Wunderman Thompson Went All Guns Blazing in KSA for Ramadan

With shorter working hours and long, active nights, Ramadan sees a significant rise in gaming hours among Muslims. And when players are having fun, they lose track of time. That’s an actual problem. People observing fasting need to follow strict times for eating, all based on sunset and sunrise. Missing a meal has real consequences for their days.

This is why Saudi telecom company STC, whose Baity Fiber Play promises a smooth gaming experience, and Wunderman Thompson teams in Dubai and Riyadh teams came up with Baity Battle, a custom Fortnite island built using Fortnite’s in-game Creative toolset, where time on the island is synced with the real world. That means that when the sun approaches the horizon in real life, it does the same in Baity Battle.

That way, gamers could tell when the times for Iftar and Suhoor, the two main meals of Ramadan, were approaching while playing Baity Battle.

The custom island is based on the map of Saudi Arabia, with mountains, cliffs, deserts, the sea, a modern city, and a traditional village. It also has challenges and side-missions inspired by Saudi hobbies, like camping, falconry, and dune bashing. It was being promoted online via Saudi Twitch streamers inviting players to join the map and attest to the synchronism. STC social media pages also published a launch video to create engagement and bring people to the map.

Baity Battle was featured on Fortnite’s Discover page for the first days of Ramadan, and received weekly updates until the end of Ramadan, keeping gamers engaged and returning to play with friends and family.

“Ramadan campaigns and activations often fall under the same topics, year after year. What makes this campaign so interesting is how we solve a problem that is very true to a specific audience, that is often overseen this time of the year,” said Tiago Bastos, Creative Director at Wunderman Thompson Dubai.

“STC is a gamer-favorite when it comes to the Internet because they do offer superior connection standards. That’s great for 99% of the year, except right before Ramadan mealtimes. Owning that and coming up with the solution is a lot of fun,” added Rayyan Aoun, ECD at Wunderman Thompson KSA, while Pablo Dachefsky, ECD at Wunderman Thompson Dubai, said, “Mixing gaming with Ramadan is not the first-place brands are willing to go during this time of the year. That makes this idea so fresh, it’s unexpected, but it makes sense.” 

Meanwhile, Wunderman Thompson Saudi Arabia partnered with food delivery app aggregator HungerStation for “Tip with Time,” an initiative launched during Ramadan and aiming to give customers the chance to help make the roads safer for delivery drivers.

Since the pandemic, online delivery has been booming, from food orders to groceries and everything in between, but this sharp increase in orders can lead to compromised driver safety and road accidents. During Ramadan, Saudi cities witness high levels of road congestion, long queues at traffic lights, and gridlocks on major highways for a variety of reasons: shoppers going on last-minute grocery visits, workers rushing to return home before Iftar, and others. This not only affects commuters but also puts tremendous pressure on delivery people; they can’t achieve timely deliveries without open roads.

HungerStation replaced the feature of tipping with money with another valuable item for drivers: time. By adding a new functionality on the app, customers are now encouraged to tip with time instead of money when placing orders. Upon receiving the tip, riders received a notification about the extra time they had. As a result, the pressure on them to deliver fast was alleviated, and they completed their delivery journey safely and peacefully.

Aoun said, “Sometimes, a small and simple feature can have a big impact in changing human behaviors and saving lives. Tipping with time helps HungerStation’s customers think beyond their next meal and consider the person delivering it, embodying the values that we look to embody during Ramadan.”

The move, which reflects Hunger Station’s commitment to using tech to introduce smart solutions, has been hailed as a game-changer in the customer service industry. Calls for other food aggregators to join the cause and implement “Tip with Time” have echoed regionally. The new app feature was also well-received among customers who had the opportunity to give back a whole lot this Ramadan, even with just a few minutes.