The Opportunity:
San Diego real estate development and management company H.G. Fenton developed the region’s first and only turnkey facility for aspiring craft brewers.
Built with the equipment that brewers needed from the start, H.G. Fenton’s unique facility solved the three main challenges facing start up brewers or established craft brewers looking to expand:
- Huge upfront capital investment
- Long timeline to profitability
- A level of risk most investors shy away from
H.G. Fenton knew that the project needed a targeted strategy to establish its profile in the brewing community and drive qualified applicants for the available spaces. The developer asked us to tell the space’s story through modern, savvy messaging.
The Solution:
We branded the product as Brewery Igniter, crafting the name and visual identity to grab attention quickly while also highlighting the project’s unique benefits–particularly speed. The brand also spoke to the emotional appeal of turning the target audience’s passion into profits.
Our design and web experts conveyed the brand identity consistently across collateral such as marketing materials, webpage and social media channels to quickly and cost-effectively engage the target audience.
With these tools in place, our communications strategists implemented a grassroots PR program targeting San Diego craft brewing influencers that led to engaging social media events and universally positive traditional editorial coverage in the target region’s most notable publications.
The Results:
We achieved H.G. Fenton’s strategic goals of driving high-quality applicants into the space and leasing all units. The quality of brewers we attracted exceeded expectations:
- Miramar tenant Pure Project Brewing was named a best new brewer of 2016 by San Diego Magazine, Thrillest and Westcoaster
- Pure Project is also ranked in the top 10 San Diego brewers on Yelp
- North Park tenants Eppig Brewing and Pariah Brewing were both named among the best new brewers of 2017 by San Diego Magazine and Westcoaster
Thanks to our efforts, in 2016, the brand earned:
- Over 40 editorial mentions with 26 linking back to the Igniter site
- Coverage in outlets with an online readership of over 18 million
- An estimated 620,000 article impressions
- Over 200,000 article shares on Facebook and Pinterest
- Ad equivalency of over $200,000 (if you’re into that)
In 2017, the brand earned:
- Over 50 editorial mentions with 18 linking back to the Igniter site
- Coverage in outlets with an online readership of over 25 million
- An estimated 314,000 article impressions
- Over 7,000 article shares on Facebook and Pinterest
- Social media year over year growth of 240% more followers, 158% more impressions and 155% more engagement
- Ad equivalency of over $160,000 (see above)
Grant Wright
Corie Fiebiger
Shae Geary
Roman Lukjanenko
Phelan Riessen
Katrina Early
Hamish Marshall