The Tube has had a lot of these ads in the last few weeks, in both the big version shown here and the smaller, on-train version. There’s also been TV advertising this weekend, to promote their Christmas appeal in support of Save the Children which starts today..
On The Times site, there’s just a small promo on the front page through to the main appeal section. When you hit this page, I’m quite disappointed. At first glance, there’s no ready explanation and no call to action – this is all to raise money and I have to search for a way to do that.
The Times Christmas Appeal (screenshot from site)
Compare this to what I see in the browser when I go to the Save the Children page, which is a lot more direct in its call to donate..
Save the Children (screenshot from site)
So what else does this digital campaign offer us:
- Articles about the conditions in Kingsville, the town at the centre of the appeal, and about Davina McCall’s trip there
- A interactive map, with videos and lots of information, combined with lots of video of Davina in the village.
- An overview of what they are doing
- A general message board to discuss the campaign
- Biographies and updates from the people in the village and ways for you to leave a message for them and receive a reply
It’s all about letting us get to know these people, understand them and empathise them, to raise money in a time where western donors feel the need to save. They’re only asking for a pound though, just a small amount from every Times reader – as the first poster to the message board says:
Credit crunch? this really puts things in perspective.. Let’s hope the children of kingsville get the chance to survive and prosper
I mostly like this campaign, the online and offline interconnectedness, with regular stories in the paper to keep the idea front of mind backed up with information on the site and a way to interact. A good charity digital appeal, nothing too exciting, but solid.
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