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 Howdy Marketing Bestie, Tomorrow night, the Spurs and Knicks tip off Game 1 of the NBA Finals. But tonight, we have Texas (Marketing) History class. To a campaign that BECAME a brand, but didn’t COME from a brand. Welcome back to Marketing Classics 411, a new kind of ancient history. In place of hieroglyphs, expect to decipher the campaigns of yesteryear. Professor Millennial teaches every Tuesday (remotely), via electronic mail. Class is now in session. Was this email forwarded to you? Sponsored by Viktor A months-old checkout bug. BOY HOWDY How "Don't Mess With Texas" Cleaned Up A State & Built A 40-Year BrandPop quiz, You’ve probably seen it on T-shirts, socks, and bumper stickers. But did you know it was originally…an anti-littering campaign? In 1985, the state of Texas was spending $20 MILLION a year just to pick up trash on the side of the road. And that's in 1980s dollars! The Texas Department of Transportation tried everything: signs, fines, finger-wagging PSAs. Nothing worked. So they did maybe the most un-government thing they could do: They hired an ad agency. This is the story of how 4 words reduced Texas highway litter by 72% - and became 1 of the most successful (and ripped-off) slogans of all time. This is the story of…Don’t Mess With Texas.  It was the 80s. All of America had a trash problem. States across the country were experiencing new growth. Big cities were battling overflowing landfills and outdated waste management systems. (Just look up “Mobro 4000” - or maybe don't) Texas was no exception. And nowhere was the problem worse than on their thousands of miles of highways. They spent millions cleaning up every year. They tried earnest PSAs. Appeals to conscience. Polite signs. But the problem just kept getting worse. That’s when they brought in….the Marketers. Bubba ProblemsTxDOT hired GSD&M, a scrappy Austin shop run by the people who would later go on to make Southwest Airlines' "Bags Fly Free" campaign. The creative leads were Tim McClure and Mike Blair. They studied the problem and identified 1 top culprit: “Bubba in a pickup truck.” (Their words, not mine)  Tim McClure & Mike Blair (co-founder of GSD&M, Roy Spence, in the middle) “Bubba” = 18 to 35-year-old men who chucked fast food wrappers and beer cans out car windows like it was their constitutional right. GSD&M knew the quickest way to LOSE the Battle of the Bubbas was to keep telling Bubba what to do. Preaching at them, shaming…it would only result in more trash on the ground. But for weeks, they had no better ideas. Then McClure took a walk one morning, looked at the trash on his street, and thought: “This is a mess.” Aaand...EUREKA!  DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS. - It fit the Texas vernacular. Nobody said “litter,” but they did say “mess.” This HAD to be it. Right? Right?? Well... They brought “Don’t Mess With Texas” back to the client.. and they HATED it. LitterbugginThe Texas DOT were older, more conservative types. They wanted something like “Keep Texas Beautiful.” Or at least a polite “Please” in front of “Don’t Mess With Texas. GSD&M had to FIGHT for their slogan. They knew these TxDOT reps weren’t representative of the people whose behavior they needed to move. They knew Bubbas in pickup trucks littered because in a weird way, they felt they were sticking up for what was rightfully theirs. Call it uh, “freedom to litter.” TxDOT had to flip the script, and give those Bubbas something equally worth standing up for. The genius of "Don't Mess With Texas" is it sounded nothing like a government PSA. It sounded like a darn-tootin’ THREAT. It didn't ask Bubba to be a better person. It dared him to defend his state. 😤 And Bubba LOVED a dare. Eventually, GSD&M won over TxDOT, and the slogan was born.  Make it StickThe campaign’s first move wasn’t the obvious 1. It wasn't TV or highway billboards. Not even trucker radio. They made……stickers. Bumper stickers, to be specific.  