For years, its destination management organization, The Wilson County Convention & Visitors Bureau, partnered with Orange 142 to attract visitors by showcasing its attractions, events, and amenities to great success. When the time came to expand their marketing initiatives to include social media.
WilCo, short for Wilson County, Tennessee, is a charming and growing suburb located just 25 minutes from downtown Nashville. It is made up of the towns of Lebanon, Mt. Juliet, and Watertown, each offering unique attractions like outdoor activities, historical sites, and the Nashville Superspeedway. With its tagline, “Near Nashville, miles from ordinary,” WilCo promotes itself as an affordable alternative to Nashville.
In 2023, Wilco hired Brittany Hoffman to serve as a marketing specialist. As a Gen Zer, Brittany knew that to reach people her age, Wilco would need to get into social media, especially TikTok. Moreover, she had a local influencer in mind who would be perfect for the job: Sarah Gray, a comedian known for prank calls under the persona of Sue Dillon. But there were challenges.
Despite her large following and strong ability to engage audiences, Sarah had never worked with a brand formally, which meant she didn’t know how to navigate contracts, commissions, or deliverables. Similarly, Brittany was new to influencer marketing and unsure how to navigate many logistics.
Brittany asked WilCo’s media agency, Orange 142, for help launching and managing a social media influencer program. Specifically, Brittany wanted guidance in developing an influencer marketing strategy, managing the relationships with the businesses within the three towns, and providing strategic guidance to Sarah so that she could embark on her first professional brand partnership.
“This was our first time working on an influencer campaign, so it was great
to have Orange 142 as a partner. We were impressed with the results of this
activation and look forward to reaching new audiences through additional
collaborations with the team.”
- Brittany Hoffman
Marketing Specialist, Vist Wilco
Overall Strategy
The Orange 142 teams got busy planning and executing an approach from soup to nuts. We began by developing and facilitating an influencer strategy tied to specific events within WilCo’s three towns.
Orange 142 focused the campaign on critical local events like the WilCo State Fair, the Christmas tree lighting ceremony, and Chad’s Winter Wonderland. This strategic emphasis was designed to draw visitors from Nashville, encouraging them to explore and shop in WilCo’s unique venues.
One of Sue/Sarah’s standout pieces was a “Choose Your Own Adventure” Date Night, where she spotlighted local restaurants and shops and encouraged visitors to explore the area. These targeted promotions allowed her to connect with her audience while driving interest in WilCo’s unique offerings.
As part of the strategy, Orange 142 encouraged Sarah to cross-post her TikTok content to Instagram to help WilCo’s businesses and events reach an even broader audience, as many local venues didn’t have a TikTok presence.
To ensure success, Orange 142 provided strategic guidance on content creation, including advice on hashtags and optimizing social media posts. This helped Sarah connect her audience with WilCo’s offerings while keeping the campaign aligned with the overall marketing strategy.
Additionally, Orange 142 helped Sarah grow her portfolio by arranging additional partnerships with other Tennessee DMOs. As our relationship with her grew through the WilCo activation, we were able to provide her an additional opportunity to promote her home state through engaging content that highlighted local venues, restaurants, and shops.
Contract Support
Orange 142 also stepped in to handle all the contracts and billing details, guiding both WilCo and Sarah through the process. We helped both parties understand the expectations, deliverables, and commissions, ensuring that the partnership ran smoothly from start to finish.
Campaign Measurement
To track the campaign’s success, Orange 142 used the social media platform, Grin, to measure key metrics like video views and engagement. They also calculated the Estimated Media Value (EMV) to show the financial impact of Sarah’s content, helping WilCo understand the true value of their influencer efforts.
Education
Orange 142 helped Sarah Gray gain a better understanding of how to work with brands and to meet their expectations in terms of deliverables. This education gave Sarah the tools she needed to confidently approach future brand collaborations and continue growing as an influencer.
Hands-On Support for Influencer Success
Orange 142 assigned a dedicated resource to help ensure Sarah’s success throughout the campaign. They worked closely with her to make sure she stayed on track with deliverables and content creation, maintaining open communication and providing support at every step.
The campaign successfully engaged a broad audience, generating strong interest in WilCo’s local events. Overall, the posts earned 675,000 impressions, 34,000 unique engagements (a 0.88% engagement rate), and 2,700 shares.
“Collaborating with my home county has been such a blessing and so fun to show my audience a piece of who I am! This was by far my favorite collaboration thus far as a content creator.”
- Sarah Gray, Content Creator
Orange 142 is a digital marketing and advertising company with offices across the US. We service marketers and agencies. We are part of Direct Digital Holding, the ninth Black-owned company to go public.
We help marketers of all sizes grow their reach and revenue through data-driven media strategies. We also partner with agencies and execute campaigns on behalf of their clients.
Our team of experts deeply understands the digital landscape and the latest advertising and marketing technologies. We work closely with our clients to develop and execute custom advertising and marketing campaigns that meet specific goals.
We are committed to providing our clients with the highest service and transparency. Open communication and collaboration are essential to their success.