DONATE A FACE

Short List
TitleDONATE A FACE
BrandCHHANV FOUNDATION
Product / ServiceCHARITY
CategoryA05. Media Relations
EntrantCHEIL WORLDWIDE Gurgaon, INDIA
Entrant Company CHEIL WORLDWIDE Gurgaon, INDIA
Advertising Agency CHEIL WORLDWIDE Gurgaon, INDIA

Credits

Name Company Position
Nima DT Namchu CHEIL WORLDWIDE Chief Creative Officer
Navin Theeng CHEIL WORLDWIDE Group Creative Director
Anusheela Saha CHEIL WORLDWIDE Senior Creative Director
Anindita Das CHEIL WORLDWIDE Creative Group Head
Anusheela Saha CHEIL WORLDWIDE Art Director
Anindita Das CHEIL WORLDWIDE Copywriter
Abdul Kamal Editor Hans Studio
Ravi Choudhary Photographer
Apoorv Nimbekar Cheil Worldwide Visualiser
Anusheela Saha Cheil Worldwide PR Content Creation
Anindita Das Cheil Worldwide PR Content Creation

The Campaign

Acid attacks, where corrosive acid is thrown on the face of women happens regularly in India. 3 per week on last count. The Govt. compensates survivors with USD 4800. But multiple rounds of facial reconstruction surgeries cost much more - USD 40,000. Donate a Face is an ongoing digital campaign by Chhanv Foundation to spread awareness about this situation and generate funds for their facial reconstruction surgeries. The campaign turned the self-indulgent act of taking a selfie into a tool for those who can’t take selfies - acid attack survivors. To do that, we created the faceless selfie, clicked by covering the face with a paper on which was written the url of our donation site - donateaface.org The idea spread the word on where to donate in a pervasive, cheap and most importantly fast manner. In just 15 days, 5000 people posted faceless selfies. Celebrities went all out to share the campaign video and post selfies. The campaign was reported by the biggest national dailies, web publishing sites, FM channels and new channels. All India Radio, the national FM channel with a reach of 99.9% population of the country, also covered the campaign. Generating a social reach of 25 million, impressions of 100 million, over 50 news headlines, free media worth 5 million USD and a 20% increase in donations. However, the biggest victory was creating the right environment for the landmark Supreme Court directive that made it mandatory for private hospitals to treat acid attack survivors for free.

The Brief

Research showed that while people had heard of acid attacks, most people didn’t know the extreme difficulties faced by the survivors, the long process of recovery and the financial implications. Chhanv Foundation wanted to put the cause of the acid attack survivors in the spotlight and convince people to donate for their facial reconstruction surgeries. To do this, they wanted a solution that was pervasive, fast and most importantly, at an absolutely zero cost.

Results

With overwhelmingly positive coverage in leading media including Hindustan Times, Zee News, Times of India, and New Indian Express, the campaign lead to a substantial increase in public awareness. Coverage through news channel NDTV and All India Radio, the national FM broadcaster with a reach of 99.9% population of the country also put it in the spotlight. We simultaneously engaged the target audience through social media and quickly caught the attention of celebrities who amplified our message. In just 15 days, we generated a social reach of 25 million people, impressions of 100 million and media coverage worth 5 million USD. All this was achieved at zero cost. In addition to raising awareness, we recorded a never-before 20% increase in donations for acid attack survivors. The campaign was also instrumental in creating the appropriate environment for the Supreme Court to direct private hospitals to treat acid attack survivors for free.

Execution

To convince the people to click a faceless selfie, a teaser campaign leading to the launch was started on facebook & twitter pages of Donate a Face. It urged people to give up their face for a week to help acid attack survivors. 2 days before the launch, a call-to-action video revealed how to give up one’s face through a faceless selfie. The video used heart-wrenching images to highlight the plight of survivors and the need to donate. The video was also shared with local celebrities who retweeted/shared the video, posted faceless selfies and became our influencers. Each faceless selfie posted by them spread further awareness and led more people to the donation site. Whoever posted the selfie also had to nominate friends to take the selfie next, turning it an ever-growing chain of interaction. It is an ongoing campaign and we continue to receive hundreds of selfies everyday.

Starting with just one profile picture we demonstrated how the faceless selfie could become an aid for acid attack survivors. The simple act of covering your face with a piece of paper struck a particular chord among people wanting to help. And the hand-written donation URL generated real and substantial donations to the NGO Chhanv Foundation. In just 15 days, the campaign generated a social reach of 25 million people, impressions of 100 million and media coverage worth 5 million USD. All this was achieved at zero cost. In addition to raising awareness, we recorded a never-before 20% increase in donations for acid attack survivors. The campaign was also instrumental in creating the appropriate environment for the Supreme Court to direct private hospitals to treat acid attack survivors for free.

The Situation

Acid attacks, where corrosive acid is thrown on the face of women happen regularly in India. 3 per week on last count. The Govt. compensates survivors with Rs.3 lakhs (USD 4800). But multiple rounds of facial reconstruction surgeries cost much more - Rs.25 lakhs (USD 40,000). With disfigured faces, enduring extreme pain and trauma, along with lack of financial resources, survivors are often forced to live in isolation, unable to face the world. Their lives are spent hiding behind veils, shunned by the society, without hope of friendship and means of livelihood.

The Strategy

The campaign was based on an insight that people loved posing and every day millions of people posted selfies. This simple, self-indulgent act of taking a selfie, was turned into a tool for those who can’t take selfies - acid attack survivors. To do that, we created the faceless selfie. The faceless selfie was clicked by covering one’s face with a sheet of paper on which the donation url - donateaface.org was written. It then had to be posted on social media with #donateaface. One also needed to nominate friends to take up the faceless selfie next and donate on the site. The campaign was targeted at the internet savvy people of India, who could spread our message fast and form public opinion in favour of the survivors. On a secondary level, the campaign also aimed at influencers who could reach out to people and create pressure on policy makers.