“After exploring the resources above, choose two ways that you see social media has impacted on an organisation you are familiar with. This could be a business, an institution or a government department. Identify the organisation and write 400 words explaining and analysing the impact”.
Animals Australia
My interaction with Animals Australia began in the early 2000’s as a recipient of their email list, then adding them on Myspace followed by Facebook. By 2010 I was regularly posting on the ‘Animals Australia Unleashed’ community forum aimed at 13–26-year-olds wanting to discuss animal welfare, food tips (veganism wasn’t yet mainstream!) and organising events and activism.
Source: Trove – Animals Australia Unleashed 2012
They grew quickly, and social media was key to their success, as their undercover investigations combined with public awareness campaigns were used as leverage to enact corporate and political change for animals. A keystone of their social media accounts is their ‘Call to action’ content, allowing for easy sharing of videos across multiple platforms, online petitions, and pre-filled email templates on issues such as greyhound racing or live export. This type of content gives people social capital, they feel like they are doing a good deed and Animal Australia then makes is easy to share that good deed (although is it still a good deed if you need to advertise it?) with the rest of your followers, thus promoting more people to get involved.
Source: Australian Progress, 2015
Building a community of social media “activists” that outwardly (and financially) support Animals Australia is also good for business; as a publicly funded charity, without strong support from their followers, they would not have such successful campaigns.
Major Successes
One particularly effective campaign targeted at McDonalds to end their use of cage eggs across Australian restaurants was by asking children to create video messages of themselves (complete with cameos from backyard chickens) to move to free-range eggs. McDonalds had no chance, the social pressure worked, and McDonalds did eventually remove cage eggs in 2017. The video is here:
https://www.facebook.com/AnimalsAustralia/videos/10153085045675299/
I remember 2012’s “Make it possible” ad campaign, released solely on social media that eventually spread to television and newspaper advertisements, reusable shopping bags in Coles (that were eventually removed due to protests from farming groups) and even cinema ads. By the end of the campaign, ‘Make It Possible’ received twelve million views and directly impacted on the reported behaviour of over 291,000 Australians, as well as impacting policy decisions made by government and industry (Mummery, J., 2019). I have included the video here, but keep the tissues handy: https://youtu.be/f5xxQV-R6Ug
In 2023, Animals Australia is the one of the most well-known animal welfare organisations and what sets them apart from groups like the RSPCA is their impressive social media presence and tools for online activism. They have continued to evolve, and I am still a proud supporter of them all these years later.
(426 words).
References
Animals Australia. (n.d). Frequently asked questions. https://animalsaustralia.org/faqs/
Animals Australia. (2021). Animals Australia 2011 make it possible ad (extended version). https://youtu.be/f5xxQV-R6Ug
August. (2023). Designing for a kinder world with animals Australia. https://www.august.com.au/our-best-work/animals-australia/
Australian Progress. (n.d.). Jesse Marks (Animals Australia) – progress 2015. https://vimeo.com/127683461
Mummery, J., & Rodan, D. (2019). Becoming activist: The mediation of consumers in animals Australia’s “make it possible” campaign. Media International Australia Incorporating Culture & Policy, 172(1), 48–60. https://doi.org/10.1177/1329878X19853077
Poultry Site (n.d.). McDonald’s commitment to phase out cage eggs in Australia. https://www.thepoultrysite.com/news/2014/09/mcdonalds-commitment-to-phase-out-cage-eggs-in-australia
Trove. (n.d.). (2009, October, 15). Unleashed community forum: Animals Australia unleashed. Retrieved 15 Oct 2009 13:36:42, from https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20091015023642/http://www.unleashed.org.au/community/forum