure gear for a dauntless younger sister or buying a gift-card to inspire a timid co-worker into action, our campaign is about giving the gift that no one else does: the gift of outdoor adventure.
Our strategy called for real personality to connect with a millennial audience. We poked fun at other holiday gifts while highlighting REI products and the experience they provide during the hectic holiday season; we positioned REI as a brand with higher-quality products and services. Together, we created brand content and advertising for social and digital channels that brought our strategy and direction to life while driving engagement.
Our campaign engaged audiences across online media, owned social media, and in-store retail. To drive engagement, consumers had the opportunity to interact with REI through channels such as Pinterest’s shopping toolkit and a dedicated microsite that pushed the deals of the day, reminding people of the qualities of REI gifts.
