2012 Winners & Shortlists

The Campaign

As part of GE’s commitment to creating better health for more people, our challenge was to get women in Saudi to sign up and support the nation's first mobile breast screening drive. GE’s Avatar for Action launched with a Facebook application that offered a simple, non-threatening way to empower women to create change in their community. The campaign merged the online and offline – in real time. The application generated a real-time parade of avatars as a symbol of hope. At the launch, attendees could view the parade, and design their own Avatar on touch-screen displays. In seconds, they would see themselves dynamically appear on the screen as part of the parade. The parade spread on blogs, popular sites, and even on the nation’s most popular lifestyle show which in turn directed them to our website and social platforms for further dialogue.

The Brief

We needed to get women in Saudi to sign up and support the nation's first mobile breast screening drive. Social listening identified influencers online whom we connected with. Plus, we partnered with the Ministry of Health, The Zahra Breast Cancer Association, King Fahad Medical City and Susan G. Komen for the Cure to help spread the word, support the cause and contribute their expertise and research findings. In addition, we got one VERY influential Saudi ambassador on board, renowned breast cancer survivor Dr. Samia Al-Amoudi, the only Saudi woman to break the silence and share her personal story publically.

Results

As more people shared their avatar, the community grew exponentially. In just over a month, The GE Facebook page soon became a daily hub of support, discussions, and information. The app received an average of 40 likes per day and 35 comments per post. Over 1200 questions around breast cancer were logged. And over 8000 women created avatars and messages of hope, supporting the screening drive. GE successfully built their profile as leaders in healthcare and moved away from their long standing reputation in household brands. The campaign also created a strong relationship with the Ministry of Health, opening the door to address awareness of cardiovascular diseases in 2012.

Execution

Saudi women could design their avatars, choose positive cause messages, and share them across their social networks and blogs, in anonymity. For the first time women could invite their peers to sign up for a screening or discuss the issue without societal concerns. The campaign merged the online and offline; it generated a real-time parade of people as a symbol of hope. The virtual avatar parade was integrated into the launch event, letting users create avatars and messages in real-time. At the launch, attendees could view the parade, and design their own Avatar on touch-screen displays. In seconds, they would see themselves dynamically appear on the screen as part of the parade. The parade also spread by being embedded to blogs and sites. As the story gained momentum, Avatar for Action was featured on the most popular women’s show, which directed them to our website and Facebook page for discussion.

The Situation

Research told us that many women in Saudi Arabia believe that breast cancer is a black and white disease. Either you have it and you’re helpless. Or you don’t and you’re blessed. Women are burdened by misinformation, fear and taboo. They are hesitant to take part in a cancer-related conversation, and take a passive stance on their own health. We had to find a way to overcome these barriers.

The Strategy

Through our research of Saudi culture (and social listening) we uncovered Saudi Arabia’s popular ‘avatar’ culture on social media. Saudi women use avatars as a discrete way to represent themselves, their opinions and emotions. Avatar for Action is a socially led campaign that takes this convention and turned it into a vehicle for a cause. Avatar for Action gives women in Saudi the chance to sign up and support the nation's first mobile breast screening drive – and send their message of support nationwide, in the first-ever virtual parade of its kind.