As his nickname suggests, Captain “Wild Bill” Wichrowski is crazy about fishing.
To him, his job as a fisherman is much more than a profession. It’s his passion. Maybe even an obsession, as he spends his off-season on the water sport-fishing. As a seasoned skipper, his motto is “hard work and honesty,” and through the years, he’s made sure to do things the right way while harvesting the freshest seafood in Alaska.
Discovery and Red Lobster partnered to create a unique storytelling experience that highlighted the "Sea to Table" journey of Red Lobster crab; the passion; and the work that goes into providing them. We crafted a program that inspired curiosity about crab, ignited excitement about Red Lobster’s Crabfest, and increased quality perceptions and brand affinity for Red Lobster. We tapped into Discovery’s influential talent from Deadliest Catch to create an engaging cross-screen experience that informed viewers on the journey of the crab from "Sea to Table." I produced original branded content across all touch points leading the ideation, design, and creative development. The program included a 3-part original series, an interactive video experience, branded editorial, social extensions, linear television components, and supporting media.
"Sea To Table" delivered 26MM views/impressions which far exceeded our contracted guarantee by 211%. Recently we pitched several new ideas for this year's program and we received an official renewal spend for 2018.
video EXPERIENCE
We developed a responsive interactive video experience that enabled viewers to watch the series and engage at key points in the timeline by branching off to additional video content. At any point, the user could return to the main episode and continue watching where they left off. The destination included the "Sea To Table" original series, branded editorial pieces, and content from Red Lobster's Crabfest. We distributed content to Facebook and embedded the the interactive series directly in the Facebook mobile app. Below is a video along with screens of the main experience.
interactive video player
I partnered with Verse to develop several new scalable interactive video products across the organization. Leveraging new technology and a cloud-based CMS, we produced an experience where viewers would lean in and engage more deeply with video spending more time with content. Visual cues would appear during video playback and alert users to watch additional videos or browse content at key points during their stream. The Sea To Table video experience was told in 3 parts and featured animated shorts about crab fishing and the differences between crab types. Below is the initial storyboard and screens from the player UX.
branded content
I produced a 3-part original series titled “Sea-To-Table" with Captain Wild Bill as our talent influencer and narrator. Each piece focused on a different expert with unique skills needed for their given trade. The videos explored the technicalities, responsibilities, and processes for catching a variety of the freshest crab species in Alaskan waters. The series was amplified to social audiences who were targeted with short-form vertical video posts and the interactive version of the series travelled within Facebook Instant articles via the Facebook mobile app. All three episodes are featured below.
branded editorial
We developed 3 branded editorial pieces to accompany each "Sea To Table" video. Topics covered in each article would directly match the subject of each episode and included titles like "Through The Eyes Of The Fisherman" and "Crab Prepared To Perfection." Each piece was distributed on Discovery.com and Facebook via Facebook Instant. On Facebook's mobile app we were first-to-market with the inclusion of an interactive video player that could be embedded directly in the Facebook platform. Below are screens of the editorial experience.
social distribution
Sea To Table was amplified to audiences who were targeted with vertical video posts and high-impact Facebook Canvas formats directly in social news feeds. Below is a video featuring the Canvas experience in the Facebook mobile app.
Advertising
A suite of HTML5 media and innovative video solutions were targeted across devices and platforms to promote and drive awareness of the digital experience. Featured below is a short-form commercial we produced for linear television and a promo to drive awareness of the partnership across digital touch points.
Images & photography
Custom photography from our shoot in Seattle was retouched and leveraged throughout campaign touch points.
