MERIAL EDUCATES TAIWAN TO LIBERATE DOGS FROM DEATH ROW

TitleMERIAL EDUCATES TAIWAN TO LIBERATE DOGS FROM DEATH ROW
BrandMERIAL
Product / ServiceANIMAL CARE
CategoryC08. Charities, Public Health, Safety & Awareness Messages
EntrantZENITHOPTIMEDIA Taipei, CHINESE TAIPEI
Media Agency 2 ZENITHOPTIMEDIA Taipei, CHINESE TAIPEI
Entrant Company ZENITHOPTIMEDIA Taipei, CHINESE TAIPEI
Media Agency ZENITHOPTIMEDIA Taipei, CHINESE TAIPEI

Brief Explanation

Taiwan has a serious dog abandonment issue with 10,000 dogs abandoned every year. If they are not claimed or adopted within 12 days of capture by the authorities, they are killed by lethal injection. Animal health brand Merial wanted to find new homes for abandoned dogs. The real problem was education... Owners needed to know how to look after their dogs, and understand that dogs barking or getting sick are not reasons to abandon them. we created multiple activities to promote the importance of caring for dogs, using Merial products, and promoted the importance of adoption. - A live event with celebrity endorsers to support the adoption initiative - A 'love package' was created and promoted online via social, given out for free to those adopting from shelters - Taiwan’s biggest celebrities and bloggers took to their Facebook pages to share their dog adoptions stories, encouraging others to adopt.

The Brief

Taiwan has a serious dog abandonment issue with 10,000 dogs abandoned every year. If they are not claimed or adopted within 12 days of capture by the authorities, they are killed by lethal injection. Animal health brand Merial wanted to help. The real problem was education... Only 33% of household dogs are spayed, and less than half are correctly registered or taken for regular health checks. If owners, and those about to adopt, understood how to care properly for their dog, then many more might be saved. The educational strategy was designed to show how easy it is to care for a dog.

Describe the success of the promotion with both client and consumer including some quantifiable results

The program generated over 7 million impressions, and over 2 million dollars in earned media value from television and internet coverage. 10,000 ‘Love Packages’ were delivered to shelters, 1,500 doggy diaries shared, and Merial found new, loving homes for over 5,000 abandoned dogs in just eight weeks – half the number of dogs abandoned in one year, were adopted in just three months.

Explain why the method of promotion was most relevant to the product or service

Our research discovered that women, more than men, push to adopt dogs. This insight shaped channel selection as well as the manner in which the social media and packaging elements of the campaign were executed. A limited edition 'Love Package' consisting of Merial products, and doggie ‘how to’ care manuals was created and shared with the biggest animal shelters across the country. The packages were offered to anyone adopting a dog. Owners were encouraged to upload diaries of their new family additions to social media and share pictures, amplifying the love and driving buzz – the more stories that were shared, the more ‘Love Packages’ Merial gave away. Five of Taiwan’s biggest celebrities and bloggers took to their Facebook pages to promote the campaign by sharing their doggie stories and photos, encouraging others to adopt.