A Marketing Piece in Support of Our Earth

Earth day was on April 22, allowing brands to use the holiday to promote their products and/or take a stand for environmental sustainability.

WelovetheEarth.org is a website dedicated to raising awareness and how to act now regarding the declining health of our Earth ran by the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. On Earth day, the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation released an animated music video by Lil Dicky, as well as a video of Lil Dicky speaking in a blunt, humorous manner about global warming and its affects. The music video also included more than 30 celebrities featured as different animals and roles. These include Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Halsey, Ed Sheeran, Brendon Urie, Snoop Dogg, Wiz Khalifa, among many more well-known artists.

The target market is ages 18-30. This group of young adults includes students and young working professionals. Students across the world are taking action on their campuses, and young adults make up most of those at protests. It is a group wanting to make a difference who believe they can. This age group is also the primary listeners of these famous musicians in Lil Dicky’s song called “Earth.” These young adults also are constantly on social media who have shared the video. I discovered this website and video through a friend who texted me the link, and others will do the same. Other earned media includes articles on news websites like Fox to reach an even larger target market.

The objective of the production this video is to increase awareness about global warming and how to make a difference. The video leads to the website which outlines 3 steps: to learn more on how to make a difference, to act now through pledges and encouragement to vote, and to support the song to increase views. In the end of the music video, Lil Dicky promises that the revenue from the streams will go to charities helping the Earth. They have been successful proven by the 42,934,247 views since April 18, just six days ago.

The insight driving the work is to portray a scary situation in a non-scary way. They do this through animation and a story about the creatures of the Earth set to a catchy tune.

Since watching this video, “We love the Earth…it is our planet” has been stuck in my head.

But this is a positive thing showing its success because now the cause has been in my mind all day. The word choice of “love,” the cute portrayal of the animals, and showing Lil Dicky hugging the Earth all inspires care and affection. This is the motivation that will drive change. Although the issue is scary, a scary video turns more people away and is not inspiring much like how fear tactics in the opioid crisis have failed.

As for its positioning, there has not been a gathering of this many stars coming together for a cause since “We are the World” which brought people together to support Haiti. Music videos that take a stand are becoming increasingly popular. They are also helpful in analyzing culture because it shows what entertainers and their fans care about.

This video as a marketing piece is a success and has many strengths. One of the biggest ones was hidden in the beginning. Before the animation of this dream-like Earth begins, a young boy is the only one picking up trash in a very dirty city. One of the pieces of trash he finds is the book about the Earth which leads into the music video part. This is important because the boy learning about it is the next generation. It is up to the younger target market and the future generation to take responsibility and make change NOW. Lil Dicky says in the more informational video that if change is not made within 12 years, the damage will be irreversible. Another important thing to note in this is that someone else threw this book away. Someone else gave up on the Earth and metaphorically trashed it. A more obvious strength is how many celebrities took part. They are diverse artists that will share it with their diverse fans and bring tons of people to the Earth website adding to the overall success. Also, the fact of how hard coordinating the video shows fans they care and this is something more people need to pay attention to.

As for the weaknesses, it is a long video at 7 minutes and 11 seconds. The length may lose many viewers and there is a lot of important information towards the end. However, Lil Dicky videos have a reputation of being long, but engaging and funny. Therefore, many fans like myself are willing to watch the entire thing. Plus, by the end I was singing along. Secondly, it is hard to tell if this video will inspire real change. They do list ways to support and help, but they don’t feel as inspiring as the video. I am ready to do more, but the most they say I can do is sign petitions, vote, and share the video. The emphasis on the sharing the video is supported by “You do it all the time with dumb-ass puppy videos, why not do it with this one? Because this video can actually help save the world.” The lighthearted manner plays into the non-scary importance of the insight, but also highlights the weakness of not listing more tangible things that can be done.