The Gift of Giving campaign comprises advertising in national newspapers and magazines through local commercial radio and on London Underground posters, plus a dedicated website giftofgiving.info, targeted viral email, a downloadable mobile phone ringtone, as well as celebrity endorsement and phone-line donations.
The Children's Society Gift of Giving campaign has been developed by Reading-based full-service advertising and marketing agency, Suzanne Gillies Associates, and specialist premium rate telecoms consultancy, GT Telecom, along with the in-house marketing and communications division.
Prime Minister Tony Blair is one of the celebrities and high-profile supporters who have personally recorded a childhood story for the phone line 09065 15 16 17. Tony Blair relates how he felt as a 10-year-old when his father suffered a stroke.
The Children's Society's fundraising director Stephen Blunden said: "We need to get a new generation of supporters on board for the future and to do this, we need to talk their language. We believe we have given people a mechanism they will understand and enjoy giving to a charity in a way they may not have experienced before."
He added: "Premium rate lines have become an acceptable revenue stream in our cashless society. It is quick and easy and secure. The public's acceptance of new technologies has opened new and important fundraising streams for us. By pioneering a new way of donating, we hope to position The Children's Society as leading edge and differentiate ourselves from other children's charities."
Other celebrities, including Atomic Kitten band members Liz McClarnon and Jenny Frost, actor Rupert Graves, Olympic 4x400m silver medallist Jamie Baulch and children's TV presenter Tess Daly have all made recorded messages of real-life case studies of children who have been involved in The Children's Society projects.
Callers can choose to listen to a specially commissioned signature tune, 'Starchild', a fusion of pop-dance music written, performed and donated by brother/sister duo, Darren Rose and Natasha Snell, collectively known as Sulis. As well as listening to the three-minute song on 09065 151617, callers will also have the option to download 'Starchild' as a unique mobile phone ring tone.
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