Since the nitrates content was not regulated, we had to find another way to empower people. Together with the water bottle, we offered a new tool – the Purity Test - a small paper strip that showed the Nitrates concentration when it was dipped into water.

Whether they drank water from wells or from the local rivers, bottled, or tap water, people had now the chance to know if their only water source was pure or not, and take action.

In case they spotted a water source with high Nitrate concentration, people were encouraged to pin it on the online Nitrates map on Aqua Carpatica's Facebook page and website.

600.000 tests were made available to consumers through sampling events in retail chains, within national events or as magazine inserts.

ONLINE PLATFORM: Through the online activation mechanic, we encouraged users to take the cause even further: after testing the water they drank – whether lake water, tap or spring water - they could pin their results on the map and share them with the other users.

COMMUNITY: TOGETHER WE ARE STRONGER

The online community worked under a common goal animated by a civic duty. Not just the ones who had the test should have access to information, but EVERYONE should make sure that their drinking water was pure.

HOW? Through the power of SHARING. Without any incentive other then helping others, users shared the nitrate concentrations on the Purity Test map, uploading photos and comments

Awareness:

TV Stars, actors, journalists, athletes and more than 100 bloggers joined the campaign and started a national conversation on Nitrates. Our Facebook page reached one million fans, more than historically iconic brands.

The organic reach of the campaign totaled in: more than 560 organic mentions and 3,141,366 total unpaid viewership.

Most importantly, all over Romania, people pitched in to fill the Nitrates Map: over 1,600 tap waters, 127 rivers and lakes and 687 wells got tested and shared via our online app.

Consideration:

The campaign was considered to communicate important info (+44% vs. avg) and different from others (+37% vs. avg).

Business:

Aqua Carpatica had the largest ever sales increase for a water brand and went from #4 to #2 in the category.

This is the story about how a young brand achieved greatness by walking the talk and arming Romanians with the tools to prove its brand claim. Aqua Carpatica, the purest water on the market, empowered consumers to know how pure was their drinking water and started a national conversation on Nitrates.

We targeted the health-conscious: those who care about the Nitrate concentration of the water that they and their children drink. But also the non-conscious: those who are not aware of the dangers of drinking water with high level of Nitrates, or who don’t consider the threat to be real. (Source: Zelist Media Monitoring)

We addressed those who drink bottled water, but also impacted those who drink water from the faucet or from the nearest well or spring. The ones who live in big cities, but also the ones who live in small villages.

We knew that seeing meant believing. Therefore we let people see for themselves how pure was their drinking water. We empowered them with knowledge, while at the same time challenged them to discover more.

The test also reached KOL: bloggers and journalists who posted their results online and started a national conversation on Nitrates.

Aqua Carpatica was a challenger brand with a strong differentiator. It stood out as the purest water on the market due to its lowest level of Nitrates.

Romania is number 1 in Europe when it comes to Nitrate pollution, caused by extensive farming in a country that is mostly rural. It has over 2.000 towns and villages with poisoned water resources and hundreds of intoxication cases each year.

Meanwhile, Romanians are continuously kept in the dark with regards to the water they drink, as the bottled water producers aren’t compelled to disclose the Nitrate content on the label.

Aqua Carpatica needed to draw attention to the Nitrate problem and educate consumers on the quality of their drinking water.