Monkey
National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC)
Issue 10 | March 2009
Agency
RAPP London
Creative Team
Andrew Ford; Rik Haslam - Executive Creative Director; Chris Lloyd - Interactive Designer; Andy Barker - Interactive Designer
Production Team
The Big Group - Production Company
Other Credits
Erin Barrett - Senior Account Manager; Jon Ball - Account Director; Jacklyn Low - Digital Account Manager
Date
November 2008 - ongoing
Background
The NSPCC is a charity in the UK dedicated to protecting children from harm. As well as reminding people of its purpose, the organisation is in constant need of funds. The agency’s strategy was simply to grab the attention of web users and bring home to them the terrible reality of cruelty to children.
Idea
The last thing people want to be confronted with when they’re online shopping, socialising or enjoying themselves is child cruelty. So as well as the traditional online challenge of cutting through the clutter to attract attention, this brief came with an extra twist: keep people engaged with a subject they just don’t want to hear about. That’s why the agency chose to beat up a toy monkey.
On the sites they were served to, the banners were unmissable. The violence of the video alone attracts instant attention and the jerking of the unit as the monkey is thrashed around in it immediately leaps out of the page. Violence against a stuffed monkey is one thing: when you first see it in the ad, it’s funny and intriguing. But violence against vulnerable children is something quite different. And the sickening feeling you get when you understand that the punches you’ve seen land on the monkey are the same kinds of punches that land on children… that’s the exact feeling that has made this campaign so successful.
Results
So far, the campaign has smashed all of its targets: ROI, number of donors and income. ROI was 140% over target (1.08 vs 0.45). Number of donors was 61% over target (2,093 vs 1,303). Income was 71% over target (£115,349 vs £67,284). Average gift was 36% over target (£70.62 vs £52.00).
Our Thoughts
A couple of years ago, this would have won awards at Cannes and D&AD and deservedly. But banner ads have become a bit infradig and now, to win anything, online advertising needs to be rather more extravagant, in every sense of the word. Still, we live in hope and if there’s any justice, RAPP will have at least a couple of strangely-shaped pieces of metal to put in reception before the year’s end.