Tapping Your Supporters’ Passion
People with a cause are people with passion. And guess what? They're pretty creative too … as Psoriasis Cure Now has proven.
PCN has sponsored a video contest, asking its supporters to produce short videos designed to alert and engage the public about a disease that affects 7.5 million Americans. PCN spent about $15K on the project, including $7,500 to be awarded to the grand prize winner.
60 videos were submitted, and nine finalists selected. You can see them all here. You can still offer your pick till the end of October.
Did PCN get their money's worth? Absolutely!
Some of the videos might air as PSAs on television. Others will be screened for Congressional staff. Others will be used on their website and for online viral communications.
Says Mike Paranzino of Psoriasis Cure Now:
“Our finalists include videos made by a chiropractor from Nebraska and a civilian contractor to the Army Corps of Engineers … That they can do this in their spare time with retail equipment is astounding! It won't put the pros out of business but it will change the economics for all but the biggest players.”
To that we'd add … think of how energized other supporters of Psoriasis Cure Now will be to see the passion, creativity and commitmentof their compatriots.
This initiative is a winner in all respects. All the more impressive because we're not dealing with a “hot headline” issue here.
Roger & Tom
P.S. We were asked for our choice for Best Video. And we managed to disagree … Roger likes the straightforward approach of Mark Whele, who shows the unwanted attention that psoriasis sufferers receive, but delivers a hopeful message. A classic PSA approach. Tom, thinking more in terms of viral distribution, likes Preston Jones, who delivers a Rodney Dangerfield-like spoof with a message … psoriasis snubbed. We do agree that humor does trump on the viral marketing circuit. “Runner-up” Jennifer Fitzgerald also uses humor effectively to engage her viewer yet deliver a serious message.
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