Dive Brief:

• Land O'Lakes worked with singer Maggie Rose and songwriter Liz Rose on a new song, "She-I-O," that reimainges the childrens' favorite "Old MacDonald Had a Farm," according to a company press release. The female-focused spin spotlights women ahead of Women's Equality Day on Aug. 26 and is part of the company's All Together Better initiative aimed at supporting women in the farming industry. 
• "She-I-O" debuted on SoundCloud and will also be available on iTunes. The campaign, which was created with The Martin Agency, includes a music video on Vevo and YouTube that features real-life female farmers. Land O'Lakes is additionally donating $1 to Feeding America for each share, tag or comment on "She-I-O" videos. 
• Land O'Lakes will debut a three-part documentary series titled "In Their Words" as part of the effort. Produced by The Female Farmer Project, the series tells the stories of some of the female Land O'Lakes farmers. The full campaign is multichannel with 30- and 60-second TV spots and print and digital content. Consumers can use the hashtag #AllTogetherBetter to follow the push on social media. 

Dive Insight:

Land O'Lakes is attempting to break down gender stereotypes in the farming industry and raise awareness about the fact that roughly one-third of all U.S. farmers are women. The campaign might resonate with younger consumers, in particular, who are more frequently shunning traditional portrayals of gender roles to be more open-minded. 

Rewriting the lyrics to a classic children's song ensures the tune of "She-I-O" is immediately recognizable and catchy. The themes of inclusivity for the song also fit with several recent industry initiatives supporting women's empowerment. The agency BBDO New York earlier this year launched an "It's Time to Redefine" public-awareness campaign that aims to change the definition of "woman," as it currently appears in some online dictionaries with problematic terms. 

Documentary filmmaking around social causes has also become more popular with brands looking to tell real peoples' stories and communicate authenticity with consumers. Mercedes-Benz Vans earlier this year recruited the punk music icon Henry Rollins for a documentary series examining what toughness means to van and utility vehicle owners across Australia.  

Marketers are also experimenting with these types of content-rich, longer-form video efforts to meet consumer demand. Consumption of brands' original digital video (ODV) efforts increased 60% from 45 million in 2013 to 72 million in 2018, according to research from the Interactive Advertising Bureau. About half of ODV viewers are "Brand Seekers," or consumers who are likely to seek out and be receptive to new brands, the report found.