Social media
OOH
Project management
The Wheel is Ireland’s national association of community and voluntary organisations, charities and social enterprises. They represent over 2,000 members around the country. In 2021 The Wheel partnered with five organisations, Volunteer Ireland, Charities Institute Ireland, Boardmatch, Dóchas, and Disability Federation of Ireland to spearhead a new campaign that would promote the charity sector in Ireland.
We held workshops with stakeholders to get a more in-depth understanding of the challenges and opportunities at play, exploring ways of responding to negative sentiment and promoting the aspects of charity that people truly valued.
Volunteers and staff from the We Act network celebrating the launch of the campaign
Our ultimate campaign concept was ‘We Act’, a bold statement that captured the charity sector’s reason for being. There are needs in society, and there are possibilities too. Our charities fill that gap with their energy, passion and sense of collective duty. Through our creative approach we aimed to highlight the multifaceted nature of the sector, the different problems they solve, the different groups they work with, and the different opportunities they respond to. A flexible copy and design approach allowed us to explore the diversity of the sector. What unifies these groups is not just what they do, but shared values of civic responsibility, community spirit, care and compassion.
This campaign was rolled out nationally across a mix of digital and traditional media. A suite of social media assets was produced, as well as a comprehensive toolkit for members, so that they could feel ownership of, and take part in the campaign. OOH advertising also formed a significant part of the campaign, with the use of bus-back advertising and digi-panels in key locations in Dublin and further afield.
Digipanels and bus backs in Dublin
The campaign received extensive media coverage online, in print, and on radio, at local and national levels, with many attending the campaign roadshow stops around Dublin. Over 600 charities and community groups showed their support by sharing campaign materials on social media, leading to #WeAct becoming the number 1 trending topic on Twitter. We Act will now be used as a platform for those in the charity sector to tell their stories, capturing the diversity and dynamism of Ireland’s charities and community groups.
Media coverage of the launch of the campaign