Over the years I’ve mentioned Digital / Out-of-Home nonprofit campaigns that captured my attention and I was recently asked to recall some of the examples I’ve referred to – as some are now over a decade old! As we tried to recall the specifics, we decided to share a few examples with all our readers (in no particular order).
1. Last month I saw CTV News highlight a campaign in Montreal that was inspired by other similar global campaigns – a billboard / hoarding space that allowed donors to leave a coat for someone in need who could then help themselves to a coat. Source: https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/hang-a-coat-on-a-wall-of-kindness-for-montreal-donation-drive-to-pass-on-winter-warmth-1.6152569
2. Kind Snacks did a Cause Marketing Partnership with Choose Love Refugee Charity. Transit posters were part of this 2022 campaign in London, Manchester, Bristol and Edinburg and they also used influencers to highlight unsung acts of kindness. Source: https://www.marketing-beat.co.uk/2022/08/18/kind-snacks-choose-love/
3. Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada – In 2019 Children’s Aid created a campaign with Field Trip&Co to highlight some of the impossible choices that at-risk children face. Source: https://www.fieldtripand.co/sufkcampaign
4. Reaching the Homeless – In Sweden, Weber Shandwick worked with Clear Channel to deliver real-time messages for Stockholm’s homeless, advising them of their nearest emergency shelters. Source: https://primewebershandwick.com/our-work/clear-channel/
5. Each year Covenant House runs the “Sleep Outs” fundraising campaign and it is well known for its advertising, including ads that highlighted children taking shelter at bus stops (TV Ad link below). A similar campaign by Orange Sky in Australia used QR Codes on its OOH to enable fundraising for the homeless – Source: https://oohmedia.com.au/ooh-supports-new-orange-sky-fundraising-campaign/
This creative wasn’t for a non-profit but felt like it could have been – Duracell ran a “Moments of Warmth” heated bus shelter campaign.
5. British Dyslexia Association Leo Burnett created a “Moment of Dyslexia” campaign using facial detection technology on digital out-of-home screens to give everyone an idea of what it’s like to live with dyslexia. https://vimeo.com/281648001
6. R U OK (Suicide Prevention) – JCDecaux used voice recognition technology in 2020 to highlight what to say after asking “R U OK? Source: https://www.oma.org.au/news/jcdecaux-uses-voice-recognition-technology-shed-light-what-say-after-asking-r-u-ok
7. Trobe University “Let’s Dance” Trobe University wanted to raise awareness about its research on Parkinson’s disease and this 2017 billboard campaign invited people to dance – one of the therapies to alleviate symptoms. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Kmo-R-40CE&t=6s
8. Swipe or Tap to Donate Campaigns – In 2016 JCDecaux showcased this “touch-to-give” campaign for Prostate Cancer in Australia. Source: https://youtu.be/jp5HvHjkEFE JCDecaux has a portfolio of examples – check out https://youtu.be/QbUUwIdmDcI
In 2013, the “Social Swipe” similarly highlighted innovative card payment systems in Airports to make donations e.g. for Food Banks – I loved the “slice the bread” creative.
A Canadian example is this 2018 tap billboard by Care Canada. Source: https://www.signmedia.ca/toronto-video-walls-charity-campaign-public-tap-donate/
Of course, this technology has given us a host of new applications – Source: https://tiptappay.com
9. Google When Google gave away $5.5 million to Bay Area nonprofits in 2015, it let the public decide where that money would go — in an unconventional, interactive way. Google allowed people to cast their votes online, but they also wanted to involve the Bay Area community in a tangible way. So they installed large, interactive posters — in places like bus shelters, food trucks, and restaurants — that locals could use to vote for a cause. Source: https://vimeo.com/155163433
10. Bell Let’s Talk Given their media networks, over the years Bell has used OOH often for its Winter Let’s Talk Campaign Source: https://strategyonline.ca/2013/05/02/cause-action-overall-winner-bell-takes-mental-health-out-of-the-shadows/
11. Coca-Cola and WWF have partnered a number of times on campaigns to save the Polar Bear. An example of their 2013 OOH Displays – Source: https://strategyonline.ca/2013/05/02/cause-action-coca-cola-helps-wwf-protect-the-polar-bears-home/
12. Amnesty International – In 2009 Amnesty created a campaign that used an eye-tracking camera to change a bus shelter ad from an image of a happy couple to one featuring domestic violence to illustrate domestic violence often happens when no one is looking. Source: https://nader.io/2009/07/24/it-happens-when-nobody-is-watching-amnesty-international/
