Special

Client: Motor Neurone Disease New Zealand
Product: Charity
Title: David's Unusables
Media: TV, radio, OOH and digital media
Country: New Zealand
Date Of Campaign: 20 June 2021 - 31 August 2021

Background: Motor Neurone Disease is a brutal disease and New Zealand has one of the world’s highest mortality rates from it. Despite this, it’s a disease that has low levels of awareness and understanding compared to other illnesses – which can have a big impact on the access to funding and support a charity, like MND NZ, can get. The challenge was to raise the public profile of MND in New Zealand to improve the quality of life for those living with this condition.

Idea: David's Unusables hijacked TradeMe (New Zealand’s equivalent of eBay) to educate New Zealanders on Motor Neurone Disease. David, a man living with MND, sold his unusable belongings in a digital timeline reflective of his deterioration. Each listing told of his personal connection to the item, and revealed the devastating, symptomatic reasons it had become unusable to him. The campaign turned online auctions into an education resource and generated vital donations at the same time.

Results: The listings on David’s Unusables TradeMe store were viewed over 63,765 times and the campaign reached over 1.5 million people.We sold all 33 items, turning every bid into an opportunity to learn and educate NZ on MND. Further to that, this activity directly contributed over $7,000 to MND through the TradeMe store page (even though donations were not a primary objective).David’s Unusables generated much needed attention for MND through ‘David’s Unusables’ securing 41 individual PR articles, including some from major news outlets. The coverage was worth over $230,000 (USD) in advertising value equivalent with a media ROI of $20 for ever $1 spent. This level of awareness has helped elevate the profile of MND in NZ and will give them a critical step up when pitching for further funding and support to help people living with MND in the future.