2019 Winners & Shortlists

Why is this work relevant for Media?

The effect of the recent social changes taking place in KSA caused an aura of uncertainty among the people in the Kingdom. Information about these changes were delivered to the people through different media outlets, so we wanted to utilize the same outlets that people were paying attention to and deliver a positive message in a smart and tactical way that would boost the general sentiment to positive. For the “I Am Saudi” campaign we employed all the best practices and utilized the most relevant platforms to deliver this positive message. Outdoor, TV, Digital, Social Media & Twitter.

Background.

The introduction of an excise tax on carbonates, falling disposable incomes, and a shrinking expat population, along with rising unemployment have resulted in slow sales growth within soft drinks in Saudi Arabia. Pepsi’s aim was to capitalize on the wave of changes in the Kingdom and the consumer’s existent loyalty by reminding them of what it means to be Saudi. They wanted to act as a source of comfort and motivation at this critical stage of the country’s growth. From a captivating TVC to an innovative digital activation, all the way to a giant screen in New York’s Time Square, we aimed to instill pride within the Saudi community. We aimed for: • 80% positive sentiment across social platforms • increasing “Brand Index” score by 30% • Improving average score across the main brand tracker parameters (TOM, Total Spontaneous Awareness, Total Awareness and Consideration) by 5 points

Describe the creative idea/insights

The campaign was born out of the need to reinstate certainty among the Saudi nation due to the social changes that were happening at the time. Simultaneously, Saudi consumers were spending 4% less on beverages, 2017 was the first year with negative sales growth since 2010. We identified an opportunity to link the brand to these social changes through an emotion that resonates with the people, that they all feel strongly about: National pride. Building on this insight, we used the changes in the Pepsi can designs over the past 60 years in KSA as a metaphor for the social changes that were happening. We drew comparisons between the consistency of the great taste of Pepsi that is loved by the people that did not change over time, and the social changes that were happening in Saudi, that would not change the pride that the people feel towards their nation.

Describe the strategy.

The essence of the campaign tapped into the patriotism of the Saudis to remind them of the greatness of the nation. We wanted to address all Saudis. To do this, we employed a broad targeting strategy that was not based on any specific age bracket, gender, behavioral pattern or interest, but aimed to reach everyone in Saudi. Using patriotic pride, we touched upon people’s cultural values and associated the brand with influential individuals and moments that would make them proud. The media planning strategy was split into two major phases. The initial phase used traditional media outlets and a crafted seeding strategy on social media to build hype around the TVC with the main message #I_AM_Saudi. The final phase celebrated the Saudi achievers on an international scale using teaser screens in Times Square, a wrap up documentary and interviews that broadcasted on leading Pan Arab stations.

Describe the execution.

We started by showcasing the video on top performing digital and TV channels across the kingdom. Pepsi then decided to celebrate Saudi achievers on the world’s biggest stage – a giant screen in the heart of New York’s Time Square. Through our seeding strategy, we used the most influential people on Twitter as a distribution channel to increase hype and get the conversation started. The achievers then kept the conversation going by sharing their Time Square video which helped us reach over 29 million people. The Time Square video was also extended on TV through integrations with top KSA programs helping the campaign reach over 6 million TV viewers. This was merely the build up to the release of a special documentary that summarizes the achievers’ experiences, passion and desire to represent their country on a global scale. Our seeding strategy was then extended on Twitter to amplify the news.

List the results.

The buzz on twitter generated 4.5 billion impressions helping us reach over 34 million people. Our campaign hashtag was trending organically in KSA and the campaign videos were viewed over 38 million times with the sentiment being very positive. This proved that the content inspired pride within the Saudi community. • 93 Celebrities and public figures praised the campaign • We recorded 96% positive sentiment on social media (vs 80% objective) • "Brand Index" score increased by 100%. (vs 30% objective) • The communication managed to move the needle on all key parameters by 11 points vs target of 5 points. 1. TOM: +13 points 2. Total Spontaneous Awareness: +19 points 3. Total Awareness: +3 points 4. Consideration: +10 points • Pepsi delivered +12% Vs Planned targets in KSA • And increase of 1.5% in brand share value was recorded compared to the same period last year (vs 1% objective)