The Campaign

Ebara is Japan’s No.1 vegetable marinade manufacturer. They wanted to get children to ‘eat their greens’. So we created a magical way that shows just how eating vegetables can be natural and enjoyable. “FUNFAIR IN YOUR MOUTH” is an interactive attraction, which made of digital and physical interaction that you use your mouth to have a fun experience. Firstly, we made a PC interactive game by using your mouth to control, you travel through the various scenarios, like jet plane rides or rollercoasters, you chomp through virtual vegetables. This was achieved through facial recognition software that recognizes mouth movements. To further promote vegetable consumption the kids are asked to show actual vegetables, which they had to eat in front of the PC to be able to play the next level. The software recognizes the color of the vegetable. And with each bite sends off a colorful firework blast on the screen in the child's virtual world. Secondly, we built new attractions inside theme parks across Japan. Collaborating with a professor of technology, we invented a Virtual Reality device that turned regular vegetables into action packed excitement with a new way of utilizing bone conduction technology, which turns vibrations on the bone into sound. Through the connected vibration conductor, when kids bite vegetables, they can hear firework blasts, or Race cars zooming around. The brain perceives the conduction, transferred via the teeth and tongue, as a sound signal. The unique technology and surprising experience had an explosive PR effect. Equivalent to over 75 million yen in advertising costs.

The Brief

Creating dynamic contexts and contents, which can spread in multiple channels such as TV, Newspaper, and Social conversations, to develop deeper emotional connections between young generation families and Ebara brand and to show the right proof that Ebara's sauce can help kids to try their vegetables.

Results

The unique technology and surprising experience captured the hearts of adults as well as kids and had an explosive PR effects, equivalent to 75 million yen in advertising costs. Here is what happened in the 1st month of campaign period: ･Archived 117,117 PV ･Earned over 1,000 Facebook Like ･32% increase in Ebara’s Facebook fans ･Earned over 600 Comments in Facebook and Twitter ･Over 90,000 total reach inside theme parks ･2,600 children’s participations ･Archived 12,700 vegetable marinade sampling And, importantly, Ebara sales increased during the campaign period by 30%. Connecting new behaviour with unique and memorable experiences, we believe our Funfair in Your Mouth changed kids’ mind about their veggies.

Execution

Firstly, using face recognition software, we created a way to monitor the mouth’s movement to control and participate in an interactive PC game, which is still on-going. As you travel through the various scenarios, like jet plane rides or rollercoasters, you chomp through virtual vegetables. This was achieved through facial recognition software that recognizes mouth movements. Secondly, we built new attractions inside theme parks across Japan in summer of 2013. Collaborating with a professor of technology, we invented a Virtual Reality device that turned regular vegetables into action packed excitement with a new way of utilizing bone conduction technology, which turns vibrations on the bone into sound. Through the connected vibration conductor, when kids bite the vegetables, they can hear firework blasts, or race cars zooming around. When they eat real vegetables by those combinations, the camera inside the device takes a picture of the kid’s smiles and mom is given the opportunity to share this to their friends. This conversation made the full circle back through social media.

The Situation

Ebara is Japan's leading vegetable marinade manufacturer. Unfortunately, they are slipping in popularity and sales. Ebara feels young kids are now tend not to eat vegetable compared to old days. Their goal is to engage a new generation of families by generating a positive WOM towards their existing products.

The Strategy

It's a universal truth that Children don't like vegetables. They would rather not put vegetables in their mouth. How can we get them to at least try vegetables? Ebara's sauce can make vegetables more delicious as it removes bitterness from the vegetables, while helping them in engaging their picky children. So we created a magical way to solve this issue. Utilizing the family momentum, the time and the place every parent and kid gets together, we created a new online game and built new attractions inside theme parks across Japan.