How Mismatched Animals and Viral Poop Drove Record Attendance
We partnered with the Minnesota Zoo to drive attendance through multi-channel campaigns that made familiar exhibits feel fresh. Each year brought a new creative challenge: how do you keep families coming back to see the same animals? Our answer was simple—make them look at what they thought they knew in a completely new way.
increase in memberships (all-time record)
visitors during the Africa! campaign–the highest since opening
countries where WhoPooped.org was discussed and shared
Africa! "If That Looked Right to You, It's Time for a Visit".
After a two-year hiatus, the Africa! exhibit was returning to the Minnesota Zoo. The original animals—giraffe, zebra, ostrich and wildebeest—were back. But research showed a “been there, done that” feeling from families. Our challenge was to bring visitors back and make the Africa! exhibit feel fresh and new, demonstrating the Zoo’s longtime tagline: “Changing how you see the world.”
TV, print and out-of-home featured the familiar giraffe, zebra and ostrich—but with the wrong coats and feathers. A giraffe with zebra stripes appeared first in our TV spot, then across print, outdoor and transtops. Viewers sensed, “Hey, something’s not right,” but had to pause to figure out what. Maybe they didn’t know these animals as well as they thought? Maybe they needed to come see them again?
Who Pooped? When Educational Goes Viral.
To grab kids’ attention, we introduced the now legendary WhoPooped.org. Parents rolled their eyes. Teachers and kids loved it. After all, the topic was poop.
Kids learned about different African animals by identifying their droppings. The site went viral. Twin Cities DJs talked about it. Rachel Maddow discovered the site, featured it on air, then tweeted about it to her 600,000 followers. It was talked about throughout the U.S., and we lost count after tracking mentions in 15 foreign countries.
The microsite showed how and what the animals of the African savanna poop—complete with dung beetle hosts and glorious sound effects of defecation. At the end, participants earned their Poopology certificate. Education disguised as entertainment, or entertainment disguised as education. Either way, it didn’t stink.
Russia’s Grizzly Coast “Get Closer Than Nature Intended”
Russia’s Grizzly Coast gave families something no wilderness trip ever could: a front-row seat to grizzlies and river otters in their element, without the survival risk. “Get Closer Than Nature Intended” did exactly what it promised. The exhibit set a Zoo record with 1.25 million visitors.