December 1985, they dropped sloganed-up bumper stickers all over the state. At truck stops (duh), fast food spots (of course), and anywhere else their target demographic might be pulling over. McClure wanted the message to GRADUALLY seep into Texas's public consciousness. An identity to be proud of, not a PSA. By the time the first TV ad ran a few weeks later, Texans had been seeing the slogan in the wild on every F-150 in the state. (OK, maybe 1% exaggerating, but you get the point.) It started to feel like it belonged to THEM.  Big Stevie Ray MomentThe first commercial debuted was on New Year’s Day, 1986. During a commercial break of the 50th annual Cotton Bowl Classic (Texas A&M vs. Auburn. Bo Jackson’s last college game, btw). It starred Texas Blues LEGEND Stevie Ray Vaughan, playing guitar in front of a humongous Texas Flag, at the Austin City Limits studio. Texas on Texas on Texas, during a Texas game. Talk about aligning with your target audience. It crushed. (And A&M won the game. Bonus points, LOL) This Maximum Texas Energy was so effective they rolled out 4 MORE ads with other iconic singers & athletes that year. People who aligned with that target Bubba demo. They immediately paid off, with roadside trash rates dropping by: 🚮⬇️: 29% in 1988  Bröther, May I Have Some Jünk? PUT IT IN PRACTICEIMO, the biggest victory in this story wasn’t that morning walk. It was when McClure went to the MAT to drop the “Please” before “Don’t Mess With Texas.” That meeting with stakeholders who sign the check? That’s where most actually-edgy campaigns die. Here’s your homework to fight it: 1️⃣. Write 2 versions. The line your stakeholders will approve. AND the line that would actually move your audience. 2️⃣. Try the Bubba test. Ask which version "bubba in a pickup truck" would actually notice - whoever your Bubba is. If it’s the safe 1, fine. But if it’s the 1 you’re worried about getting approved… 3️⃣. Fight for it. With facts. Bring the data. Research. Screenshots from social. Worst case, you lose the debate (and maybe get proven right later.) Best case, you might be shipping a juicy brand slogan your customers will have top-of-mind 40 years later.  Speaking of Texas icons. Don’t Mess With Texas, (For)Ever“Don’t Mess With Texas” is still an active TxDOT program. They released a merch line in 2008 to raise funds during the Great Recession. It was so popular, it’s still going. By now, basically every member of Texas royalty has done an ad. Most recently, Joe Jonas and Post Malone. Most OFTEN, Matthew McConaughey. (I found a whole database of the commercials. You’re welcome + extra credit if you write me back with your favorite.)  New Halloween costume idea: Darrel the Barrel But, even more impressively, "Don't Mess with Texas" has taken on a life of its own. Even with TxDOT sending out cease & desist letters, LOL. It's now basically a Texas battle cry, referenced everywhere, from pop culture to politics. 96% of Texans know the phrase. George W. Bush used it in his presidential nomination acceptance speech. Lil’ Keke made it his debut album title.  Don't Mess With Texas united EVERYONE. Not just the Bubbas of the world. It was so successful, people have forgotten it’s still clearing highways. And we can all mess with that. MARKETING CHEAT SHEET (WHAT TO LEARN FROM THIS STORY): 1️⃣. Write to your actual audience, not your stakeholders. 2️⃣. Seed before you go big, to make things stick. 3️⃣. Cast for cultural fit, not for reach. Sponsored by Vibe.co 2️⃣ big problems for Marketers. Only #1 gets talked about much: 🤫 Use Case #2 (p.5) has the script for the CFO conversation. 🎓 EXTRA CREDIT Speaking of Because there's no participation trophy. You're either the brand everybody remembers...or the logo nobody notices. On June 25, join me & 2 brands that have pulled it off. We'll break down the data, the strategy, and the negotiation moves that make the difference. Live & free & virtual. 🏀⚾️🏈⚽️🏅 IN A MEME  Ahh, the bell has rung. Please be sure to do the reading (follow The Marketing Millennials on LinkedIn and me, Professor Millennial, on X). Off you go, passing period is only 11 minutes and there’s already a line at the vending machine that sells Don’t Mess With Texas koozies. Until next time, Professor Millennial | ||||||||||||
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