Category: Titanium and Integrated
Advertiser: SHANTI UGANDA
Product/Service: THE INFORMATION BLANKET
Agency: BEATTIE McGUINNESS BUNGAY
Designer/Creative Director: Neil Powell (Beattie Mcguinness Bungay)
Writer: Peter Rosch (Beattie Mcguinness Bungay)
Project Manager: Stephanie Friess (Beattie Mcguinness Bungay)
Strategist: Clayton Ruebensaal (Beattie Mcguinness Bungay)
Media placement: Product Distribution - N/a - May 2011
Describe the campaign/entry
Babies don't come with instruction manuals. Every parent needs education and training about how to protect and care for their newborn, and every baby needs a blanket. From this principle, The Information Blanket was born: a baby blanket imprinted with vital newborn information about feeding frequency, immunisation scheduling, high temperature alert, growth chart and warning signs of illness. Our mission is to provide blankets imprinted with vital information to parents of newborns and reduce infant mortality globally. We believe accurate, culturally sensitive infant health information delivered in a memorable, easily accessible way can empower mothers and initiate behavioural change. The Information Blanket is a social enterprise built on a one-for-one model, where for every blanket purchased, one will be donated to a newborn in Uganda, where infant mortality rate is among the highest in the world.
Describe how the campaign/entry was launched across each channel in the order of implementation
Designed in response to the PSFK/UNICEF 'Future of Health Report', The Information Blanket aims to reduce infant mortality rates worldwide. The blanket’s creators realised infant mortality can be reduced by adopting a series of interventions that target specific risks of newborns. This product aims to educate and empower parents through comprehensible iconography, graphics and information about the health of their newborns.
This project was launched with a one-for-one model, like TOMS shoes. For every English-language blanket sold, a blanket will be donated to a Ugandan mother in need. In May, The Information Blanket’s designer travelled to Uganda to launch the project with the birthing centre, Shanti Uganda.
The Information Blanket is a low-tech product: easy to manufacture, distribute and care for. The blanket, which is made from environmentally sensitive, American-grown cotton, was designed with durability in mind. It can be passed from mother to mother with little sign of wear.
Give some idea of how successful this campaign/entry was with both client and consumer
Since the blanket was launched in May, more than 600 blankets have been distributed to mothers and newborns in need – and that number continues to increase. As the project grows, its founder plans to expand the list of countries in which blankets are donated. Ultimately, The Information Blanket will be introduced into such high-need countries as Afghanistan, Haiti, Bolivia, South Africa and Cambodia.
The Information Blanket has begun to establish a global presence, attracting customers from the United States, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands and Australia, among other places. It has attracted the attention of such outlets as PSFK, Wired UK, Coco Perez, BabyCenter and Babble. Additionally, the online marketplace Daily Grommet recently partnered with The Information Blanket to tell its story and act as a vendor.