Saatchi & Saatchi Australia

Client: The Royal Australian Mint
Product: Donation Dollar
Title: Donation Dollar
Media: Legal tender currency/Campaign
Country: Australia
Date Of Campaign: 5/9/2020 - Ongoing

Background: Situation –The digital evolution has changed currency forever. Unfortunately, carrying less coins in our pockets has unintended consequences. In Australia, many charities rely on coin donations, as do the most disadvantaged among us.Brief –As a society, we need to reconsider how we use the coins we do have.Objectives –• Change the perception of the power of the world’s oldest form of currency – the coin. • Inspire all Australians to donate to those who need it most.• Create new stream of donations for causes, charities and those in need.

Idea: We redesigned the Australian $1 coin as a powerful call to action – to donate to those in need.Donation Dollar is designed to remind us to give, not only in times of crisis, but all year round. It’s an official circulating coin, which can be spent like any other $1 coin, but when donated, helps make an on-going impact on the lives of Australians in need, and creates a generosity loop that lasts generations.One coin minted for every single Australian, creating over 25 million individual, daily reminders to give and placing over 25 million individual calls-to-action in the hands of every Australian.The Donation Dollar is not only the first Australian $1 coin to feature a colour but also the first to feature an interactive design, with the green centre designed to wear down the more the coin is donated, revealing golden ripples emanating from the centre of the coin – a symbol of the ongoing impact the coin is making in the lives of those in need.The coins were released into circulation via the existing distribution system, spreading the 25 million coins across the entire nation, for all Australians to find in their change, and to inspire them to donate to their chosen cause, charity or someone in need. Donation Dollar marks the first time a coin has been designed to elicit a direct response, inspiring the holder to give to those in need, for the benefit of all. If every Australian donated just one Donation Dollar each month, we’d raise an additional $300 million for charity each year, and $9 billion over the coin’s lifecycle.How it works –When received by the holder, the Donation Dollar can be spent like any other $1 coin, but when donated, helps make an ongoing impact in the lives of those in need. The choice of where, or whom to donate to is solely the choice of the coin holder as Donation Dollar is not exclusively aligned to any particular cause or charity.Components-The coin’s face features the words ‘Donation Dollar’ supported by a call-to-action, ‘Give to help others’. The green centre (set against the gold of the coin) represents Australia’s national colours and was specifically chosen to inspire a sense of national pride, togetherness and generosity. The coin’s obverse features Queen Elizabeth II.Donation Dollar was launched on International Day of Charity 2020, supported by an integrated PR, TV, Out-of-Home, Online and Social campaign and with one coin minted for every single Australian – putting the power of change in everyone’s hands. Donation Dollar is in itself a new product/service, a new form of media, an interactive piece of ambient/experiential media, an innovative out-of-home communication, a tangible piece of direct marketing with a call-to-action and an innovation of one of the world’s oldest forms of technology. But more than that, it’s an idea designed to make a lasting impact for generations to come and proof that if we all gave just $1 dollar a month, together we could make a life, and world changing impact for all those in need.

Results: Long-term outcomes -With the average lifespan of an Australian coin being 30 years, the Donation Dollar will remain in circulation for decades to come, being donated over and over again on a continuous loop of generosity.If every Australian donated just one Donation Dollar each month, we’d raise an additional $300 million for charity each year, and $9 billion over the coin’s lifecycle.Results/Success –Donation Dollar has been embraced by the Australian public, inspiring them to reconsider the coins in their change and their potential power for good.• 88.9%+ of Australian population reached• 99.9% positive sentiment• Within the first 2 months, 53% of Donation Dollars found were donated.Scalability -Based on this innovative approach to reimagining the role physical currency plays in society and its potential for good, Donation Dollar has gained the interest of other countries looking to adopt the idea themselves.