Changing the Flemish repair behaviour
Unfortunately, we are more likely to buy something new than choose to have our stuff repaired, while repair is a powerful weapon against a throwaway society and a way to save resources and reduce our impact on the planet. But how do you bring the Flemish, raised on the convenience of online shopping and next-day delivery, back to the idea of having a broken appliance repaired?
Environmental organisation Repair & Share discovered via a year-long field survey (in the VLAIO Living Lab) that barely 20% of the Flemish have large household electronics repaired. 44% did not even know where this could be done in the neighbourhood. Time for action.
Repair & Share
"Shaved Monkey supported us throughout and we were always well informed about the process, our feedback was taken into account and incorporated, and we were really taken care of. For a small organisation like Repair&Share, that was worth its weight in gold."
Repair & Share
We are creatures of habit
When one of our household appliances breaks down, we react in panic, getting frustrated and quickly opting to buy new. What if we could break that habit?
The biggest barrier to choosing to repair is not rational, but emotional: stress. Stress at being without a device, because we don't know where to go, because repair is unknown territory.
So we based our campaign strategy on removing that stress and uncertainty and creating awareness of repair options. Moreover, we chose to feature the repair professional as a positive character in the repair process.
The creature of habit steps in
Behavioural change starts with behavioural recognition. That is why we created a character who literally intervenes in everyday life: the creature of habit. Cuddly, recognisable and disarming. Not a patronising message, but an empathetic buddy who reminds you, "You don't have to buy a new device. You can just fix your old one."
The creature of habit came to life in high-quality 3D animation, interacting with real actors. For this, we collaborated with Hotel Bonka.
Two-month smart, layered campaign
Changing behaviour is not something you do in a day. We drew up a campaign plan to spend two months bringing the habit and the message of repair and maintenance to Flemish people between 25 and 55. The campaign ran in two phases on online and offline channels: a first phase focused on repair and what to do if one of your electrical appliances breaks down. The message: less stress, more control. In the second phase, we shifted the focus to maintenance and focused the message on awareness and making sure your appliance lasts longer.
We focused on behaviour over time with:
- Social media campaigns on Meta and YouTube (over 500 000 unique reach)
- Pre-roll videos on Streamz (over 350 000 impressions)
- Influencers and native content on Instagram
- Offline communication at Vanden Borre & De Kringwinkels
- Central landing page herstelmij.be with repair map and tips
Smart PR approach
The creative surge was reinforced by a smart PR approach. We hooked into the launch of the Herstelbaarheidsindex through newsjacking, with result.
The videos featuring the creature of habit were shared in all Flemish and Brussels branches of Vanden Borre, one of the Living Lab partners. The Kringwinkels also cooperated: posters were distributed to hang in the kringwinkels throughout all the Flemish provinces.
- 10.5 million media impressions
- More than €100 000 in earned media value
- 7-day national presence on VRT NWS, De Morgen, De Tijd, HLN, Q-Music and others
- A big spike in visitors to herstelmij.be
"Shaved Monkey's professional approach resulted in a quality campaign that met all requirements and expressed our message in a creative way."
Repair & Share
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