A collaborative project between Arena Media Spain and Havas Spain highlighted the immediate environmental factors threatening Spain’s water resources.
#PorUnFuturoConAgua or #ForAFutureWithWater, a campaign for RB brand Finish, took guidance from Havas Turkey to warn Spaniards of the urgent need for action.
The fact is, if water resources continue depleting at the levels they are, the country will find itself in a situation of extreme hydrological stress by 2040.
Mireia Marti Basegaña, Transmedia Connection Director at Arena Media Spain, and Alfonso García, Account Director at Havas Spain, explain the campaign and the elements that elevated the meaningful project.
Can you tell us about the creative behind this ad for Finish and its relevance to Spain in particular?
Mireia Marti Basegaña: RB has made a commitment to align each of its brands to the United Nations’ environmental development goals. For Finish, the commitment is to tackle the striking threat of water shortages throughout the world and in Spain. A campaign with the same ethos had already been launched in Turkey to great success, and this became our kicking off point. RB asked Arena Spain and Havas Spain to lead a strategy for a Spanish campaign with the same message. The reality of water shortages varies from country to country and our research stage established that by 2040, Spain will experience a situation of extreme hydrological stress, should things remain the way they are. This near-term prospect guided us in constructing the messaging and the content strategy. The premise of #PorUnFuturoConAgua or #ForAFutureWithWater is simple.
“Spain will experience a situation of extreme hydrological stress in 2040, should things remain the way they are.”
Although droughts in Spain are becoming more intense and frequent, we are still wasting 47 litres per wash by pre-washing our dishes, which is unnecessary due to the power of Finish. It calls on the nation to end this habit and to take one step in a mission to ensure a future with water. Through this campaign, we found a way of mobilising, disseminating and activating a change of habit, creating a convergence between Finish’s goals and reality the Spanish are facing in this area.
This campaign collaborates with other content brands including National Geographic! How did these collaborations elevate the project?
MMB: Working with incredible partners like National Geographic really contribute to the meaningfulness of the project. It elevated the project in so many ways, especially from a social point of view, which took it above and beyond. We also partnered with the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA), who helped us shed expertise and insight on the stark situation we face.
One of the keys to success has been the creation of an ecosystem of partners and collaborators around the project. This form of working should become best practice in the future. Surrounding ourselves by experts, institutions and brands that are established and aligned with the spirit of the campaign enabled us to lend credibility to the brand’s contribution to the cause. What’s more, they weren’t just in the background; they played an active and integral role in the various phases and content of the campaign, helping to create a movement! We also established a media partnership with Mediaset Group Spain, because this would enable us to work in different formats, with plenty of editorial content. Having an influential partner like them really elevated the project.
Alfonso García: With the help of Havas PR, we also partnered with FESBAL (Spanish Federation of Food) on this project. This partner helped us reach communities who experience issues accessing water in Spain. FESBAL provided their own media to amplify the project and helped us get as much water as possible to these communities through a digital donation on their platforms.
What does it feel like to work on projects that have such a powerful impact as this one has had?
AG: For people like us who love our work, it is a real pleasure to see how brands are beginning to offer more than just a product. It is a wonderful challenge to help them try to achieve a better world as true partners. Our main goal with all our clients is to help them to turn their brand into a meaningful one through our creativity.
How important is it for brands like Finish (and also organisations like Havas) to fund and support initiatives that impact sustainability and the environment?
MMB: We’re immersed in a pandemic that has been shown to have had its origin in the way we have treated the planet. Sustainability and the environment ought to impinge on the agenda in all areas of companies’ activities. Brands can be the visible face that show their genuine and honest commitment to the initiatives, a vehicle for raising awareness, mobilising and recruiting support.
“It is a wonderful challenge to help a brand try to achieve a better world as true partners. Our main goal with all our clients is to help them to turn their brands into meaningful ones through our creativity.”
AG: Part of our job is help clients to achieve their marketing goals. Generating sales is the primary goal of any marketing manager. In a world surrounded by similar brands and users who have more and more power, we are really fortunate to work with brands that decide to go further. RB is determined to develop its purpose and try to contribute its bit to this planet. This is why consumers are choosing one brand over another now. It is a real privilege to help them along the way.
Finish has launched campaigns with a similar message in Turkey. Has there been collaboration between Havas Villages for this project?
AG: We had the opportunity to gain insight from our colleagues in Havas Turkey, who told us how the launch process had been and the current problems that Turkey has in relation to water. Thanks to this work and the synergies gleaned through the conversations, we were able to quickly obtain a hook for the campaign in Spain that had a social cause. In Spain and working with our colleagues from agencies from the same Group (Arena Spain and Havas PR), we are able to put the Village philosophy into practice. This is an excellent success case and an amazing example of our Village Model in practice, where Arena Media took the lead role.