Title | ZOO JEANS |
Brand | KAMINE ZOOLOGICAL SUPPORT ASSOCIATION MINEKO-CLUB |
Product / Service | ZOO JEANS |
Category | A06. Use of Special Events And Stunt/Live Advertising |
Entrant | I&S BBDO Tokyo, JAPAN |
Entrant Company | I&S BBDO Tokyo, JAPAN |
Advertising Agency | I&S BBDO Tokyo, JAPAN |
Production Company | TCJ Tokyo, JAPAN |
Name | Company | Position |
---|---|---|
Yoshihisa Ogata | I/S BBDO | Exective Creative Director |
Shinichi Ikeda | I/S BBDO | Senior Creative Director |
Takuya Miyamoto | I/S BBDO | Creative Director/Art Director |
Takahiro Sakai | I/S BBDO | Planner |
Campbell Hanley | I/S BBDO | Copywriter |
Hironobu Taniguchi | I/S BBDO | Agency Producer |
Tomoaki Watanabe | TCJ | Chief Producer |
Kazuhide Kumada | TCJ | Producer |
Tatsuo Murai | CAVIAR | Director |
Yousuke Ohmori | Freelance | Cameraman |
Katsuya Yamada | Aiin | Music |
Yusuke Matsumoto | RAMPUYA | Production Designer |
Reiko Matsumoto | Kadokawa Daiei Studio | Production Designer |
Yuki Kawakami | Amana | Photographer |
Noriaki Hosaka | Amana | Web Director |
Takanari Yamashita | Bluecurrent Japan | Pr Account Manager |
Tetsutato Shimo | Bluecurrent Japan | Pr Media Solution Manager |
Tatsuya Hirosawa | Bluecurrent Japan | Pr Account Executive |
Aya Miyashita | I/S BBDO | Agency Pr Director |
In the first two weeks of the campaign, Zoo Jeans was featured in major news channels both in Japan and around the world – a total of 737 media. In the same period, social media users mentioned the jeans made by animals in 28,346 posts, reaching a total 34,572,889 people. Furthermore, many people participated in the charity auction, with one pair alone selling for some USD$1,500.00. And the zoo saw a 132% increase in visitors compared with the same period last year. People saw the zoo in a new light – as a place that offers new form of entertainment.
We felt that the basic idea – designer jeans ripped by real lions, tigers and bears – was strong enough to garner considerable media coverage and generate buzz. So the media team’s task was to first get this message out, then make the details available to people who would inevitably want to learn more. A press release was dispatched inviting the media to a press conference and launch event held at the zoo. The journalists and event attendees were treated to an impressive demonstration by animals, gnawing and clawing at their denim-wrapped playthings. A high quality “making of” video was released on YouTube, and embedded in the Zoo Jeans website, which also went live on the day of the launch event. A Facebook page was created and filled with more behind-the-scenes images, captioned in Japanese and English. Three pairs of Zoo Jeans were sold at Japan’s most popular online auction.
The zoo is a place for men and women of all ages, and people on their own. Zoos across Japan have seen a gradual decline in attendance since their heyday, especially smaller facilities located outside of the major metropolitan areas that lack the financial resources to procure rare animals and create flashy attractions. Our communications objective was to reframe “the zoo” as an amusement destination that is relevant to young people today – not an old-fashioned relic of yesteryear – so it was necessary to take an original and unexpected approach, and to do so on a shoestring budget. The execution was as simple as it was unique, and resonated with the entire spectrum of zoo visitors – and, more importantly, with young people who were not zoo-goers. Leveraging the natural instincts of the animals captured people’s imagination and gave them a taste of what the zoo has to offer.