Why is this work relevant for Brand Experience & Activation?

Elephants and tigers are on significant decrease and Thailand is top in wildlife trade. 95% site “spirituality” as top reason for purchasing wildlife products, in the belief that carrying yantra made in elephants or tigers provide power. TRAFFIC provided a modern solution under “Mercy is Power” – a digital yantra with power coming from mercy of not hurting wildlife, in mobile phone people carry every day. Target could customize and create yantra by themselves. With every 51,966 download of the digital yantra, another elephant or tiger was potentially saved. 10,151,330 impression. USD 300,000 PR value.

Background

Thailand is the top wildlife trade market in the world. A major part of the trade is to use body parts of grand animals like elephants and tigers as religious yantra. As the leading wildlife trade monitoring network, TRAFFIC had to implement a social behavior change campaign to reduce usage intention of wildlife products, in a country where strong traditional religious belief prevails.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

While traditionally the belief is power comes from carrying elephant or tiger yantra, TRAFFIC provided a digital solution that modernize traditional belief. “Mercy is Power” empowered Thais with power coming from mercy of not hurting wildlife, in digital yantra in mobile phone they carry every day. Target could customize and create yantra by themselves, with every download another elephant or tiger potentially saved. #MercyisPower

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

In a country where 95% site “spirituality” as the top reason for purchasing wildlife products, attacking traditional belief isn’t the way to change someone’s mind. We needed to reframe the belief while providing a way to carry on the tradition. With “Mercy is Power”, Thais not only could take direct action to save elephants and tigers, but also did it in a way that was highly cultural relevant.

Describe the execution (30% of vote)

The campaign was centered around digital yantra that Thai people can carry around in their mobile phone. Target could come to campaign website to select the power that they want such as luck, wealth and safety which are all the most popular desires of Thai people with the power coming from mercy of not hurting wildlife. 3 videos addressing different target groups who are frequent buyers of wildlife products were released on Facebook and YouTube to bring them to website to download yantra. The “Mercy is Power” message went wherever the target went, through the form of digital yantra in their mobile phone.

List the results (30% of vote)

- With every 51,966 download of the digital yantra, another elephant or tiger was potentially saved. - With every 10,151,330 impression, 2,650,956 view and 842,420 engagement, another person learned that power comes from saving, not killing. - With every USD 300,000 of PR value, the message “Mercy is Power” got spread further in the society. - Most importantly, this campaign gave people the direct power to not kill and save wildlife.

Please tell us about the cultural insight that inspired the work

Thailand is top in wildlife trade in the world. 95% site “spirituality” as the top reason for purchasing wildlife products, in the belief that carrying yantra made in elephants or tigers provide power. Some believe so strongly in power of yantra they even tattoo yantra on own body.