2020/2021 Winners & Shortlists

INSTAGUARD

Short List
BrandKAFA
Product/ServiceKAFA
EntrantTBWA\RAAD Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
CategoryCommunity Building & Management
Idea Creation TBWA\RAAD Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Background

Night outs in Lebanon are legendary. Dinner at 8pm sharp, pre-drinks kick off at 9pm, and the midnight to early morning rave never disappoints. What could go wrong? Well if you're a female, it's the ride back home and the sexual harassment and predatory behaviour of taxi drivers. In fact, 35 out of 100 female students surveyed at the Lebanese American University said they've been harassed by taxi drivers multiple times. And with most nights out in Lebanon involving alcohol, Lebanese women are doomed to that scary cab ride home, not knowing if they'll make it home untouched. KAFA, a Lebanese feminist NGO, wanted to tackle this, and equip women with the right tools to fend off dodgy taxi drivers and put a stop to this morbid reality. CHALLENGE: How does KAFA protect Lebanese women from taxi drivers willing to take advantage of them and act on sinful desires?

Describe the strategy

KAFA conducted qualitative research with Lebanese women who had previously experienced sexual harassment in taxis or those who felt threatened by taxi drivers. These women consistently spoke of the attitude that taxi drivers held towards them, reinforced by patriarchal traditions in the country - that a woman getting a ride back home late at night was a “whore” who was “asking for it.” INSIGHT: Taxi drivers believe that women who go out late at night are "sluts" who want to end it with a one night stand. Further discussions with our focus groups uncovered the different defense tactics women used when facing such horrendous situations. From not entertaining the driver's attention, to not responding, and even fighting back. Tactics that are used once the driver has already started his approach. And that's when KAFA had its Eureka moment. THE BREAKTHROUGH MOMENT: Put an end to harassment before it even starts.

Describe the execution

In order to put an end to the harassement before it even started, KAFA had to pick the right tool to help women fight the harassers. It was about making the sexual harasser feel threatened before he even becomes a threat. What was the one thing that stops a sexual harasser from harassing? Getting caught. KAFA created Instaguard, a simple and smart hack that turns an Instagram profile into a tool against public transport harassment. An online library of personalized pre-recorded calls to make sleazy drivers think that there are more people aware of the ongoing trip, saved in a private Instagram profile only accessible to women. Calls were prerecorded in Arabic and English using local voice actors. Users pick the calls that best fit them to play them on their feed. Safe routes, emergency helplines, and security tips were also offered. Instaguard made every public transport ride feel safer.

List the results

Because KAFA did not want Instaguard to be noticed by the predator, virality was never a goal for them. The idea was not even shared with mainstream media for PR. Instead, KAFA wanted to create a safe space on Instagram for women only. Success was based on how many harassments Instaguard actually stopped. By that logic, KAFA equated each video view to a stop to an act of harassment. Video views: 103. KAFA also followed mentions of Instaguard by women only on social media. Online mentions of Instaguard (by women only): +1000% increase As this was a private matter, there were many metrics that were inaccessible to KAFA such as the number of forwarded Instaguard messages on WhatsApp, DMs through Instagram and Twitter, and Instaguard discussions on private female forums and social media groups. Instaguard was about building a community where women can help and protect each other.

Credits

Name Company Role
Walid Kanaan TBWA\RAAD CCO
Jennifer Fischer TBWA\RAAD Chief Innovation Officer
Joe Lahham TBWA\RAAD General Manager/MD
Bruno Bomediano TBWA\RAAD ECD
Alex Pineda TBWA\RAAD CD
Juliana Arboleda TBWA\RAAD Art Director
Zeina Abuzaid TBWA\RAAD Motion Designer
Sabine Haddad TBWA\RAAD Copy
Dina Salem TBWA\RAAD Social Media Manager
Adnan Ahmed TBWA\RAAD Arabic Copy
Romy Abdelnour TBWA\RAAD PR & Communications
Rifaat Fakih TBWA\RAAD Strategy
Links
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