Why is this work relevant for Brand Experience & Activation?

As described below, the uniqueness of this campaign is that it changed the action of refueling, a market in which it is very difficult to create differentiation, into an action of social contribution for supporting local farmers engaged in regional revitalization. This campaign succeeded in connecting the hearts of people in urban areas and hometowns, which had grown apart with the COVID-19 pandemic, and reminded us of the importance of helping each other beyond distance.

Background

Situation: In Japan, the hometown has a special meaning, as most city dwellers come from regional towns/cities. However, the COVID-19 situation over the past two years has prevented the movement of people and destroyed local economies. Brief & Objective: The client's objective was to increase sales at gas stations, which has been falling for a long time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The client has pride in supporting regional infrastructure across the country for years, and had indicated a desire to contribute something to local communities.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

The world's first REMOTE FUELING SYSTEM. It’s a system that can support local farmers in rural areas all over Japan simply by filling a vehicle up as usual. Users can take part by snapping a photo of their fuel receipt and selecting a local farmer they want to support from the many farmers introduced in video form, in turn allowing them to support a portion of the farmers' fuel expenses. In return, participants can receive products painstakingly made by those farmers.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

Gasoline is one of the most commoditized products, and there is no differentiation between brands. The leading factor of gas station choice is proximity to home, and it is extremely difficult to overcome this and encourage consumers to switch brands. So we came up with the idea of adding an entirely new value to gasoline. It is a social value that not only you and your car are getting, but a lot of people are benefitting from. We focused on the action of refueling, which happens constantly at gas stations throughout the country. Refueling is the act of filling a vehicle up with energy by your own hands. We explored a way to use this simple action to fill up someone far away with a different kind energy.

Describe the execution (30% of vote)

We came up with a system to deliver energy to hometowns using Idemitsu’s nationwide network of 6,400 gas stations including the Shell brand. First, we made films to promote local farmers, then established a mobile system enabling people to donate a portion of their fuel costs to local farmers. All participants have to do is top up their gas, snap a photo of their receipt, then select a local farmer they want to support, to easily cover a portion of that farmer’s fuel expenses. In return, participants can receive products made with love by the farmers. By offering attractive incentives without requiring users to do anything complicated, we were able to succeed in our mission of increasing traffic to gas stations, and at the same time, add a deep brand experience to the day-to-day act of refueling, through which users can provide financial and emotional support to hometowns.

List the results (30% of vote)

There were more than 350,000 entries within just two months after the campaign launch. The films promoting local farmers got more than 12 million views on YouTube. 40% of the participants changed their normal fueling behavior, i.e., 1.4% of the total driver population changed their most frequently used gas station. The social contribution image of Idemitsu increased by 330% over the previous year, and the favorability increased by 150%. With PR value estimated at 50 million yen, this campaign was featured by more than 90 local broadcasting stations and newspaper companies nationwide, and well-supported by many local governments. In addition, there were many positive posts in social media, especially from the younger generations living in regional areas. This not only had a tremendous positive impact on the client's business, but also contributed to the revitalization of the local economy and enhanced brand value.