The Toronto Zoo is playing on the public’s fascination with animals with “Get Closer. Discover More” — a lighthearted summer campaign geared towards families.
Developed by Public, the first work from the shop since taking over from Cundari as the Zoo’s AOR in late spring, the Ontario-centric campaign aims to drive families to the zoo by revealing fascinating facts about its inhabitants.
Creative, which focuses primarily on the giant panda, explains they eat 33 pounds of bamboo a day, poop 40 times a day, and are shy and solitary animals. By employing large text that gradually gets smaller, print and OOH executions force the viewer to get closer in order to read them, playing into the “Get Closer. Discover More” concept.
The effort, which is rolling out in stages this week and next, represents a shift in strategy for the zoo, which has historically promoted itself as a recreational destination. According to Pat Pirisi, chief creative officer at Public, the Toronto Zoo is at a point where it still wants to market itself as fun, but wants to focus a bit more on the work it does and the complexity of the animals in its care.
Pirisi said the decision to focus heavily on the giant panda (the gorilla is also represented in the creative) was informed by two factors. On loan from China, the pandas arrived at the Toronto Zoo in 2013, and are its most popular attraction. However, the bears, which are facing extinction in the wild, will only be here for five years, so there is a limited amount of time for Ontarians to see them up close.
In addition to OOH and print, the campaign also includes TV, digital, radio, and social. The effort will run for five to eight weeks, depending on the medium. Zenith is handing the media buy.
