Almost a Dodo
Alternativa Terrazul NGO
Issue 36 | September 2015
Agency
NBS/ Dentsu Aegis Network
Creative Team
Chief Creative Officer Andre´ Lima Executive Creative Directors Eduardo Almeida, Carlos Andre Eyer, Andre Lima Art Directors Bernardo Cople, Dennis Sieber Copywriters Milena Zindeluk. Vinicius Theodoro Film Production Company Vetor Zero
Date
May 2015
Background
Every year for the last ten years, at least one species of animal has become extinct.
To raise awareness and to get people involved, Alternativa Terrazul reached out to people known to be interested in the environment.
Idea
A fake profile of a young Brazilian was created on Facebook. She described a trip to Costa Rica, where she captured images of a dodo, a bird believed to have become extinct in the 17th century.
Within days her film was shared by thousands of people and had millions of views. Then came a second film, confessing to the ruse but urging people to put the same energy into supporting organisations that were fighting to help threatened species survive. There was a link to www.almostadodo.com
Results
The campaign reached over 7.5m people, earning $1m in spontaneous media. People from 66 different countries visited the website and 98% of the feedback was positive.
Our Thoughts
Trickvertising has been around for a while. In fact, it's won awards at Cannes in the past, videos that beg the question "Was that real or was it faked?' But not this time, even though this idea was entered in six categories. I like it because it reveals how much people wanted the story to be true.
See the case study at: http://youtu.be/zSUu3zZIxh0