Back Smith to bacon drop.
Clean.

The Brief

Wendy’s had a media presence at the XGames, but media alone doesn’t earn respect. You can’t just roll up with a camera crew and expect to matter. In a culture built on authenticity, getting it wrong doesn’t just get ignored. It gets rejected. To connect with this crowd, we needed content that spoke their language. That meant cultural fluency, creator energy, and a brand voice that actually hit. Not ads pretending to be content. Real moments built for a community that knows the difference.

My Role: Strategic Lead · Production Oversight

The Work

We built a creator-first campaign designed to move at the speed of the moment. Over two fast-paced days, I worked shoulder to shoulder with the creative team and XGames talent to shape content with authenticity, not polish. We cast real voices from the scene, gave them space to lead the story, and captured fast-turn, single-shot content with GoPro grit. Everything was built to feel close and in motion. The work earned attention by showing up the same way the audience does.

Why It Hits

We didn’t just sponsor. We showed up with culture fluency. This wasn’t influencer marketing. It was inner-circle marketing. We brought in former pros, past medalists, and people still deep in the scene. They helped shape the work from the inside out, keeping it honest and making sure it felt right. We let insiders lead. The audience felt it.

Bacon boards > banner ads.