Case Study: Built Strong. Works Hard. Won’t Quit.

Problem

Americans believe American-made tools are of higher quality and more durable. Unfortunately, many DIYers and Pros were not aware that CHANNELLOCK® brand pliers are made in the USA, and they believed brands like Milwaukee and Stanley are made here when in fact they are manufactured overseas. We needed to set the record straight!

Insights

Our behavioral segmentation identified two key target audiences that would be receptive to the Channellock message. We uncovered common qualities shared by these segments and the Channellock tools themselves: hard working, gritty, and approaches the job with pride.

Solution

SFW creative took a ‘product as hero’ approach, using character attributes of the target audiences that called out the distinctive features of the CHANNELLOCK® pliers. And punctuated by the tagline, Built Strong. Works Hard. Won’t Quit. The centerpiece of the launch was “The Machine,” a campaign video featuring a custom-built Rube Goldberg machine, set to a hard-rocking custom music track incorporates authentic sounds recorded in the Channellock factory.

The Win

The final deliverables helped spark rediscovery of CHANNELLOCK® as a hard-working American brand and set the foundation for campaigns. “The Machine” has generated over 137,000 views on Facebook.

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