ASPCA

Mobilizing Millennials to Stop Puppy Mills

For decades, the ASPCA has been advocating for better breeding practices and adoption for dogs with campaigns that focused on educating the public on where pet store dogs come from. But over time, the influx of digital technology has completely transformed how people get dogs. And Millennials, the largest generation of dog lovers ever, are increasingly relying on online sources, which makes it difficult to track where our furry friends are coming from.

BBMG partnered with the ASPCA to concept and design a campaign to mobilize Millennials as the generation that ends puppy mills. The campaign needed to reach them with a new narrative that’s relevant, inspiring and actionable, because when the right thing to do becomes the cool thing to do, everyone wins.

For the campaign, nine-time Grammy-nominated artist and dog lover Sia voiced our launch video reaching over a million views within weeks of the launch in March 2018. Within six months the campaign had received 10.5 million social media impressions and 1.5 million target social actions. It went on to win a Shorty Social Good Award for its impact in the Animals & Wildlife category. In 2022, the ASPCA celebrated the impact of this ongoing campaign when The New York Puppy Mill Pipeline Bill was signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

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Audience Research
Brand Strategy
Non-profit & Advocacy Campaign
Animated Video

Getting to know young dog lovers

Young Americans are less likely to be homeowners, car owners or parents compared to earlier generations, but they are the largest cohort of dog owners in history. To unlock what triggers the acquisition of a dog, how they look for information, their perceptions of puppy mills and how they define “good” breeding, BBMG spoke to a wide array of Millennials from all over the country. Our research revealed that no matter how much or how little they understand about this complex issue, nearly everyone loves dogs. To change perceptions and motivate new behaviors, love had to be our way in.

Love vs. cruelty

The issue of puppy mills is incredibly complex and shadowy, full of nuanced and ill-enforced regulations and horrifying conditions for dogs. Our goal was to cut through the clutter to make it intuitive for our Millennial audience and give them something positive to rally around. So we rooted our campaign in a universal emotion – love – and framed our enemy as cruel breeding practices. “Barred from Love” is the story of love vs. cruelty and it reframes the issue of puppy mills as one that anyone can get behind, whether they are dog owners, looking to get a dog, or simply can’t resist a loveable pup.

All dogs deserve the good life

To bring this campaign to life, we created an iconic online experience and digital media assets with easy-to-understand content and resources. Then, we collaborated with nine-time Grammy-nominated artist and dog lover Sia to create a campaign video that shares the “Barred from Love” story and invites anyone who’s ever felt love for a dog to take action against cruel breeding practices and help ensure no dogs are barred from love.