2016 Winners & Shortlists

AN ANTHEM AGAINST CORRUPTION

BrandSAKKER EL DEKKENE (STOP THE SHOP)
Product/ServiceANTI-CORRUPTION NGO
EntrantLEO BURNETT BEIRUT, LEBANON
CategoryEvents & Experiential (incl. stunts and celebrity endorsement)
Entrant Company LEO BURNETT BEIRUT, LEBANON
Advertising Agency LEO BURNETT BEIRUT, LEBANON

The Campaign

In 2014, the Launch of Stop the Shop – an anti-corruption NGO in Lebanon – was a great success. It certainly managed to rally the young energetic Lebanese dreaming of a better future for their country around the cause of corruption. For the NGO’s second year, our aim was to reach a wider audience. 2015 was the year corruption stopped being an abstract concept and started really affecting the lives of all Lebanese: as a result of corrupt policies, from a day to another, garbage stopped being collected and started filling the streets of the country. People had enough! They flooded the streets chanting slogans against the government. But soon, the movement got politicized, diverting the conversation from the garbage crisis to serving the political agenda of the master puppeteers, the corrupt political class. Stop the Shop wanted to bring the conversation back to corruption quickly before the movement loses its momentum. We partnered with the independent activist artist, Tania Saleh, known for her integrity and for always carrying messages of politics and humanity in her songs, used footage from the demonstrations and from our previous campaigns and created a song and its video clip in just a few hours. The song quickly became a driving force for the protesters, taking back the street protest away from the grasp of the corrupt political class and focusing the movement once again against their corrupt policies.

The Brief

2015 was the year corruption stopped being an abstract concept and started really affecting the lives of all Lebanese: as a result of corrupt policies, from a day to another, garbage stopped being collected and started filling the streets of the country. People had enough! They flooded the streets chanting slogans against the government. But soon, the movement got politicized, diverting the conversation from the garbage crisis to serving the political agenda of the master puppeteers, the corrupt political class.

Execution

Every protest movement needs a song. A song helps generate strong feelings and gather people behind a cause. As Sakker El Dekkene needed help in refocusing the cause of the demonstrations to corruption, we decided to use a popular tool among demonstrators: an anti-corruption song. All we did is put the song online and the movement picked it up.

Instantly, the song was widely shared online by demonstrators, influencers, artists and the public at large, confirming their endorsement to Stop the Shop’s cause, totaling over 1 Million impressions and garnering more than 300.000 views and 2,223 shares. On the ground: the song was played at every meeting occasion becoming the anthem of the movement. The song even made it to the demonstrations that expat Lebanese were holding in cities all over the world. Mainstream media picked it up: Tania Saleh and Stop the Shop’s team were invited to the top shows. The two biggest channels in the country, started playing the song 20-40 times a day including the live coverage of the demonstrations where the song was playing in the background during the entire period of the protests. Coverage reached the phenomenal figure of $8,578,136 earned media, focusing the conversation on the real issue – corruption.

The Strategy

We partnered with the independent activist artist, Tania Saleh, known for her integrity and for always carrying messages of politics and humanity in her songs, used footage from the demonstrations and from our previous campaigns and created a song and its video clip just a few hours. The song quickly became a driving force for the protesters, taking back the street protest away from the grasp of the corrupt political class and focusing the movement once again against their corrupt policies. In the streets, the song was played at every meeting occasion, with people singing together the chorus while waving the Lebanese flag. The song even made it to the demonstrations that expat Lebanese were holding all over the world. Online the song was shared by demonstrators as well as major influencers confirming their endorsement to Stop the Shop’s cause.

Credits

Name Company Role
Bechara Mouzannar Leo Burnett Beirut Chief Creative Officer
Malek Ghorayeb Leo Burnett Beirut Regional Executive Creative Director
Nada Abi Saleh Leo Burnett Beirut Creative Director
Areej Mahmoud Leo Burnett Beirut Executive Creative Director
Rana Khoury Leo Burnett Beirut Associate Creative Director
Rana Najjar Leo Burnett Beirut Creative Director
Grace Kassab Leo Burnett Beirut Copywriter
Diego De Aristegui Leo Burnett Beirut Planning Manager
Youmna El Asmar Leo Burnett Beirut Associate Planning Director
Tina Sioufi Leo Burnett Beirut Digital Planner
Jo Chemali Leo Comm Beirut Managing Director PR Levant
Raya Haida Leo Comm Beirut Senior PR/Communication Executive
Jamal Saleh Leo Burnett Beirut Junior Art Director