Thinkbox
Key Points
Macmillan Cancer Support’s new brand platform ‘Whatever It Takes’ was a huge success, but it wasn’t showing the range of services they offer to cancer sufferers beyond their network of nurses. They needed a campaign that would highlight the impact of a cancer diagnosis on people’s lives and showcase the variety of services and support they provide.
Macmillan partnered with Channel 4 to create a 3 x 60-minute series called ‘Super Surgeons: A Chance at Life’, forming the foundation of an integrated campaign.
Average viewership was just over 1 million, the 2nd biggest 10pm new show launch on Channel 4 in 2022, 72% of viewers feeling more positive toward the charity, 59% more likely to personally donate and an increase in brand metrics around buzz, brand understanding and broader understanding. The number one most talked about charity and 4th most talked about brand during the campaign period.
The Challenge
Macmillan Cancer Support has been providing support to people living with cancer since 1911. It’s a charity that is well-known and much loved having touched the lives of millions. Despite being known for its fund-raising coffee mornings and the thousands of nurses it provides; they were less well known for the other services they offer to support those living with cancer.
In 2021, armed with a new brand strategy of ‘Whatever It Takes’, Macmillan Cancer Support launched a campaign that placed their nurses front and centre, showing them supporting patients and doing whatever it takes. The campaign was emotive and landed the message that their nurses are ‘compassionate warriors’. By focusing on nurses, the campaign cemented what viewers already knew about Macmillan Cancer Support. They needed communication to bring to life the full range of work the charity undertakes.
With the pandemic leading to a backlog of 50,000 missed diagnoses, there was a need to put cancer and Macmillan Cancer Support back in the national conversation. Macmillan Cancer Support had clear and urgent objectives as a result. The campaign needed to increase brand metrics around buzz, brand understanding and understanding of the breadth of offering.
The TV Solution
To bring to life the complexities of a cancer journey and demonstrate a fuller range of Macmillan Cancer Support services, they needed to move beyond the bounds of advertising in linear airtime. By using long-form to focus on the patients and their experiences rather than the nurses, the campaign was able to demonstrate a wider range of services offered by Macmillan Cancer Support.
Through the long-form content piece titled, ‘Super Surgeons: A Chance at Life’, Wonderhood Studios used TV’s ability to tell powerful, emotive human stories to bring to life all the surprising and complex ways in which cancer affects people.
The Plan
The 3-part 60-minute format was developed specifically for Macmillan Cancer Support and was scheduled to follow on from ‘24 hours in A&E’ to capture a pre-established and engaged viewership. The show followed the journeys of those diagnosed with cancer. Through the lens of surgery, Channel 4 and Wonderhood Studios brought real-life stories to life in a dramatic way, to show the full impact of living with cancer. The series followed pioneering surgeons as they employ ground-breaking new technologies to save or prolong the lives of their patients. Each episode featured real-life audio from Macmillan’s Support line. These calls formed the backbone of the series and showcased the breadth and depth of needs that those living with cancer face and the support that Macmillan can offer.
The Channel 4 series was the centrepiece of an integrated campaign. Wonderhood Studios created an eco-system of communications to sit around the programmes, to further embed Macmillan’s platform of ‘Whatever It takes’. There were bespoke idents including one delivered solely in British Sign Language supported by subtitles to show that everyone is catered for by the charity. Social posts were deployed across social channels around the show signposting the support on offer. The Support Line operating hours were extended to capture those who were watching and felt they needed support.
Wonderhood also ensured that they owned the ad breaks within the content. Macmillan Cancer Support placed their ads in the breaks and rallied corporate partners to amplify the messaging further. They produced a spot with Boots featuring one of their beauty advisors and the support services they offer along with Macmillan Cancer Support. These ads ran each week around the series. A series of four short films were created so that viewers across social channels could learn more about Macmillan Cancer Support’s surprising and pioneering cancer support. These short films, still in use today, allowed Macmillan to dive deeper into the services and support they provide.
Results
The long-form content was extremely successful for Macmillan Cancer Support. From a viewing perspective, the content averaged over a million per episode in its 10 pm slot on Channel 4. It was Channel 4’s second biggest 10 pm launch for a new series in 2022. 80% of viewers claimed they had either recommended or would recommend the show to others and prompted recall rose to 15% amongst under 35’s and people of colour, showing the activity had reached a new audience. The series generated a large amount of positive press coverage and got the nation talking about cancer, with the show organically trending on Twitter each week.
The activity also succeeded in moving brand metrics for Macmillan. 72% of people felt more positive about the charity as a result of viewing the programme. 73% agreed that the breadth of support was wider than expected and 59% were more likely to personally donate. The KPIs for the campaign around buzz, brand understanding, and broad offering all saw improvements beyond the stated objectives. YouGov tracking also indicated success for the campaign; Macmillan was the number 1 most talked about charity during the period and the 4th most talked about brand in the UK.
Someone is diagnosed with Cancer every 90 seconds, and every diagnosis comes with questions, worry and uncertainty. We collaborated with this ground-breaking series to help more people understand how cancer can disrupt your life, and show the army of people, from super surgeons to the Macmillan team, who will do whatever it takes to help you through it. It is vital that people get a realistic look into different ways cancer affects people, and the stories of people living with cancer took centre stage in this important docuseries. I think the show really contextualised what Macmillan does and enabled us to show our cancer support services at their best, and really show that we’re not just about nurses and palliative care. It’s certainly given us a lot more confidence to work in more innovative formats, and that’s helped us extend our support to more people with care.
Anthony NewmanBrand and Marketing Director
Databank
Sector: Charity & Government
Brand: Macmillan Cancer Support
Campaign objectives: Brand building
Target Audience: ABC1Adults
Budget: unknown
Campaign Dates: July 2022
TV Usage: Content
Creative Agency: Wonderhood Studios
Media Agency: Zenith