Advertiser: JAMES R JORDAN FOUNDATION
Agency: OGILVY & MATHER
Category: Charities, Public Health & Safety, Public Awareness Messages
Copywriter: Cara Suglich (Ogilvy & Mather)
Copywriter: Donna Charlton-Perrin (Ogilvy & Mather)
Director Of Design: Gabe Usadel (Ogilvy & Mather)
Designer: Randall Morris (Ogilvy & Mather)
Designer: Eric Ellis (Ogilvy & Mather)
Chief Creative Officer: Joe Sciarrotta (Ogilvy & Mather)
Designer: Rod Hunting (Ogilvy & Mather)
Producer: Ruth Collins (Ogilvy & Mather)
Strategy
Every charity hopes to create empathy for their case. Even though empathy is a visceral thing, a lot of people try to get to it a very rational way, the wallet. We took a more visceral route. The stomach. At the launch event of Diamonds for Africa, we asked an elite audience of guests to pay $2500 a plate, then served them 25cent bowls of ugali. We wanted people to feel the real need of the African families our charity serves. We used a humble meal to trigger a more visceral, tangible sense of empathy for our cause.
Effectiveness
When dinner was served, conversation stopped. An elegant plate of filet mignon would have gone unnoticed. A simple bowl of ugali got guests’ attention. The silent auction following dinner exceeded expectations. The catering bill was reduced by thousands of dollars that went directly to Diamonds for Africa instead. Our 25 cent investment turned into hospital beds, medical care and counseling at the Kenya Women and Children’s Wellness Center.
Execution
We did not have a lot of money to launch Diamonds for Africa. So we decided to look at our budget as a creative opportunity. We knew ugali was an extremely inexpensive porridge eaten by African families out of necessity. We knew our guests were used to dining on much more sophisticated cuisine. Ugali would be a shock to their palates. At 25 cents a bowl, ugali gave people who have so much, a taste of what it’s like to have so little.