Wow! Brilliant – simply brilliant. Kudos to US Fund for UNICEF on the latest iteration of their Tap Project campaign. The Tap Project was created in 2007 by a New York City based advertising/communications agency called Droga5 and launched on March 22, 2007 – World Water Day. The campaign capitalized on the tie between water served in restaurants with water needs around the world. Patrons were asked to donate $1 for the tap water served in participating restaurants. The campaign has generated $4.5 MM in the past 7 years and substantially raised awareness of the issue surrounding access to clean water.
Now, UNICEF has done it again – taking an every day “tap” topic and turning it into a powerful awareness campaign and fundraising platform. After all, how many times a day do you “tap” your phone? This year, the UNICEF Tap Project is launching a new mobile social good experience that challenges Americans to put down their cell phones to help save children’s lives. The longer someone goes without touching their smartphone after activating UNICEFTapProject.org, the more money will be donated to help UNICEF provide clean drinking water to children. For every ten minutes spent on the UNICEF Tap Project mobile experience, Giorgio Armani Fragrances and other donors will provide the funding equivalent of one day of clean water for a child. And, in addition to raising funds, the campaign is raising awareness of the issues too by providing facts about water access.
We’ve all read the research about Millennials and cause, and this is a brilliant way to reach them. According to YPulse, a youth marketing research firm, 45% of Millennials say that they spend two-ten hours a day on their smartphones, and 44% say they look at their phone over six times in a given hour. UNICEF has found a brilliant way to tap this important segment with their ever evolving Tap Project campaign. Oh, and by the way – how did I learn about this campaign? My 19 year old daughter posted about it on her Facebook page. I can’t wait to see what her 1,492 Facebook friends think about it and their Facebook friends and their Facebook friends and…well, you get the picture.
