On any normal day as The Disruption Company®, we at TBWA\RAAD create radical ideas that locate and involve brands in culture, giving them a larger share of the future. Right now, COVID-19 is the biggest global event and challenge of our lifetime. It is changing attitudes and behaviour in unprecedented ways. Day by day we’re helping brands such as Nissan, Infiniti and Louvre Abu Dhabi redefine where they fit and how to behave in this new world.
‘It’s Not Business, It’s Personal’: Facebook launches #LoveLocal initiative to support local SMBs in MENA
Facebook has launched an initiative to support local small and medium businesses (SMBs) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, which have been among the hardest hit during the COVID-19 pandemic. .
Facebook has partnered with TBWA\RAAD on the campaign, which aims to amplify the voice of local SMBs, shed light on their stories and challenges to help generate consumer demand for them across the region.
The #LoveLocal brand identity revisits vintage elements with a modern look and feel inspired by the essence and distinctive calligraphy used on traditional shop signs in the region, which uniquely carry the names of small business owners.
The main film depicts eight unique stories filmed across Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon, featuring a real and diverse cast of small business owners in local shops, who share their own daily experiences and personal anecdotes. .
A wealth of content pieces and executions were developed for the campaign, including videos, IG stories, interviews with small business owners and a content creators’ activation idea. .
On its 75th Anniversary, The Lebanese Army turns its camouflage uniforms into icons of peace
For centuries, the armed forces of the world have worn camouflage to hide from the enemy. On its 75th Anniversary, the Lebanese Army has decided to change its uniform into a declaration of peace.
For the first time in history, the camouflage has repurposed its own existence.
Introducing: “The PeaceCamo”: A new camouflage pattern that portrays messages of peace and unity, inspired by everyday life. On August 1st, soldiers marched the streets of the capital wearing illustrations of people embracing, kids playing, couples holding hands and generations coming together, taken from real-life moments in which the army has helped the people of Lebanon.
PeaceCamo Uniform Pattern:
PeaceCamo Overview:
Lebanese Army 75th Anniversary film:
Find out more on: https://peacecamo.squarespace.com
The UAE launches its “Hope Probe” to Mars, with the #FirstArabicCountdown in history.
Everyone has heard a countdown for a rocket launch to space in English, Russian or maybe even French. On July 20 at 01:58 am UAE local time, the world will witness the #FirstArabicCountdown in history, as the United Arab Emirates launches its “Hope Probe” towards Mars.
Emirates Mars Mission and The Emirates Nation Brand Office collaborated with TBWA\RAAD on the countdown campaign, which celebrates “a new era for Arabs in space”:
The manifesto film addresses the pride in every citizen of the MENA region, inviting people to share their #FirstArabicCountdown to the space mission:
A Snapchat ‘Lens of Hope’ that performs the countdown was produced to further engage the community. The lens incorporates audio, video and keywords, allowing people to give the count down the go-ahead:
The Countdown also aired in prime locations and landmarks, on the Burj Khalifa skyscraper, as well as outdoor displays, buildings and cinemas across the Emirates:
A number of local, regional and global influencers, TV and radio anchors and celebrities joined the mission including David Luiz, Jacqueline Fernandez, Gary Vee, Jay Shetty, Muniba Mazari, Ragheb Alama and Ahmad Helmi, encouraging non-Arabic speakers to learn Arabic countdown and inviting people to tune in to the big event:
Louvre Abu Dhabi brings its iconic art pieces to life to announce the museum’s re-opening
Louvre Abu Dhabi has released a unique film to announce the museum’s reopening starring classic pieces including The Bohemian, The Mona Lisa, The Young Emir, The Bactrian Princess; as well as Vincent Van Gogh.
The animation depicts a live WhatsApp group chat featuring the famous artworks who voice their feelings around the recent lockdown, in their own unique way. The reopening of the museum is revealed by The Bactrian Princess on the WhatsApp chat, sparking joy and excitement amongst the other artworks:
Created by TBWA\RAAD, the WhatsApp chat film went viral across social media platforms, garnering thousands of views and comments in just a few hours. This creative approach and messages were extended across other mediums including digital posts, out-of-home, TV and radio.
The museum has re-opened its doors on June 24, taking all precautionary measures so visitors can enjoy their experience and be as safe and comfortable as possible, establishing itself as a mindful museum:
Nissan Middle East celebrates Empty Roads, encouraging drivers to stay home.
Nissan as a brand leads with its innovative mobility tech, that allows people to drive safer and smarter, encouraging everyone to take the wheel. But for now, their message must be ‘stay at home and be safe’. So for Nissan Middle East we created the unique film Ode to Empty Roads.
This piece features beautiful scenes of deserted roads. It sends a message of solidarity and support to drivers, encouraging them to stay safely indoors and leave the streets strikingly empty – for now.
KFC introduces FREE Contactless Delivery
The cheerful fun family brand personality of KFC has a warmer tone in this work, because everyone has to stay at home. KFC has always offered home delivery, but now while you’re stuck at home in frustrating times, delivery is free, so stay home safe. This empathetic message is relevant to what people need right now. A cherished brand making tough times a little more bearable.
Find out how KFC implemented new measures and practices to navigate the crisis, launching its contactless delivery service for the safety and convenience of its customers.
