Last year, we refocused the Kirkwood Mountain Resort brand strategy and identity in order to target a broader demographic of winter visitors. The comprehensive brand analysis revealed that while their ample snowfall and excellent terrain offering was fairly well known, a big opportunity existed to tell stories surrounding the truly unique aspects of their tight-knit mountain community, such as the “out there” feeling you get in Kirkwood’s secluded valley and it being an ideal place for families to develop long-term traditions of enjoying skiing and snowboarding together. Our efforts were so well received that Kirkwood asked us to conceive and develop a new creative campaign utilizing these newly developed insights.

“Kirkwood Deep” was already an idea familiar to the brand: Kirkwood hosts film contest with the same name each season. We saw an opportunity to expand it into a full campaign exploring what “Kirkwood Deep” means to their skiers and snowboarders beyond a measurement of snowfall. From a friendly mountain community to multi-generation family traditions to connecting to nature to fostering lifelong friendships, there’s multiple aspects of the Kirkwood experience that run “deep.” We began the campaign by capturing video of Kirkwood community members describing what they love about the mountain and what “Kirkwood Deep” means to them. We then used these authentic voice quotes and images to craft digital banners and social media videos targeting both mid- and top-funnel users throughout the fall and winter. The campaign crown jewel is a two-minute “stoke video” highlighting the deep connections Kirkwood skiers have to their home mountain.