Wunderman Thompson and Red Cross Show the Impact of Donations Versus Emotions

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has served the people of Afghanistan for 30 years. And it’s not stopping now. The organisation remains operational across the country, together with their partner the Afghan Red Crescent Society. 

To generate much-needed support for the organisation, Wunderman Thompson has created a data-led film, ‘React For Real’. Inspired by the timeless expression, ‘If I had a dollar for every time…’, the film demonstrates the potential monetary value of our reactions on social media.

The team conducted an intensive data analysis of social media reactions as well as research on real-time needs in Afghanistan for ICRC. Anonymous data was garnered, studied, and analysed to highlight the emojis and hashtags that were most commonly used in response to this crisis.

Ewan Watson, head of campaigns, media relations, and content from the ICRC says: “Millions of people turned to social media to show their solidarity and support to the Afghan people. We wanted to show how powerful that collective concern could be on the lives of Afghans if we had a dollar for every social media post. We hope this film encourages people to support our work in Afghanistan as winter sets in and families are struggling to have the basics they need to survive.”  

Faysal Abdul Malak, managing director of Wunderman Thompson UAE added: “The urgency of the cause meant that the film had to be created in record-time and with a bare minimum budget. However, despite the low production costs, the team used powerful imagery and statements to make a lasting impression on the viewer. We’ve proved that emotional appeal does not always have to rely on a high spend – you just need a good idea, a passionate team and a brilliant client, all of which we have in droves.”

Wunderman Thompson Dubai worked together with teams in Sydney, Seattle, London, and New York to bring this global ICRC film to life, which will be launched across 17 countries in 3 languages.