2019 Winners & Shortlists

Why is this work relevant for Media?

No brand in the Middle East has dared to touch the Arabic language or add to it, because of the fear of backlash overpowering the brands' image. Babyshop, a children's retailer, set out to reform a word's etymology, that reflected a traditional, patriarchal outlook. And created a new Arabic word as a medium and a statement. Through transmedia content and engagement, it countered negative sentiments, converting them into positive ones. Being an effective business move, getting Babyshop's core target of Arab mothers resonating more with the brand, the idea has also nudged and influenced culture as well as the lexicon.

Background.

Babyshop is a children's retailer in the Middle East. It has always stood for celebrating parenthood and being an ally in parenthood. Its primary consumers are Arab mothers. Now, in the Middle East, owing to a challenging socio-economic environment, the retail category is getting more competitive, with every brand losing focus on building its equity and affinity, and instead, ending up playing the price-offs and discounts game. In the race to temporarily win share of wallet, brands have forgotten the importance of share-of-heart and consumer respect. Arab mothers prefer buying from brands that mean something to them. Even though discounts tempt the purse strings, they prefer to buy into what the brand stands for and then, buy into the products sold by the brands. On Mother’s Day 2018, Babyshop wanted to win that share of heart and win love from Arab mothers, as a retailer they’d want to associate with.

Describe the creative idea/insights

Arabic, like a few other languages, contains a variety of words stemming from paternal-centered roots. The word “parenthood” (Al Obuwah) is one such word. Although, many Arabs have, over time, understood that word to mean both - father and mother - the word “parenthood” in Arabic actually translates into “fatherhood” in verbal usage. The primary Arabic word for “parenthood” (Al Obuwah) leaves “mum” out.Other Arabic words, used for “parenthood” such as “Walediya”, are also derived from words such as “Waled”, meaning “father”. There is NO word for “parenthood” that includes or implies "mother". So, we did something no brand had ever attempted. Working with linguists, we created a new Arabic word, giving equal importance to both parents and putting "Mum" into "Parenthood". Introducing: AL UMOBUWAH. A word that means "Motherhood AND Fatherhood".

Describe the strategy.

We wanted the word to be propagated by all Arabs, beyond simply a video for Mother's Day. But, Arabic isn't a language that people change around. This meant that we needed support and endorsement from people who were trusted. In the Middle East, highly popular influencers are known to be commercial sell-outs and have been losing credibility. But, we found an opportunity in micro-influencers, who weren't sell-outs, had a credible voice on important topics and would be believed by people. And given the prevalence of social media, we chose these micro-influencers as the perfect trigger to spark conversations and create interactions, and also anticipating negative sentiments, we on-boarded these influencers to be the logical voices they were known to be. We also integrated the social nature of the idea into other mediums: social influencers launched our collection, a new magazine was printed, schools and on-ground activations spread the word further.

Describe the execution.

On Mother’s Day, we launched the word on social media, inviting people to use it. Instantly, it sparked positive support. But, it also provoked 50% negative sentiments, mainly from traditionally-minded men, who were outraged about a new word added to Arabic. Now, we anticipated that negative feedback and had planned to counter it, turning it in our favour. We partnered with 40 Arabic influencers who endorsed the word, engaging with negative commentators. Online, we launched a new children’s collection, that also featured in a Dubai fashion show. The proceeds go to a charity for mums and kids. Interactive in-store and online audio-based experiences, created more familiarity. Babyshop published and distributed a new Arabic magazine, titled Al Umobuwah. The word was featured on Arabic poetry platforms, and endorsed by leading Arab media voices. School children learnt the word across classrooms and events. Leading news channels endorsed the word and the idea.

List the results.

Generated 2 billion earned media impressions. Reached 200 million people regionally (91% of people across key markets). Earned $2.3 million earned media and rising, across leading regional and local news and mass media online platforms. +27% brand buzz (March-April 2018 vs. January-February 2018). +32% brand love with Arab mothers (March-April 2018 vs. January-February 2018). +21% relevance (March-April 2018 vs. January-February 2018). +12% consideration (March-April 2018 vs. January-February 2018). +4% new customers (March-April 2018 vs. January-February 2018). +2.3% wallet volumes (March-April 2018 vs. January-February 2018). And despite 50% negative sentiments in its first week, the word achieved 87% positive sentiments across key markets. Importantly, a petition to include the word in the Arabic dictionary, reached its goal (50,000 signatories), in just 32 days, with an Arabic dictionary publication considering the word for its 2019 updates. We've also heard about more initiatives from institutes about extending the approach to other words too.