Case study: Listerine breaks records with social engagement

Razorfish and Listerine have wooed Hong Kong with a slamming kabe-don move - resulting in record-breaking engagement for the brand.Self-proclaimed Kabe-Don ambassador Gregory Wong starred in a Listerine campaign encouraging Hong Kong people to get always prepared in important moments like the intimate Kabe-don moment by adopting a good oral health habit.Kabe-don is a cultural phenomena originating from manga comics, spreading through Japan with a fever pitch and taking over Asia as a lusted-after fantasy move executed by ultimate bad boys.Launched in March, the Listerine kabe-don campaign was a smash hit straight out of the gates, with 2,000 branded experiences and samples claimed in in less than 100 hours.https://youtu.be/UefOdQEyvCkTHE BRIEFThis brief was about behavioral change. The job was single-minded: Get Hong Kong’s young adults to build a habit of rinsing with Listerine mouthwash – every day, twice a day.Research showed us, Hong Kong’s young adults are not aware of the hidden risk in oral health and thus not able to see the benefits of using mouthwash daily. And sometimes they do, but it’s not a twice-daily firm habit – and that’s why 96.7% of Hong Kong people have plaque, highly-associated with various dental diseases like cavities or periodontitis. This meant the brand had to increase their frequency of use and make them choose the right mouthwash to help prevent from oral problems.THE INSIGHTThere’s nothing more intimate than breath. Breath is evocative, intimate, sexy, and…. a repulsive turn off if it’s not fresh. This is a problem for Hong Kong’s young lovers who aren’t looking after their oral health by using mouthwash. Listerine built a campaign off a key human insight and a growing pop culture phenomenon: When we are at a certain social distance, we can’t see the details. It’s not until we’re up close, and it’s too late, that we’re truly exposed. There is no more exposed moment than a kabe-don move.Kabedon – a gesture to declare your love, originating from Japanese comics and Asian dramas (Taiwan, Korean, Japan, Hong Kong). It’s an intimate gesture,with nowhere to hide any flaws. The message was simple: If you don’t want to be embarrassed in this important moment, you have to be prepared.THE IDEAIntroducing Listerine Kabe-don, a campaign that gave our audience the confidence to get kabe-done close. We created our own Kabe-don drama with actor Gregory Wong where he practiced his kabe-don moves to impress a female colleague. When their close up moment arrived, her oral health problems became a source of embarrassment. To highlight the solution, we then let our audience become part of the drama by creating their own kabe-don photos with Gregory, all the while learning that Listerine was the solution for close up confidence.THE EXECUTIONWho better to front this communication than the ambassador of Kabe-don, Gregory Wong. Wong led the Listerine Kabe-don charge with an unbranded teaser video showing him practicing his Kabe-don moves, created in Japanese comic style. The video was shown on 100 Most Facebook page and Gregory’s personal Facebook page, building intrigue and buzz as young women across Hong Kong swooned, watched and shared Gregory’s practice session.Next, Listerine was revealed as the brand behind the hype, with campaign messaging delivered on the cover of irreverent and cheeky magazine 100 Most. A follow up branded video also delivered the campaign message to Gregory and 100 Most followers, driving them to join Gregory on Listerine’s fun Kabe-don website.The desktop and mobile site was showed content that made learning about oral health fun and informative. Gregory’s fans embraced all the games, quizzes and coupons.THE FUNNEST PART: Gregory Wong’s call to action: submit your Kabe-don photo and be in the running for iPhone's, mobile coupons, and product vouchers. Thousands of photos were uploaded and shared on social media, creating a Kabe-don wave across Listerine, Gregory Wong and local KOL’s social networks.THE RESULTSWithin a mere 100 hours of launch, the campaign had exceeded the KPIs including over 2,000 branded experiences and samples claimed. Gregory Wong’s kabe-don video was most successful video Listerine has ever posted with over 100,000 views in less than 24 hours. Finally, both the teaser and campaign videos combined generated near 1 million views!Even the local famous prime-time drama also featured “Kabedon” in one of the episodes. Most importantly, this campaign was packaged up and distributed globally as a best practice way to tell the Listerine story.