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Purina taps mobile Web for multichannel marketing campaign

Nestle?s pet food brand Purina is using a campaign-specific mobile Web site to help pet owners connect to their furry friends.

Purina?s mobile Web push is part of a multichannel campaign that also includes television, social media and out-of-home components. Purina is working with agency Leo Burnett Worldwide/Arc Worldwide on this campaign.

?We created a lot of great work for rich media ads and Facebook applications that let people find out something amazing about each of the breeds represented at the Westminster Dog Show, but also wanted a way to share it with attendees of Westminster and people of New York who only have their mobile phones and come in contact with our out-of-home work,? said Tony Rogers, vice president and creative director of Leo Burnett/Arc Worldwide, Chicago.

?Technologically, the best way to do that was to create a mobile site,? he said.

Perfect pets
The Purina campaign promotes the company's line of Pro Plan pet food. The theme for the campaign is, ?Inside every good dog is a great dog.?

Users can access the campaign?s mobile site by typing http://www.proplan.com/great into their mobile browsers.

Consumers can then choose from more than 180 dog breeds to learn a quick fact about a particular breed.

Purina is placing a large emphasis on social media with a Facebook page dedicated to the campaign.

Additionally, users can upload photos of their own dogs to Purina?s Facebook page.

The company is also using out-of-home advertising with a bus that is wrapped in campaign materials. The bus is traveling through New York.

The Purina campaign ties in with the company's sponsorship of the Westminster Kennel Club All Breed Dog Show in New York.

In addition to the digital marketing initiatives, Purina will also broadcast TV commercials that showcase exceptional dog breeds.

Mobile chow
Recently, Purina has been using mobile as a way to connect with on-the-go pet owners.

For example, the company rolled out a mobile bar code initiative to drive pet shelter donations (see story).

Giving consumers the option to learn about their pet via mobile during a broadcast of a dog show such as the Westminster Kennel Club All Breed Dog Show makes sense as consumers are interacting with their mobile devices while watching TV.

Additionally, by tying social media, TV, out-of-home and mobile, Purina is able to create a fully-rounded marketing initiative.

?[The campaign] allows you to take your mobile phone and find out something cool and creative about any pure bred dog recognized by the AKC,? Mr. Rogers said.

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is editorial assistant on Mobile Marketer, New York