At the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, Baby Dove doubled funding support for pregnant women during this difficult and frightening time. Our brief was to create a film that raised awareness of the support available and reassured mothers during those initial, anxiety-inducing stages of the pandemic, that they were not alone. We wanted to tell the story from the perspective of someone who had been there, done it, and could reassure better than any brand that even in unparalleled times, the birth of their baby would still be the best day of any mother’s life.

We wanted to tell a mother’s birth experience during the pandemic. During lockdown, when expectant mothers were separated physically from the outside world, messaging became the only way of connecting with most family and friends. The technology enabled them to express their fears, ask for advice or tips, and share intimate moments such as the birth of their baby even while separated from the world. It was this truth that inspired us to use text messages as the construct of our film. And, true to Dove’s brand ethos, every word — down to the syllable — was the real and genuine messages Stephanie exchanged with her family.

Canadian researchers surveyed1 nearly 2,000 pregnant women in April 2020 and found that 57% of pregnant women showed anxiety symptoms and 68% reported an increase in pregnancy-specific anxiety. This meant that three times as many expecting women being anxious during the pandemic than before.

By speaking to pregnant women, we discovered some of the biggest concerns were:

• The type of birth: “at home or at the hospital?”

• Who will be allowed with them at the hospital: “I am terrified my husband won’t be with me in the delivery room”.

• How will they cope with the first few months: “I want my mother and friends to be there”.

When asked what would help, the majority mentioned having access to professional advice and being surrounded by friends and family to help them understand if their experience was normal.

We needed to find someone who had given birth during the first lockdown willing to send us text messages and photos sent and received in the build up to and during the birth. It was a gamble as to what we were going to get, all with only a few weeks til delivery date, while adjusting to the new challenges working remotely entailed.

We found Stephanie through Instagram. It was exactly the kind of story we wanted to tell. She sent hundreds of messages, photos and the zoom video of the birth for us to piece the narrative together — entirely in her and her family’s own words. We commissioned music using vocoders to compliment the electronic tone of voice, and the syntax of instant messaging to create tension building up to the birth.

The film launched on US Mother’s Day across Baby Dove’s YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook channels.

The film achieved a 9.1% ad recall on YouTube alone and a 3.3% lift in brand awareness, successfully helping the brand connect in a deep, meaningful way with its audience during the pandemic.