2016 Winners & Shortlists

The Brief

Lebanese women are virtually excluded from decision-making positions in the public and private sectors, despite the fact that they enjoy greater access to education. And while they appear to enjoy a greater sense of freedom when it comes to what they wear, are more socially mobile and more visible in the public sphere, they are all but invisible in Lebanese politics. With this in mind, Abaad, a resource center for gender equality, inteded to develop a campaign related to their project focusing on transformative political identities for gender.

Creative Execution

The concept was based on Lebanese women being known for their strong characters that mean they usually stand up for their rights in day-to-day life. The goal was to prick the consciousness of women, reminding them how their reactions to minor situations of unfairness should push them to defend and claim their rights on bigger issues rather than simply accepting decisions society imposes on them. The video ends with the message that participation in decision-making is a right, and that women should take a stand (‘stand’ and ‘parking’ are the same word in Arabic, meaning the video ends on a serious note but also with humor). The video used a hidden camera technique to film real women parking their cars. After getting out of their cars, each woman was informed by a parking attendant (specially recruited and for the campaign) that they were forbidden from parking as the places were reserved for men. At the end of the video, the women’s reactions are revealed, ranging from acceptance to anger.

Describe the success of the promotion with both client and consumer including some quantifiable results

The campaign received primetime TV coverage when it was launched on the number one talk show “Kalam Al Nas” and reached around 260,000 viewers. The Video on social media drew 124,000 views, 100,000 likes and a high sharing impact in a very short time. It also triggered heated comments. Major blogs and newspapers picked up on the story and gave it coverage. Women finally got the message that participation in the decision-making is a right and they should take a stand.

Explain why the method of promotion was most relevant to the product or service

Abaad, a resource center for gender equality, decided to develop the “we have a right “ campaign. The aim of the campaign was to try and change people’s mindset when it comes to women and promote their role in society and the decision-making process. To make the campaign a real success in terms of engaging minds, it needed to reach a wide audience and be shared virally. So the Agency team came up with a brilliant idea: a real-life prank video that used humor to engage its audience and convey the message with impact.