Metsä Fibre
We see the forest from the trees
Brandkind is able to help and act as an outsourced partner as part of the marketing team, and bring new competencies that may not exist internally.
Eva Martin
Vice President for Marketing
Metsä Fibre
Metsä Fibre is a part of the Finnish forest industry group Metsä Group. They are the leading producer of wood-based bioproducts such as pulp, sawn timber, biochemical and bioenergy. Their products are known for their high quality, which is based on the unique characteristics of Nordic wood.
Creativity means
a unique perspective
that leads to results.
Case 1
Successful launch of online services
Metsä Fibre wanted to execute the launch campaign of its revamped online services in the style of major technology companies, with a broader range of digital marketing implementation. We were tasked with planning and designing the entire marketing package in collaboration with Metsä Fibre’s marketing team.
Challenge
Inspiring launch campaign
Metsä Fibre is a global leader in producing wood-based bioproducts and the largest sawn timber producer in Finland. The majority of production is exported, which means that the customer base is international.
Metsä Fibre offers online services to both their pulp and sawn timber customers. The Metsä Pulp Online platform provides pulp customers with real-time delivery information, quality reports, product details, and sustainability certifications. Similarly, Metsä Timber Online is a web-based platform for sawn timber customers, enabling them to browse, order timber products, and track their orders.
When the services were revamped in the spring of 2023, the company wanted to campaign in the style of major technology companies. The campaign also introduced a significantly broader range of digital marketing implementations.
Approach
Effective marketing package
Brandkind planned the overall marketing strategy in collaboration with Metsä Fibre’s marketing team. We designed the launch concept and its efficient execution into an entity of multiple marketing elements. We placed particular emphasis on integrating different materials and measures to form a cumulative narrative that would convey key messages effectively.
Our work included creating a new visual identity, producing the soft launch and global launch onboarding messages, targeted social media advertising, marketing materials to support sales, and tutorial videos and manuals to facilitate adoption. We increased visibility with the use of Timber Fox, a mascot character with a sympathetic, game-inspired appearance.
Results
Innovative visibility
Metsä Fibre’s sawn timber and pulp customers have been satisfied with the revamped service, and the highly visible multichannel launch attracted a significant number of new users to the online services. On the sawn timber side, the Timber Fox mascot proved so popular that it continues to serve as the mascot for the service even after the launch phase.
Case 2
Bringing an online customer event to life
We worked with Metsä Fibre to prepare, produce and broadcast a live customer event on Zoom to promote their new, state-of-the-art Rauma pine sawmill.
Challenge
Engaging customers around the world
Metsä Fibre wanted to keep their customers excited and informed about their brand-new pine sawmill in Rauma, Finland, which will start production later this year. Because the mill uses the very latest technology – much of which has never previously been used in the industry – there was plenty to tell. This included an overview of the project progress and the mill itself, as well as introductions to the technology and the benefits it will bring to customers and their end products.
As there were still travel restrictions in force in many regions, Metsä Fibre decided that a live online customer event was the best option because this would enable customers from around the world to attend and participate. Brandkind has been working regularly together with Metsä Fibre and they knew that we would understand their requirements and messages they wanted to convey. As a result, they asked us to help them bring the event to life.
Approach
Involvement from the start
To bring everything and everyone together at the right time, Brandkind was involved from the start, from designing the look and feel of the invitations, to helping to plan the studio design and run the event. Our work included planning the event schedule and content, as well as creating pre-recorded video segments, which were used in between live studio discussions. We also handled the Zoom event invitations and arranged for simultaneous live interpretations over Zoom with multiple audio streams.
For the videography, we partnered with Finnish production company Videolle, who we have successfully worked with before, to handle the studio lighting, camerawork and live video direction.
About 80 key customers participated in Metsä Fibre’s Rauma Pine Sawmill virtual event and they gave very positive feedback. They were pleased with the top management insights into the sawmill project and its operations, and they got an understanding of how the sawmill will enable Metsä Fibre to serve them better in the future.
Results
Delivered live in multiple languages
We made life easier for the customer, taking care of the technical details of the event, including setting up the registration pages and organising the location. After the pre-event preparations, we successfully broadcasted the event live to customers in Europe, China, Japan and North America.
The event took place in a studio in Helsinki, with a mix of live discussion and pre-recorded video. To make sure that all Metsä Fibre’s customers could participate, we arranged simultaneous interpretation into Chinese, Japanese and Finnish in Zoom. We also arranged and moderated a live chat channel, which enabled a much-appreciated Q&A session at the end.
The technical aspects of the event went smoothly without any hitches, which let the people in the studio relax and concentrate on presenting the Rauma pine sawmill and its technology in the best way possible.
Case 3
Communicating a unified story across all media platforms
We work in close co-operation with Metsä Fibre to ensure important topics such as sustainability and social responsibility gain the attention they deserve.
Challenge
Establishing a stronger presence on social media
Metsä Fibre is the world’s leading producer of softwood market pulp and a major producer of sawn timber. They have also been frontrunners in developing a sustainable partner ecosystem around their pulp mills, utilizing process side streams in the production of various new and innovative bioproducts. Sustainability is a pivotal part of their daily business.
In addition to supporting the sale of products and expert services, one aim for their broad marketing communications efforts is to take an active thought leadership position on topics related to sustainability and social responsibility within the pulp and sawn timber industries. At the same time, they wanted to build their social media presence and activity without tying up endless internal resources to do so. This is how social media became one more platform among where Brandkind helps Metsä Fibre communicate their story.
Approach
Quality content and systematic scheduling
Brandkind is Metsä Fibre’s long-running agency partner with a great deal of insight and understanding into their business. Our co-operation reaches beyond just social media, ranging from creative corporate events’ planning (virtual and face-to-face) to sales tools and brand promotions. Helping Metsä Fibre deploy a systematic and efficient process for social media communications has involved establishing and managing their publishing platforms and tools on their behalf.
In addition to running the daily publishing operations, Brandkind is involved in the development of the client’s social media publishing strategy and calendar. We also regularly develop and produce high-quality content for use on social media, from articles to video content and infographics.
Results
Big impact without tying down resources
We have been able to take off the pressure from the client’s marketing and communications departments while establishing a regular social media presence on LinkedIn and Twitter in both English and Finnish. Social media engagement has improved due to more frequent and regular posting, all without significantly increasing the workload for our client.
Increasing the share of content relating to not just sustainability, but a range of social responsibility themes supports Metsä Fibre’s desire to take a stand on these important topics. Rather than simply following or just participating, Metsä Fibre is initiating conversations surrounding sustainability and responsible corporate citizenship.
