2011 Silver Public sector and charity

Client Greater London Authority

What is wonderful about this work? Einstein said that if bees die out, we’ll die out. With London’s bees declining rapidly, we set out to raise awareness, soften the image of bees, and drive Londoners online to discover ways to help. We took a risk. We used (already) dead bees to save live ones, and received over 60,000 views of our animations, drove over 7,500 Londoners to our website and created a huge buzz across London.

What details of the strategy make this a winning entry? The global honey bee population is in dramatic decline. And one in three mouthfuls of our food relies on bees for pollination. Einstein said that without the bee, man would only have four years of life left. Never has this message had more resonance than in London, as more buildings are built and more gardens are concreted over, the opportunity for honey bees to survive is reduced. Many people are unaware that bees are disappearing at an alarming rate. In partnership with the Greater London Authority and Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming, we set out to make a difference. Our strategy was to raise awareness of the plight of London’s bees, to soften the image of bees and reduce the fear factor, and to highlight to Londoners that they can support their local beekeepers and honey bees by growing plants that bees like, finding alternatives to pesticides, and opting for organic choices.

How did creativity bring the strategy to life? Our creative solution: use dead bees to save live ones. Inspired by the artist Magnus Muhr, we positioned London’s bees as ‘little Londoners’ in real life troublesome situations. We identified low-cost, high-yield opportunities: we chose DR posters to be displayed at 200 sites across the Tube network; postcards to distribute at London flower shows and through commercial partners such as the Co-Op; and online and viral animations. The illustrations and animations were designed to catch the eye through darkly humorous illustration and drive Londoners online, while the postcards and animations incorporated key ways for Londoners to do our bit.

Results In one month we achieved YouTube 60,000 views and drove over 7,500 Londoners to the Capital Bee website, with 19% visiting the pledge page. Londoners picked up over 6,000 postcards. We created a huge buzz, with reports from BBC London News and the BBC website. We encouraged Londoners to support their local bee population, with 500 pledges to help, including one from the Mayor of London.

Team Nicky Bullard, John Fazio, Chris Whitehead, Camilla Patel, Daniel Jenkins.

Other contributors Transport for London – Media owner, Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming – Charitable partner.