Adorably odd animal facts

DIGITAL | SOCIAL | OOH

Learning about animals can be incredibly fun.
If you find the right facts.

The Seattle Aquarium is equal parts entertainment and education. So to convince the entire family to visit, we appealed to both key audiences: parents looking for a rewarding and enjoyable experience, and kids who want to have fun.

As an added challenge, the aquarium is located in the middle of a massive multi-year waterfront renovation, so aquarium-goers must battle traffic, dust and noise to get to the ticket counter.

Illustration of a cute puffin holding many small fish in its beak

We dug deep for animal oddities

The kind of things that don’t feel like a school lesson (animals that poop sand, anyone?). Then we brought our facts to life with adorably approachable custom illustrations used in a media mix of out-of-home, radio, digital display and online video.

Illustration of fish near the ocean floor

Illustration of puffin bird with many tiny fish in its beak

Illustration of newscaster reporting on sea life

You don’t educate people by telling them useful things. You educate people by telling them interesting things.

– Mathematician John Conway –

Land lovers loved it

The ongoing campaign has been a regular at the OBIE Awards for best out-of-home campaigns in the U.S. and took home the coveted Best of Show in year one of the campaign.

Illustrated transit ad for Seattle Aquarium with fish-eating anemone

Illustrated transit ad for Seattle Aquarium with baby skate

Illustrated transit ad for Seattle Aquarium with scuba diver waving

Illustrated ad for Seattle Aquarium with cute sea otter

Illustrated transit ad for Seattle Aquarium with octopus

Otter love gets gamified

Through our Facebook partnership, we were given the opportunity to test a new interactive unit: an infeed game. Players reunite otters who had drifted apart, without leaving the Facebook interface. It drove the highest volume of playthroughs and engagement to date, a direct result of strong creative execution and strategic retargeting tactics.

Plus, we helped that little guy find his friend. Win-win-win.

The Smashing Results

Throughout the campaign, the Aquarium has recorded either its highest or second-highest attendance, despite ongoing construction and few new exhibits.