LendingTree Case Study: Bringing Lenny to Life

LendingTree’s now ubiquitous green “spokes-puppet” Lenny began as part of an ad campaign in May, 2013 and just a few short months later New England Toy was chosen to create a custom plush toy of Lenny to help spread awareness of LendingTree and the new campaign.

New England Toy crafted a Lenny prototype to match the Lenny puppet which Jim Henson’s Creature Shop created for a national multi-platform ad campaign which included television spots like the one below.

The Lenny custom plush included Lenny’s signature blue polo shirt and black dress pants. With the great response that the Lenny plush toy received LendingTree quickly placed a re-order and also ordered another version of Lenny, this time wearing a tool belt, for a different division of LendingTree.

“In May 2013, LendingTree launched their new ad campaign which included their green Spokes-Puppet, “Lenny.” In an effort to spread awareness of the new campaign and the brand, LendingTree partnered with New England Toy Company to create a plush toy. After researching numerous companies, LendingTree selected New England Toy due to their high quality plush toys, competitive pricing and willingness to create a prototype for their review. The overall process was seamless and LendingTree has since ordered additional shipments due to the popularity of the Lenny Dolls.”

Lauren Pilon
Senior Manager, Marketing
LendingTree