The Minnesota Zoo is the only place in the world, aside from Hawaii, where the public can see Hawaiian monk seals on exhibit. To add to the uniqueness of the experience, only 1,100 of these animals remain in the wild. As a result, it was important for the Zoo to communicate both fun and conservation messages in the new campaign.
“The Minnesota Zoo provides fantastic family entertainment, but it also connects Minnesotans to conservation. The zoo’s conservation efforts deserve to be highlighted, and there’s no better opportunity than with these amazing seals that cannot be re-released into the wild. It was very important to us to convey not only the excitement of bringing in a new animal, but the pride Minnesotans should have in the zoo’s work to save animals from extinction,” said CCF President Rob Rankin.
The TV spot features a young girl summoning ocean creatures to the Minnesota Zoo using a conch shell she finds on the beach. Out-of-home advertising declares that the monk seals have arrived by showing them in an ocean that appears to be at the zoo. Radio features actual Hawaiian monk seal sounds, “translated” by a human, encouraging visitors to see the seals, and learn how to protect them.
“The Minnesota Zoo’s commitment to entertainment, conservation and education is inspiring. This campaign creatively brings together the fun you can experience at the Zoo, while promoting the importance of protecting animals,” said CCF Executive Creative Director Jac Coverdale.
“This is the first exhibit opening since the Minnesota Zoo adopted its new strategic plan, which articulated the organization’s mission to ‘connect people, animals and the natural world to save wildlife,’” said Minnesota Zoo Marketing and Communications Director Lani Willis. “It was important for us to have ‘saving wildlife’ central in our creative campaign messaging. Our hope is that this campaign will inspire curiosity about these amazing animals as ambassadors for their species in the wild, and pride in Minnesota Zoo’s efforts to protect them.”
The new campaign from CCF for Minnesota Zoo aims to drive visitors to “Rediscover Discovery Bay,” which opens May 23. To view the work, please click here.