The UK’s NHS Blood and Transplant authority, creative agency 23red and Out of Home (OOH) media owner Clear Channel harness real-time data and real recipients to encourage new blood donors for hospitals nationwide.
London, 28th January 2019: 23red alongside NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), a joint England and Wales Special Health Authority part of the UK’s public healthcare body the NHS, today launches an innovative new outdoor advertising campaign with Clear Channel in a bid to rally residents nationwide to register as new blood donors.
Data from NHSBT shows that every day, hospitals in England need a staggering 6,000 blood donations, and to meet this demand, 200,000 new donors are needed every year.
Launching today across 100 of Clear Channel’s digital out of home screens in key English cities, the adverts call on the nation to give blood by displaying a range of dynamic content driven by first party data from the NHSBT. This includes: information on the nearest donor centres including walking distance and appointments available; the volume of first-time donors seen in the past week and the number booked to give blood that day.
The use of data from NHSBT combined with the sheer variety of dynamic outputs in this campaign is remarkable. It uses real-time data from local donor centres, alongside images of real blood recipients to normalise blood donation while making it more personal and local.
The innovation comes from the immediacy, locality, and relevance of the data; the campaign targets people specifically in their local area and provides a suite of real-time information which supports the call to action to give blood. In doing so, it seeks to encourage people to visit their closest permanent donation centre, as opposed to relying on mobile donation centres, by making them more aware of how many other people are donating, are planning to donate, and just how close these centres are to them.
The adverts will also feature photographs of real blood recipients shot by renowned photographer, Dylan Collard. The images reflect the diverse audiences that NHSBT needs to reach. For example, it includes photos of a black man and woman to try and inspire more black donors to help treat those with sickle cell disease, and an image of a mother and child, conveying the need for blood during childbirth.
The campaign is launching on Clear Channel digital sites in close proximity to permanent blood donor centres in the cities of Leeds, Sheffield, London, Liverpool, Birmingham, Gloucester, Bradford and Poole.
Sean Kinmont, Founding Partner and Creative Director of 23red, said: “Often people only think of blood donation when someone they know has needed it or when there’s a major accident. What we wanted to do with this campaign is to normalize blood donation by feeding live NHSBT blood donation data onto a digital screen on your high street, showing real appointments as well as blood donations happening in your neighbourhood. We hope the data-led approach combined with the emotive imagery strikes a chord with people.”
Ceri Rose, Director of Marketing and Communications at NHS Blood and Transplant, said: “What we love about this campaign is that it tells an emotive story, through the imagery, to connect with specific donor groups that are needed. It also tells people where their nearest centre is and just how easy it is to start donating there on a regular basis. Our hope is that people start the New Year with good intentions and they will be inspired to register as new blood donors. For our amazing existing blood donors, it will remind them to support their local donor centre by highlighting available appointments to donate.”
Louise Stubbings, Creative Director at Clear Channel said, “This campaign is the gold standard for digital Out of Home – perfect planning to target the right locations, alongside data-led copy that’s relevant for the audience, and beautiful engaging visuals. It’s also a powerful example of the role the OOH sector can play in supporting communities tackle key issues and helping residents living in those areas. We’re exceptionally proud to be working with NHS Blood and Transplant and 23red on this campaign, which will make a real difference in saving lives around the UK.
You can register and book an appointment to donate blood today by calling 0300 123 23 23 or by visiting www.blood.co.uk
