SAE International
Bringing Human Stories to an Engineering Giant
SAE International is a global leader in mobility standards and engineering. But outside the industry, few people knew its name, let alone its impact.
SAE needed a way to connect with new audiences and reintroduce itself to existing ones. Its first-ever brand campaign, “Meet SAE,” set out to shift perception by telling a different kind of story—one that puts people, not just products, at the center.
Deep Varnish was brought in to lead the development of landing page copy and support the overall storytelling strategy. That included writing campaign content from the ground up, reviewing scripts and creative, and providing feedback to ensure a unified, audience-first narrative.
Services provided:
Brand Storytelling
Website Optimization
Creative Direction
Creating Connection Through Story
To engage a broader audience, we needed to translate SAE’s technical value into emotional relevance. That meant grounding every message in real human stakes.
We developed landing page content that paired each campaign character—Pete, Skylar, and Violet—with a clear narrative arc: what they care about, what they face, and how SAE quietly supports them. From electric vehicle standards to aviation safety to early STEM education, we told stories that showed the invisible work behind the visible impact.
We also reviewed video scripts and creative direction to ensure every piece stayed cohesive. That meant asking hard questions: Does this line connect to the audience’s world? Is the tone too technical or not technical enough? Are we honoring the expertise of SAE without overwhelming people with jargon?
By acting as a creative translator between technical teams, marketing leads, and production partners, we helped shape a story that was clear, compelling, and ready to scale.
Setting the Stage for Long-Term Engagement
While the campaign was designed to build brand awareness, the work also laid the groundwork for deeper, ongoing engagement.
The landing pages weren’t just passive destinations—they became active extensions of the brand story. With refined messaging, clear CTAs, and a stronger UX path, the site helped convert awareness into action. SAE could now welcome first-time visitors, returning members, and curious engineers with messaging that met them where they were.
This clarity also supported internal alignment. With a shared story and consistent voice, teams across SAE had a stronger foundation to build future campaigns, marketing assets, and outreach efforts.
The result: a campaign that didn’t just perform well in the moment. It gave SAE a story structure to grow with.
The results:
80 million+ impressions
85% brand lift in targeted audiences
Over 2,500 new engaged accounts in Salesforce
Award-winning campaign, recognized by the Pittsburgh Chapter of PRSA
“The ‘Meet SAE’ campaign is an important effort for the organization as we look to reaffirm our value proposition with existing members and, in many cases, introduce ourselves to new audiences who are making these new realities possible.”