People’s lives are stressful enough without the incessant buzzing of a phone. What if putting your phone on hold could help put your anxiety on hold, too?
CASE FILM
OUTDOOR
The screen in your hand can be as overwhelming as the ones up here...
WhatsApp wants to turn them all OFF.
To launch, we took to the most anxiety-inducing streets of all: Times Square. We turned off all the screens at the height of rush hour to introduce our new “don’t disturb” feature to improve mental health.
Then, using geofencing in high-stress places such as airports and college quads during finals week, we created On Hold Zones, where we blocked all cell phone signals to eliminate added anxiety caused by phones.
PARTNERSHIPS
WhatsApp x Madhappy
We partnered with the hottest Gen-Z-centric streetwear brand to create On Hold apparel. With the shared goal of starting a conversation around mental health, we used barcode art to represent different mental health challenges, such as anxiety and depression. When scanned, the barcode takes you to WhatsApp On Hold.
DIGITAL
The On Hold feature on WhatsApp will use software developed by Affectiva to identify mental health problems in users. When anxiety is detected, it will ask if the user wants to put their notifications On Hold. A custom message like the one above will let friends know that they are taking a moment to focus on their mental health.
Art Director, Animation, UI Design: Sam Luo