HONOR THE EARTH

Support the Earth Through Music, Art, and Culture

Advertising Campaign Recommendation

Mason Robertson
December 16, 2022

Advertising Campaign Recommendation

Audience Segment

For my final recommendation, I am choosing to target individuals that are

environmentally conscious and want to see change happen. This is a person that is more liberal
leaning in terms of political affiliation and within an area they are familiar with. While being a
democrat and living in the midwest, this person also advocates for climate change. They are the
type of person who would go out, advocate for, fight for, and celebrate the climate change
efforts.
After researching, the audience segment that would most align with these values and
goals is democrats, specifically within the midwest and the surrounding area. A reason I chose
this audience segment is because they have similar interests and they are wanting to fight for
similar causes. In 2021, President Biden, leader of the democratic political party, has an
initiative, America the Beautiful, which concerns the conservation of the: “…nation’s natural
resources, recognizing that multiple use of our lands and waters, including working lands, can be
consistent with the long-term health and sustainability of
natural systems” (Bureau of Land Management (BLM),
2022). The administration has continued their efforts with
other initiatives and commitments. This shows that
democrats will be most likely to attend the event because it
aligns more closely with their values, they are the
individuals that are most likely to react positively to the
different advertisements. In a study, it is also shown that
90% of U.S. adult democrats believe the federal
government is not doing enough to reduce the effects of
climate change, while only 39% of U.S. adult, republicans
believe the same (Mitchell). This also shows that targeting
democrats will be the most likely way of increasing the
attendance at the festival, since they do have similar values
as Honor the Earth.
It is important to also target individuals that are advocates/are interested in advocating for
climate change. Knowing the values of current supporters was important when choosing which
audience segment to target. While looking through Honor the Earths social medias, a follower
posted on twitter that they are passionate about “…supporting science that’s rooted in
community and advances justice and repair” as a water/climate advocate (Shanti Matteson,
2022). By targeting an audience with similar values, we will be able to increase the attendance
instead of reaching an audience without those values.

Advertising Campaign Recommendation

Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

A recent study has shown that 90% of consumers have reported that they have seen a digital
advertisement and also found that 60% agree with advertisements helped them discover new
brands and products (O’Donnell, 2022).

This is why the unique selling proposition (USP) of this campaign for Honor the Earth
highlights the main concepts of what the organization stands for. The USP: Support the Earth
Through Music, Art, and Culture addresses what the organization is doing and what the festival
has to offer. This USP will pull the audience in and make them want to learn more about the
organization and what the festival has to offer. The audience will first be drawn in by the use of
the word “support” and will continue to be drawn in because the USP explains how they would
go about supporting the cause. A recent study has shown that 47% of leading social issues
consumers explained that they would like more brands to publicly support environmental impact
and sustainability (Zappi, 2022). This shows that more people are wanting to climate efforts
being supported and with the USP directly stating “support the Earth” they will be interested in
learning more and will be more willing to attend the festival.

The USP needed to be memorable,

something that will be talk about around the
office, around school, driving. For this USP,
I came up with a quick, easy, and interesting
statement that would catch the audiences
eye. With many people seeing at least one
advertisement a day and more than a
majority discovering new brands/products, it
is important that the USP encapsulates these
points to increase the attendance. The
audience needs to be convinced this is a
festival that they need to attend and that they
feel is something worth their time. By stating
that there will be multiple experiences
offered at the festival and that it will support
the Earth, the audience will be more inclined
to attend. (Zappi, 2022)

Advertising Campaign Recommendation

Advertising Format and Channels

Over the years, times have changed and the different ways of advertising has as well.
After researching and considering different messaging formats, I decided the best way to reach
Honor the Earth’s target audience is through social media platforms. There are two ways of
social media: organic and paid. With the organic social media method, it will help the
organization create a relatable brand voice and engage with the audience, while with the paid
social media method it will help convert individuals who may not support the cause right away
(“Social Media Marketers”, 2016). We will focus mainly on organic social media, however we
will have some paid social media. We will be able to engage with the audience with organic
social media, however we will be able to use algorithms and targeting techniques using paid
social media (“Social Media Marketers”, 2016). We will be able to use various social media
platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and Facebook to reach the target
audience.

