http://blog.gamaroff.co.uk/?p=53
Users can upload and talk about their pets
Aptly named social network exclusively for British furry friends, Pet Profiles, was launched this week by innovative social experience agency Gamaroff Digital for their client More Th>n. Deeply integrated with Facebook®, the rich application is set to establish the insurance giant as a social leader not just in their industry, but in social media as a whole.
People nationwide who devote hours of online conversation to their animals are for the first time being given a feature-rich platform to show them off and to compete against others in on-going competitions
throughout the year.
Friends can search pets by breed or keyword, view their likes and dislikes, read about their character traits and also vote whenever there is an active competition. More importantly, pet lovers can engage in discussions on each animal – the thread of which is streamed on their Facebook Wall to engage a wider audience.
“This product has been designed to draw on the most up-to-date learnings in social brand engagement today.” says Joe Tuson, Technical Director at Gamaroff. “There is a competition element which we see a lot of on Facebook, but it is so much more than that because the core insight upon which it is based is inherently social – that is, people cannot resist talking about and showing off their pets.”
People are free to upload their pets and can do so by selecting an image from their Facebook albums. They create a profile much like a person’s Facebook Profile, but with a cuddly twist. Once submitted, these can be browsed and searched in a fast and slickly designed interface.
The most Liked pets appear in a real-time leaderboard and these are awarded prizes such as free pet insurance for a year – tying neatly into More Th>n’s brand proposition.
“Aside from the seamless integration with Facebook, the conversations, the photos and competitions,” Tuson says, “we also believe the product deserves some recognition in the development community with respect to the overall user experience and speed. It employs modern mobile-friendly coding practices yet manages to remain fluid and intuitive throughout.
“Practically everything has been considered to enhance the user experience. The paging system is responsive and dynamic and even responds to the mouse-wheel to navigate smoothly through multiple pages. The criteria used in each search appear as breadcrumbs enabling quick and easy filtering. The page automatically adjusts in height when these are fewer results to avoid unsightly white space and subtle animations at each interaction make the whole system feel like an iPhone app.”
More Th>n has for long been credited for standing out in the insurance industry due to their well-executed advertising campaigns and now with Pet Profiles they are able to maintain this image within social media too.
It proves that all brands, regardless of sector, are able to stand out as innovators in today’s social world if they first tap into their consumer’s core insight and harness it in the right way.
More Th>n’s social experience agency, Gamaroff Digital, have been selected by Facebook as part of the Preferred Consultant Program, to which only 90 companies belong worldwide. Their work includes social campaigns for such brands as Coca Cola, Guinness, Vodafone and more.
Facebook® is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc.
