The National Cry For Help
The Child Poverty Fund
Issue 34 | March 2015
Agency
BBDO Belgium
Creative Team
Creative Directors Arnaud Pitz Sebastien De Valck Art Director Fre´de´ric Delouvroy Copywriter Michiel Baeten
Production Team
Production Sandra Wille Leen Van den Brande Nicolas Van Poeck
Other Credits
Other Christophe Malotaux Viginie Delaleu Nina Vermaesen
Date
October 2013
Background
The Child Poverty Fund was founded to fight increasing child poverty in Belgium. Because the fund was new, the primary objective was to raise awareness. The secondary objective was to enlist supporters for the fight and get them to donate money.
Idea
Child poverty is a silent problem, existing in the shadows of society. So the idea was to make as much noise as possible. Literally. The sound of babies crying for help was broadcast simultaneously on all Belgian media channels on World Poverty Day. It was a total takeover of Belgian media. The following day, print ads in every Belgian magazine and newspaper reminded people of the crying sounds they had heard while the cry for help was played out in railway stations, supermarkets and other public places.
Results
Immediately after the cry for help was broadcasted simultaneously on all TV and radio channels, the broadcasters received countless responses through their social media channels. The Child Poverty Fund got media attention in multiple national news reports, was the subject of articles in every national newspaper, was featured on numerous blogs and websites and got talked about on several TV shows. After only two days, the fund had raised more than 350,000 euro.
Our Thoughts
Innovation is a much overused word. But this must be a world first, surely, persuading every single media owner in the country to collaborate? When the intervention happened on TV (you can’t call it an ad since it was a single image) there was a title saying, Changing channel won’t help.
That’s the insight, isn’t it? Almost everyone would have reached for the remote. The sound of a baby crying is designed by nature to be intrusive and distressing. The very fact that there was no escape from the wailing was what made it so effective.