Sightsavers: I can see a rainbow – DM Appeal

Admittedly this is going back some and from my back catalogue, but the learnings remain relevant. For three years my agency (Daisy) was Sightsavers’ DM agency. We delivered all appeals and the charity were really switched on to test and learn principles and would explore all options to nudge up response.

Challenge:

Test a more positive execution against a traditional needs based one.

Solution:

For the positive test we celebrated the joy of sight restored and used language that donors could identify with. The insight that led to this was rooted in the donor demographic, recognising that while a positive story always features, flipping the narrative to lead with solution and joy could be motivational also created a more direct connection to the recipient, making it feel more personal. The need creative, which had been tested against control to establish this as the new control, ran with the traditional problem/solution format, leading with need.

Results:

The positive imagery of a child with sight restored out-pulled the traditional approach both in cold press insert and DM to cold and warm audiences. The feeling was that other factors however may have been at work – it was the first positive story in along line of traditional needs based creative, meaning that it’s possible that both approaches are needed and should be planned together. The positive story findings led to the Christmas appeal which we delivered which was also celebratory, leading to the charities bets ever performing appeal.

 

Sightsavers: A year to celebrate – DM Christmas Appeal

The mainstay of any charity is the Christmas Appeal. When Sightsavers were a client of my own agency (Daisy) we were tasked with delivering the Christmas mailing. This covered segments from Warm and High Value and also used in cold. The charity is well switched on to DM principles so we would be testing against a control creative.

Challenge:

Beat last year’s pack running a traditional case study.

Solution:

Celebrate impact at Christmas by looking back over the year. In research we discovered significant achievements every month, this led to a Calendar concept for the year ahead, celebrating successes in the year past. Supporters received a 12 page calendar they could put up at home with space to fill in their special days. Each page featured a story.

Results:

Our Christmas appeal achieved a 10% response and a whopping 29:1 ROI. In the top segments. It was so successful it was pushed out globally and repeated yr on yr. The Calendar pack was a very simple, very direct response mailing celebrating successes and the people helped.

 

RNIB: Brand TV 

RNIB: Pitch winning concept, script and story board with the Good Agency, nicely executed by the agency.

World Vision DRTV

World Vision: award winning DRTV campaign, this goes back more than 20 years but I still like it. The first TV script I ever wrote.

RNIB: ‘Oh No! No Gruffalo!

Talking books is a product designed by RNIB. This was a Christmas Appeal I delivered concept and design for, while contracted at Kitcatt Nohr Alexander Shaw (Now Digitas). I was brought in to crack the brief and then to work with the in-house team.

Challenge:

Promote ‘talking books’ as the Christmas Appeal.

Solution:

Children who are blind or with poor sight will miss out on the cultural highlights we all take for granted. And there are some clear gems they would be missing out on. For children who can’t see the pictures themselves, they’ll be missing out on the Gruffalo, there’d be no Alice in Wonderland, no Christmas Carol. When you’ve got Charles Dickens on the team, the copy writes itself…

Results:

I don’t have the final results, but suffice to say, it won the agency the pitch and went on to win more things too.

RNIB: Attacked in her own home

Action for Blind People worked in partnership with RNIB. This was an Appeal I delivered concept and design for, while contracted at KNAS. The campaign was part of the same pitch as above. I was brought in to crack the brief and then to work with the in-house team.

Challenge:

Promote the home safety service from Action for Blind People in partnership with RNIB.

Solution:

When people lose their sight, home can become hazardous. The place you feel safest can be dangerous. The challenge was to deliver an appeal that dramatized the problem, not necessarily for the person in question but also for those supporting them. The idea leans into vulnerability and the ability to reclaim agency. Independence is key and the pack explains the strategies and practical assistance Action for Blind people provide, and how vital it is for changed circumstance – a story that would ring true with anyone affected by sight loss.

Results:

I don’t have the final results, but suffice to say, it won the agency the pitch.

SOS Children’s Villages: is a child sponsorship charity working in the developing world. They build and provide ‘villages’ for orphans, with a ‘mother’ and school and a stable, nurturing childhood. The charity has a progressive approach to communications and the charity prides itself on an approach that combines both emotional and rational drivers. Their data and research identify an audience that engage with practical, logical, measurable solutions and they wanted to test the idea that child sponsors are fully committed.

I devised a psychometric test for Facebook, hosted on a landing page. The question it poses is ‘are you the sort of person who sees the value in children’s villages?’ The tool has a series of further questions and as you answer them you receive answers, at the same time, the ’village’ begins to populate. At the end is a Rauschenberg test, which morphs into the charity logo of two children running together.

The Charity for Civil Servants proving efficacy of direct mail in some segments and the need to find alternative channels for others.

Family Action appeal mailing

Family Action: DM Appeal

WorldVision: DM Appeal

Diabetes UK: OOH relaunch with new branding, that’ll tell you how old this is!