Homeward Bound Program - "Gossip Today"

DDB Canada

DDB Canada Toronto, Canada

6904

Brand: Homeward Bound Program
Country: Canada

Advertiser: WoodGreen Community Services

Title	Gossip Today
Agency	DDB Canada
Campaign	Single Mom Celebrities
Advertiser	WoodGreen Community Services
Brand	Homeward Bound Program
Date of First Broadcast/Publication	2014 / 1
Business Sector	Charities, Foundations, Volunteers
Tagline	Struggling Single Moms Take Over Celebrity News
Story	Canadian single mothers struggle every day just to provide the basics for their children. However, most people don’t realize this problem even exists. We needed to make our target (Canadian mothers) realize that single moms in poverty need help.
Philosophy	People are infatuated with celebrity culture, keeping abreast of what popular stars are eating, where they vacation, and whom they are dating. Meanwhile, some Canadian single mothers struggle every day just to provide food and shelter for their children. Today WoodGreen Community Services, one of Toronto’s largest social services agencies, is launching a thought-provoking communications campaign challenging people to care about those living in poverty as much as they care about celebrities.
Problem	This pro-bono campaign, developed by DDB Canada’s Toronto office, aims to rally support for struggling single mothers and WoodGreen’s Homeward Bound program. Unique in Canada, this award-winning program helps homeless or inadequately-housed single mothers earn a tuition-paid college diploma, start a career and achieve economic self-sufficiency.
Result	“Our creative is a parody of popular celebrity media culture, but instead of celebrity-focused stories, it features hard-hitting headlines about struggling single mothers and the real hardships they face each day,” says Denise Rossetto, executive creative director, DDB Canada. “Learning about celebrities is fun, but we want people to recognize that there are many others who are in greater need of our attention and support.” The campaign includes television, print, out of home, social and online advertising to drive traffic to WoodGreen’s website. On the website, visitors can watch short testimonial videos from some of the women featured in the campaign, who are participants from WoodGreen’s Homeward Bound program. These women share how WoodGreen’s program made a positive impact on their lives. Website visitors are also invited to sign a petition to encourage provincial funding for the expansion of the Homeward Bound program. “We are grateful to these strong women who shared their success stories in this campaign to inspire support for the Homeward Bound program,” says Brian Smith, president and CEO, WoodGreen Community Services. “We also want people to know that this program has proven results1. For every dollar invested, graduates of the Homeward Bound program will return $4 back to society. In fact, on average, $295K of cumulative benefit is generated for every woman who completes the program. The significant return occurs as women complete the program, move off social assistance and become economically self-sufficient.”
Media Type	Television
Length	39 seconds
More Information	www.woodgreen.org
Colorization	Alter Ego
Director	Jorn Haagen
Director of Photography (DOP)	Jorn Haagen
Executive Creative Director	Denise Rossetto
Executive Creative Director	Todd Mackie
Creative Director	Paul Wallace
Copywriter	Domenique Raso
Art Director	Rebecca May
Agency Producer	Andrew Schulze
Editor	Brian Wells
Editing Company	School
Audio	RMW
Colorist	Eric Whipp