Article

Doggy DOOH campaign warms hearts

A U.K. animal shelter earlier this year launched a clever digital out-of-home activation that saw an on-screen dog following passersby around an East London mall, going from screen to screen as people neared each digital signage display.

September 18, 2015 by Christopher Hall — w, t

Digital signage took the old saw about stray dogs — "He followed me home; can we keep him?" — to an entirely new place earlier this year in the U.K.

The U.K.'s Battersea Dogs & Cats Home animal shelter earlier this year launched a clever digital out-of-home activation with OgilvyOne U.K. that saw an on-screen dog following passersby around the Westfield Stratford City mall in East London, going from screen to screen as people neared each display.

The #Lookingforyou campaign was developed and created by customer engagement agency OgilvyOne UK in collaboration with Exterion Media. The objective of the campaign was to highlight Battersea Dogs & Cats Home's continued mission to rehome its dogs, using innovative technology to engage emotionally with passing shoppers, according to the OlgilyOne website.

People visiting Westfield Stratford City were handed specially designed leaflets containing an RFID tag by shelter volunteers. Then, as they walked past the outdoor billboards around the shopping center, the leaflet activated Barley — a former Battersea shelter dog — on the screen and interacted with them. RFIDiom and Exterion Media collaborated with OgilvyOne U.K. to provide the technical solution.

"We all know that homeless dogs follow you around," said Emma de La Fosse and Charlie Wilson, joint chief creative officers for OgilvyOne U.K., on the site. "So we are using technology to create a truly engaging experience at Westfield to help Battersea rehome even more dogs in 2015."

According to the OgilvyOne announcement, Battersea has on average around 300 dogs in its care at any given time, and it rehomes dogs and cats across the U.K. and even in France, Denmark and Switzerland. Last year the charity, which was established in 1860, placed nearly 3,000 dogs, which equates to eight dogs for every day of the year.

"We're very excited about the #Lookingforyou campaign — as a nation of dog lovers we're hoping it strikes a chord with people," said Carly Whyborn, head of operations at Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, on the OgilvyOne website. "Battersea rehomes animals all over the U.K. and beyond, and this could help encourage people to choose to rescue a dog. We're using innovative technology in a way that has never been seen before, and we hope more of our abandoned animals find loving homes because of it."

Barley was brought to life by Framestore, the BAFTA- and Oscar-winning creative studio behind movies such as Gravity and Paddington, the company said.

A #LookingForYou video highlighting the campaign was produced by Surrey-based production agency Creation Company Films Ltd:

About Christopher Hall

---

None

Connect with Christopher: