There are some nonprofit campaigns that will hold an indelible space in our minds. They actually represent more than just one organization’s effort to get money. They have become cultural and social references in our every day conversation, and some of these were actually before the internet! What sets these campaigns apart, especially in the primitive pre-facebook days? Well after finishing Chip and Dan Heath’s NYTimes Best Seller Made To Stick, it offered some concrete ideas for why these campaigns worked so well. Even though we’ve moved from TV to twitter you can still implement these concepts in your own organization’s work.
“This is Drugs. This is Your Brain on Drugs. Any questions?”
After this PSA, by the Partnership for a Drug Free America was released, I think it’s fair to say that many of us looked at drugs…and perhaps breakfast…the same again. Maybe now, this may seem like a dated and corny appeal, but it sticks with us. People remember it 20 years after it was made. Why?
It’s overwhelmingly simple, and concrete. The entirety of the ad is held in only 9 words that are easy to remember because they are coupled with such a powerful metaphor for the idea being driven home. When you are raising money for your organization, how simple or complex are your ideas? Are they pared down to their essence? Or are they complicated by unecessary details. What metaphors can you use to get the ideas across? Keep it Simple.
Feed the Children-
How many times do you remember sitting at home on a Thursday night, enjoying your favorite mid90s sitcom when during commercial break you’re suddenly met with the close up of a cute child’s face. As the camera zooms out you see that they’re barefoot, wearing ill fitted clothes, and sometimes have dirt caked on their faces. A voiceover tells you the little girl’s name is Anna, who doesn’t eat every day and lives in a small one room house, but for only a $1 a day, I could changer her life for the better.
The Feed the Children campaign uses 2 elements of story and emotion masterfully. By naming the child, they build a schema for what her life is like as someone who is poor in a developing country. For all the issues of paternalistic charity that are embedded in many of these ads, it does very effectively pull at your heart strings. It presents a problem that feels bad to the viewer, and then offers a simple and manageable way for you to be part of the solution with only a dollar a day. What’s your organization’s story? Are you appealing to your audience’s emotions. People may forget facts and figures, but they’ll rarely forget how something made them feel. Look for the story and characters in your work.
Truth Campaign
The guerilla marketing tactics of the TRUTH campaign are definitely memorable.One of their more memorable ads shot real life reactions to hundreds of body bags littering the sidewalks of huge corporate buildings that represented tobacco companies. Much like the drug PSA we mentioned above, there is a great deal of power in making the impact of drugs concrete in such a memorable way. However the biggest element of the campaign that the Heath’s laud in their book, is the virtue of unexpectedness. Nobody in NYC expects to see body bags on their way to work. And nobody watching TV at home would expect to see body bags in a cosmopolitan city either. The image interrupts their daily schema too much to ignore it. By presenting their idea in a way that disrupts people’s expectations of what’s normal, you carve out a very distinct place in their memory. In today’s socially connected world, you also give them something to share to their friends. So when you’re designing your fundraising drive, don’t be afraid to think outside the box and reach for something unexpected.
All of these things are easier said than done. But it helps to know what you’re shooting for when you want to make something that will stick. When you aim for simple, concrete, story oriented, emotional, or unexpected appeals, you’ll likely see the response you want and get more of the s upport and exposure your organization needs.
