callout for a creative agency (british lung foundation)
I wrote a callout for the British Lung Foundation, to successfully secure a UK creative agency for a COVID-19 campaign. My callout post allowed the charity to secure a creative agency pro bono, I’ve shared the post below.
An emergency call out to creative agencies with a heart
Last night Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced that frontline charities would receive £750 million in funding in order to continue delivering vital services to those who are most in need.
Despite being the country’s leading respiratory charity, the Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation Partnership has learned we are not currently eligible to receive any of this funding.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic emerged, our charity has been at the forefront of anticipating and providing vital health advice, emotional support and COVID-19 information that people with pre-existing lung conditions, carers and healthcare professionals need.
“Thank you for the clear and detailed advice which had been lacking elsewhere and as a key worker has allowed me to make informed choices.”
At a time when many organisations have had to reduce their staff count, we have had to hire new expert nurses to deal with a 9 times increase in helpline calls.
“As a GP and an asthmatic your online information has been fantastic - thank you!”
Since January, our website pages have had over 13 million views. Subscribers to one of our newsletters have doubled, and our social media communities are growing every day. The content these people are searching for is researched, created and updated by our small in-house team. We’ve been working tirelessly, overtime and through weekends to ensure this vital information makes its way to those who need it most.
But we’re also looking ahead. We’ve pioneered the Post-COVID HUB, a space for people left with breathing difficulties after COVID-19, along with their family members, carers, healthcare professionals, policy-makers and researchers. It was created in under two weeks and launched this Tuesday and is already receiving positive feedback:
“Great work by Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation: new post-COVID19 hub, helping people who’ve had the virus, researchers and professionals. Shows how charities provide info and support, make research happen and enable professionals to tackle new challenges.”
Why the Chancellor's decision is a threat to the services we provide
The decision not to include the Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation Partnership in this funding opportunity puts the vital services we provide at risk in two ways:
The unprecedented increase in demand for our services means we will need more financial support to keep our vital advice and support going;
We fear that potential donors may mistakenly assume that, as a leading respiratory charity dealing with a respiratory virus, we would automatically have received government funding - and as a consequence may choose not to donate to us.
Why we need to join forces with a creative agency
We’re looking for an extraordinarily talented creative agency that can help us make a case for support that won’t go unnoticed.
We want to launch an innovative and impactful campaign that will demonstrate why the work we’re doing is crucial for anyone with an underlying lung condition, their carers, and healthcare professionals. It’s a message we need to drive home, on behalf of the millions of people in this country who are desperately worried and need our support.
We always have and always will put our beneficiaries first, especially in the face of a global pandemic that primarily threatens people with pre-existing lung conditions.
We’re proud of what we’ve managed to achieve so far. But we have to be ambitious for the people who need us. And we can’t do it alone.
Next steps
We're keen to hear from award-winning agencies who are experts at disrupting, engaging, and getting a reaction. We would like to work with an agency that has multi-channel skills and that is as excited as we are at the opportunity to help millions of people affected by Covid-19.
Please reply to this post if you can help, we are looking for brilliant work that works.