CIBC Brings Humanity to Cancer Statistics in Run for the Cure Campaign

After two years of moving to a virtual format, the Canadian Cancer Society CIBC Run for the Cure is back in person, with local runs taking place across Canada on October 2nd. To raise awareness for the fundraising initiative, the Canadian Cancer Society and CIBC collaborated with creative agency Juniper Park\TBWA to develop an emotional yet uplifting campaign reminding audiences of the many lives that are impacted when someone is diagnosed with breast cancer.   

This campaign is anchored around a sobering statistic: one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. By highlighting the many different women in our lives and communities, the campaign brings humanity to this statistic, encouraging the audience to participate in the initiative with the closing line, “This is why we run. We run today, to save lives tomorrow.”  

"It’s because of the funds raised through the CIBC Run for the Cure that we know more than ever before about how to prevent, diagnose, treat and live with and beyond breast cancer," says Pamela Mollica, interim executive vice president, communications and marketing at the Canadian Cancer Society. "That's why a compelling campaign is critical to inspire Canadians to join us in changing the future of breast cancer."

“For Team CIBC, it’s a personal cause and one that our bank has supported for over three decades,” says Tammy Sadinsky, senior vice president, brand and marketing, CIBC. “This campaign captures the raw emotion felt by women and those closest to them when someone is diagnosed with breast cancer. CIBC remains dedicated to a shared purpose with our clients and the Canadian Cancer Society to change the future of breast cancer.”  

Instead of focusing on the need and the outcome, which is a common strategy in charity communications, this campaign puts emphasis on the action by tapping into the viewer’s personal connection to the cause. It aims to motivate registrations and donations by reminding the audience that we all have women in our lives, and therefore, all have a reason to sign up and help change the future of breast cancer. 

“We intentionally cast a mix of real people – including some cancer survivors – in the spot, to drive home the message that the impact of breast cancer is more than a statistic; it affects real people in our lives, every day,” says Paul Little, group creative director, Juniper Park\TBWA. “This was an opportunity to capture intimate human moments that go beyond the surface level tropes and remind audiences of all the women who have shaped us – mothers who always knew what bedtime story to read, teachers who were kind when we needed it most, daughters who have grown up but will always be children in our minds. This is our motivation, and it reminds us that if we don’t run, these are the people we stand to lose.”  

The campaign launches nationally today across TV, OOH, Social, and Digital, and will be in market until October 2nd. The campaign was directed by Fantavious Fritz and produced by OPC. Post-production was handled by Studio Feather, editing by School Editing, music and sound design by Oso Audio, and media was handled by MediaCom.