The Truth Restaurant - Ending Animal Cruelty in Chinese Dog Meat Festival

1. 12 Best PR Campaign – Public Awareness PR Awards is organised by Marketing magazine, a division of Lighthouse Independent Media Ltd. 2/F Connaught Harbourfront House, 35-36 Connaught Road West, Sheung Wan, Hong KongTel: + 852-2861-1882 Fax: + 852-2861-1336 www.marketing-interactive.com

2. Entry Details 1. 12 Best PR Campaign – Public Awareness 2. The Truth Restaurant 3. SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) Hong Kong 4. FleishmanHillard Hong Kong & Razorfish Hong Kong

3. Entry Video ENTRY VIDEO LINK:https://app.box.com/s/5bn0h1m9z56dhsp9d1u8rphmzt0rqeip

4. Challenge OBJECTIVE: To educate Chinese dog meat eaters about the deceit and dangers of eating dogs slaughtered at the Yulin Dog Meat Festival and remove animal cruelty from the menu. TARGET AUDIENCE: We had two primary audiences for this campaign:   1. Animal welfare advocates: They oppose eating dog meat on moral grounds. They don’t need a reason; all they need is ammunition for their cause. 2. People indifferent to eating dog meat: They represent a bigger challenge. When told to stop eating dog meat, they cite tradition as a reason to continue, or they ask how dog meat is different from pork or beef. We also had a secondary audience of SPCA’s B2B contacts – organisations SPCA communicates or partners with. CAMPAIGN PERIOD: April 2016 – July 2016 BUDGET: This was entirely a pro-bono project carried out by FleishmanHillard Hong Kong and Razorfish Hong Kong for SPCA Hong Kong.

5. Strategy CREATIVE STRATEGY: Southern China is beautiful, but there is one tradition that has an ugly side. Dog meat is consumed under the guise of tradition, good luck and health benefits. Behind that guise lies an ugly truth – the practice of culling at dog meat festivals are beyond cruel, and many of the dogs at the festival are stolen or carrying diseases deadly to humans. To help SPCA educate Chinese consumers, we created The Truth Restaurant, an awareness experience that served up a shocking dose of reality. We launched it just before the biggest festival of all – the Yulin Dog Meat Festival. By positioning The Truth Restaurant as a high-end culinary experience, when we revealed the truth behind the myths, the reactions are all the more potent. The Truth Restaurant does not rely on moral supremacy to deliver its message; it uses an unforgettable contrast to get people to question the food they’ve eaten without fault­ – the food they’ve presented to friends and family thinking it was healthy.

6. Execution • We created an interactive experience, The Truth Restaurant, that educated visitors about the shocking truths behind the festival. • At first, we simply showed the festival’s traditional perception – a lively event to eat with family and friends. Then, we invited viewers to use their mobile devices to learn more. Using navigation gestures inspired by caged animals, viewers were served a shocking dose of the truth as they virtually explored the festival. • These truths included the black market trade of stolen and very ill dogs; the extreme cruelty faced by animals as they are transported and processed; and the unregulated practices that even put humans at risk. • All of this provoked viewers to pledge their support, make donations and share with family and friends. Each donation was turned into a powerful education tool, in the form of a text book, that was distributed to Chinese children so they could learn that dogs deserve our respect and protection. This education creates hope that the next generation will put an end to these festivals.

7. Execution (continued) • In addition to the online experience, we leveraged Earned, Owned and Shared media channels to elevate the social impact of this educational initiative. Specific tactics included: • Stakeholder newsletter • Social media content • Traditional media outreach using hard-hitting data and first hand insight generated by the SPCA team on the ground at Yulin

8. Results • The Truth Restaurant was the first interactive experience Hong Kong SPCA has ever launched. When it comes to the Yulin Festival, SPCA is playing a long-term game with Education at the core of their efforts. • This piece of communication, while timed to go live for the 2016 Festival, is an ever-green piece of collateral that remains relevant way beyond the 2016 event. • It works in two ways – to both deliver the important educational public service announcement to consumers and serve as a piece of B2B communication to garner support for SPCA year-round. It also captured the attention of Chinese social media influencers and traditional media outlets. • Evaluation: • “SPCA will forever be grateful to the agency for ideating and building The Truth Restaurant as a pro bono project. This is a striking piece of communication that has helped SPCA bring attention to our educational efforts around the Yulin Dog Meat Festival and the humane treatment of animals in China.” Chris Cui SPCA Hong Kong.

9. Results (continued) • Market impact: • “Our China Outreach department has been working in China since 2009, visiting schools, distributing books about animals and holding seminars about the value of animals and the ways they should be respected. So far, over 20,000 students have been the recipients of our education efforts. The aim is to expand to one new city in China every year and initiatives like The Truth Restaurant make this possible. It helps us educate everyday people (in three languages) and allows us to share the issue with our B2B partners.” Chris Cui SPCA Hong Kong.

10. Supporting Visuals