How Woden Ignited New Growth in Bush Hog’s Legendary Brand
Bush Hog’s rotary cutters and mowers have been the industry standard for those who need to shape their land since 1951. The brand is legendary for its ruggedness: fans post videos of their Bush Hogs taking down entire trees without skipping a beat.
When Bush Hog engaged a new go-to-market leader, he saw a brand whose strength with customers was not translating in the dealer channel. Bush Hog engaged Woden to rally the entire team around a strategy narrative that re-established Bush Hog as a “category of one.”
Woden’s StoryKernel asserted Bush Hog’s position as the category leader: “If it doesn’t say Bush Hog, it just won’t cut it.” Bush Hog strengthened its position with dealers, leaned into what its fans loved most about the brand, and used that clarity to drive record sales.
Woden came up with the perfect tagline for us. Everyone says so. It reflects our unique position in the industry… they’ve certainly strengthened our brand… this year we’ve had more orders than any year since 2007.
THE CHALLENGE
Bush Hog was built for people whose relationship with the land is their livelihood. Farmers routinely hold on to the brand’s rotary cutters for decades; the brand’s “built to last” reputation carried it from its origins in Selma, Alabama to a nationwide dealer network.
But over nearly 75 years, the brand becaome a victim of its own success. “Bush Hog” first became a verb (“I’m going to Bush Hog that field”) and then came to mean any rotary cutter. This confusion disrupted dealer relationships as Bush Hog’s market leadership was eroded by new market entrants. Buyers walked in their local Agway looking for a Bush Hog, and too frequently left with a less durable imitator.
The brand’s go-to-market leadership realized that reaching their potential required reframing its value in the market, so no one would settle for less than a genuine Bush Hog. They engaged Woden to shape the brand’s heritage into a simple narrative that would cement loyalty for dealers and customers alike.
WODEN’S SOLUTION
Woden’s initial discussions with Bush Hog’s long-tenured team uncovered the pride employees felt in products they shipped on their first day decades before still being in the field. 30-year employees routinely encounter customers using Bush Hogs their grandparents purchased. This durability defines everything that makes a Bush Hog a Bush Hog: rugged engineering and a commitment to servicing products long out of production.
Bush Hog is a professional brand. But of its customers see owning a Bush Hog as a lifestyle choice, and Woden encouraged the brand to lean into this in its story. To persuade buyers they need a genuine Bush Hog, the story had to capture buyers’ aspirations.
The belief that a Bush Hog transforms “any property into a land of opportunity” formed the core of the StoryKernel. The brand’s generational nature gave dealers a story that shifted the focus away from short-term incentives offered by competitors and towards the community, legacy, and culture that is only accessible to genuine Bush Hog owners.
Bush Hog’s StoryKernel concluded with a sentence that has come to define the brand: “If it doesn’t say Bush Hog, it just won’t cut it.”
The strategic narrative asserted Bush Hog’s position as the innovator in the market and generated a positive contrast to the capabilities of competitors. Woden traveled to Bush Hog’s headquarters for an on-site StorySeminar that empowered leadership to “reclaim the name.”
In the StorySeminar, the Bush Hog team co-created a go-to-market strategy derived from the StoryKernel. For a brand with the history and deep dealer relationships, Woden’s approach ensured this expertise was woven into the final strategy, and that there was clarity on how to bring the story from Selma to fields all across America.
Woden took this strategy and expanded into Bush Hog’s StoryGuide. The StoryGuide showed how to arm dealers with the same story customers loved, and how to use Bush Hog’s positioning into every aspect of the customer journey. Its easy-to-use format and mix of strategies with clear tactics set the dealers and Bush Hog up for success together.
Deploying the StoryGuide delivered results: after a decade of stagnant growth, Bush Hog hit new sales records. A clear story that pulls buyers towards the brand, and that dealers love to repeat, has reinvigorated Bush Hog and continues to form the foundation of its go-to-market.
THE MAKING OF AN ESSENTIAL BRAND
Bush Hog’s brand is strongest in the hands of its dealers and fans. The StoryKernel has unified the story each is telling. Kerry Meacham noted Woden “certainly strengthened our brand, making it more cohesive where it was disjointed.”
Brands that sell through a dealer network must empower others to tell their story on their behalf. Bush Hog used its StoryKenel to re-establish itself as a “category of one,” and give dealers the narrative they needed to bring new customers to the brand instead of competitors. That’s a win for anyone who works on their land, because “If it doesn’t say Bush Hog, it just won’t cut it.”
