Brands commenting on 4/20 culture has become so common for brands, it no longer feels ground breaking. So to approach the holiday in a more groundbreaking fashion, we literally broke ground.. In a 3-part social series starring Action Bronson, Miracle-Gro sought to garner buzz around the brand and its unique take on a highly popular moment.
Our main challenge was joining into a 4/20-related conversation authentically and without causing alarm to community platforms. So, we dug into research and discovered that people like to pair edibles with outdoor activities. But that’s not all; those who partake in edibles outside were turning to social media to share their experiences, wellness tips and more, using the word “gardening” as a code word for getting high.
Thus, we hacked this social-media-first conversation through the #GrowYourOwn Edible Garden Campaign. We created a kit, complete with organic soil, seed plugs and an edible (vegetable) almanac full of double entendres. To amplify the campaign, we collaborated with Action Bronson (a cook and edible enthusiast himself) to film a 3-part series, where he showed off our kit, planted it, and made munchies with it. Then, we surprised and delighted 70+ other 4/20-friendly creators with the kit to bring the highest joy to the masses
We were driven by a desire to show up authentically for a new audience and provide them with a nugget of knowledge on how to have a better trip (by gardening, of course!).
Our surprise and delight kits resulted in a 63.8% share rate with 67 consequent UGC posts. Even Action Bronson’s posts outperformed his average by 50K views.
15M+ impressions attracted 7.6K new fans to our page, while cheekily appealing to our existing audience. Edible gardening was the internet’s drug of choice on 4/20.
