Canine selfies. Mutt could be better?
OK, that pun was a real dog, but here's something designed to put a smile on Fido's furry face.
This week, Pedigree began a U.S. rollout of DentaStix Studios (on iOS or Android), an expansion of the brand's popular SelfieStix phone accessory and app introduced by Colenso BBDO in New Zealand two years ago.
The original product, profiled in the case-study video below, allowed users to attach DentaStix oral-care treats to their phones and attract Rover's attention for "selfies" that could be groomed with cutesy filters:
Cop dog, scuba dog, cat dog. They're all fetching, right? Grrrr…
"We needed to find a new approach to our communications to drive distinctiveness for Pedigree DentaStix and encourage daily use of the product," explains agency creative director Kimberly Ragan. "We noticed that the average millennial dog owner creates six pieces of content with their dog every week, but the dog is never looking at the camera. So, we created the SelfieStix clip."
The app constantly scanned the camera feed for a dog's face, about 20 times per second, and if no detection was made, it slid a "Need more DentaStix treats?" prompt onto the screen with a link to local pet food suppliers. In addition to winning industry kudos, the initiative helped drive 3.4 million engagements—not surprising, as studies show two out of three adults would rather take pictures of their pets than their friends—and a double-digit spike in sales.
Now, DentaStix Studios arrives to take the e-commerce-driven cuteness to the next level.
This update of the original SelfieStix app includes two new immersive features: DogDays, for daily photos that morph into a shareable film of Poochie's life, and GoodLens, which uses 3-D mapping to transform DentaStix treats into objects like bouquets and guitars (because who doesn't want footage of their Pomeranian rocking out?)
"Social media can be a bleak place, but we believe dogs can counter that," says Ragan.
Working with various BBDO offices, Pedigree, a Mars brand, has fashioned many memorable campaigns, ranging from a stirring 2015 film about ex-cons adopting dogs to last year's heartwarming take on the holiday season.
DentaStix Studios continues this tradition, helping owners bond more closely with their pets and, presumably, feel just a little less trapped in life's cages.
CREDITS
Pedigree SelfieStix and DentaStix Studios
Agency: Colenso BBDO
Client: Mars/Pedigree
Dave Griffin, Global Brand Director, Pedigree
Cormac Van Den Hoofdakker, Marketing Manager Pet, MARS New Zealand
Production Company: Assembly
Sound Studio: Franklin Road
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