RNLI Puts London at the Heart of New Campaign to Support UK’s Busiest Lifeboat Station

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has today launched a new fundraising campaign in support of its Tower Station. Located on the River Thames in London, it’s the UK’s busiest lifeboat station, with the Tower Lifeboat having launched 8,350 times since service began in 2002 - rescuing 1,889 people to date. Now, after almost 20 years of service, it is time to construct a station that is fit for the future. 

This new station will not only allow the RNLI to care for casualties and support its crew (which work 12 hour shifts), but continue saving lives for years to come. With the Tower Lifeboat Station funded by kind donations, the RNLI is looking to raise the funds needed for the rebuild. To achieve this, the charity has reunited with independent creative and production agency Five by Five for a campaign that shines a spotlight on the vitally important station. Using stark imagery to highlight the RNLI’s presence on London’s water, the print campaign asks ‘We’re here for London - will you be here for us?’.

In order to craft a campaign that both appealed to a London-specific audience and encouraged financial support, Five by Five’s insights and planning team looked closely at behaviour sciences. Understanding that, when it comes to charitable giving, facts and figures don’t always pack a punch, the team focused on a message that had an identifiable beneficiary - something that audiences felt connected to. Looking to drive an emotional response, the agency worked to put London at the heart of the campaign, ensuring the RNLI’s tireless work felt relevant to this specific audience. 

The campaign itself offers a unique opportunity for those in the city, as it means Londoners are able to fund a station local to them - letting them see the impact of their donations first-hand. As such, relevance and authenticity were key factors when developing the campaign, and Five by Five even worked with one of the Tower Lifeboat Station volunteers to voice the radio appeal. 

Sarah Shaw, client director at Five by Five UK, comments: “The biggest challenge for us was to craft a campaign that not only built awareness for the Tower Station, but really resonated with the London population. Especially as many people associate the RNLI with coastal regions, it was key to highlight the great work the charity does in the city and the importance of the station in saving lives and keeping residents safe. Whatever we came up with needed to have London at its heart, and make the station feel like part of the fabric of the city - helping audiences feel truly connected to the cause.”

The campaign launched on Monday 6th of September, with media handled by Medialab. It will run primarily across press, social, and digital, including paid searches, radio, and a partnership with the Evening Standard.