We find out more about the making of the charity’s powerful new advertising campaign to raise awareness of dementia
At SCT, we’ve seen many people in the care sector talking about the powerful new advertising campaign launched last month by the Alzheimer’s Society. In ‘A Personal Appeal’, a woman called Rachel, sitting on her sofa at home, looks directly into the camera – at us – as she asks for help, having just been diagnosed with dementia.
‘I can’t do this alone,’ she says to us. But then the room around her fills with people – family members, carers, researchers, a whole crowd… ‘It will take a whole society to beat dementia,’ concludes the advert.
‘A Personal Campaign’ has clearly struck a chord with many across the sector, from those in receipt of care and their loved ones to those working in the sector. One carer told SCT that the ad is particularly effective because it puts the person living with dementia front and centre.
We got in touch with the charity to find out more.
The new advertising campaign was ‘inspired by the lived experiences of people affected by dementia,’ says Katie Blackburn, Regional Senior Media Officer at the Alzheimer’s Society, and ‘developed in partnership with creative agency New Commercial Arts.’
The agency has worked with the charity for some years. Media planning and buying has been managed by Medialab. You can read an interview with some of the team involved on the advertising site Creative Salon.
While the advert is a general appeal to raise awareness, the launch was carefully timed to coincide with a more specific initiative. ‘You’re focusing on the video,’ explains Katie, ‘but alongside it we launched findings from a survey reflecting the views of thousands of people affected by dementia.’
The Lived Experience Survey of almost 3,500 people was conducted by Walnut Unlimited on behalf of the charity. Shockingly, it found that a fifth of respondents received no health care, social care or support at all.
More than half reported long wait times for diagnosis and support, and more than half reported that they were not given information about their specific type of dementia.
In response to the stark picture presented by the survey, the charity is calling for rapid improvements to dementia diagnosis and support. The hope is that ‘A Personal Appeal’ will increase awareness of and support for the charity, and so help add impetus to this and its other specific initiatives to improve the lives of those affected by this disease.
‘Early indicators are positive,’ says Katie Blackburn of the impact of ‘A Personal Appeal’ to date, ‘and show that the campaign is impactful in driving awareness of both Alzheimer’s Society and dementia among the general public.’ She adds that response will be ‘tracked over a longer period of time’ to fully gauge its impact.
In related news:
‘Older people are living in homes that work against them’, charity warns
Rapid mobilisation: maintaining safety during care provider transitions
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