Saudi Arabia is one of the most challenging countries in the world for women to do what most “ordinary” women take for granted. Restricted from leaving the country, opening bank accounts, marrying without permission from a male “guardian” (usually a relative), or visiting the nearest shopping mall without supervision, women are, in effect, legal minors.

With so many constraints, it’s no surprise that Saudi women not only believe they are limited in what they can achieve for themselves, but also for what they can do for their families.

MAGGI believes that every woman has the power to change the world for the better, even in the face of great adversity, they wanted to take their brand purpose, “Make a Difference”, beyond the kitchen and into the real world. They wanted to help promote women’s empowerment in a country where they face some of the worst barriers to personal freedom in the world.

Since Arab women draw inspiration from other women, we launched MAGGI Diaries, a web series telling the stories of those overcoming challenges to make a positive difference to the world around them, empowering women across the region to make positive changes in their own lives, whatever the circumstance.

Stories of Women, Food and Change

“MAGGI Diaries” was released as a first-of-its-kind YouTube series of webisodes, to discover the rewards (and the challenges) in being an agent of positive change. We told the story of Noura from Saudi Arabia, who didn’t stop until she got government approval to open her own catering company, employing women who were eager to work but couldn’t before. Or Sunita turned a girls’ orphanage into a place of hope for the future.

Thanks to an interactive ecosystem, consisting of adaptive content that was leveraged across all social media platforms, we allowed real time interaction and extended the conversation with women out of the kitchen, discussing the “bigger” issues (gender, equality, obesity, personal fulfillment) that concerned and interested them the most.

The audience’s own stories and experiences were also the inspiration for other women, proving that every woman can be a force for change.

Empowerment:

69% of those who watched our online webisodes say that they were inspired to change something in their lives. *

“Every time I see your episodes, I am encouraged to start my own small business” **

Solidarity:

MAGGIFacebook page, initially a simple platform for sharing recipes, became an online forum for support.

“Good on you, and every woman who goes against the oppression of her society” **

Volume:

Bouillon volumes grew 90% (UAE), 14% (Kuwait), 10% (Lebanon). **

Market share:

MAGGI’s gained more market share directly after the launch of MAGGI Diaries then they had in the previous ten months. **

Engagement:

MAGGI Diaries achieved:

- 21% engagement rate on FB - over 4 times the category norm

-18% View-through-rate on YouTube – 4% more than the regional norm.

* Ipsos Online Research

** Viewer comments to Episodes 1 & 5

** Retail Audits. Nielsen.

** Facebook, Youtube analytics