2021 Winner
GoldBest in Websites and Microsites
GoldBest in Niche Targeting
Interval House
"ESCape Abuse"
Union
"ESCape Abuse"
Union
During COVID-19, domestic violence has increased by over 30%. Women are effectively trapped in their homes with their abusers, and the isolation makes it even harder for them to reach out. Interval House Women’s Shelter wanted to help these women plan a safe escape. But how could they get lifesaving information into women’s hands without their ever-present abusers finding out?
They knew that one of the few places they could reach abused women during the pandemic was online. Yet even there, abusers are constantly monitoring women’s activity. So they created a Lifestyle website that can save lives.
At first glance, “The Way to Live: A Style Guide for the Modern Woman” looks like any other beauty and fashion site. But hold down the ESCAPE key and the site changes to “The Way to Leave: An Escape Plan for the Abused Woman”. This secret site is a quick reference to all the information a woman needs to leave safely, including how to pack an emergency bag, tips on disabling GPS tracking, and the Interval House crisis line. But because it looks like “just another lifestyle site”, her partner will never suspect a thing. At a time when women couldn’t leave their homes, they found a way to get them the help they needed, entirely online.
They had a unique media challenge: how do they reach women without alerting their abusers, knowing that they can’t leave their homes? First, they hid this lifesaving information on what appeared to be a lifestyle site. Then they had the equally challenging job of letting women know about the site.
Spring boarding off the core insight of “hiding in plain sight”, they decided to reach women through digital ads, in places they knew only women would be. They carefully crafted a plan based on micro-targeted ads on niche, female-centric platforms such as Pinterest. Plus, the site was promoted on sites like Elle Canada and shows like CityLine, which have a largely female audience. By disguising all the information a woman needs to leave her abuser as a lifestyle site, they were able to reach women in their homes, but away from their abusers’ prying eyes.
Their media plan was unique in that it reached women entirely in the digital space, but managed to hide the sensitive message by targeting women in places they knew men wouldn’t be interested in. This careful use of micro-targeting allowed them to reach women safely, and ultimately save lives.
The campaign has been incredibly effective. Women spent an average of over 5 minutes on the site, more than double the average engagement. And most importantly, it has resulted in an 89% increase in women reaching out for help. In the darkest days of lockdown, they found a way to reach women without alerting their partners, and helped them escape abuse.
This entire campaign was done on an incredibly limited budget:
media buy: $2,034; production costs: $1,143.56; PR: $1,130.
They knew that one of the few places they could reach abused women during the pandemic was online. Yet even there, abusers are constantly monitoring women’s activity. So they created a Lifestyle website that can save lives.
At first glance, “The Way to Live: A Style Guide for the Modern Woman” looks like any other beauty and fashion site. But hold down the ESCAPE key and the site changes to “The Way to Leave: An Escape Plan for the Abused Woman”. This secret site is a quick reference to all the information a woman needs to leave safely, including how to pack an emergency bag, tips on disabling GPS tracking, and the Interval House crisis line. But because it looks like “just another lifestyle site”, her partner will never suspect a thing. At a time when women couldn’t leave their homes, they found a way to get them the help they needed, entirely online.
They had a unique media challenge: how do they reach women without alerting their abusers, knowing that they can’t leave their homes? First, they hid this lifesaving information on what appeared to be a lifestyle site. Then they had the equally challenging job of letting women know about the site.
Spring boarding off the core insight of “hiding in plain sight”, they decided to reach women through digital ads, in places they knew only women would be. They carefully crafted a plan based on micro-targeted ads on niche, female-centric platforms such as Pinterest. Plus, the site was promoted on sites like Elle Canada and shows like CityLine, which have a largely female audience. By disguising all the information a woman needs to leave her abuser as a lifestyle site, they were able to reach women in their homes, but away from their abusers’ prying eyes.
Their media plan was unique in that it reached women entirely in the digital space, but managed to hide the sensitive message by targeting women in places they knew men wouldn’t be interested in. This careful use of micro-targeting allowed them to reach women safely, and ultimately save lives.
The campaign has been incredibly effective. Women spent an average of over 5 minutes on the site, more than double the average engagement. And most importantly, it has resulted in an 89% increase in women reaching out for help. In the darkest days of lockdown, they found a way to reach women without alerting their partners, and helped them escape abuse.
This entire campaign was done on an incredibly limited budget:
media buy: $2,034; production costs: $1,143.56; PR: $1,130.
Credits
Agency: UNIONChief Creative Officer: Lance Martin
Executive Creative Director & Art Director: Adam Thur
Executive Creative Director & Copywriter: Rica Eckersley
Art Director: Adrian Stiegler
VP, Integrated Production: Jen Dark
Integrated Producer: Carolyn Mitchell
Photographer: Jonathan Lajoie
Studio Manager: William Leung
Director, Digital Production: Jan Kanhai
Front End Developer: Scott Duncan
President: Catherine Marcolin
Group Account Director: Kristine Lafreniere
Account Supervisor: Bianca LaPenna
Strategist: Jocelynn Rennie
VP, Group Media Director: Cherie Raymond
Associate Media Director: Samantha Marion