A Reputation Institute survey showed Aflac was not recognized for efforts in corporate responsibility on a national scale. Aflac took a risk in pivoting its beloved $20 billion advertising icon, the Aflac Duck (which has generated 90% brand recognition in the U.S. and Japan) into a philanthropic force. They combined the famous Aflac Duck with cutting-edge social robotics for a cause, turning a business challenge into a notable demonstration of a brand changing lives. Through qualitative and quantitative results, Aflac has been able to build the business case linking CSR and financial outcomes.

Objectives:

- Engage key audiences;

- Enhance Aflac’s corporate reputation, propensity to buy products, and brand positioning as a caring innovator;

- Evolve Aflac’s childhood cancer commitment, aligning brand and social issue;

- Measurably benefit children facing cancer;

- Position Aflac as leading voice in a national conversation, building support for the cause.

My Special Aflac Duck is not a toy, it’s an experience. With four patents pending, it’s a first-of-its-kind social robot that promotes proactive personal care through communication and engaging play for children facing childhood cancer.

The duck facilitates nurturing medical play: users feed, bathe and administer treatments to their duck, and calm their duck and themselves through breathing exercises. It features lifelike movement (nuzzling to touch, moving to music), emotions (emoji cards allow the duck to express feelings), medical accessories, and a Bluetooth-enabled app encouraging children to play and communicate, helping them cope with cancer.

This inspired approach to an under-resourced aspect of healthcare brings Aflac’s brand icon to life as a robotic duck, tangibly reflecting its brand ethos and caring-innovator archetype. As a childhood cancer ambassador, it captures the public imagination, promoting the need for greater public health services: pediatric cancer receives just 4% of U.S. government cancer funding.

Insight: Interest would be generated entirely through PR (there was no advertising behind the program), so a successful unveiling – in an unexpected context at the Consumer Electronics Show – was key. Securing an Associated Press story the day prior to launch delivered advance exposure, drawing crowds and media attention, leading to 2 billion+ earned media impressions at CES. Duck delivery events at hospitals nationwide and a robust social media, awards, and speaking program continues to drive a steady drumbeat of media attention throughout 2018 and 2019.

Key Message: Aflac believes children need more than medicine to cope with cancer.

Target Audience: Healthcare providers and medical community, advocacy groups, childhood cancer associations and patients, employees and the general public.

Additional assets: Video, events and even duck-shaped searchlights over cities nationwide.

The PR plan: Put children, the duck and its inventors at the center, then engage experts for credibility and reach.

Launching at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show built credibility for My Special Aflac Duck as a health-related technology. There, it won three awards, including the Tech for a Better World CES Innovation Award. Momentum continued as Aflac featured and demonstrated My Special Aflac Duck at pediatric cancer, innovation and health conferences nationwide. It was named a Time Magazine Best Invention of 2018.

A new Advisory Council and relationships with leading childhood cancer organizations like Children’s Oncology Group, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, and the Association of Child Life Professionals amplified credibility and reach.

As a sophisticated tool for childhood cancer patients, not a toy, My Special Aflac Duck is only available through U.S. cancer facilities, where Aflac donates the duck free-of-charge to childhood cancer patients, ages 3+. Without any formal marketing, distribution began in September 2018, with pediatric oncology facilities pre-ordering hundreds of ducks. Aflac expects to deliver 10,000+ by year-end.

More than 15,000 children are diagnosed with cancer each year; as of Q1 2019, 3,100 children in 143 hospitals in 44 states have received My Special Aflac Duck, exceeding Aflac’s Q4 distribution goal by 25%, and already exceeding its Q1 2019 goals.

In Aflac-commissioned, hospital-led research, 69% of patients reported reduced stress after using the duck, and 82% of parents recommend it to others. Independent studies show the way a child copes with cancer can impact chronic stress, which can complicate cancer; communication about the illness relates to better outcomes.

My Special Aflac Duck has won 27 awards and gained more than 2 billion earned media impressions in just five days, overachieving all targets. This campaign helped drive a three-point increase in Aflac’s Reputation Institute scores, correlating with increases in trust and purchase intent, and contributing to a 2018 total new sales increase of 3.2%.