Not to digress from our interesting discussion of the River Communications case, but what do you think about this cause-marketing video? Could you imagine how this might play if marketed to potential AARP Tax-Aide site donors, cast as a "look at me ... I'm a senior citizen" video?
I saw this on a cause-communication group I belong to on LinkedIn. Not a member yet? Create a LinkedIn account (http://www.linkedin.com/) or log in to your account and search for the "Cause Communications" group.
Mark
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I think this video is great. The emotional appeal that is used is extremely effective. We would be able to create a video somewhat like this for the AARP case using the same kind of appeal. Watching this I felt as if the girls were looking right at me and the message was speaking directly to me. This could be done with senior citizens as well. (I mean who could turn away from a nice little old lady?!) The video could also have some information like this video did and could really persuade perspective donors/sponsors.
This is an extremely powerful video. By showing the faces of these girls, emotion is attached and you begin to really feel for the cause and want to support it. I think that this is just what AARP needs. Who wouldn't feel for the image of an elderly woman who needs help with her taxes when she is left alone? The simplicity of this video is what makes it strong. I think that it would be fairly easy for us to create a similar video to show organizations that they can help make a difference.
Sometimes people need what could be considered a "wake up call" kind of video such as this one to really expose the issue at hand. For AARP, their goal is to attract sponsors and doners that will fund the tax services AARP provides senior citizens. Since this cause is a serious one, we must be careful about how it is portrayed and how it will be perceived by our prospective target market. That is why I feel a video like this will create a very personal and emotional connection between our potential sponsors and the senior citizens that need their help and their funding. This kind of appeal puts a face on the person that local businesses will be helping. It portrays senior citizens as people, as human beings, not just numerical facts and figures. I feel this approach will put our cause on a whole new level, a level we want definitely want to reach by the end of our research.
While I think this video is an effective use of emotional appeal to get people to donate to a cause that supports young women/girls in developing nations, I feel like it is quite a stretch to apply something like this to the AARP tax-aide program. The AARP program is a great idea, but I'm not convinced that local businesses would be drawn in by this sort of tactic. Particularly with the economy in the situation as it is, I doubt that this appeal would work on its own. As part of a larger pitch, perhaps it would appeal to some and produce positive results, but would it really be worth the time and manpower that it takes to produce a video... Does anyone else have any thoughts?
I agree that this video is extremely powerful for the cause at hand, however creating one for AARP tax-aide would have to be done a bit differently. As we will be targeting smaller local businesses throughout Dutchess County, we would need to keep that in mind while creating the video. Instead of such a strong emotional appeal we would have to show on a practical level why the tax-aide programs will be beneficial for businesses to invest their money into it.
Everyone has pretty much mixed feelings about this video. If AARP wants to have sponsors coming from all around the world, then I agree with having this emotional appeal commercial. Since we are only targeting local businesses in Dutchess County, I don't think this would be a good tactic to get local businesses involved. I do love the fact that the girls in the video are making a strong connection with the viewer, and we need to keep that in mind when we are approaching these local businesses, especially by reminding what and who they will sponsor.
I would have to say that I agree that a cause-marketing video such as this one is a bit of a stretch for AARP. I think that this kind of emotional appeal does not apply in relation to a tax-aide program. However, a video like this one with a different tone or edge may be effective. We just need to discover what could grab businesses an AARP promotional video.
To correct the bottom of my last post - We just need to discover what could grab businesses in* an AARP promotional video.
Although AARP is a relevant cause, it is on a different level of cause marketing than HIV. If there was a video for AARP that used pathos and emotional appeals so strongly, I think it would come off as "fluff" to small business owners.
However, I do agree that a more promotional video could be effective. If it showed senior citizens getting their taxes done at the tax-aide sites, if it included testimonials and a brief description of the program. It would need to be kept short and simple. Business owners don't have all day to watch a video, and AARP doesn't have a budget for such things as does Nike.
A promotional video is a good idea, yet I think something like this video is a big too serious for the AARP cause. The point is not to get donations as we agreed earlier. The strategy for AARP is to get sponsors. A video focused on how a sponsorship can help the businesses would relate more to the overall goal than a video focusing on senior citizens.
The emotional appeal is a good starting point to create a video about AARP. I feel the most effective videos I have seen and the ones that are ingrained in my memory are always the ones that my emotional side. Like everyone before said, of course the video for a tax aid agency would have too be a bit less emotional for the viewer, I think this video is on the right track and could be very effective in achieving a larger interest in AARP
Helping girls receive an education in underdeveloped countries and helping elderly citizens prepare their taxes in the United States are two very different causes. The Nike Foundation video is appealing to everyone to try and help out girls all over the world. Our target audience is much smaller, the local businesses of Dutchess County and nearby areas. I think that having video testimonials as well as clips of the volunteers helping the senior citizens would be great visual images to let the business owners know where there money would be going. It could also have a bit of an emotional appeal if they recognize the senior citizens shown in the video, such as the elderly lady who picks up her prescription at Rite Aid on the last Sunday of every month. Maybe the elderly gentlemen receiving help on his tax return looks similar to the business owners father who recently passed away. Visual images are very strong and will last longer in the minds of the business owners than our words will.
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