Motivate Donors with Comparisons: The (RED) Campaign

Author: Therese Grohman on 11 August 2011 | 0 Comments

What would you do with 40 cents? Penelope Cruz would chew bubble gum. Dakota Fanning would put sprinkles on her ice cream. Ludacris would buy fabric softener. It’s also enough to buy the two pills HIV sufferers need each day to stay alive.

This (RED) campaign ad illustrates how using comparisons can help donors gain perspective of their potential impact. The ad shows that a handful of change can go much further than you might expect, and using popular celebrities carries the message even further. With such a low cost to the individual, there is no longer an excuse not to donate.

Comparisons illustrate the impact a donor can have on your cause. In the (RED) ad, the celebrities showed me why I should donate: if I am willing to spend 40 cents on all of these day to day items, why not spend it on something that will give someone the life-saving medicine they need?

The tactics in the video encouraged me to watch a longer documentary which explained more about AIDS/HIV treatments and demonstrated how I can help. (RED) partners with iconic brands to transform the collective power of consumers into a financial force that helps The Global Fund, the world's leading financer of programs to fight AIDS, TB and malaria.

Since 2006, (RED) has generated over $170 million for the Global Fund, and more than 7.5 million people have been impacted. By quantifying their work and showing me how much they have done over the past five years, I’m much more engaged in their message. Just do the math -- that’s a lot of pills, and that many more people who have been helped.

For your next campaign, how will you use comparison to emphasize the need for donations and show the impact that those dollars will make?