Make-A-Wish Foundation is a non-profit organization that grants wishes to children whom are suffering life-threatening medical conditions. Because this organization is non-profit, Make-A-Wish relies on donations from the public to grant wishes to these deserving children, on average, every 38 minutes. In a recent video campaign titled “The Arc of the Journey,”Make-A-Wish shows the struggles and hardships that thousands of children and parents face everyday, because of life-threatening medical conditions.
This video campaign uses many unique, yet
subtle strategies to appeal to the public in hope for their donations and support. The entire video incorporates different stories families face while
dealing with the hardships and fear of the unknown, due to the life-threatening
medical condition of a child. Not only does it show the negative aspects of
these awful conditions, but also it emphasizes the incredible positive impact a
wish can make. As you hear the voices and stories from different people, the
video flashes important words on the screen to truly convey the difference that
Make-A-Wish has on these children.
The words go from, ‘Treatment, Life Support and Devastating,’ to ‘A Wish,
Opportunity and Alive.’ The uplifting background music also stresses the importance
of “a wish.” Towards the end of the video, the voice-overs say, “We are the
best we’ve ever been health wise,” and “Here’s this little boy – so
determined.” It is truly an uplifting experience and game-changer for thousands
of children. The “life-span” line shown at the end of the video exemplifies the
significance of one wish. One wish gives a child determination to keep fighting
for survival.
In comparison to an American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) video campaign, both of these non-profit organizations have
similar goals. Slight differences in the video are that the ASPCA actually shows the horrible
conditions that the animals are living in, rather than just voice-overs with
descriptive words highlighted throughout the video. I think that this type of
approach is needed for this organization, simply because humans prioritize
humans lives as more important than animals. However, when this video campaign
is showed, the public truly sees that these animals need their help just as
much as humans do.
ASPCA and Make-A-Wish Video Campaigns
Though they are very different to the naked eye, both video campaigns
share common strategies and, in fact, the exact same goals. They must convey to
the public that these children and animals need our help – through support and
donations. Without public support, these organizations would deteriorate and
fail. Video is extremely necessary for
both of these non-profit organizations, simply because it is the most effective
way to gain support from the public. From a personal perspective, I would not
know anything about either of these organizations without their video
campaigns. Through ethos, pathos and logos, both campaigns are able to get
people involved. The credibility of the organizations is shown through the
celebrity support in many of their other video campaigns as well. If the public sees their favorite celebrities helping this organization, then they want to do the same. These videos
appeal to our emotions through the heart wrenching stories and pictures;
meaning that we feel as though it is our responsibility to help others, through
whatever donation we are able to give. Lastly, is extremely logical for us to
help by donating. If 1 dollar a day can change the life of a human or animal,
why wouldn’t we want to help?
Make-A-Wish Quote from Child
Looking back at the Make-A-Wish
video campaign, it is extremely evident that video is effective to promote
their organization. With video being their largest outlet for public relations,
Make-A-Wish relies on these campaigns
to fund their organization; and it does – granting a wish every 38 seconds. Because
these life-threatening medical conditions are many of times incurable, Make-A-Wish allows to us to help these
children the only way we’re able to. Every donation, no matter how small or large, is put toward helping a child fight for their life.
It’s 2013, which means that if you don’t have a Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram, you are completely irrelevant. This being said,
companies have utilized this social networking as a way to advertise their
products and connect with their demographics. C. Wonder, a clothing,
accessories and home décor company, is one of these companies that have had
success in doing so. Because C. Wonder relates primarily to the young, yet
professional women demographic, having “hip and classy” social media is a
necessity. Through their Facebook and Twitter, C. Wonder is able to keep their
customers up-to-date on new products and sales without becoming “annoying” or
“unimportant” on the news feed.
C. Wonder Facebook photo updates
When first looking at C. Wonder’s Facebook, it is evident
that their strategy to sell and promote their products is based on
communicating to their demographic on a personal level and in a fun “fashionista”
way. Their cover photo, along with many other photos, shows customers how to
wear C. Wonder items. This is also a way for C. Wonder to make sure that everyone
knows how to wear or use their items in a flattering way – making C. Wonder
look good in return. With every single status update, C. Wonder also uploads a
picture with the status. Having a picture with every update is important,
because our minds naturally go to pictures rather than words. As we scroll through
our news feeds, we are much more likely to look at something if it has an appealing
picture to go along with it. For example, C. Wonder added cute shoes, a pillow
and two shirts to one of their updates. This immediately catches the attention
of someone who would normally just scroll by it. This update also pertains to
another strategy their PR team uses: personal communication. By using words
such as, “Just for you!” and “Thanks to YOU!” they effectively promote sales to
their customers. This makes customers feel important and relevant to C. Wonder.
They also use contests, such as the Sorority House Makeover, to relate to their
young yet professional demographic. By personally asking in a status update,
“Have you entered the Sorority House Makeover???” along with an appealing
photo, C. Wonder is able to relate to their demographic in a fun and effective
way. What girl wouldn’t want to win this makeover!
C. Wonder Tweets
C. Wonder’s Twitter is very similar to their Facebook;
however, it is unique by incorporating both the strategies used on Facebook and
also new strategies that pertain solely to Twitter. Similar strategies are
those such as relating to their customers by directly replying and re-tweeting.
This, once again, allows customers to feel important. By tweeting every few
hours and hash-tagging certain words, C. Wonder is able to stay relevant by
appearing all over Twitter. Because Twitter is so face-paced, sending out
advertisements all the time would get very annoying to customers – ultimately ending
in people un-following C. Wonder. With this being said, C. Wonder uses the
strategy of humor and light-heartedness in the majority of their tweets. For
example, C. Wonder sends tweets out on a regular basis that have nothing to do
with the brand. I believe that this is a very effective way to relate to their
demographics without constantly advertising product. In fact, this is
camouflaged advertising, because C. Wonder is still able to connect with their
customers in a laid back and fun way.
C. Wonder Facebook photo update
Overall, I believe that C. Wonder uses both Facebook and
Twitter in an effective manner to advertise and connect with their customers.
By using strategies such as personal communication, rewards and sales, and
non-advertising relatable updates, C. Wonder is able to successfully promote
their brand. Because both of C. Wonder’s social networks are fun and appealing,
no one gets annoyed of their updates. Rather, customers can’t wait for the next
update. It could be anything: From a cute dog wearing C. Wonder glasses to a
30% off sale – Now that’s what I call fun!
