2022 Winners & Shortlists

CHOCAPOLOGIES

BrandKAYU BAKEHOUSE
Product/ServiceKAYU CHOCOLATE
EntrantMULLENLOWE MENA Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
CategoryBreakthrough on a Budget
Idea Creation MULLENLOWE MENA Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Media Placement UM MENA Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
PR MARKETTIERS London, UNITED KINGDOM
Production ZEALOUS Morocco, MOROCCO

Why is this work relevant for Creative Strategy?

Why is Chocapologies relevant? Well, our brand, a small, albeit world-class chocolate shop/influencer chef, made the strategic decision not to take on his local competition but instead the entire dark side of the internet. So, no small challenge or ambition to have, and a rather brave strategy and quite frankly ballsy thing to do.

Background

Situation: The internet. The cruelest playground in the world. Where trolls bully perfect strangers. And, the victims of their hate messaging and body shaming are left to suffer Low self-esteem, severe depression, eating disorders, lower academic scores, long-term psychological ailments, inflict self-harm or even take their own lives. Brief: Karim Bourgi, a Master Chocolatier and influencer Chef, is no stranger to trolls and their comments/abuse. He asked if we could make the internet a ‘sweeter’ place for him and thousands of other victims. A rather brave strategy. Objectives: To help raise our client's social profile, reach and fame.

The Interpretation of the Challenge (30% of vote)

The challenge was and still is, quite frankly, daunting. Could we teach the internet some manners? Could we ever so politely remind trolls that their words cut far more profoundly than any knife ever could? Our client’s problem wasn’t so much a business problem per se, but rather a business opportunity and personal aspiration. Karim Bourgi had close to half a million followers before our campaign aired (he now has many more), and while he has many thousands of fans, he’s also felt the effects of being trolled first-hand. Our challenge was to find a way to try and silence the negative, meaningless hate that gets posted across his social feeds.

The Insight / Breakthrough Thinking (30% of vote)

We researched the problem extensively, which wasn’t hard, as there’s a world of data available. But there’s really very little hard data, facts or even any good ideas, for that matter, on how to solve the issues trolls create. Our breakthrough moment? It was simply to flip our strategic approach entirely. So instead of trying to moderate those posting hate messaging, body shaming or cyberbullying, we decide to focus on making their victims feel better. Put simply; we thought maybe we could apologize on behalf of all the trolls? Maybe, we could say sorry and apologize on behalf of the entire internet. So we trolled the trolls by sending their victims a deliciously edible chocolate apology on their behalf. Because let’s face it, they were never going to apologize.

The Creative Idea (20% of vote)

To sugarcoat means to glaze or coat chocolate with something sweet. But it’s also a typical phrase used to explain or say something in a manner that is easier to accept, understand or cope with. Our idea, put simply, is this - What if the Internet could be sugarcoated, or rather all the hateful comments that trolls write? @alltrolls, come on, at least #SugarcoatIt. Plus, chocolates are scientifically proven to boosts the production of feel-good chemicals called endorphins. And they help in reducing symptoms of depression. We used Crystal Clear Rigid PVC and Food Grade specialized thermoform plastic moulds. The idea pushed the limits of food mould-making to a level of precision that even the best food mould-makers in the world said wasn’t going to be possible. Thankfully though, it was, and our client, got to make the Internet a ‘sweeter’ place, and have the last word with his trolls.

The Outcome / Results (20% of vote)

With a tiny budget we achieved unprecedented reach, awareness, brand uplift, fame and love. · Project cost: $7,623 · Earned media: $1.26M · Impressions: 261M · Global reach: 18 Countries · Press, radio, tv and online mentions +100 · Internet positivity, sentiment, love increased by + 0.072574321% · Karim Bourgi (our client) gained 126K new fans, and a few (13) new trolls in a month.

Credits

Name Company Role
Mounir Harfouche MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Chief Executive Officer
Paul Banham MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Executive Creative Director
Prerna Mehra MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Creative Director Art & Head of Design
Adila Fataliyeva MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Designer
Madruth Zaman MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Designer
Jarret Hunter MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Designer
Zahid Gill MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Editor
Rahul Menon MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Photographer
Neelay Sehejpal Freelancer Photographer
Mounir Mohamad MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Production Manager
Raya Wakim MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Account Director
Ruby Steggles MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Account Manager
Ramzan Ali MullenLowe MENA FZ LLC Editor