CATS ON FACEBOOK

TitleCATS ON FACEBOOK
BrandCAT SOCIETY HONG KONG
Product / ServiceADOPTION SERVICE
CategoryB04. Public Service, Charity & Fund Raising
EntrantLEO BURNETT Hong Kong, HONG KONG
Entrant Company:LEO BURNETT Hong Kong, HONG KONG
DM/Advertising Agency:LEO BURNETT Hong Kong, HONG KONG

Credits

Name Company Position
Connie Lo Leo Burnett Hong Kong Executive Creative Director
Brian Ma Leo Burnett Hong Kong Group Creative Director / Art Director
Alfred Wong Leo Burnett Hong Kong Creative Director / Copywriter
Wen Louie Leo Burnett Hong Kong Creative Director / Copywriter
Joey Chung Leo Burnett Hong Kong Copywriter
Nicky Sun Leo Burnett Hong Kong Art Director
Kenny Ip Leo Burnett Hong Kong Art Director
Kennie Chung Leo Burnett Hong Kong Account Manager
Hoi Yiu Mouth Communications IT Director / Art Director

The Brief

The Cat Society Hong Kong Ltd. rescues abandoned cats and finds them new homes. As a small, independent organisation staffed by volunteers, they have far fewer resources than their more well-known counterparts, such as the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The campaign would use Facebook to showcase the personalities of 50 cats and connect them with potential adopters.

Creative Execution

Cats are cute. Cats have personality. Traditional media lacks the interactivity required to bring those elements out in the communication. By sharing their hopes and dreams, the cats communicated directly with more than 500 million Facebook users what they wanted most in life - a real home. Frequent, personalised interaction also helped build an emotional attachment that increased the likelihood of adopting. On Facebook, the cats “spoke” directly to new, young, potential adopters for themselves without being overshadowed by the brand, which is a change to the way pet adoption is promoted.

Describe the creative solution to the brief/objective.

In traditional advertisements for pet adoption, consumers are shown the brand without seeing the pet. But we all know people are more likely to adopt a pet rather than a brand. We wanted to find homes for 50 of the society’s cats. They were each given an opportunity to speak for themselves - as it were - with Facebook accounts opened for them. The “cats” updated their status, shared photos and videos, posted comments and chatted online with the friends they made.

Results

This new approach to animal adoption communications aroused much more public and media interest than a typical advertising approach. Within three days, the 50 cats had made more than 8,000 friends. Within a month, all had been adopted. The campaign has helped inspire other non-governmental organisations and given the Cat Society an effective technique to find homes for its cats. And, importantly, the media cost nothing.