A "Mother Blanket?" Find out how a campaign used a traditional practice to fight child malnutrition!
I personally enjoy encountering guerrilla marketing campaigns. For me, these strategies serve as a reminder that promoting an offering doesn’t always have to be too serious or complicated. Let’s talk about a brilliant and inspiring guerrilla marketing tactic for today’s article. Read on to know how two non-profit organizations in Colombia tapped into the expertise of a global marketing agency to address an undernourishment issue among Ecuadorian Andean children in 2021.
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A "Mother Blanket?" Find out how a campaign used a traditional practice to fight child malnutrition! There’s a common misconception among some parents when evaluating their babies’ early stages of physical development: They think chubby babies are healthier than those who are thin. Here’s the thing: While it’s true that chubby babies look bigger and cuter than others, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re healthier. According to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) standards, the proper way to assess infants’ development is through their height and stature, not simply their weight. Bringing Knowledge of Child Health to the Andes Mountain Ranges The Ecuadorian Ministry of Public Health’s data states over 300,000 Ecuadorian Andean children struggle through their early years of development with chronic undernourishment. This silent health problem comes with irretrievable consequences, including death. The thing is, the Ecuadorian Andean tribe is an isolated community. Since they’re living in the mountain ranges, thousands of Andean mothers find it hard to go to clinics to have their babies checked. No matter how much they want to monitor their children’s development, their isolation makes it impossible for them to conduct periodical medical visits and clinically track whether or not their babies are growing healthy and strong. Another challenge? There are some Andean communes where modern medicine is condemned or disbelieved. So, to help Andean mothers solve this problem, non-profit organizations Fundación Vivir and Consejo de Protección de Derechos Ambato (CCPDA) teamed up with marketing agency Ogilvy Colombia in June 2021 to reinvent an Andean tradition in an effort to help save lives. They called this reinvention… The “Mother Blanket” campaign!
The Mother Blanket was inspired by the “Sikinchi,” a blanket Andean mothers use to carry their babies securely on their backs. According to Andean culture, this is the closest connection mothers have with their children. So… how did Fundación Vivir, CCPDA, and Ogilvy Colombia use this blanket to help Andean parents monitor their children’s health and development? Taking cues from the traditional Andean textile, the campaign team redesigned the OMS Infant Growth Chart and printed it into the blankets. Using local Andean dialects for mothers to easily understand, the Mother Blanket showed a baby’s ideal height for every stage of development.
The inspiration for the Mother Blanket’s designs came from Andean icons that have a huge meaning for the indigenous worldview. These icons include:
Using these icons made the Mother Blanket’s design feel more culturally authentic. Fundación Vivir and CCPDA gave these blankets to communes, and explained to mothers of all ages how to use the material to measure their babies’ height and identify possible ailments. The packaging of the Mother Blanket also included information on how to use it properly.
Was Fundación Vivir and CCPDA’s “Mother Blanket” campaign effective? Many Andean mothers who received the Mother Blanket appreciated the gesture and found this extremely helpful. It gave them assurance and a more concrete standard on evaluating their children’s physical development. These were the results of the campaign:
Based on these figures and recognitions, we can see that the “Mother Blanket” campaign achieved its objectives of communicating with Andean mothers and helping them ensure their babies grow healthy. A round of applause for Fundación Vivir, CCPDA, and Ogilvy Colombia! — As a business owner or marketer, what can you learn from this guerrilla marketing strategy? It pays to know AND understand WHO your target audience is. One of the key aspects of a successful marketing campaign or strategy is its ability to connect and communicate with its target market… and to do that, you need to know and listen to what consumers are saying so you can capture their attention. Take for example the “Mother Blanket” campaign: Fundación Vivir, CCPDA, and Ogilvy Colombia knew aside from being isolated, another reason why Andean mothers rarely attend medical checkups is some of their community members—or they themselves—do not believe in modern medicine. So, to establish a connection with these people, the campaign team decided to adopt an Andean tradition—the “Sikinchi”—and incorporate their objectives to engage with the indigenous community. The result? The campaign team not only earned the favor of the Andean community but also educated mothers about the proper way to measure their babies’ growth! Get inspired by today’s guerrilla marketing feature! By listening to and understanding your target market, you and your brand can also create captivating campaigns that break down walls of unbelief or disbelief, and leave a positive, lasting impression on your customers’ minds. It’s time to make consumers experience your brand’s “motherly” care! Hope you’ve found this week’s guerrilla marketing insight interesting and helpful. Follow us on LinkedIn. Stay tuned for next Thursday’s Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing! Do you want to learn how one fast food brand capitalized on a behavioral psychology concept and interacted with its customers? See it in next week’s article!
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