434: John Deere’s Organic Social Media Success Strategy with Jen Hartmann, Global Director of Strategic Public Relations and Enterprise Social Media

Marketing Today with Alan Hart

On the show today, Alan and Jen talk about how John Deere is staying relevant as a 187-year-old brand in today's market and what strategies they are using to help people, specifically the younger generation, more fully appreciate the pivotal role that farmers, construction workers, and maintenance crews play in our everyday lives. Jen also tells us about their recent hunt for a Chief Tractor Officer, how they ran the campaign on a budget by leveraging values-aligned celebrity relationships, and what qualifications made Rex perfect for the CTO job.

Jen Hartmann has over 25 years of experience in public relations, communications, and marketing. However, after high school, she originally wanted to be a teacher, but discovered PR when she was in college and immediately knew she wanted to head public relations at John Deere. After a number of various marketing roles at companies like the Illinois Soybean Association, Advanced Technology Services, and United Way, she eventually landed at John Deere about 16 years ago. Today, she serves as their Global Director of Strategic Public Relations and Enterprise Social Media. In this role, Jen is responsible for managing the image and reputation of the company, leading media relations and social media community building, and handling crisis events and issues that could have an impact on the brand.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How the 187-year-old brand is staying relevant with innovative PR strategies and their new Chief Tractor Officer, Rex
• The key to organic social media success
• Advice for working with values-aligned celebrities

Key Highlights:

• [01:30] Royal Ball Run, an autism non-profit Jen founded
• [03:25] Jen’s career path
• [05:05] What John Deere (is outside of green tractors)
• [07:00] How a 187-year-old brand is staying relevant in today's market
• [08:00] The hunt for a Chief Tractor Officer
• [12:00] The Chief Tractor Officer hunt campaign on a budget
• [13:55] What made Rex perfect for the job?
• [17:25] The key to organic social media success
• [19:25] Advice on working with celebrities
• [23:10] Lessons learned from her daughter
• [25:15] Advice to her younger self
• [26:20] The AI portion of the show
• [27:55] Catching a vibe from X and Reddit
• [31:40] The biggest threat facing marketers today

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