2016 Winners & Shortlists

OPENING OF THE NEW SUEZ CANAL

BrandSUEZ CANAL AUTHORITY
Product/ServiceSUEZ CANAL
EntrantMEMAC OGILVY PUBLIC RELATIONS MENA Beirut, LEBANON
CategoryMedia Relations
Media Agency MINDSHARE Cairo, EGYPT
PR Agency MEMAC OGILVY PUBLIC RELATIONS MENA Beirut, LEBANON
Production Company BIRTHMARK FILMS Giza, EGYPT
Entrant Company MEMAC OGILVY PUBLIC RELATIONS MENA Beirut, LEBANON

The Campaign

Egypt said it will build the New Suez Canal in one year instead of five and succeeded. Egypt called on their people to raise $8.5bn to fund the project and they did it in eight days. Egypt asked us to tell their story in 60 days; we created a story and a global celebration. The challenge was that outside of Egypt there was a complete ignorance of the project and in many markets the media had scepticism about the country’s ability to complete the project. Inside of Egypt, there was a vocal objection to the project from its people who thought that the investment in the canal was not a priority. We used these findings to contribute to our strategy; we created “Egypt’s Gift to the World”. The first phase campaign aimed to educate and inform Egyptians and the world about the value the canal, while building anticipation inside and out of the launch; and phase two was about creating a history making event that will make the Egyptians engaged and proud, while having the world connect with the opening. This PR driven campaign was a true 360 communication program made up of 6 pillars (PR, advertising, activation, event, social media and media buying) executed in 2 main phases. Results were impressive, but the metrics do not tell the whole story. This event embodied the “rebirth of Egypt.” It was bigger than just interviews and coverage; this was about people’s belief, pride and optimism in Egypt.

The Brief

• Create global awareness of the new canal, helping Egypt on its road to economic recovery & underline its renewed status as one of the most strategic countries on earth • Tell the story of the New Suez Canal as well as use the opportunity to quell some of the concerns stakeholders had about the country’s security situation impacting its ability to move its economy forwards • Drive change in sentiment towards Egypt • Create a historic moment in time for the Egyptians, while demonstrating the tangible benefits of the Suez Canal

Execution

•It started with a press conference hosted 60 days before the opening. o 380 Egyptian media attended in addition to over 60 international journalists and 22 live television stations including Egypt’s national broadcaster. •Issued almost-daily updates for 60 days about the construction project. •Simultaneously, we launched a comprehensive advertising campaign: o Inside Egypt focusing on the pride of building the Canal. o Outside Egypt, focusing on Egypt’s gift to the world and the canal’s benefits. •An activation supported the campaign to build anticipation for the launch •Media buying: Secured key prime locations in major cities of the world •Launched and managed three accounts on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram •Phase two: we delivered a history making event attended by 6,000 people. We also created a unique gala dinner for 2,000 VIPs o 110 international journalists along with 500 Cairo-based journalists attended including the world’s leading news wires and media.

•88,000 clippings in the most influential media worldwide •In just 60-days more than 128bn impressions were generated •Event on the front-cover of hundreds of newspapers worldwide and sparked more than 40bn media impressions the day after. •More than 40 international broadcast segments from channels including CNN, CNBC, CBS, etc. •700,000 viewers in New York & London during live streaming of the event •Media Buying: Reached 7 times more than the paid campaign; 568 free organic OOH faces •The opening of the Suez Canal was the most searched event on Google in Egypt Social Media results were equally impressive: •Facebook page quickly became one of the country’s most popular with nearly 750,000 followers and 500,000 engagements •18,500 followers on Twitter with 200,000 engagements It wasn't just the volumes; sentiment changed significantly too: •Positive coverage rose from 10% to over 21% during the project period •Negative coverage fell from 17% to just 7%

The Strategy

With just 60 days from appointment to the big day, it was critical that we identified ways to deliver quickly and effectively. Our strategy began with: 1. Identifying our audiences & influencers (inside and outside Egypt) 2. Identifying the channels they would respond to and then use the insights to craft our communications 3. Designing assets for those audiences through a mega-event This PR driven campaign was a true 360 communication program made up of 6 pillars executed in 2 main phases. The first phase campaign aimed to educate and inform Egyptians and the world about the value the canal would bring to the country & the world, while building anticipation inside and out of the launch; and phase two was about creating a history making event that will make the Egyptians engaged and proud, while having the world connect with the Suez Canal opening.

Credits

Name Company Role
Saada Hammad Memac Ogilvy Public Relations MENA Regional Director
Mark Jackson Memac Ogilvy Public Relations PR Director
Jeff Chertack Memac Ogilvy Public Relations MENA Corporate Leader
Iain Bundred Ogilvy PR UK EAME Corporate Leader
Jennifer Risi Ogilvy PR New York Global Media Influence
Wendu Wu Ogilvy PR/Asia Pacific Regional Client Service Director/Asia Pacific
Tarek Lasheen Memac Ogilvy Public Relations PR Director - Egypt
Eva Nabil Memac Ogilvy Public Relations Account Director - Egypt
Samar Abdulhaq Memac Ogilvy Public Relations Account Director - Bahrain
Blanche Baz Memac Ogilvy Public Relations Account Director - Lebanon
Saad Abou Touq Memac Ogilvy Public Relations Senior Account Manager - Dubai
Charlotte Tansill Memac Ogilvy Public Relations Account Director
Shefali Vyas Memac Ogilvy Public Relations Account Manager
Cindy Nehme Memac Ogilvy Public Relations Account Manager
Joe Lipscombe Memac Ogilvy Public Relations Content Director
Mohsen Farid Memac Ogilvy/Mather Account Director
Paul Shearer Memac Ogilvy/Mather Chief Creative Officer
Yasser Ghoneim/Mohamed Minkara/Elie Bou Chaaya Memac Ogivy/Mather Creative Director
Ghassan Maraqa/Ossman Makkaoui Memac Ogilvy/Mather Finance Manager
Mahmoud Issa Memac Ogilvy/Mather Senior Copywriter