Subaru of America, Inc. today announced that the 2019 National Make a Dog’s Day campaign has been awarded three independent honors for creative excellence. The automaker’s campaign, which centered on driving awareness for last-to-be-adopted pets during Subaru Loves Pets Month in October, was honored with the Adweek Media Plan of the Year for Best Cause Marketing Campaign, the Shorty Social Good Awards for Best in Auto and Best Community or Employee Engagement and the MediaPost 2020 Online Media, Marketing, and Advertising (OMMA) award for Best Content Marketing: Single Execution.
The Adweek Media Plan of the Year awards focused on adaptability and versatility in creative marketing campaigns that evolved to meet consumers’ changing habits. The Shorty Social Good Award recognized the positive impact brands, agencies and nonprofits can have on society. The MediaPost Omma Awards honored agencies and advertisers that pushed the potential of digital advertising.
“National Make a Dog’s Day is the cornerstone of our year-round efforts to improve the lives of shelter pets, and these honors from Adweek, Shorty Awards and MediaPost are a testament to the love that went into creating the campaign,” said Alan Bethke, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Subaru of America, Inc. “We are proud to accept these awards and even more proud that our work drove critical awareness for last-to-be-adopted shelter pets.”
The awards recognized a creative campaign developed by Subaru of America, Inc. in collaboration with agency partner, Carmichael Lynch, entitled “The Underdogs.” The campaign included advertising spots that celebrated the unique charms of last-to-be-adopted shelter pets, including special needs dogs, specifically senior dogs, amputees, visually and hearing-impaired dogs, and dogs with birth defects and physical challenges. The 2019 campaign also included a content partnership with National Geographic featuring images from contributing photographer Vincent Musi, who photographed the Underdogs, as well as a 24-hour takeover on National Geographic Instagram account, sharing the Underdog stories with the brand’s 146 million followers.
National Make a Dog’s Day is part of Subaru Loves Pets, the automaker’s Love Promise commitment to protect and improve the lives of animals. For more information about Subaru Loves Pets, please visit subaru.com/pets.