Portuguese Red Cross, KOBU Agency and Krypton join forces in new IRS fundraising campaign

“The Portuguese Red Cross is an entity with 159 years of history and a daily presence throughout the country. We want to communicate the vast work we do to the entire community. We support hundreds of thousands of people, both in emergency, health, training, and social areas, with a multiplicity of responses, meeting basic needs that are lacking, but above all, seeking to create individual intervention plans aimed at empowering autonomy and building life paths with dignity. The focus of the Red Cross’s social response is the Individual. In order to help each one thrive, we rely on the support of all Portuguese people. ‘500 745 749 – The number that drives us’ is more than a campaign; it is the echo of the challenges we face and the solutions we offer. With a closer tone, more present in real difficulties, the Red Cross reaffirms its commitment to the community: ‘Promoting dignity. Every day.” explains Tânia Henriques, Director of Communication, Marketing, and Fundraising at the Portuguese Red Cross.

A campaign as the first step for a rebranding in the making

For this fundraising campaign, we wanted to “kick off this new brand approach to communication with a dynamic and assertive film that, through music and visual metaphors, seeks to capture people’s attention to difficulties that, unfortunately, increasingly affect Portuguese people.”, says Isabel Pelica Evaristo, one of the people responsible for the creative concept of this campaign, which also included the production and direction of Krypton and the partnership of Bicho Carpinteiro, composers and authors of the music.

Portuguese Red Cross Fundraising based on real stories

The concept of the campaign “500 745 749. The number that drives us.” develops in the three most relevant areas of social action developed by the Portuguese Red Cross. With three scenarios based on real stories, the most pressing concerns in the current social context are presented: on one hand, the daily challenge of coping with the rising prices of essential goods; on the other hand, the challenge of making it to the end of the month with money to pay the rent; and finally, the impact that these difficulties represent on mental health and social isolation that we so often witness.

The video unfolds to the captivating rhythm of Bicho Carpinteiro, a key element in the campaign, whose lyrics use the Portuguese Red Cross’s taxpayer identification number to narrate each of the situations we witness. To close, the Portuguese actress Inês Castel-Branco’s voice reminds us of the Portuguese Red Cross IRS number, the number that drives us, as a final appeal to the viewer to donate.

Building successful partnerships

For this project, we partnered with production agency Krypton Films (“Turn of the Tide / Rabo de Peixe”, Netflix) and had the pleasure of working with their director, Vasco Eusébio, who shared our enthusiasm for this work: “The goal was ambitious: to convey a message of solidarity, being creative and light-hearted at the same time, touching on inherently delicate themes. Music played a fundamental role, dictating the narrative with metaphorical situations that help us tell the various stories in the most genuine way possible. There is no doubt that the mission was successfully accomplished, and we managed to present a dynamic, strong, and, above all, close to the Portuguese people”.

Sandra Belela Lopes, our managing partner and creative director, reinforces this idea and says: “We managed to convey a strong message of real and urgent problems, and the music reinforces the narrative by telling the story of many families, young couples, and so many people who deal with loneliness daily”

She adds that “the film took shape through the lens of director Vasco Eusébio, from Krypton, whose collaboration was essential to bring our concept to life. The result is a campaign film that is musically and visually strong, which we hope can be successful in its purpose of informing and touching people with these realities, showing them that donating is a small gesture that can have a significant impact on the lives of so many people who turn to the Portuguese Red Cross for support”.