Could we fight the growing problem of loneliness among Amsterdam citizens through the use of short stories of well-known Dutch authors? Use stories from well-known Dutch authors to raise awareness and generate donations at the same time?
Background
De Regenboog Groep is a NGO that fights against loneliness in Amsterdam. It offers programs such as buddies (social workers) and an environment to meet people. Their group of subscribers is getting older so there’s a need to recruit a new group of potential subscribers. De Regenboog Groep believes the younger target audience does not want to be stuck to set donations through a monthly subscription. So we were asked to invent a new and sustainable way to donate.
Creative idea
De Regenboog Groep is committed to helping the 80.000 lonely citizens of Amsterdam by offering conversations with buddies (social workers). So you could say that words can solve loneliness. That’s where we found our idea. We’ve used the power of words and found a way to generate donations trough these words. That is why we have asked well-known authors to write the stories of these lonely people. The words contained in the stories can be revealed through donations made on the platform. For each €2.50 donated, one word is revealed. By working together, the contributors can unlock all the stories. The donations help De Regenboog Groep to give the lonely citizens of Amsterdam a renewed positive outlook on life and provide a happy twist to their own stories.
Strategy
In their quest to put an end to loneliness, De Regenboog Groep offers conversations with "buddies" to lonely individuals. These individuals have interesting stories, but unfortunately no one to share them with. In order to be able to finance these "buddies", we developed a platform on which to share the stories of these lonely people, while collecting funds through donations. New stories are continually uploaded to the platform, which enables donations to keep coming in. The platform works for everyone: people who donate money, receive a story, people who feel unheard, are heard. And The Rainbow Group collects money to fund the very import work they do.
Results
To drive as many people to our website filled with short stories as possible, we utilised the social channels of our writers and were lucky to be given loads of free media space and PR attention. The subject of loneliness touched many. The campaign just started and the first two stories are already revealed, raising 2.50 per word. Within two days the first story was revealed, that’s 1100 words and €2,067.50 raised – and counting. New stories are lining up to be put online and revealed by new contributors. So help De Regenboog Groep and fight loneliness with them. Word by word. One story at a time.