2019 Winners & Shortlists

THE KEEP WALKING LEBANON EXPO

BrandDIAGEO LEBANON
Product/ServiceJOHNNIE WALKER
EntrantLEO BURNETT BEIRUT, LEBANON
CategoryFast Moving Consumer Goods
Idea Creation LEO BURNETT BEIRUT, LEBANON
Media Placement SPARK FOUNDRY Beirut, LEBANON
PR LEO BURNETT BEIRUT, LEBANON
PR 2 MSL BEIRUT, LEBANON
Production LEO BURNETT BEIRUT, LEBANON

Why is this work relevant for PR Lynx?

How can a country move forward if its youth are always encouraged to leave? The millennials of Lebanon want to stay and have a progressive vision for Lebanon, but they do not have support to act on it. The brand wanted to give a voice to the millennials to express their visions of progress for Lebanon, and instead of using traditional media to reach them, we created the first ever Expo curated by the brand. An act that created a disruptive story for the millennials meant at awakening a nation and a state from its inactivity towards the youth.

Background

The Lebanese millennials are an un-skeptical generation, also unaffected by the conflicts/divisions of the past, believe that with their ideas they can keep Lebanon moving forward. Although eager to make a difference, they are encouraged by society and sometimes the state to leave the country in search of better opportunities abroad. Johnnie Walker, and its Keep Walking Lebanon mantra which inspired past generations to progress in their country, was not known to the millennials. In the midst of a one of Lebanon’s most acute political-economic crisis we wanted to do more than just connect with the Lebanese millennials, we wanted to help them prove to the nation that when a country invests in its talents then it will always have the ability to move forward.

Describe the creative idea.

For the first time in the Keep Walking global saga, the brand created a platform for the millennials where they were asked to re-define what Keep Walking Lebanon means to them. The visions of an ambitious generation would be displayed in the first ever Expo curated by the whisky brand, a first for Johnnie Walker across markets. The Expo highlighted immersive installations, audio-visual stories, innovative fashion creations and architectural projects all meant to create positive solutions to Lebanon’s myriad of problems. Their ideas were brave, they pushed boundaries, were modern in their thinking, but most importantly they managed to re-ignite in the Lebanese a forgotten hope for their country.

Describe the strategy.

For over a decade, the Keep Walking Lebanon mantra inspired the Lebanese to keep their country moving forward despite a recurrent series of obstacles. At first the brand celebrated iconic Lebanese giants who had already succeeded in their respective fields: From the Oscar-winning Lebanese composer Gabriel Yared; World renowned fashion icon Elie Saab; The provocative architect Bernard Khoury; to the first ever Arab female director nominated at the Oscars: Nadine Labaki. The strategy then shifted to celebrating the collective resilient spirit of the Lebanese nation as a whole in times of acute paralysis. For the 2018 edition of the campaign it was time to shift the focus to the future of the country: The Lebanese millennials. A generation that refuses the idea of building their future abroad and instead who want to stay in their country and find ways to improve the lives of all the Lebanese.

Describe the execution.

We started a yearlong activation by engaging with university millennials from all the Art/Design schools in the country. A platform was launched where students were asked to re-interpret Keep Walking Lebanon and pitch their ideas for the country. Over 200 architects, fashion designers/film makers/product designer/graphic designers participated in the first round of submissions. 37 potential projects were pre-selected to be then judged by a panel of experts. 14 of the most promising projects were selected to appear at the Expo and were curated by mentors for a period of three months. A docu-series approach reported online and on social platforms the different stages of the activation over a period of several months, capturing the ambitions/visions and progress made by the finalists. The Expo opened its doors for a three-day event whereby media outlets/public figures as well as the general public witnessed first-hand what the millennials were capable of.

List the results.

For a 100K USD total budget campaign (with only 20K for media) we achieved the following: Online content response: 1.2M video views 27.6 million total social media impressions Total earned media value: $650,000 14,400,122 impressions on all media (over and above social media content) 4,000 attendees in two days of Expo, gathering a large database of Lebanese millennials. +60% increase in affinity amongst millennials

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 Managing Director
Diego De Aristegui Leo Burnett Beirut Account/Planning Director
Jo Chemaly MSL Beirut Managing Director
Nayla Baaklini Leo Burnett Beirut Associate Creative Director
Afifeh Abou Chaar Leo Burnett Beirut Art Director
Nadia Deghayli Leo Burnett Beirut Senior Art Director
Andrew Assi Leo Burnett Beirut English Copywriter
Gaelle Feghali Leo Burnett Beirut Communication Executive
Hugo Altmayer Leo Burnett Beirut Copywriter
Raphael Jadaa` Leo Burnett Beirut Communication Manager
Mahmoud Jaber Leo Burnett Beirut Community Manager
Yara Basbous MSL Beirut PR Executive
Caroline Hobeiche MSL Beirut PR Manager
Nicolas Cardahi Freelancer Videographer/Editor
Jana Saleh Freelancer Music Producer
Cherine Karam Freelance Art Curator