EASY AS (R)PIE
How a PR Framework Helped Me Bake a County-Fair-Worthy Pie
I moved around a lot growing up — I was in my third school by fifth grade. Even now, I don’t really feel like I have a “hometown.” My childhood zip code, phone number, and school district each belonged to different communities, and while I had a foot in all three, none of them truly feel like home today. As an adult, I’ve been living in the same community since 2018, and I’ve started to feel the pull to put down real roots — to make this place feel like home in a way I never quite had growing up. One thing I always loved as a kid was the county fair. My family would wander through the exhibition halls, admiring the red, white, and blue ribbons proudly pinned to flowers, art and food — all the work of 4-H kids and local residents. Recently, I had a moment of realization: Why don’t I do this?
I love to bake and I’m always looking for new creative outlets. This seemed like the perfect opportunity — something with a goal and a timeline to keep me focused, and a way to feel more connected to the community I’ve chosen to call home. To keep things manageable, I narrowed my focus to two open-class entries: pie, and cheesy/beer bread.. But for this article, I’m sticking to the pie. Because if anything says county fair, it’s a homemade pie.
Like all big plans, they require proactive strategic planning. In fact, it takes Research, Planning, Implementation and Evaluation (RPIE), the same components that make up a thorough PR plan. Let’s walk through the steps to see how it can be as easy as pie!
Research — What Makes a Winning Pie?
Let’s talk research. Research can be acquired in a variety of ways (primary vs secondary, formal vs. informal, qualitative vs. quantitative, etc.). My method for the project included gathering informal information from blogs/websites of submitted pie entries from past fairs - what worked, what didn’t. Then, I conducted secondary research for recipe development. Based on the time of year and ingredient availability, I decided to avoid fruit pies because I was unsure if I could consistently replicate the same outcome. Also, from my research, the rules stated the pie slice needed to be delivered the day before tasting - so I needed a pie that could “sit” for at least 24 hours without deteriorating in flavor, texture and structure. Based on my research, I concluded that a custard pie would be the best option.
Next is the Planning (Goals, Publics, Objectives, Strategies and Tactics)
Mapping the Plan
A plan is necessary to implement any campaign; it can vary in complexity, but it serves as the guiding light through the various stages. So, my goal was simple but meaningful to me. Remember, goals are long-term, broad, and future-oriented statements.
Become more engaged in my local community and start a new family tradition through meaningful involvement.
Next up, who’s my audience (or public)? I had a preconceived notion of who my public was - a panel of matrons who could spot an underbaked bottom crust from a mile away. This did turn out to be true, but always make sure to check your assumptions.
Ok, time for an objective. To note, objectives are short-term and should be SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-specific). I had an output objective to successfully submit a pie (in the open class category) on July 8 for judging at the 2025 Sauk County Fair. Along with an *outcome objective of becoming more confident in my baking ability during the 2025 county fair to resubmit for additional categories in 2026.
*Note, outcome objectives that measure awareness, opinions, behaviors or support are truly the gold standard for a PR campaign - the only outcome I measured was my own. Measuring others' awareness/opinions was not realistic in this case.
Time to talk strategy. This is the overall approach - the strategy connects your goals to your tactics. Think big picture! For me, the county fair didn’t seem like the time too go crazy with flavors. County fairs are rooted in generational tradition, so I wanted to evoke that feel in my pie, but with the flavor kicked up a notch. My strategy was to highlight warming spices to evoke a sense of comfort. This was my guiding light.
Time to bust out the tactics/tools. These are the “little things” or specific actions needed to implement. Just like a press release, pitch deck, or social ads in a campaign — all in service of a single strategy — the tactics are all the little things you do to bring it to life. So, for me, there were several tactics I implemented. Here are some samples:
Use high-quality ingredients: Use farm-fresh eggs, Irish butter, local dairy, and maple syrup from my family land.
Test and tweak: baked my two test pies to receive back qualitative feedback from friends/family to make changes.
Perfect the crust: Practiced rolling, cutting, and crimping the crust to ensure a golden, flaky finish.
Transportation: Find the vessel I’ll use to transport my pie for the very windy and bumpy 20-minute car ride.
IMPLEMENTATION — BAKE DAY
Crank up the oven — it’s time to bake (or, in RPIE terms, implement the plan). After all the research, planning, practice bakes, and grocery runs, it was finally go time: the day I would make my official fair pie.
That meant a full morning in the kitchen — cooking down the syrup, blind baking the crust, cracking eggs, whisking up the custard. Then came cooling time, packing it up carefully, the drive to the fairgrounds, and finally, checking in at registration.
And like any real PR plan, flexibility was everything. On this day, my toddler was home sick (pretty sure she sensed my schedule), so I had to shift my whole timeline to work around outdoor time, snuggles, and nap duty. Was it ideal? Not even close. But did I stick to the plan and get it done? Absolutely.
The real world rarely sticks to the ideal timelines so building in “cushion” spots can help when this comes up.
EVALUATION - HOW DID IT GO?
Evaluation is one of those steps that's easy to breeze past — especially when you're already thinking about what’s next. But taking the time to reflect on what worked, what didn’t, and how it all played out is essential, whether you’re running a PR campaign or, in this case, submitting a pie to the county fair.
So, did I hit my objectives?
My pie made it on the judging table — intact and on time.
I had a great first-time experience and didn’t back out.
Everyone at the fair was so kind and welcoming. I left feeling proud, encouraged, and — unexpectedly — hooked. I’ve definitely caught the county fair bug.
Beyond the pie, this experience checked an even bigger box: it helped me feel more connected to my local community, and it sparked what I hope will become a new family tradition.
Oh, and the second-place red ribbon? That is definitely going on the refrigerator.
