2015 Winners & Shortlists

The Campaign

It’s the social media age, a time when the majority has been given access to the sharing of information, without reliance on classical communication mediums. In Lebanon, the only platform for people to express themselves up until this point had been the odd testimonial, which is a usually scripted and unreliable measure, so for most Lebanese, acquiring the means to get their message across has been an untapped resource. So when Lebanon’s Ministry of Tourism set out to launch their latest campaign, they decided to counter the worldwide perception of Lebanon as a hotbed of conflict with the most powerful weapon at their disposal: the love of Lebanese citizens for their country.

Results

The challenge was to change a deeply-ingrained impression of Lebanon as a conflict zone and dangerous destination. For years, the Lebanese were frustrated with this narrow view of their country, but usually they could only change this perception one person at a time. So what would happen if they could reach the highest number of people possible? Would this affect the perception at all? The Ministry of Tourism believed so, and with this in mind, the Live Love Lebanon campaign was born, inviting citizens to share snippets of their home with the world. Almost instantly, Lebanese from across the country began to upload their own content to the various social media pages created, making sure to tag their contributions with the created hashtag. A growing bulk of user-submitted footage and insights was then mined, with the best content compiled and edited into a film, which was then released online and across television channels both locally and abroad. An app was also released, allowing users to create their very own film about Lebanon.

Live Love Lebanon and its corresponding hashtag were created and the Lebanese were invited to share the Lebanon they love with the world by uploading photos and videos that they think best reflect their country’s spirit, acting as honorary ambassadors of their home. In the meantime, a launch event was a great success, and interest in the campaign grew among media personalities, celebrities and politicians. People also began sporting the Live Love Lebanon bracelets, even posing with it in their submissions.

The results were massive, both on the ground with media attention, and online with bloggers and social media users. Within a week, the film had generated 500,000 views, 11,000 shares on Facebook, over 260 million digital impressions, and over 84,000 Instagram posts, not to mention an endless amount of tweets from all over the world, making LiveLoveLebanon a trending topic, generating an impressive Click Through Rate of 6%, and inspiring people from all corners of the globe to visit. Today, and despite the situation in the region, the past year has been a record-breaker for tourism in Lebanon. The hashtag LiveLoveLebanon is now THE tag to promote the country. And Lebanon is back where it should be: On every traveller’s wish list.