There is so much news to digest each day that it’s not hard to miss things. But sometimes, there are some cool and quirky news stories worth resurrecting. One such story is the Mower Mouth Contest that we discovered this week, run by American lawn mower brand Briggs & Stratton in 2013-2014.
What was the Mower Mouth Contest?
The Mower Mouth Contest was a very simple concept, but with just enough craziness in it for it to work. Briggs & Stratton invited fans to submit videos of themselves on Facebook of them doing lawn mower impersonations.
The incentive for embarrassing yourself was that the winner would receive a $5,000 cash prize and a brand new Craftsman lawn mower powered by a Briggs & Stratton Quiet Power Technology engine.
Here was the promotional video for the Mower Mouth Contest:
Who won the Mower Mouth Contest?
Walt Arnett, chosen by popular vote, was crowned the winner of Briggs & Stratton’s inaugural Mower Mouth Contest. Here is his lawn mower impersonation, for you to be the judge:
David West won second prize, with his creative “Manscaping” entry – featuring hunky male, chiselled abs, a back shower of lawn mower clippings and more:
Third prize went to JT Timmons with his lawn mower rap entry, Mower Mouth Cypher:
But, who was the real winner?
Lawn mower engine manufacturer Briggs & Stratton was however the real winner in the Mower Mouth Contest. Not only did their clever Facebook contest garner new media, fans and customers, but they also went on to win a Shorty Industry Award for Best Facebook Contest.
Impressively, they shared the category honour with juggernaut ESPN SportsCenter and beat out a big name third finalist, ABC Family. That’s pretty amazing for a contest about what some might say is just a “boring lawn mower”. It just goes to show that a little bit of creativity can go a long way.
Nice work guys!