Integrated Marketing Campaign for an Award-Winning Detroit-Style Pizzeria

Campaign Overview:

Hudson & Packard is an award-winning Detroit-style pizzeria in Poughkeepsie, New York. Despite receiving national recognition for its product, the restaurant faced several business challenges, including low local awareness, unfamiliarity with Detroit-style pizza, and negative perceptions surrounding its downtown location.

Working directly with the client throughout the semester, our team developed a fully integrated marketing campaign designed to increase awareness, encourage first-time trial, and establish Hudson & Packard as a go-to dining destination for college students in the Hudson Valley. As Account Manager, I coordinated client communication, managed project timelines and deliverables, and collaborated across strategy, creative, media, and research to keep the campaign aligned from concept through final presentation.

  • Hudson & Packard had already built an award-winning product. The challenge wasn't the pizza—it was making more people aware of it.

    Three barriers stood in the way:

    • Low Awareness: Many local college students had never heard of the brand.

    • Product Education: Detroit-style pizza was unfamiliar to much of the target audience.

    • Location Perception: Concerns surrounding the downtown location discouraged first-time visits.

    Our goal was to increase awareness, encourage first-time trial, and establish Hudson & Packard as a regular part of students' dining routines.

  • Before developing a campaign, we focused on understanding both the market and the consumer.

    Our research included:

    • 9 competitor analyses

    • 36-question consumer survey

    • 152 survey responses

    • SWOT & TOWS analyses

    • Review and sentiment analysis

    • Market and consumer behavior research

    These findings became the foundation for every strategic recommendation.

  • One finding stood out above all else:

    Students don't discover restaurants through advertising. They discover them through each other.

    Our survey found that 84.46% of respondents relied on word-of-mouth to learn about local restaurants. Instead of trying to interrupt students with advertising, we saw an opportunity to become part of the conversations they were already having.

  • Word Travels Fast

    Because when something's that good, no one keeps it to themselves.

    The campaign positioned Hudson & Packard as the center of campus conversation.

    Rather than relying on traditional advertising, we encouraged discovery through:

    • Peer recommendations

    • Shared campus experiences

    • Organic word-of-mouth

    • Everyday moments of discovery

    The objective wasn't simply to advertise the restaurant—it was to give students something worth talking about.

  • As Account Manager, I helped guide the project from kickoff to final presentation.

    My responsibilities included:

    • Managing project timelines and deadlines

    • Coordinating communication with the client

    • Overseeing deliverables and submissions

    • Collaborating across research, strategy, and creative

    • Ensuring the campaign remained aligned throughout the semester

    Working directly with a real client strengthened my project management, communication, and strategic collaboration skills while contributing to a campaign built on research-driven insights.