A children’s charity used a full-funnel approach to make a difference

The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) is a charity that campaigns and works in child protection in the United Kingdom and the Channel Islands.

NSPCC had to adjust their fundraising campaign strategy to adapt to new consumer behaviors in 2020

2020 was a tough year for charity fundraising. With events cancelled and charity shops closed for a substantial portion of the year, many typical income streams were compromised. According to a survey by Pro Bono economics, half of UK charities saw their income decline in 2020.1 Despite these financial challenges, the need to continue helping children suffering from abuse and mental health issues increased. In 2016 and 2017, NSPCC ran a successful “Letters from Santa” fundraising campaign on Amazon, which engaged customers on the "thank you" page after a purchase. But in 2020, the children’s charity had to think outside of the box to increase fundraising in the virtual world. NSPCC needed to align their audience strategy with the changes in consumer behavior to reach potential donors online and raise awareness in a trusted environment.

NSPCC implemented a full-funnel campaign strategy to engage relevant UK audiences online

In 2020, NSPCC and their media agency OMD UK teamed up with Amazon Ads to evolve the concept of their “Letters from Santa” campaign to increase awareness and engagement with relevant audiences online, wherever they spend time. The charity leveraged Amazon Ads shopping insights to engage customers to make donations for the benefits of children. The audience strategy included customers in market for childcare, movies, and for Christmas presents for children.

OMD UK’s planning team deployed a campaign across the customer journey leveraging the Amazon DSP display and video formats. The creative strategy included custom videos to increase awareness and consideration. OMD UK then engaged relevant audience with display ads in various formats to reach customers wherever they spend time. To complete this full-funnel campaign, OMD UK used display remarketing to generate conversions.

The 2020 NSPCC "Letters from Santa" campaign ad featuring families enthusiastically reviewing their letter from Santa followed by a call to action to donate.

The campaign exceeded the charity’s expectations in terms of reach and conversions

NSPCC reached over 8M consumers with the “Letters from Santa” campaign. The use of video to complement the display activity increased audience engagement, drove additional awareness, and educated customers, with a video completion rate (VCR) of 66% vs. 60% target. The campaign generated a return on investment (ROI) that was +150% higher than target, combined with a cost per acquisition (CPA) 9% lower than planned. As a result, the children charity collected donations over 400% above target.2

"Display advertising is a crucial part of our marketing strategy for Letters from Santa. Working with Amazon Ads enabled us to find the exact audience for our fundraising product in trusted online environments. The campaign exceeded all of our expectations in terms of awareness generated and donations, and we gained helpful insights from the evaluation to help plan our next campaign."

– Sam Thompson, Fundraising Manager– NSPCC

1 "Covid charity tracker survey results", Pro Bono Economics, January 2021
2 Amazon internal data, 2020

Highlights

  • Donations 400% above target
  • Return on investment 150% higher than target
  • Cost per acquisition 9% lower than target
  • 8M consumers reached
  • 66% video completion rate