Actor at center of ‘Sandlot’ movie’s iconic s’mores scene touts National S’mores Day for Wyndham

Faced with negative publicity about the timeshare industry, Wyndham Destinations looked for a way to promote Worldmark by Wyndham, part of the company’s vacation club portfolio. National S’mores Day presented that opportunity, leading to a video that earned the top “Use of a Celebrity or Personality” prize in PR Daily’s Video & Visual Awards.

Who knew that one of America’s leading s’mores-making experts is Patrick Renna, who portrayed Ham Porter in the 90’s movie, “The Sandlot” and was at the center of an iconic s’mores scene? (It’s true; you can watch it on YouTube.) Wyndham secured Renna for the video, designed to tap into a strong nostalgia trend among social media audiences.

The team targeted the videos to potential timeshare owners, focusing on older millennials and millennial parents, along with current owners. Communicators opted to produce two videos, one with a twist on the s’mores scene in “The Sandlot,” the other focusing more on Renna’s family life and 90’s nostalgia.

A three-phase plan was developed (covering prelaunch, the period the video was promoted, and postlaunch), which included s’mores kits for Wyndham guests and mailers targeting media and influencers (among other tactics).

Renna was an active participant in the campaign, sharing his own posts on social media along with the videos; he was also made available for media interviews, several of which were secured.

The campaign produced nearly 2 million views of the video and considerable top-tier press coverage.

Congratulations to Juliette Gebken-Mayi, Allyson Pippin, Vanessa Picariello, Tyrone Law, Terris Ransom and Doug Boemler Wareing.