Created by TBWA\RAAD and media partner Hearts & Science, the campaign used the advanced targeting abilities of Facebook’s Dynamic Ads tools to personalise artworks based on each customer’s interests and profile, introducing an innovative data-driven approach to e-commerce in the QSR category:
Louvre Abu Dhabi World Art Day AR Lens
This year, on World Art Day (April 15, 2020), the Louvre Abu Dhabi museum was closed due to the Coronavirus pandemic, and art lovers were unable to leave their homes to celebrate and appreciate art like they normally do. Introducing: The World Art Day AR Lens – a Snapchat lens that brings people closer to art, allowing them to insert some iconic art pieces from the Louvre Abu Dhabi museum into their own home setting! This initiative falls under the museum’s #ArtUnites platform, created to build cultural connections and unite people through art, despite all isolation.United Nations World Environment Day
Every year the world celebrates World Environment Day on June 5, a day dedicated to focusing efforts of governments, businesses and citizens on pressing environmental issues.
World Environment Day offers a global platform for inspiring positive change. It recognizes that global change requires a global community. It pushes for individuals to think about the way they consume; for businesses to develop greener models; for farmers and manufacturers to produce more sustainably; for governments to safeguard wild spaces; for educators to inspire students to live in harmony with the Earth; and for youth to become fierce gatekeepers of a green future. It requires all of us.
On this occasion, the United Nations in Lebanon collaborated with TBWA\RAAD to launch a wake-up call for mankind to address the earth’s environmental challenges, to be the cure to nature’s suffering and to act responsibly, together in solidarity, in order to #MakeItRight.
The campaign film portrays the suffering and different symptoms inflicted upon the earth and its species, as a result of human negligence, ending with a call to action that reveals the responsibility of every citizen of the planet to help cure nature’s suffering.
du revives the true spirit of #Homemade_Ramadan
In line with its vision “to enhance people’s lives anywhere and anytime”, du invites those who are observing the holy month to use the power of creativity, resilience, perseverance and positivity, to “Bring Ramadan Home”.
This Ramadan is unlike any we’ve seen before. And though people may find themselves in an uncharted state of mind, pained by the absence of the Holy Month’s familiar joys, the mindset is really ours to determine.
Shot entirely from home, within 48 hours from concept approval to delivery, this film created by TBWA\RAAD embodies the true spirit of #Homemade_Ramadan.
Infiniti #empoweredfromhome
The Infiniti brand stands for empowering your journey and unleashing your potential. So while many have felt stuck indoors during the COVID-19 crisis, Infiniti Middle East looks to celebrate the potential each of us has despite being at home.
The bold message in this work stays true to brand values – #empoweredfromhome encourages everyone to keep their entrepreneurial and positive spirit alive even though they can’t go out.
The Lebanese Army rallies citizens of Lebanon against COVID-19
Armies are always on the frontline whenever danger threatens a country. Things are different this time: For the first time ever, the Lebanese army is reaching out to the citizens of Lebanon, asking them to join the battle against COVID-19. Because you can only win the war against this malicious virus when you #HoldYourGroundAtHome.
Instagram AR for good lens addresses food wastage during Ramadan
Food wastage usually peaks in the Middle East during the holy month of Ramadan due to overcooking. This societal problem was made particularly salient this year by the Covid-19 pandemic.
To address the problem of food wastage during Ramadan, Instagram launched an “AR for Good” campaign: An initiative that kicked off in late February with a two-day “AR for Good” hackathon at Facebook’s offices around ways to use the platform’s latest augmented reality (AR) technology in order to raise awareness around this issue and help solve it.
Based on the insight that people simply do not have the right tools to better plan how much food they need to prepare every day and thus avoid overcooking, especially during Ramadan, TBWA\RAAD came up with the hack’s winning concept: an AR filter that acts as a meal quantity planner and allows users to size up or down multiple recipes based on how many people will be sharing the meal.
The filter was launched on the social channels of the Egyptian Food Bank, a non-profit organization specialized in fighting hunger through diversity and innovation.
Read more about how this campaign came to life in an interview with our Chief Creative Officer Jennifer Fischer, published in Communicate:
https://bit.ly/3gIAqfrNissan UCL Commentary Challenge
Due to COVID-19, sporting fixtures and championships all over the world were either postponed or cancelled. Football fans across the region especially missed the UEFA Champions League matches.
Leveraging on Nissan’s partnership with UCL, we launched a Commentary Challenge utilizing Instagram’s AR camera effects. The filter allowed users to place themselves in an indulging commentator experience, giving them the chance to commentate on one of the famous UCL goals this season.
Fans can’t be at the games. So Nissan brought the game to them.
Standard Chartered Bank launches Gratitude campaign during Ramadan
Ever since the pandemic started, frontline staff in the UAE (and around the world) have been working tirelessly to keep us safe and provide us with the creature comforts we are used to. From healthcare workers and cleaners to supermarket staff and delivery drivers to Standard Chartered’s own bank staff serving in branches – they have all shown up and stepped up at frontline.
We are still being told to take precautions when going out, to socially distance ourselves from loved ones and strangers alike and to stay home as much as possible. But what about our frontliners? We thank them for not staying home.
Standard Chartered launched a Gratitude campaign during Ramadan to encourage people to count their blessings and share positivity. The bank communicated its own message of thanks specifically to those at the forefront.
Connect helps Lebanese stay connected in times of separation
Lebanese citizens are known for being very sociable, lively and out-going. It is therefore extremely hard for them to stick to social distancing and all the restrictions imposed by COVID-19.
Connect, an Lebanese internet provider, helps them stay connected in times of separation, no matter how far the distance, providing high-speed internet and fiber optic home bundles.
Looking ahead…
COVID-19 will change us forever.
This is a defining moment for our generations and it will have long lasting implications. Culture is changing faster than ever, raising new challenges for businesses and organisations.
Here at TBWA\RAAD, we believe in creating ideas that locate and involve brands in culture, giving them a larger share of the future.
We’ve created and implemented a Disruption framework designed for brands and businesses to redefine themselves and find place to grow both right now and until recovery is complete.
If you would like to speak to our experts, please contact us.