In our advertisements we will include videos of the activities that will be at the festival.
We will also include a list and photos of the musicians that will be playing at the festival and
photos of the art and artists that will be at the festival. An organization, Earth Day Network, has
a similar festival, which has been happening annually for 40 years, often reports on the events
that will happen at the festival, what the festival is all about, and how important the cause is
(“Earth Day Network”, 2010). Our advertisements will highlight the focus of Honor the Earth,
telling the audience that they need to also fight for this cause. The tone of the advertisements will
be passionate and urgent, to show the audience how important this cause is to Honor the Earth
and will encourage the audience to go to the festival.

There are also other opportunities to help assess the best message format and channel.
After researching, there are other individuals that could be beneficial to interview to gain more
information. The first interviewee that I found was Dr. Jisu Huh, a professor in the Journalism
and Mass Communication Dept at the University of Minnesota. She has education and teaches
about the psychology of advertising and digital advertising, to name a couple and she has a deep
understanding of advertising and theories of it as well. Her knowledge on the topic of advertising
and what goes into the psychology of advertising would help get a better understanding of how
to reach the target audience.

Another interviewee I found while researching is Charlie Zelle. Zelle is the Metropolitan
Council Char and has experience in working with sustainability within Minnesota. He would be
able to provide what the general public thinks of sustainability and what the main concerns are.
His knowledge could help us pick out values that Honor the Earth holds and compare them to the
general publics values and provide information on what the biggest climate concerns of
Minnesotans is. He possibly would also be able to provide insight into how he was able to reach
a similar audience surrounding sustainability, similar to climate change efforts.

Advertising Campaign Recommendation

References

Bureau of Land Management (BLM). "S. 4860, Malheur Community Empowerment for the
Owyhee Act" Voxgov. Voxgov, 1 Dec 2022. (Assignment 5)

"Earth Day Network Announces Line-Up of Performers, Speakers for 40th Anniversary of Earth
Day: Sting, John Legend & the Roots Join Thousands for the Climate Rally in Washington,
DC." PR Newswire, Apr 05, 2010. ProQuest, http://login.ezproxy.lib.umn.edu/login?
url=https://www.proquest.com/wire-feeds/earth-day-network-announces-line-up-
performers/docview/450336211/se-2. (Assignment 5)

Mitchell, T. (2021, July 12). U.S. public views on climate and Energy. Pew Research Center
Science & Society. Retrieved December 15, 2022, from
https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2019/11/25/u-s-public-views-on-climate-and-energy/
(Assignment 1)

O’Donnell, Fiona. “Digital Advertising - US - 2022.” Mintel Reports, Mintel Group Ltd, 2022.
(Assignment 5)

Shanti Matteson. @Shanai_haana. 4/28/2022, One thing I'm passionate about as a cultural
organizer and water/climate advocate is supporting science that’s rooted in community and
advances justice and repair [Tweet]. “Twitter”.  (Assignment 5)

"Social Media Marketers Rarely use Organic and Paid Social Media Together, According to
New Research: Despite the Effectiveness of Paid Social Media, 52% of Social Media
Marketers Take a mostly Organic Approach." PR Newswire, Sep 01 2016, ProQuest.
(Assignment 5)

Zappi. “Top Social Issues Consumers Want More Brands to Support in the U.S.
2022.” Shibboleth Authentication Request, PRNewswire, 2022, https://www-statista-
com.ezp2.lib.umn.edu/statistics/1318536/social-issues-consumers-want-brands-to-support-
us/ (Assignment 2)

J. Huh, Personal Communications - Interviewee. (Assignment 3)

C. Zelle, Personal Communications – Interviewee. (Assignment 3)

Advertising Campaign Recommendation