Niece Motorsports Marcom Communications Program Submission
Overview
J.F. Electric serves as a primary sponsor for driver Matt Mills and Niece Motorsports, a team competing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. As an electrical contractor serving utilities, commercial, industrial and telecom clients from pre-planning through project completion, J.F. Electric sought a communications program to engage with National Lineman Appreciation Day on April 18, 2025. The goal of the program was to showcase its appreciation for an integral part of its business, while also generating affinity, awareness, and fan-engagement in the NASCAR space.
Strategic Planning
This season, National Lineman Appreciation Day fell on NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race day at Rockingham Speedway. Through the planning process and conversations with primary sponsor J.F. Electric, it was determined that the goals of the communications program were to showcase its appreciation for lineman, an integral part of J.F. Electric’s business, while also generating affinity, awareness, and fan-engagement in the NASCAR space.
The team created a special event-specific logo and devised a plan to create compelling and informative content and a schedule to share that content across social platforms.
Communications personnel pitched and informed key print and broadcast media about National Lineman Appreciation Day and the associated team branding and creative content.
In order to measure the success of the communications program, key metrics were tracked on team social platforms, including interactions and engagement.
Content Creation
The team’s content creation goal was to produce visually compelling vehicle branding, complemented by engaging social content and informative press materials.
The team created a logo to be utilized on press materials, digital platforms, and most prominently on the No. 42 J.F. Electric Chevrolet Silverado. The ‘National Lineman Appreciation Day’ logo was placed on the bed top of the team’s truck for the April 18 race event at Rockingham Speedway. On the TV Panel (tailgate) of the race truck the team utilized branding with the hashtag ‘#ThankALineman’.
To complement the vehicle branding, the team utilized the ‘#ThankALineman’ hashtag on all social platforms when sharing content related to this communications program.
The campaign was launched with a post that incorporated the special logo and J.F. Electric branded hard hat, while informing fans that National Lineman Appreciation Day would be on April 18.
To unveil the vehicle branding, the team captured video content of the vehicle, which was revealed on all social platforms.
A photo of the J.F. Electric race truck with a branded team crew shirt, hat and 1:64 scale race truck, was shared via all social platforms. Fans were encouraged to tag a lineman for the chance to win the branded items featured in the post. The following week, winners were selected. All selected winners were linemen.
Pre-race press materials included a write up about National Lineman Appreciation Day and the special vehicle branding, which was distributed to the organization’s media list of over 1,400 contacts.
The team created a graphic that highlights the storm-damage response work that J.F. Electric does. The graphic, with images provided by J.F. Electric, was shared via all social platforms.
The creative team put together a script and captured video content with driver Matt Mills, who shared his personal connection with National Lineman Appreciation Day, as well as thanking those who help keep the lights on. The video was shared to team social platforms on National Lineman Appreciation Day.
The final piece of content creation was a photo captured at track that features team members wearing J.F. Electric branded hard hats by the ‘#ThankALineman’ branding on the race truck, which was shared on team social platforms.
Media Relations
Key media was pitched and made aware of National Lineman Appreciation Day, the associated vehicle branding and social content, along with primary sponsor J.F. Electric’s involvement and connection.
Pre-race press materials included a write up about National Lineman Appreciation Day and the special vehicle branding, which was distributed to the organization’s media list of over 1,400 contacts.
Digital Marketing
The digital marketing goal for this communications program was to create content that was informative and engaging, while also creating an affinity to and awareness of the team’s primary sponsor J.F. Electric and National Lineman Appreciation Day.
The digital marketing strategy featured team assets including the race vehicle, driver, crew members, and memorabilia, as well as hard hats provided by J.F. Electric. All of these assets were utilized in graphic, photo, and video content shared via the team social media platforms.
The campaign launched with a post incorporating the special logo and J.F. Electric branded hard hat, while informing fans that National Lineman Appreciation Day would be on April 18.
The special vehicle branding was unveiled with video on all team social platforms.
A photo of the J.F. Electric race truck with branded memorabilia was shared via all social platforms. Fans were encouraged to tag a lineman for the chance to win the branded items featured in the post. The following week, linemen were selected as winners for the memorabilia giveaways.
The team created a graphic highlighting the storm-damage response work J.F. Electric does. The graphic, with images provided by J.F. Electric, was shared via all social platforms.
The creative team put together a script and captured video content with driver Matt Mills, who shared his personal connection with National Lineman Appreciation Day, as well as thanking those who help keep the lights on. The video was shared to team social platforms on National Lineman Appreciation Day.
The final piece of content shared on team social platforms for this program, was a photo captured at track featuring team members wearing J.F. Electric branded hard hats by the ‘#ThankALineman’ branding on the race truck.
Campaign Execution
The program featured a relatively tight timeline, as it was centered around a specific day. The creative team used the weeks leading up to the launch of the program to create the logo, truck branding, and content-capture plan.
The program launched on Monday, April 14 – the week leading into both Rockingham Speedway race day and National Lineman Appreciation Day.
At least one piece of team-created content was shared each day from the launch until the conclusion of the communications program.
The program wrapped up on National Lineman Appreciation Day on Friday, April 18.
Analytics and Measurement
MeasurementThe program was a success, as the team saw a 79% increase in average impressions and a 39% increase in average engagement when looking at this communications campaign, compared to a standard week of content featuring Matt Mills and J.F. Electric.
Full Report
To review a document that outlines the highlights of the entire campaign, please click on the button below.
