WWF has launched its first virtual reality video as part of a new awareness and fundraising campaign that aims to help double wild tiger numbers by 2022 – the next Chinese Year of the Tiger.
The Tiger Experience uses VR to tell an immersive story in which viewers step into the boots of a ranger and come face to face with wild tigers.
Created by the agency BEcause Experiential Marketing, it involves the viewer wandering through the tigers’ forest habitat, where they witness the work of rangers and see how they risk their lives on a daily basis to protect tigers from poaching.
The experience, which was set in a pop-up artificial forest, ran in Westfield London shopping centre between 26 and 31 July and at Westfield Stratford City shopping centre between 2 and 7 August.
WWF plans to take the Tiger Experience around the country, although the dates and locations for this have not yet been confirmed. It will also produce a campaign review video featuring analysis of the its results later this month.
Gabriel Hartnell, fundraising manager at WWF UK, said: "The educational, brand building and social elements will hopefully help us to take a more holistic approach to fundraising, making the most of the benefits of face-to-face interactions while moving away from the more negative aspects of some sales-driven approaches in the market."
