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Keeper of the Maine Outdoors
The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIFW) is a highly regarded state fish and wildlife agency. Since 2018, Rinck has worked with the Department to reach Maine’s general public and core constituent groups, such as hunters, anglers, boaters, and trappers who have high levels of awareness, trust and satisfaction with the agency.
While most Mainers inherently love the outdoors across all seasons, MDIFW faced challenges with getting their messages across to New Mainers within our immigrant communities and Mainers over the age of 18 who participate in outdoor activities, but do not receive licenses through the Department. These groups include hikers, bikers, campers, wildlife viewers and photographers, visitors to state and national parks and more.
THE OUTCOME
While the Department itself was well positioned as the official Keepers of the Maine Outdoors, we wanted to encourage and empower users to become a Keeper of the Maine Outdoors by educating them on the Maine outdoors in a relatable and humorous way. The campaign, which served as an extension of the Department’s tagline “All in for the Maine Outdoors,” included fun, informative videos from actual wardens and biologists (aka the experts) with the primary goal of promoting MDIFW’s mission, programs, and projects. Our strategy was to reach and form connections with audiences who enjoy the outdoors, but were not familiar with the Department and the services they provide, leaving them likely unaware of some of the rules of the outdoors that help to keep themselves, the outdoors and Maine’s wildlife safe.
The campaign was designed to increase awareness and drive engagement, so in addition to paid media, exclusive quarterly giveaways were developed and promoted to provide audiences with a chance to win exclusive day-in-the-life experiences with Maine game wardens or wildlife biologists. The experiences included visiting a black bear den, a day at a regional fish hatchery, or a behind the scenes tour of The Maine Wildlife Park.
The campaign website included a quiz for Mainers to test their knowledge and see if they were a “Keeper”. Additionally, the primary objective of this campaign was to increase e-newsletter sign ups to facilitate future communication with the public and non-consumptive users. In the first 180 days, the Department’s e-newsletter grew by nearly 15,000 new individuals and throughout the entire campaign 22,138 unique quiz entries were captured.
In 2022, the campaign was reimagined through the addition of an experiential tour which brought the Keeper Experience to Mainers at local events and recreational locations where they were already enjoying the Maine outdoors. The tour included a branded vehicle, event set up, physical Preparedness Kits and a Kids Activity Passport that were handed out at tour stops by “Keeper Crew” brand ambassadors. While we continued to promote MDIFW’s expertise with New Mainers and non-consumptive users, we wanted to take things a step further to continue educating and engaging the public on steps we can all take to protect Maine and its wildlife. A new series of humorous videos were developed to help encourage wildlife safety in your own backyard.
KIND WORDS
Working with Rinck has helped us reach broader audiences and build greater support for conservation in Maine. Their award-winning work on the Keeper of the Maine Outdoors campaign brought fresh energy and creativity to how we share our story. They’ve been a thoughtful and effective partner in growing our reach.
- Emily MacCabe, Director, Information and Education, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife