America's Best Front Yard — Rachel DeSchepper
My Role

As Executive Editor of BHG.com, I co-conceived America's Best Front Yard (#bhgbestfrontyard) with Better Homes & Gardens' Editor in Chief around a shared editorial conviction: that front yards—the welcoming, communal face of a home—deserved the same celebration as the private backyard. I led the program from concept to execution, overseeing the digital, social, and video components while coordinating cross-functionally with the print editorial team to close the loop in the October 2019 issue of Better Homes & Gardens. I wrote all on-site contest copy, managed the Wyng-powered submission and public voting platform on BHG.com, and shepherded the winner's story from a digital contest to a print feature—generating 900+ entries and 5,000+ public votes in its first year.

900+ Contest Entries
5,000+ User Votes
2 Years Running
4 Teams Coordinated

Social Media — Contest Launch & Winner Announcement

Social media was the engine of this contest. I directed the social media editor and oversaw the design team's branding pitches—logo and illustrations—to ensure the campaign had a cohesive visual identity. Posts drove entries via #bhgbestfrontyard, built anticipation, and ultimately celebrated the winner with BHG's large, highly engaged audience.

Contest launch post (left) · Winner announcement post (right)
Click each image to view full posts on Instagram

Digital — Website Coverage

I coordinated with the print team and produced the winner's story on BHG.com, timing the announcement to the on-sale date of the October 2019 issue—a deliberate, cross-platform reveal that gave readers a reason to engage with both the site and the magazine simultaneously.

BHG homepage announcing the winner
BHG.com homepage on the day of the winner announcement
Winner story and runners-up on BHG.com
Winner feature and runners-up gallery on BHG.com
Click to view full page via Wayback Machine

Video — Winner Feature

To extend the winner's story beyond print and digital, I worked with BHG's in-house video team to produce a dedicated feature—bringing the winning yard and the people behind it to life in a way no photograph could.

Still from winner video—click to watch
Still from the winner's video feature—click to watch on YouTube

Print — October 2019 Issue of Better Homes & Gardens

The print feature was the culmination of a fully integrated campaign—the moment a digital contest became a magazine story.

BHG October 2019 cover
October 2019 cover of Better Homes & Gardens
October 2019 print feature—click to view full PDF
Interior feature spread—click to view full PDF