ABMC - 75th anniversary of WWII events
A record number of people around the world heard the unforgettable stories of the fallen and learned about ABMC's honorable mission through earned, social & paid efforts
We were tasked with helping the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) stand out in its own unique and reverent way among the deluge of 75th Anniversary of WWII event’s conversation, highlighting its critical role in maintaining its hallowed sites and sharing stories of the fallen for generations to come. WWII events included D-Day, Battle of the Bulge and more.
This began two months prior to the D-Day 75th Anniversary, when we were brought on to create and execute a globally integrated campaign around the ceremony and week-long events in Normandy, France. And it only grew from there.
Our two-person production team filmed in France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany across 4 different trips — and created over 50 pieces of content.
We spoke with WWII veterans on the beaches of Normandy about their D-Day landing experiences, walked over buried foxholes once used by the Band of Brothers in the Ardennes Forest during the Battle of the Bulge, attended the burial of a recently discovered WWII pilot that had been missing since 1945 and so many more life-changing encounters.
Results
• 71 million social media impressions
• 300% increase across social media channels
• 1.4 billion earned media impressions
• Nearly 500 million people read about ABMC online & in print
• Over 205 million people watched ABMC-led stories on TV
Awards
• 2020 PRSA Award of Excellence
• 2020 PRSA Silver Anvil Award
• 2020 PRSA Pegasus Award
“WE REMEMBER”
We created this video to remember those who never left the beach on D-Day. This was a centerpiece used to kick off the huge 75th Anniversary of D-Day event on June 4, 2019.
It played in front of 15,000 people in attendance at the Normandy American Cemetery and to 306k at home watching the ceremony live on our Facebook livestream.
SOcial content
Earned Media
ABMC was featured in an avalanche of top tier U.S. and international print, television and online media including The Atlantic, The Associated Press, USA Today, MSNBC, ABC, CNN, MSN News, CBS News, among many others.
CREDITS
Weber Shandwick (agency)
• SVP, Account Lead: Tim Loecker
• Manager: Eileen Suarez
• Associate: Luisa Barrientos
• Executive Producer: Joe Childress
• Producer / DP / Editor: Ben Jarvis
• Editor: Thomas Steele
• Creative Director: Beth Pedersen
• Senior Designer: Abbey Hansen
• Junior Associate: Maddie James
• VP, Content: Komal Parikh
• VP, Analytics: Brittany McKone
• Associate: Mathilde Block
• Manager: Lauriane Durand