Marketing is all about creating value. For non-profits, value can be found in funds or awareness. For individuals targeted through marketing strategies, value may be found in knowing they are contributing to a cause they care about. Non-profits are increasingly using interactive campaigns to encourage people to share an experience with friends.

A good example of this is Live Below The Line. Started in 2010, the campaign set out by a group of anti-poverty non-profit groups challenges participants to live on £1 of food and drink per day for 5 days in efforts to raise awareness of the estimated 1.2 billion people living below the poverty line globally. So far this year, in the UK alone, the campaign has raised over £588,000.

Live Below The Line is powerful as it puts participants directly in another’s shoes. It sets out a challenge they can be proud of achieving. More than raising money to worthy causes, participants achieve a goal that is an everyday reality for billions across the globe. It’s incredibly clever: more than money, the campaign creates empathy. And it spreads the message of empathy by encouraging those taking part to share their journey with others.

A stunt deployed by WaterAid at Glastonbury this year was its toilet next to the Pyramid Stage. Those using the facility were able to see those queuing, whilst those queuing weren’t able to see inside. WaterAid used this tactic to raise awareness of their #MakeItHappen campaign, which aims to provide safe and private taps and toilets to everyone by 2030. Stepping into the shoes of those unable to use the loo in private, participants engaged in an experience that fostered empathy. This encouraged them to reflect and sign the petition – a quick look at WaterAid’s site boasts a whopping 43,000 signatures from Glastonbury alone. That’s roughly a quarter of all attendees! No doubt there’ll be loads of photos shared of the see-through cubicle door too, and WaterAid know this.

Alongside traditional tactics, non-profits are creating unique experiences in order to get participants to share it with their friends. Interactive campaigns are by nature shareable – and can create fantastic social change in the process.

Photo by Masahiro Ihara/Flickr/CC BY 2.0