NESTLE – PURINA – PURRCAST
The COVID-19 lockdown set a new precedent for people. The forced extreme shut off from society made people in Bulgaria experience an influx of loneliness. Being a pet loving nation, Bulgaria was just scratching at top 15 in Europe in cat ownership per capita prior to COVID-19. Post the pandemic a surge of cat ownership could be tracked, at the end of 2021 Bulgaria was ranked solid 13th which meant that over 25% of the population were cat owners. Be that wonderful news for both humans and cats, an already existing significant problem worsened. Over two million people in Bulgarian, at this point, owned cats and a notable percent were new to pet ownership which meant that even more people than before lacked proper knowledge and understanding of pet caretaking.
Mistakes in cat caretaking can lead to serious health implications and overall stray cat population increase, which on its own is a separate and striking issue. Acknowledging those facts, Nestle Purina Pro Plan and All Channels set on a mission to educate cat owners of the proper way to caretake. All owners – new and old. Hence All Channels launched a campaign to fight misinformation regarding the spaying procedure. For the first time in Bulgaria, a special video podcast dedicated to cats was launched, along with a limited edition of the ice-breaking game Kitty Talks, featuring questions related to cats and their health. Five VETs and four influencers provided answers to the questions during the podcast episodes.
As a result of the campaign, all of the pre-set KPIs were exceeded, and the number of spaying procedures doubled in the VETs’ clinic in the following months. The campaign was supported by key opinion leaders, cat-owning celebrities, TV journalists, and concerned pet owners.
The campaign was aiming to raise awareness about the importance of neutering and provide overall valuable information to cat owners, all that in an entertaining and easy to understand way.