May 12th 2008, is a date that will never be forgotten. An earthquake hit Sichuan, China and more than 80,000 lives were lost. On May 18th 2008, the large-scale charity TV gala, “Contributions of Love,” was organized in order to promote Chinese cultural system as well as to relieve the destruction caused by the Sichuan earthquake⁄Wong Lo Kat, an herbal drink with 170 years of history, under JDB group, donated 100 million RMB during the “Contributions of Love.”
As their marketing & planning company, we wanted to thank them for their donation, with branding and influence as a secondary benefit. Through viral marketing, we posted a forum titled “Force Out Wong Lo Kat,” a lot of internet users were offended and clicked on the thread ready to post their opinions, only to find that the title is not meant to be understood literally but figuratively.
Success
The original thread was re-posted on all major online communities and news websites. On May 28, 2008, when one googles (Force Out Wong Lo Kat), 380,000 website links were founded. All major Chinese News websites reported this event and there was more that 265 news articles. The forum generated a tremendous amount of buzz, more than 100 million internet users are aware of event and majority of them want to show their support by purchasing all of the Wong Lo Kat drinks. Consumers created a slogan stating “Force Out Wong Lot Kat,” by purchasing all of the drinks from supermarkets, “eliminating” Wong Lot Kat drink from all shelves. After this event, Wong Lot Kat drinks were flying off the shelves, as consumers continue to show their support and gratitude!
Client: JDB Group
Agency: Beijing iWOM
Budget: Free!
Date of Campaign: May 2008
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