Many emotions can motivate people to contribute to causes – sympathy, anger, fear, and of course, personal belief and interest. A smart new campaign targets a surprisingly different triggers: emotional anguish, discomfort, possibly even disgust.
The End7 campaign aims to eliminate seven horrible parasitic diseases – including roundworm, hookworm and river blindness – that affect more than one billion people around the globe. The diseases are vastly treatable with inexpensive medications, but the overwhelming majority of victims reside in the poorest regions of the world.
Like many cause campaigns, End7 signed on celebrity supporters, but what’s different is how they tell the story. In online videos, viewers watch the faces and emotions of actors Emily Blunt, Eddie Redmayne, and others reacting to gruesome footage of parasites at work. Then viewers see the same footage that provoked the stars’ responses. The video is difficult to get through, but extraordinarily impactful. At the end, you’re encouraged to donate 50 cents to protect a single child from all seven diseases for one year.
For decades, corporations and non-profits have successfully employed celebrities to raise awareness about health issues. But this is the first campaign I’ve seen to feature them in such a raw, immediate and emotional way – as though they’re just like the rest of us with a little time and a few cents to spare for something important.
