Family of kiwifruits raise abandoned human baby in Zespri mobile gaming app

The free Zespri-branded mobile gaming application 'Kiwi Farm', available on the iTunes store, was developed by Mindshare and Mobile Now.

The app transports gamers to New Zealand for a magical adventure with a family of kiwifruits who discover an abandoned human baby on the island. A twist in the tale is meant to get gamers to download the app to help the fruit family in their quest to nurture the baby with virtual Zespri kiwis.

'Kiwi Farm' is basically an incentivised competition for gamers to achieve various milestones. The more in-game objectives achieved, the more real-world prizes can be won. Gamers who reach the top level will be able to register for a chance to win a trip to New Zealand.

"The key objective of the campaign was for Zespri to nurture a loyal fan base. We feel that the branded game application reinforces Zespri’s brand essence of [being] healthy, fun-loving, and innovative; and the brand theme of ‘the little bits that make the big difference’,” said Rita Chen, marketing manager, Zespri China.

Over 23 billion apps were downloaded globally in 2011, an increase of 38 per cent versus the previous year, according to Strategy Analytics, which was a factor for Mindshare to integrate the fruit brand into a mobile gaming application, said Karl Cluck, chief strategy officer of Mindshare China.

Other media executions include featuring the trailer on popular video-streaming sites such as Youku, Tudou and QiYi. In addition, online banner adverts with game character elements will be strategically placed on selected Chinese websites. Email blasts to subscribers of mobile game services will feature the 'Kiwi Farm' gaming app as the ‘App of the Day' on the iTunes store.