Friboi is the top selling brand of meat in Brazil, and parent company JBS is the biggest meat exporter in the world. Awareness wasn’t an issue for Friboi, but good news had become increasingly rare. A recent advertising campaign had flopped, spurring negative chatter around the brand. It was a trying time for a company that prided itself on making a difference in the lives of Brazilians.

Friboi was used to doing things in a big way. But we recognized that the little things make a difference, too. For the past year, the company had supported Special Chefs, a local organization that uses gastronomy to inspire Brazilians with Down Syndrome. The transformational power of cooking and sharing food was the perfect expression of Friboi’s social mission and product offering. So we decided to cook up something extra special.

“Special Christmas” brought holiday spirit where it was needed most, to an elder care facility Lar Vivência Feliz, São Paulo-Brazil where friends and family were few, and where Christmas was scheduled to be just another day. That’s when we brought in a surprise Friboi meal, cooked and served by Special Chefs, bringing smiles of their own and exclusive presents for each delighted guest. Captured on video and shared with the nation, “Special Christmas” quickly became a heartwarming reminder that it doesn’t matter how different you are. What matters is the difference you make.

An astonishing 99.6% of all comments regarding the video were positive, compared to only 14% positive mentions of Friboi in the blogosphere the year before.

“Special Christmas” brought holiday spirit where it was needed most, to an elder care facility, Lar Vivência Feliz, in São Paulo, Brazil, where friends and family were infrequent visitors, and where Christmas was scheduled to be just another day. That’s when we brought in a surprise Friboi meal, cooked and served by our Special Chefs with Downs Syndrome, bringing smiles of their own and presents for each delighted guest. The dinner was captured on video and shared throughout Brazil, first appearing on hosted and influencer websites and social media, then spreading worldwide via Adsoftheworld.com.

“Special Christmas” became a heartwarming reminder that it doesn’t matter how different you are. What matters is the difference you make.

Produced for less than $10,000, “Special Christmas” instantly touched the hearts of millions and resulted in 265 million+ impressions, including 179,599 Facebook views of the Friboi page in just one week. Another 600,000 views were generated through influencers sharing the video, and from reports in top websites, blogs, Twitter and Google+. An astonishing 99.6% of comments on the video were positive, compared to only 14% positive mentions of Friboi a year earlier. Further analysis of coverage showed a dramatic shift in favorable media tone toward Friboi. It was a welcome turnaround for a company that had been under heavy criticism and media fire to once again be seen as a community-minded leader with a big heart.