Here is a great idea for a nonprofit campaign. It was created by Imago, Zagreb, Croatia for Volunteers’ Centre Zagreb.The idea was to demystify volunteering and invite everyone to participate:
What I really like in this street campaign is that they involve people; people just have to unwrap, poster and volunteer in writing their name. And what a more easy thing than writing your name. Moreover people can post it wherever they want, even if it can bother some people when it is on their wall. The combination of uncluttered style in red and white, typing letters and handwriting name is really eye-catching. So the campaign seems to have reached its goal.
This is a campaign created by TBWA, Cairo, Egypt for White Angel Foundation:
As we all know child labour is a big issue in developing countries, so it is a good initiative to remind us that problem. They were good ideas with boys grey hair and the fact that they don’t have a childhood because of their work. Moreover, the pictures’ backgrounds show their work conditions and environments which add a realistic effect and increase the impact of the campaign. But they can be bothered by those old children because kids are one of public opinion’s trouble spots. Another problem in those ads seems to be texts; they are barely visible especially the telephone number at the bottom of the page. The most impressive element is that there are 2.7 million children working in one state and maybe it would have been interesting to centre their prints on this fact.
This is a very interesting fundraising campaign which took place in Norway. This campaign was realized in January 2010 by Try, Oslo, Norway for the Salvation Army: « Roof over head and a bed to sleep in ».
What I really like in this campaign is that they used urban elements, which is our ordinary environment. They reinvented an element which is common to all of us; people use bus shelter all the time to go to work or to go back home and sometime it is a shelter for homeless. Transforming ads-shells in coins-shells for the benefits of homeless is a good idea, because we usually have some coins in our wallet and we waste a lot of time waiting for the bus. So we have time to read those ads and make a donation. Moreover, we also have the opportunity to see the immediate effect in creating the bed or the roof with coins and it encourages people to make donation to finish it.
Those ads reminds me another one from MIRA Canada representing a guide dog with coins and encouraging people to make donation for helping disabled individuals to get a guide dog.
What if we just seat and listen to Annie Leonard’s story of bottled water:
This video is from the same idea than the one she created for Stuff and Cap & Trade. The story of bottled water is the second in a series of six short films the Story of Stuff Project with Free Range Sudio.
You’ll learn a lot about what your bottled water really is and be shocked about the environmental impact of it. You’ll also discover what bottled water producers don’t want you to know. The use of funny drawings and schemas allows us to take easily the all picture of the situation. It can also interest and be understood by a young audience. So this video could be use to raise awareness at school about this issue and maybe change their habits in the future.
There was in Sarajevo, Bosnia the 3rd edition of theInternational continental Advertising cup 2009. The aim of this cup is awarding local creativity with a special category for social campaigns – Best of Social Engagements:
‘Gigas de recuerdos / Gigabytes of memory’ by Tiempo BBDO from Spain for AFAL, the Association of Relatives of Alzheimer’s Sufferers won the cup for the Best of Social Engagement:
The Cup in the Best Use of Local Culture went to ‘Khede Kasra’ campaign by Leo Burnett Beirut for a women empowerment programme in Lebanon:
And the best strategy cup was for The ‘Dirty Water Vending Machine’ by Casanova Pendrill for the UNISEF’s Tap Project:
Those projects are great examples of street fundraising and awareness campaigns. We can also notice that we have to implement our campaigns in people’s daily life to reach them. Without shocking, we can make them realize that there are issues in their own society or some which affect people around the world that they wouldn’t accept in their personal life. In each case, they can do something through simple acts and changes, like behaviors or donations. So we have to create a more human and concrete relationship with people.
ENPAis suggesting to us a fundraising campaign created by Lowe Pirella Fronzoni agency (Italy) to raise funds for creating a rehab center to cure the victims of cosmetic tests:
This is a really interesting nonprofit campaign because they succeed to create an emotion and to attract people attention in playing with red make-up boxes to suggest a bleeding puppy. Moreover, they use a beagle puppy for this print which one of the most use dog race in animal testing because of its kindness. So they achieve to pass a clear message without a word.
In asking for only 1 euro donation via text message to 48585 (Italy), they increase their chances to raise funds because it is a cheap and fast donation.
This is an amazing initiative to increase people awareness of homeless situation in NYC and at the same time to implement a fundraising campaign. Pathways to Housing and Sarkissian Mason agency created this campaign:
I believe that this campaign has all ingredients to become a success:
They created an interactive and innovative communication campaign with a life-size digital projection of a homeless man, shivering as he sleeps on the street. Pedestrians also have the occasion to interact with this man via a text message. When they send « Home » to 56512, another video projects a door on the wall as a new home for this man. People are able to see the result of this simple act and the benefit of it.
This campaign is using a video projection in the street so it is integrated in people environment.
The fundraising campaign is based on mobile technology which is completely integrated in our way of life. Moreover, this way of donation can be use by people who are on the go because it is really simple; the person who sent the text message receives a message back asking if they would like to make a $5 donation that would be added to their cellphone bill.
$5 is not a big deal for a lot of people and adapts to the actual economic context.
Who can ever imagine that an innocent hamster could under some circumstances become a monster? The Impossible Hamster Club suggests a really interesting and well done animation:
They used a hamster as a metaphor for economic growth to increase public awareness crazy consumption and really gross domestic product:
“We wanted to confront people with the meaning and logical conclusion of the promise of endless economic growth. We used a hamster to illustrate what would happen if there were no limits to growth because they double in size each week before reaching maturity at around 6 weeks. But if a hamster grew at the same rate until its first birthday, wed be looking at a nine billion tonne hamster, which ate more than a years worth of world maize production every day. There are reasons in nature, why things dont grow indefinitely. As things are in nature, sooner or later, so they must be in the economy. As economic growth rises, we are pushing the planet ever closer to, and beyond some very real environmental limits. With every doubling in the global economy we use the equivalent in resources of all of the previous doublings combined.” (Source: osocio.org)
I think that it is a really good communication campaign due to several factors. First, they took a common animal, which is adorable and inoffensive in public opinion. Secondly, they based their display on scientific arguments and logical demonstration. Third, they created a simple and funny animation, with a cute hamster transformed in a « Hamsterzilla ». This animation, with a wink at the famous movie Godzilla, allows them to reach and attract a large audience attention trough cultural memories and logical demonstration.
For its thirtieth birthday, the organization Médecins du Monde France presents its new website and a 9 min short film to remember us how they work today:
We can consider that this work is a good example of what an NGO or a nonprofit organization can do with volunteers in terms of nonprofit communication. The idea is great: updating people on the organization through a short movie; two people are creating a video to present the organization and in the same time the volunteer asks questions about objectives, missions, philosophy, budget, etc. to understand how it works.
However in our society you can’t expect to reach people with a 9 min short film, although they came for information and take the time to watch the entire video. If the aim is to give information trough a more dynamic aid than text, it’s ok. To « seduce » a larger audience you need a shorter and more rhythmic video. That’s why I think that the short version is more relevant than the longer one, especially in our consummation society.
