- Shell adopts a pet at one of its gas stations and “incorporates” it into its workforce.
- It is a very ingenious way of capitalizing on the “pet friendly” trend that works as a powerful driver to improve the perception of brands in the eyes of the consumer.
- There are similar examples from Hyundai in Brazil and Volkswagen in Mexico.
Achieving empathy with consumers is more important than ever these days. So any strategy is valid to achieve it.
Sometimes it’s the little details that make the difference, and Shell knows it.
That is why the European capital company has allowed its brand to be linked to a humble street dog that was adopted by the employees of a gas station in its network of service stations.
The story that has won the hearts of many on social networks comes from the south of Chile, where the firm’s workers decided to “incorporate” a dog that is already practically part of the family.
The employees fitted the mascot with a T-shirt with the name and logo of Shell and put an identification card with the name with which they baptized the new mascot: “Guardian”.
There is not much information on the subject, but yes lots of reactions on social media, where the images taken by Toño Armstrong Valenzuela and published on Facebook became viral.
The new pet, a medium-sized animal and a cross between a German shepherd, “works” alongside its new companions.
The gas station is located in the town of Calbuco, in southern Chile.
Hyundai in Brazil
A similar case occurred in Brazil in 2020, when the Hyundai car brand signed a stray dog who also became “famous” on social media.
The employees of the Korean company adopted “Tucson Prime”, a dog that became the attraction of the brand dealership in the Brazilian market.
In the same way that happened in Chile with “Guardián”, the Brazilian dog sleeps and feeds at the point of sale, and was adopted after wandering around the outside of the place before being adopted by the employees.
In Brazil, the animal was transformed into a true “advisor” to the company, which made “Tucson Prime” the center of a marketing campaign.
And you also just get the abortion and hyundai’s dog on facebook? pic.twitter.com/vMwmjWDsx5
— RMTC (@RMTC96) August 3, 2020
The Volkswagen experience
In 2019, the Volkswagen City Chetumal agency adopted two stray animals to “sign” them as members of its work team.
The two puppies, baptized as Virtus and Polo (alluding to the models of the German brand) also had their own identifications and “worked” for the security and surveillance sector.
The success of this class of actions goes two ways. On the one hand, it is a ingenious way to capitalize on the “pet friendly” trend, that works as a powerful driver to improve the perception of brands in the eyes of the consumer and, in some cases, influence their purchase decision.
On the other hand, by joining the conversation, brands are capitalizing on one of the most valued assets for any company in times of connection and digital interaction: user-generated content.
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