2013 Silver Business to consumer

Client Merial

How did the campaign make a difference? This campaign used an understanding of the joy animals bring and a desire to improve their welfare. In just over a month celebrity tweets reached an audience of more than 543,900. The microsite received over 30,700 visits; charities' Facebook pages were inundated with support; and Merial gained 4,399 useable addresses.

What details of the strategy make this a winning entry? Merial wanted to increase brand awareness and engagement with pet owners over Christmas. Due to the high volume of communications to time-poor consumers at Christmas, the challenge was to create an impactful campaign with cut-through. A multimedia integrated campaign directly appealed to the emotions of UK pet lovers with the shared ground between themselves and Merial: an understanding of the joy animals can bring and the desire to improve their welfare. A charity prize fund and an original short film drove traffic to a campaign microsite, along with a multimedia strategy of email, online adverts, print, Twitter page and PR. On the microsite pet lovers could vote for which animal charities they wanted to receive a share of the prize fund. The voting facility enabled data capture and participants could vote daily, allowing repeated connection and a longer-lasting impact. The video and charity elements were planned to appeal to national media and bloggers and had share and forward-to-a-friend functionality.

How did creativity bring the strategy to life? The creative needed to connect with pet owners, be light-hearted and have a strong festive feel. The funny film was a key component of this, hosted on YouTube. Starring cats, dogs and an unsuspecting vet, it told the story of pets faking illness to get to the vets and party with their four-legged friends. It also prompted viewers to vote for the charities they wanted to reward. The playful pet theme carried throughout the campaign, with teasers of pets getting up to mischief. The microsite reflected the festive, fun nature of the campaign and encouraged repeat visits through a dynamic leaderboard, to track the progress of the charities.

Results Stills from the film (such as the dog DJ and pets playing Guess Who?) proved media-friendly. Circulation during the campaign was over 24,250,000, with features on sites including The Sun Online and Stylist Online. Celebrity tweets, including Graham Norton and Pudsey The Dog, reached more than 543,900 people. The microsite received over 30,700 visits, with 36% voting for a charity. The video registered 14,335 views. Voters had the opportunity to opt in to further comms, providing 4,399 useable addresses after cleansing.