The most audacious 38-year CRM promotion from Jack Daniel’s
In light of the short lifespan of present-day marketing, where everyone is on to the next thing in a matter of hours, this story is as fascinating as the founder Jack Daniel himself.
In November 1981, my husband, Allan, sent a check to the Jack Daniel’s distillery for a branded baseball hat. When the hat came in the mail, included was a deed to a plot of land in Lynchburg, Tennessee, listing him as both a landowner and an official Tennessee Squire. Within days, we received a bill from the Moore County Tax Office for back taxes on said land, totaling $2.30. We thought it was amusing and pretty much forgot about it, until a letter arrived the following April from Tennessee Squire Charles D. Manley, letting us know that our “tax problem” had been taken care of by a good citizen. The letter was actually typed on stationery and signed in ink. The following are actual excerpts from correspondence dating from the first 5 years.
January 1982, we receive a black-and-white photo of the unparalleled views our land, plot 375MJ, looking west-southwest late in the afternoon (so we could appreciate the setting sun).
December 1982, we receive black-eyed peas from Lynchburg, with apologies for not sending the requisite traditional New Year’s Day hog jowl.
June 1983, the County Executive’s office writes to alert us that the early spring rains caused tremendous damage to our land, washing away a good part of the topsoil. To lessen the blow, he includes a delicious recipe for homemade sassafras tea, which grows wild on our property.
June 1985, a handwritten letter arrives from Mrs. Avalee Bobo. Her family works the 30 acres across from our land. She writes that she notices we have not gathered our pokeberry shoots (which are a great help with her husband Frank’s bilious spells) and wants our permission to pick them before they turn to rot.
November 1986, Herb Fanning of the Fanning, Miller & Spencer Realty and Auction Co. of Lynchburg wants us to be aware of a boisterous bull and Jersey cow that have created a home on our property. As a breeder of excellent repute, he worries they will enter his property and mix with his carefully cultivated stable.
December 1986 brings a new tax bill from Carl Payne, County Executive, followed days later by another letter letting us know that John Nolen, Tennessee Squire has paid the back taxes for the last five years. He apologizes for the error.
Since this is a blog and not a novel, I’ll skip ahead to present day. This incredible stream of communications has now reached its 38th year, and we are still getting letters – and tax bills. The most recent correspondence included a photo of a cracker-loving goat that apparently started following tour groups. They were reaching out to us to help name her, as “Distillery Goat” just didn’t seem appropriate. We were also warned not to feed her any crackers, lest she follow us home.
The most successful marketing efforts always honestly and accurately reflect the DNA of the brand they represent. Jack Daniel’s DNA is rough-hewn from the Tennessee heartland, dating back to 1864. The signatures on each piece of correspondence we have accumulated are all actual employees of the Jack Daniel Distillery and are all prominently featured on their website. It is the single most brilliant and certainly the longest promotion of a brand I have ever seen.
One day we will mosey down to Lynchburg to see our land. We already know our neighbors.
