SALTWORKS
655 E 4500 S #210
SALT LAKE CITY, UT 84107
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DIGITAL MARKETING | WEB DEVELOPMENT
655 E. 4500 S. SUITE 200
SALT LAKE CITY, UT 84107
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Recycling & Waste Management Marketing Case Study
How We Helped a Leader in Integrated Municipal Solid Waste Management and Resource Recovery Connect with the Community
Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District is a Utah Special Service District – a public subdivision of the State of Utah, serving the residents of Davis and Morgan Counties. While the Davis Landfill portion of the facility has been in operation since the early 1950s, major improvements have been made over the years to add a Material Recovery Facility (MRF), Transfer Station, Green Waste Recycling Facility, Household Hazardous Waste Facility, and Thrift Store, where usable items get a second life when they are sold to the general public.
Wasatch Integrated’s operations are nothing like what you would expect to see at a landfill or recycling facility. Odor-causing methane generated at the landfill is collected and used to power natural gas turbines at the nearby Hill Air Force Base. Wasatch proactively implements the best available demonstrated technologies that minimize the volume and toxicity of wastes and protect the environment for future generations. They are aggressively expanding curbside organics recycling and composting, even hosting community Fix-It Clinics to extend product lifespans. In every way possible, Wasatch treats waste as a resource to upcycle into compost, energy, and reusable goods.
The Challenge
Communicating what’s happening at the county landfill and recycling facility in a way that garners public interest and interaction may seem daunting. For the Saltworks team, it’s a challenge that we love. Saltworks leveraged our knowledge of consumer behavior along with our experience working with other recycling and waste management organizations to recommend and implement proven communication strategies.
Wasatch Integrated’s communications objectives included:
- Keep residents informed about the district’s services, programs, facilities, and operations
- Promote waste reduction, reuse, recycling, and environmentally responsible waste management practices through public education
- Provide timely, accurate, and transparent information about projects, policy changes, service updates, and operational impacts
- Increase public awareness of Wasatch Integrated’s role in delivering sustainable, cost-effective, and environmentally sound solid waste management
- Encourage community engagement and participation through educational resources, public meetings, surveys, and outreach initiatives
- Earn trust by communicating openly about the District’s decisions, environmental stewardship, and long-term planning efforts
Saltworks’ challenge was to develop a plan to guide marketing and communications for 3-5 years, a new website that engaged and educated visitors, and a social media engagement strategy to reach residents in a way that was fun, educational, and cost-effective.
The Approach
We start every engagement with an in-depth discovery meeting with one key mission: listening. No one knows the organization’s constituents like leadership. Wasatch Integrated’s knowledgeable leadership team provided an amazing foundation of knowledge for us to begin our collaboration.
Marketing and Communications Strategy Development
Saltworks began our work by developing a comprehensive marketing and communications strategy for Wasatch Integrated. This included the following key components:
- Services Outline. A detailed analysis of the facilities and services offered and how residents, recycling partners, and cities utilized both.
- Communication Goals & Objectives. This included a knowledge objective (What do our target audiences need to learn?), belief objective (What do our target audiences need to believe or feel?), and a behavior objective (What do we want our target audiences to do?).
- Target Audience Analysis. An analysis of the demographic, geographic, psychographic, and behavioral profiles (E.g., “recycling champion” vs. “self-doubters” vs. “detached”) of the constituents that Wasatch Integrated was there to serve.
- Communication Challenges & Solutions. We followed our problem > solution framework to pre-identify possible barriers to recycling and brainstorm innovative solutions
- Website & Compliance Audit. A full analysis of the existing website’s SEO performance, usability, and security posture, identifying the gaps that needed to be closed before a migration to a .gov TLD could happen.
- Branding and Positioning Recommendations.
- Marketing Channel & Platform Recommendations.
- Recommended Metrics to track KPIs.
