Context
During the holiday season and year-end celebrations, the rate of pet abandonment significantly increases in Brazil, which has the third-largest pet population in the world (55 million). Since the 1990s, abandoning or mistreating animals has been considered a crime in Brazil. In response to this growing issue, the Green December campaign was created eight years ago to raise public awareness about animal welfare. This initiative aligns with Mars’ core values and coincided in 2023 with the 15th anniversary of the PEDIGREE® Adopt is Everything Good Program—the largest adoption project led by a private company in Brazil, which has helped 82,000 animals find loving homes.
With its purpose of creating A Better World for Pets, Mars, through its PEDIGREE® brand, joined this cause to make a difference in the lives of millions of homeless animals. Over the years, Mars has made significant investments in this purpose.
Objectives
Imagem Corporativa, in collaboration with Mars Petcare’s Communication and Sustainability Management, developed a 360° PR strategy to achieve the following communication goals:
- Mobilize People: Generate engagement and raise awareness about the cause.
- Objective and Authority: Strengthen Mars’ identity and authority as the owner of leading global pet nutrition and welfare brands in combating animal abandonment.
- Unity: Unify and centralize the company’s key messages.
- Impact and Reach: Ensure in-depth and high-quality coverage across strategic channels.
Strategy
The agency implemented a multi-disciplinary 360° PR strategy with impactful communication initiatives:
- Immersive Experience: Thematic projection of images on a building in São Paulo to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the PEDIGREE Adopt is Everything Good Program and the Green December campaign, featuring adoptable dogs with messages on responsible pet care.
- Event: Organized a charity auction and dinner at a pet-friendly hotel for Mars employees, business partners, press, and pet influencers. Proceeds were donated to Instituto AMPARA Animal, a long-time Mars partner in Brazil, to support adoption campaigns, spaying programs, and more.
- Influence: Engaged strategic influencers to raise awareness and sent relationship kits to organic influencers known for their love of pets.
- Radio News Bulletins: Created a 2-minute radio bulletin to amplify messages about responsible adoption through educational and community radio stations nationwide. The bulletin featured an interview with a Mars spokesperson.
- Traditional Press: Distributed notes and press releases across the country highlighting the month against animal abandonment and Mars’ related actions.
Results
- Immersive Experience: The projection on Rua Augusta, one of São Paulo’s busiest streets, included 9 different displays over 3 hours on a Saturday night (December 9), reaching over 1.5 million people in the area.
- Event: From conception to execution, the event involved 8 professionals from Imagem Corporativa’s Events team and around 20 suppliers and partners. It gathered 150 participants, including 10 journalists and influencers, whose organic contributions reached 2.1 million views. The auction raised $10,000, entirely donated to AMPARA Animal, along with an additional 15 tons of pet food provided by Mars for shelters associated with AMPARA Animal.
- Influence: The campaign gained voluntary support from 8 key influencers, reaching up to 1.2 million people and generating an estimated valuation of $16,644,710.
- Radio News Bulletins: Achieved 13 hours of exposure across over 360 commercial, educational, and community radio stations, reaching an estimated 3.6 million listeners.
Summary Table
- 22 articles published
- 107 social media posts
- 65 million reach
- Compared to the 2022 campaign: +70% effectiveness, +270% valuation, +393% reach.
