By Kerryn Le Cordeur
We are constantly bombarded with call-to-action campaigns for various causes or ideas, but what is it that makes some more successful than others? Is it the marketing behind the campaign; the people who get involved; or simply the difference between a cause we can relate to and that has an impact on us and the world around us, versus something that doesn’t engage our interests? Steering away from the negative, in this week’s Editorial Desk we take a look at three particularly successful call-to-action campaigns that recently hit the South African market.
Talk of Nelson Mandela International Day has been on everyone’s lips these past few weeks. It is a day adopted by the United Nations in 2009 to honour former South African president, Nelson Mandela’s contribution to humanity. The Nelson Mandela Foundation simply asks individuals; communities; corporates; and government to donate 67 minutes of their day on 18 July each year to doing something good for others, in the same way that Mandela gave 67 years of his life to help make South Africa a better place for its citizens.
There has been a lot of buzz around this call-to-action, with people from all walks of life getting involved in their own way. On an individual level, Candice and Bridget Clark, and their business, Selah Stableyard,
teamed up with Let’s Connect, a company that facilitates experiential growth and learning processes, to create their ‘Mandela Moment’ this year by sharing their knowledge and equestrian facilities with children from the Olievenhoutbosch Ark. Even local and international celebrities got in on the Mandela Day action by signing up for the City of Cape Town and Celebrity Services Africa’s ‘famous handprints’
project, which honours the former president and his legacy of ‘offering peace, and not hatred or revenge’.
Other notable initiatives for Mandela Day in 2010 included a well-known group of 21 motorbike riders and their support team of 20 people, including Morgan Freeman, embarking on a six-day
road-trip to Cape Town to spread the word about the day; Cavendish square holding a
preview of its annual charity book sale to benefit HIV/ AIDS NGO, Wola Nani; Joburg Theatre and the performers of
Le Grand Cirque Fantazie dedicating a performance to underprivileged children on Sunday, 18 July; and the Smile Foundation dedicating 67 minutes to
benefit children with facial abnormalities with a soccer-themed party at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital, and an Alice In Wonderland-themed tea party at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital.
Nelson Mandela Square acted as a drop-off point for people wanting to donate clothes and other goods when
94.7 Highveld Stereo DJ, Mark Pilgrim, broadcast the last 67 minutes of his show on Sunday from the Square, while Brightwater Commons was a
hub of activity, with representatives from the Sunflower Fund; the South African National Blood Service; Child Welfare; Baby Moses; Roodepoort SPCA; the Organ Donor Foundation; and Little Eden on hand for people to come and donate their time; efforts; or goods, or just to find out more about these organisations which are in the business of making South Africa a better place.
The effectiveness of Mandela Day stems from the idea that even the smallest effort makes a difference when it is combined with the efforts of others, and people in South Africa and around the world embrace that, especially because of the icon behind the initiative and what he stands for.
Pikitup’s recent
Clean Up Day, which took place on 5 June in Johannesburg, called for a similar mindset, asking individuals and businesses to identify sites which they would clean up, with the idea, again, that every effort, no matter how small, would make a difference in showcasing a cleaner city ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. And apart from looking good for the international visitors, this campaign struck a nerve as it was looking to improve the very environment in which citizens live; work; and commute – what better reason to get involved?
Another part of what made this campaign a success was the fact that it was embraced by well-known personalities in the community, such as Executive Mayor of Johannesburg, Amos Masondo, who
participated at some of the clean-up sites and embarked on a tour of the city to show his appreciation for the initiative.
Campaigns such as Pikitup’s Clean Up Day are not simply about a call-to-action to participate in a once-off event, but rather to get people to begin to change their mindsets, whether that is to take note of and responsibility for the state of their environment or, as is the case with Draftfcb’s ‘Keep Flying’
campaign, to leverage the positive mindset created by the 2010 FIFA World Cup and extend that beyond the tournament so that it becomes entrenched in how we view our country.
The ‘Keep Flying’ campaign has embedded itself in the South African market by appealing to the country’s best loved brands to embrace it so that consumers become aware of the initiative and what it stands for. This has, by all accounts, been a success thus far, with the campaign having been further extended to include the distribution of
‘buttons’, which individuals can wear to show their support for the initiative; the composition of a
song to further pull on the heartstrings of the public; and more and more
big brands and
agencies adding their names to the ‘Keep Flying’ initiative.
The common factor across these campaigns is that they all deal with issues we can relate to and which have an impact not only on how we live now, but also on how we and future generations will live and what our mindset will be. They are created to achieve a greater good rather than for any form of self-gratification, and therefore appeal to a broad spectrum of people, from the man on the street, to the wealthy celebrity who is able to donate vast amounts of money or time. We are definitely seeing a shift in mindset towards a ‘green’, socially responsible way of thinking, and I think this is a big factor behind the success of these campaigns.
What is your opinion? Have you gotten involved in these campaigns? Share your thoughts on our
blog.