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About three years ago, David Lafitte surveyed the website, social media, and marketing content from Tecovas, the Western apparel brand he leads, and realized that the messaging had become \u201cvery diluted.\u201d<\/p>\n
So the Austin-based company decided to establish a company-wide OKR\u2014the goal-setting framework to define and achieve its “objectives and key results”\u2014that focused on storytelling.<\/p>\n
Tecovas brought on more creative types who experimented with different messaging, including long-form commercials, and things started to click, Lafitte said during a discussion at the Fast Company Grill at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI think everyone embraced this storytelling concept because we have to talk about the materials, the product, but do it in a way that drives an emotional connection with the consumer,\u201d Lafitte said.<\/p>\n One of the brand\u2019s early storytelling successes came in 2024 with a 30-second commercial that aired during the final game of the 2024 World Series. \u201cThe response was absolutely incredible,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Crucial to the success of this storytelling initiative, Lafitte said, was hiring a team of creatives and then letting them play around in a proverbial sandbox. <\/p>\n At the helm as creative director is Scott Ballew, who spent nearly a decade heading up content at Yeti Coolers. While putting together the company\u2019s first-ever commercial for this year\u2019s Super Bowl, Ballew came up with another idea. <\/p>\nTHE LONG GAME OF LONG-FORM CONTENT<\/h2>\n