Good vs Evil


Top 5 Social Good Campaigns from the Last 12 Months

If you haven't figured it out by now, we here at Good vs Evil love smart advertising and branding, especially when it's focused on doing good. Here are some of our favorite examples and why.

Nature Is Speaking

Why it's awesome: These video's tell it like it is. The earnest tone of Harrison Ford's grave voice takes on the persona of the Ocean - one of Earth's strongest, most capable, life giving forces. He explains how the reality is that the ocean doesn't actually need humans, but humans, for sure, need the ocean. Ominously, it's a clear message that it's in humans' best interest to protect the seas. The campaign has 6 other videos that cover a broad range of issues with the same stunning, dark effect. Not to mention an award winning round up of actors who deliver the other various, life giving features of our world. 

What could make it even better: A way more powerful integrated PR campaign to get the word out that videos exist. Julia Roberts got an awesome 2.9 million views. Followed by Harrison Ford at 750k and Kevin Spacey at 490k. Not bad, but shouldn't they ALL be in the millions with such heavy hitters?

Under Armour's "I Will What i want"

Next, another film-y campaign.

Why it's awesome: Women in the athletic world face harsh criticism that attempts to put them down and discourage them from participating. But Under Armour's campaign highlighting women (Gisele Bündchen shown above) who braved the critics shows these athletes' courage and strength in an inspiring way. The dialogue and imagery moves the audience and allows the viewer to focus on the athletic capabilities rather than just appearances.

What could make it even better: Why not shoot the same video in a less polished way to reflect the earnest struggle these girls go through every day? We humans are excellent bullshit detectors, so when a video is too flashy, we automatically assume there's a level of insincerity. The perfect lighting & manicured spaces of these videos fight against the honesty and vulnerability of the message. But hey, still an awesome message.


Why it's awesome:  Moving on to an event-based campaign, we also love Movember. While some of us are facially hair impaired over here at GvE, it's nice seeing many others can commit to the worthy cause of men's health for a month. We think it's cool how the campaign has spread almost solely through word of mouth (or mustache to mouth) rather than through social media, making it a unique strategy to raise money. And numbers don't lie: according to this chart, the campaign has generated nearly 3 billion conversations and raised $141.5 million from over 3.8 million donors. Boom.

What could make it even better: Raise your hand if you actually know what this is about. Don't be embarrassed if you're unsure. The campaign's lack of a singular message here (outside of a vaguely labeled "mens health") makes it pretty hard for people to remember exactly why they're participating. Just imagine how much bigger this campaign could be if it had a clearly communicated mission.

ALS Ice bucket Challenge

Why it’s awesome: We love this campaign because not only did it generate huge redunkulous amount of awareness, it also generated gobs of cash - a staggering $115 million. 

We also love how the challenge originated from typical social media users, and the format to challenge three more friends fueled the exponential growth beyond just celebrity involvement. 

Whether the campaign will continue with such strength this August for IBC 2.0 is yet to be seen, but at least the ALS Association has one huge hit under it's belt.

What could make it even better:  While it's hard to criticizes this incredible phenomenon, the funny thing is, many people didn't know what it was for (ALS). So for sure the next one of these bad boys should have crazy branding imbedded into the process.

Aaaand...if we really wanted to get turns out that only 2.5 million donated out of 17 million participants (CNN), suggesting that many bucket dumpers were slacktivists or just hopping on the band wagon with other motives in mind. So we wonder for the next one, if there's a way to make a better record of accountability while still keeping it super fun and easy.

Unilever's Share a Meal

Why it's awesome: Unilever is one of most dedicated, large corporations that commits to a whole slew of CSR efforts. And the Share A Meal campaign is a testament to Unilever's capability and purpose. The reach of this campaign is undeniable and has touched many people with the ability to help children in need of food. Because Unilever huge array of products in the food industry, this campaign makes a lot of sense for their business. Plus, we love that Unilever makes it easy for the audience to get involved by providing resources to volunteer with a local organization, host a food drive, or download a toolkit.

What could make it even better: 215 million of anything is a huge number. But what exactly is an "Act of Sunlight"? Unilever's own vague description of this measurement gives an audible groan to the campaign and starts to undo all the good they work so hard creating. A quick fix could just be an honestly described value of one (or many) specific things. And while we do love the idea of this's a bit of a snoozer. The 4:15 video above is rather long and not extremely engaging. Child hunger is a serious issue, so we're not saying the video must be fun-filled and dramatic, but a more captivating execution would inspire even more to share the message and commit to the cause.

Share a Meal Website