Creative Execution

We created the strike by collaborating with YouTube and google to block popular animal videos using unskippable, prerolls utilizing popular animal search terms. At the same time we worked with TV stations who didn’t play animal shows on the day. These led people to a website where they could sign the petition then download a strike toolkit with strike assets that they could upload to their social media profiles, youtube channels and websites to block their own animal content. All mediums worked together seamlessly to create the strike, gain awareness and spread our petition all at the same time.

We did it! We changed the law. Due to an immense amount of public pressure, Prime Minister John Key announced, “There will be no animal testing, either locally or internationally to support the application for a physco active substance”. In only a few days we received over 58,000 petition signatures. We spent less than $5000 yet received a potential reach of over 22million. 98% of all those visited the website went on to sign the petition. 78% visited the website through social media channels. Over 110,000 people and their animals took part in the strike online either by uploading a strike message or participating on our facebook page. #animalstrike trended on twitter on the day of the strike.

In 2013 the New Zealand government passed a new law to curb the sale of legal party drugs. This law pushed the producers of these drugs to do safety testing on dogs. In response to this, animal-rights activists, Paw Justice, asked us to create a campaign that would get the public involved in helping them petition the government to change this law. We all love being entertained by animals but when it comes to watching hard-hitting animal-rights PSAs most people turn away. So instead of showing the public something they didn’t want to see, we got their attention by taking away what they love. We created an Animal Strike, with the aim of blocking animal content in New Zealand for one day.