Think you know what goes on behind the doors of an aerospace and defense company?

You have no idea.

And those that do, imagine a cold, rigid, frankly boring world, far from the avocado toast of Silicon Valley where America’s best engineers think the best jobs lie.

Enter: Overheard at Northrop Grumman, the first serialized comedy built for LinkedIn.

We know what you’re thinking. Space? Defense? COMEDY?!

But comedy let us break through the preconceived notions of key tech talent audiences, re-defining what they know about Northrop Grumman (NG). We created over 35 vignettes (with more on the way) that showed a side of the company many had never seen, much less expected—humanizing NG and giving life to an industry often thought of as lifeless. This gained the brand consideration and social engagement it never experienced in its history.

The result: NG’s most coveted talent groups, taken on a journey from microelectronics labs to the expanse of space, starting to see and believe that “Our Ordinary is Extraordinary.”

Since 2020, NG has been on a journey to establish their new brand ethos and mantra: “Defining Possible.”

But research showed that there was a barrier: perception. To many, aerospace and defense could never be innovative. The truth is, some of the most innovative technologies were sparked in the A&D industry.

“Overheard at Northrop Grumman” set out to make NG more approachable, while also putting them firmly ahead of the competition as the shapers of what’s possible. In the process, we set a new standard for branding in the A&D industry—a space that had never seen anything like it.

Starting in Nov. 2021, we dropped a new “Overheard” spot every few weeks, totaling close to 40 by the end of 2022, with dozens more in the pipeline for 2023.

The reaction has been incredible—not just on LinkedIn, but across all channels.

Our clients loved it for showcasing the innovation and humanity missing from their past work. Their employees loved it for showing real life at NG, with all of the incredible technologies and comedy that entails.

Even employees at rival companies loved it, some even hinting at needing to look into open opportunities.

As of November 2022, impressions across social channels have totaled ~50M, with video plays alone totaling ~43M. Compared to other creative running across social within the last year, “Overheard at Northrop Grumman” performed at least 2x higher across every platform. It also outperformed benchmarks set in FY21 in 2022: LinkedIn ER was 62% higher; Facebook ER was 270% higher; and even Twitter VCR saw an 86% increase. LinkedIn, our primary platform, continued to improve efficiencies due to stronger engagement in 2022, seeing a significant decrease in CPE—$2.88 vs $4.23 benchmark. Even the oft-maligned comments section was full of positivity, praise, and partner pranksters in on the jokes.

Overall, “Overheard” has been Northrop Grumman’s most successful social campaign to date—and arguably across the entire aerospace industry—with no signs of stopping any time soon.