How to run an amazing campaign with nothing

Posted 25 February 2011 Advertising, Thoughts

Just found this amazing campaign being run in New York on Swiss Miss. It’s called Underheard in New York and it’s a simple campaign based on showing homeless people as real people. It’s not ‘giving homeless people a voice’ but giving four homeless people an audience and a voice. From the website:

When we first met Carlos, he said that people didn’t realize being homeless was “like a job”- how much effort it takes just to survive each week.

Every day we avoid contact with the homeless; we ignore them, we don’t see them, we look past them. Whether it’s due to a lack of trust or discomfort or even older stereotypes, it’s easier to write them off as a group rather than look at them as individuals.

Underheard in New York is an initiative to help homeless residents in New York City speak for themselves. We’ve provided Danny, Derrick, Albert and Carlos each with their own mobile phone, a month of unlimited text messaging and a Twitter account. They’ve found their voices by texting their thoughts, feelings and actions to Twitter. Our mission is to use their social media presence to create real interaction and make them a part of our global community.

In other words, get to know them as individuals.

With a total budget of US$1000 and three interns they’ve shown just how good a campaign can be without a big budget but with a great idea. The majority of the money went to four phones with internet access so the four stars could tweet. The campaign doesn’t ask people to donate to the four tweeters but gives advice about helping homeless people in your local area. For me the campaign is a double success by giving four individuals some respect back into their lives and for spreading greater understanding.

I recommend following all of the four but Derrick has been a highlight for me because of his use of twitpics.

* Just as an aside I could see how trade unions could use this idea to highlight individual delegates. It would be a way of showing that delegates and union members are the same as you in the workplace and show what work they do whilst raising their profile. The Victorian Police got a trainee police officer to tweet last year whilst going through the police officer course. It’s a great way of humanising police officers.