Blue Peter Shoe Biz Appeal
Background
The Blue Peter Shoe Biz Appeal (launched in Autumn 2006), requested viewers to collect pairs of second-hand shoes and deposit them at 'Shoe Biz' collection points around the country to raise money for UNICEF. The unwanted shoes, slippers and boots would be recycled and converted into cash for the appeal. Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world, with over one million orphans, many of them as a result of HIV/AIDS. To date the appeal has collected 727,000 pairs of shoes.
UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, business, foundations and governments, making these partnerships so vital. Since 1946 UNICEF has been the world's leader for children, working in 158 countries to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through to adolescence. The world's largest provider of vaccines for poor countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation and AIDS.
The business need
The appeal website required a facility for donors to be directed to their nearest shoe collection point, to make donating easier and maximise the funds raised. By implementing Store Finder from Postcode Anywhere, donors were able to click on the BBC's link to the Blue Peter Shoe Biz Appeal and by keying in their postcode would be immediately signposted to the nearest shoe collection point to where they live.
UNICEF also uses Government Areas from Postcode Anywhere to enable real-time lobbying.
Postcode Anywhere has enabled UNICEF to make a difference to the lives of children affected by HIV and AIDS - and we're extremely grateful.
Why Postcode Anywhere?
- Enables the capture of addresses from a postcode or part address, ensuring donor details are accurate
- Gift Aid confirmations are delivered to the right person
- Provides online Member of Parliament data for real-time lobbying
- Automatically captures donor bank details from an account code, significantly reducing the number of rejected direct debits
- Has the capability of plotting donors on a map to show where campaigns have been particularly successful
Benefits
- Donors retrieve vital information swiftly and accurately
- Reduced administration time and costs
- UNICEF is able to capture donor details
- Provides an opportunity for UNICEF to promote objectives and activities on BBC's website
The bottom line
UNICEF's webmaster, Jon Lind, who plays a key role in ensuring the smooth and efficient running of the organisation's websites, commented: "UNICEF is extremely grateful to Postcode Anywhere for their support of the Blue Peter Shoe Biz Appeal. By enabling donors to easily find their nearest collection point, we have already exceeded our planned target of 500,000 pairs of shoes and as the appeal runs until next November, we now confidently expect to collect over one million pairs, which will enable UNICEF to make a difference to the lives of children in Malawi who have been affected by HIV and AIDS."