CASE STUDY: Students encourage working adults to live beyond the office

Aim
Undergraduates may need help managing the transition into the workplace in order to lead full and active lives, rather than letting work become their sole focus.

The campaign targeted primarily incumbent undergraduates from the three local universities: National University of Singapore (NUS), NTU and Singapore Management University (SMU).

The campaign aimed to raise awareness among this target group about work stress, its warning signs and its associated negative impacts. The campaign also wanted to encourage citizens in this target group to take control of their work lives upon entering the workforce.

Execution
The campaign uses multiple interactive touch points to empower undergraduates with the knowledge and belief to better manage their work lives. Implemented in four phases with zombie sightings, key communication mediums for the campaign include microsites, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and posters.

Two fictional websites, Nutricula Pharmaceutical Corporation (NPC) and The Resistance (TR), were created as tools to connect the students in this campaign. The TR group also used Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

In Phase 1, NPC began a recruitment drive, from 30 January to 13 February, to get volunteer experiment subjects for a study. The survey also helped in collecting data for future 'enlistment'. A reward was given away to encourage more undergraduates to take the survey.

From 5 to 20 February, TR revealed an imminent plan by NPC to release 'Product X2', an enhancement drug given to make people into work zombies. Messages were sent out to students, who took part in the survey to raise awareness through having zombie walkabouts on school days.

Survival kits and brochures were then distributed to students to recruit them as campaign ambassadors to stop the launch of 'Product X2'. Active Resistance videos were released online, and a radio advertisement was used.

Finally, a one-day event entitled “The last stand” was launched, billed as an Amazing Race-style contest to 'bring down' NPC. The pharmaceutical 'company' then opted for a black market, under-the-table launch, which TR caught wind of, as an insider was working in the company.

This culminated in a movement by TR, with its clandestine vigilantes waiting to be unleashed in a high-tempo race around the Central Singapore district.

Results
TR received Facebook reach of 26,414 unique exposures and Facebook impressions of 141,587. It also received a total unique visit of 989 and page views of 5,183.

NPC, meanwhile, has a total unique visit of 479 and page views of 3,356.

The circulation of Nanyang Chronicle at NTU was 15,000 and The Ridge at NUS was 4,000. The radio advertisement at 98.7FM reached to a daily listenership of 356,000, of which 78.9 per cent were full-time students.