Custom Illustrations
Often, it’s difficult to convey the mechanics of what’s happening inside a piece of recycling machinery with just a photo. We needed a way to distill the process down into something visually exciting and easy to understand at a glance.
That’s where custom, hand-drawn illustration comes in. Our illustrator (who has also learned a lot about recycling equipment over the years) created the fun illustrations for the website, social media, and print pieces.
Print Design
Through leveraging the same illustration style used in digital media, our artist and designer have been able to bring continuity and synergy to eye-catching printed materials for Wasatch Integrated, including brochures, decal/stickers, and signage.
Website Development
When it came to meeting the communications needs and challenges of the district, the Wasatch Integrated website would have to do a lot of the heavy lifting. The site needed to be streamlined and easy to navigate – while also providing interesting and fun content that people would actually want to explore. Many pages include video in the submasthead as well as embedded video, colorful illustrations, and answers to frequently asked questions. The website also meets the strict requirements for .gov domains.
Beyond the redesign, Saltworks quarterbacked Wasatch Integrated’s full migration from .org to .gov. That move necessitated a comprehensive security compliance audit: confirming HTTPS enforcement and proper security headers, verifying the hosting environment met federal standards, and checking accessibility against Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. The result is a site that doesn’t just meet the strict technical requirements for .gov domains, but one that stands as a secure, compliant public resource that residents and government partners can trust.
Custom Video Production
Short video reels and longer-form videos (3-7 minutes) have been crucial in engaging residents, informing them about the great recycling operations in their counties, and motivating them to become more avid recyclers. Through video, we’ve been able to demonstrate key processes with Wasatch’s state-of-the-art Material Recycling Facility (MRF), how green waste is turned into usable compost, and the journey of non-recyclable waste from the tipping floor to the landfill. Custom video has added transparency, authenticity, and interest in a way that stock video or still photos simply can’t.
Social Media Marketing
When faced with the task of creating engaging, relevant, and educational social media content about the county landfill and recycling facility, some agency teams might be stumped. We embraced the challenge!
Rather than relying on traditional public service announcements, we developed a social strategy rooted in authentic storytelling, educational humor, trending audio, curiosity-driven hooks, and the personalities of the district’s own employees.
By turning everyday recycling questions, common misconceptions, and behind-the-scenes operations into engaging content, we created a channel residents genuinely wanted to follow.
In September 2026, Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District was awarded the 2026 Solid Waste Association of North America for Outstanding Social Media Campaign for the “Is This Compostable?” series. Saltworks was honored to accept this award alongside Wasatch Integrated.
The Results
Starting with a social media audience of just 250 followers, Saltworks Digital helped grow Wasatch Integrated’s online community to more than 2,800 followers, transforming the district’s channels into a premier public education platform. Along the way, the strategy produced multiple viral reels, including the four-part “Is It Compostable?” series, which generated more than 2.2 million content views, reached 1.7 million people, earned 40,000+ engagements, and attracted more than 1,000 new followers from a single organic post. With 97% of its reach driven organically, the campaign demonstrates how strategic, authentic content can turn even the most unexpected subject matter into meaningful community engagement.
Increase in Followers
1,020% increase in social media followers.
Content Views
Viral videos generated more than 2.2M views.
People Reached
Viral content reached more than 1.7M people.
Engagements
Viral content generated 40,000+ engagements.
The Takeaway
The Saltworks team is so excited about our collaboration with Wasatch Integrated, and the progress we’ve made! Having seen tremendous growth in both the amount of content highlighting their operations as well as growth in audience engagement, we’re excited to continue the collaboration for many years to come.
The Review
“Saltworks didn’t just come in and tell us, ‘This is who we think you are.’ They came in, and they listened. Then they helped us unify our communications across all channels. The website that Saltworks built is a game-changer for us—and the social media content they create for us is second to none. It all works together to drive the messaging we need to communicate to our residents.”
Preston Lee, Executive Director
Executive Director
Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District
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