SPCA taps on virtual backgrounds to draw attention to up-for-adoption pets

The uncertainty of the crisis that the world is facing currently has affected almost every organisation in one form or another. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has not been spared as well.

With Singapore on lockdown, adoption drives and fundraising events are suspended. To bring back visibility to its furry friends, SPCA launched a “Background Homes” initiative that hijacks virtual backgrounds, and places animals that are up for adoption into them. 

Complete with quips and snazzy home settings, viewers are able to ‘imagine’ what these animals might look like in their homes. By switching out their backgrounds, users will automatically become advocates for the animals, driving awareness to both the animals and the website. Members of the public can also discover more virtual homes, learn about adoption and fostering, or make a contribution to the cause. The initiative was done in partnership with creative agency Forsman&Bodenfors. 

“Now more than ever, our shelter animals need all the help they can get. And if people can’t see them face to face, we thought; why not have them in everyone’s home, virtually? The 'Background Home' initiative does that in the hope that some of them will end up in people’s houses, for real,” said Jaipal Singh Gill, executive director at SPCA Singapore.

Similarly, since working from home has now become the new norm, the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) created Zoom backgrounds to add joy to work meetings. Now you can work from Sentosa, without actually leaving your house. The backgrounds include an array of shots to showcase Sentosa's beaches, attraction sites such as the Madame Tussauds museum, as well as its iconic beach clubs. These interactive Zoom backgrounds can spice up a mundane day as everyone adjusts to working from home, and was done in partnership with its creative agency BBH Singapore.

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These virtual backgrounds come hot in heels of Audi's specially curated images to serve as a backdrop during video conferencing, allowing fans to enjoy the thrill of the road while working from home. According to Audi, new images will be released periodically on its Facebook, Twitter and Instagram channels. Meanwhile, Zoom also launched free virtual background for consumers who wish to just slap on a nice video background while taking meetings from their messy living room. The virtual backgrounds include a neat reading space, shots of iconic tourist locations, as well as calming scenery.