Background

Despite being in the market for 5 years, Deliveroo was losing both market share & relevance with Singaporeans. As its discount-driven competitors engaged in a price war, Deliveroo’s superior service went unnoticed. In a bid to turn that around, Deliveroo diverted their entire year's marketing budget into a highly visible nation-wide outdoor brand campaign demonstrating its superior service and dedication to Singaporeans. Sadly, just a week into the campaign, Singapore announced a lockdown. With 80% of the population stuck indoors, Deliveroo's billboards and bus stops were rendered virtually useless. With limited marketing budgets, we needed a quick and cost-effective approach that enabled us to go where our audiences are while emphasising our dedication to quality service.

Describe the strategy

With budget limitations in mind, we explored platforms with already-existing, highly engaged audiences. Two weeks into lockdown, we saw more people use video games to make social connections. The more isolation set in, the more Singaporeans resorted to gaming, with companies like Lazada and Carousell reporting surges in gaming-related searches and transactions. To understand this deeper, we conducted consumer focus groups with casual gamers via Zoom and uncovered Animal Crossing as our platform of choice for 3 reasons: 1. It was gaining momentum locally, with its easy-to-use UI making it accessible to non-gamers 2. It has highly engaged local communities that enable sharing and socialising 3. It has free customisation tools that players were already using to replicate their favourite brands We found that, by leveraging these features, we had everything we needed to bring Deliveroo to life and deliver on our brand promise to “Deliver Anywhere”.

Describe the execution

The creative idea was simple & meaningful: deliver where no delivery app had before, by delivering in Animal Crossing. In 24 hours, we created a virtual HQ and Deliveroo uniforms using in-game customisation tools. We also designed a mechanic that mirrored food delivery services in real-life, allowing users to place an order via Facebook Messenger. We then sent virtual Deliveroo riders to deliver in-game food items to players' island homes, together with a promo code that island owners can use to redeem food in real life. Players also received real-time in-game delivery updates on when their food will arrive, demonstrating Deliveroo's excellent service at all times. To maximise excitement and participation, we seeded Facebook communities, as well as local gaming and lifestyle media. On campaign day, a virtual war-room was set up for the Deliveroo customer service team, virtual riders, and tech support to ensure all deliveries were fulfilled.

List the results

This three-hour digital activation garnered over 700,000 engagements and 13 million impressions, with $0 media spend. It earned $1.2 million in media value, across major publications such as Mashable, Timeout, AsiaOne, and The Straits Times, Singapore’s top news website. More importantly, Deliveroo Crossing demonstrated the lengths Deliveroo would go to delight its customers at the height of the pandemic, demonstrating its service excellence and reinstating the brand as category leader. At a time when Singaporean's only comforts were online communities and piping hot food, Deliveroo really came through. And we did it all without spending a single cent.