The Campaign

Buddy is designed to be loved at first hug — a 100% hypoallergenic, washable, adorable little friend. Built into Buddy’s paw is a speech module, that when pressed, starts Buddy chatting. And inserted into the chatter are words of loving advice only a best friend would give — to wash their hands before eating, and after going to the bathroom. Because children enjoy playing with Buddy and pressing its paw, they hear the message of handwashing several times during play, making the message top of mind.

Creative Execution

Completely unbranded, Buddy is an attractive plush toy that blends into the world of a child. Made with soft fabric in the right size for kids aged 1-5 to hold to sleep, Parents, too, were pleased that Buddy is hypoallergenic, and washable, a safe and trusted friend that will keep their child entertained. A total of 1,000 Buddys were distributed through clinics, schools and community organisations in the poorest parts of India, spreading love and our handwashing message. Buddy even comes with activity cards that make kids use their hands through play, then encourage them to wash their hands.

Buddy helped further the brand’s mission to save lives through the invention of a new medium designed specifically for their target audience. A total of 1,000 Buddys were created for this purpose. Every single consumer was eager to hold Buddy and press his paw to hear his message, over and over again. They then took Buddy home for more hours of play and exposure to the message. Local doctor Dr Shobit Agarwal, M.B.B.S observed this about Buddy: “Lack of handwashing can lead to the loss of lives. Being exposed to handwashing messages time and again helps kids to remember to wash their hands and save their lives.”

Buddy is a unique medium that brings a brand’s health message to its specific target audience by putting the subject in intimate contact with the message. The impact of this interaction is lifesaving, because it influences the audience to pick up a new habit.

Pneumonia and diarrhoea are leading life-threatening illnesses amongst children, preventable by simple handwashing with soap. Observed rates of handwashing at critical moments, that is, before handling food and after using the toilet, is a dismal 1% in India. Lifebuoy’s mission is to help a child reach 5 by instilling in children the habit of washing hands with soap. Instead of delivering lectures, handwashing messages are inserted between words of love. And because children love pressing the speech module to hear their friend talk, the call to action will be repeated over and over, taken as friendly advice.