• IPH Heroic
• Hearts
• Campaign

The Challenge

Launch and promote B2B software to pet rescues without a database, brand recognition, or existing market relationships.

When PetPlace prepared to launch 24PetRescue—a free software designed to help rescue organizations manage operations—they hit a roadblock: no database to reach their target audience. With a lack of existing connections to rescue orgs and the software launch date fast approaching, we knew traditional B2B marketing wouldn’t work. PetPlace needed to build awareness, establish trust, and create genuine relationships with a new audience by demonstrating its authentic commitment to the rescue community.

Project Snapshot

• Industry
  Animal health
• Category
  Companion Animal Rescue
• Services
  Discovery, Strategy, Brand Awareness, Digital + Video Asset Creation, Web Design + Development

FWD Thinking in Action

Celebration as lead generation

We developed a community-driven campaign that celebrated the unsung heroes of animal rescue. The "Heroic Hearts Collective" invited pet owners, shelters, veterinarians, and adopters to nominate remarkable rescue organizations, leveraging existing relationships and building engagement through user-generated content. We brought the campaign to life across channels, sizing audiences across LinkedIn, Meta, YouTube, display and paid search to reach pet adopters and rescue workers in their world, with sensible spend levels.

ABOUT THE WORK

Campaign Mechanics:

- Multi-channel awareness campaign (social, email, paid media, PR, events)
- Simple nomination landing page collecting rescue stories and contact information
- Five winners each received $1,000, microchips, a scanner, and a feature story on PetPlace.com
- Winners were amplified through PR and social channels, driving additional nominations
- A downloadable toolkit was created to empower rescues to share the campaign

Social Media and Digital Ecosystem:

- An emotional hero video brought the campaign narrative to life, celebrating the rescue community and its everyday impact on the lives of animals. The video established the campaign's warm, authentic tone and encouraged viewers to nominate a rescue.
- Social media drove nominations through a strategic mix of campaign creative and user-generated rescue stories. Tagged rescues amplified content to their networks, while a downloadable toolkit created organic reach. Paid media across Meta, LinkedIn, YouTube, Display, and SEM further extended the campaign.

Results

After launching the campaign in February 2025, we blew our lead target of 2,000 out of the water. Within the first three weeks, we had over 6,000 nominations. It became apparent that the sharing of these rescue stories and the important work of pet rescue resonated with the entire industry and pet families.