Keen STANDS Tall in our Kitchen

As a relatively new Maxwellite and anxious and wide-eyed attendee to the Kitchen conference, I was just getting into the swing of things when Bobbie Parisi and Linda Tom from Keen Footwear took the stage. For those living in a shoe box, Keen launched an incredible consumer engagement campaign called "STAND" this last year, which has been lauded with accolades throughout the advertising industry, as well as by their hordes of loyal consumers. With lofty but achievable goals; including the increase of brand awareness and the reaching of a younger target market, Keen utilized STAND to encourage new ways of thinking about the company’s values of sustainability and play in nature.

So what did STAND consist of? Oh, only a nationwide campus tour and student ambassador fleet, an online contest for artists and athletes' a film festival' including Keen's own documentary shown across the country, famous judges and thousands of dollars worth of prize money. They accomplished all of this and continue to tour the states today showing their movie and spreading the Keen word for less than some spend on a flip flop product launch.

The Keen STAND Secret

Bobbie and Linda shared a few of STAND's secrets to success. It really just came down to smart choices. They diversified their efforts but stayed consistent and passionate with their message:

• They engaged multiple partners and continued work with them throughout the brainstorming, planning, development and implementation process.
• They used their advertising dollars wisely, exploring new print ad avenues, magazines that targeted consumers they were not only familiar with, but also still reaching for, and they took advantage of value-ad online advertising.
• They studied, understood and maintained dialogue with their target market of young people. Keen first utilized social marketing tools like Facebook and provided eager college students with swag to share with friends as they promoted the Keen brand among their peers. They also allowed their student ambassadors to adapt the campaign according to their school culture and resources. And they listened. Young consumers want to be heard, not preached to and that's what STAND was all about.
• They stayed malleable. For example, when New York colleges were apprehensive to allow a corporate presence on campus, Keen rented a space in Soho and invited "green" artists to show their work as they shared their STAND documentary.

What surprised me and others in Bobbie and Linda's session was not the response the STAND campaign received. As we would hear throughout the presentation, this plan was intricate, well executed and supported on a variety of advertising levels and by a variety of partners. What was surprising was how well Keen utilized their financial budget and the exponential amount of impact that came from that investment. It was not only impressive, but incredibly inspiring to see that smaller-sized, growing companies with authentic values are capable of spreading their name, their product, and their business heart to millions of people across the country.

I may sound a bit sappy. You're probably saying "these are shoes and this was just another marketing campaign," but Keen's innovation was the highlight of my first day at this year's Kitchen Conference and their passion for connecting people and our natural world is something I am more than willing to STAND on.

- Jessica

posted on April 25, 2008