The power of visual storytelling
Ronald McDonald House (RMH) Perth had a problem. They needed to raise $22 million. Fast.
The not-for-profit organisation’s sole objective is to help sick children and their families during their hour of need. They provide free accommodation for families travelling away from home to obtain specialist medical care. However, RMH found they were turning away thousands of desperate families across Australia each month due to the limited spaces in their houses. Fortunately, they found a large parcel of land near the hospital in Nedlands that would allow RMH Perth to relocate and build a new facility with three times the capacity. CEO at the time, Alison Salmond, knew this was an incredible opportunity; but with every opportunity comes a challenge. To raise the $22 million required Alison knew she needed a campaign like no other. “We needed to effectively market this project to our stakeholders and get the urgency of the message across in order to gain donations for the project,” Alison explained.
Ronald McDonald House had created some successful videos in the past and knew this was the marketing direction they wanted to head in for this campaign. Through the advice of RMH Perth’s capital campaign consultant, Xponential Philanthropy, Alison was pointed toward Lush The Content Agency.
I hadn’t used Lush before but I was certainly impressed when they came in with the pitch. James and Alex are just professional. They know what is cutting edge and are on their game.
Alison Salmond, CEO, Ronald McDonald House
Lush’s Manager of Video Production (and producer of the film), Alex Lush, said success comes down to one thing: good storytelling. “These families have such raw and powerful stories to tell and showing first-hand the reality of the role RMH Perth has played in their lives helped the audience connect to the gravity of the problem,” Alex said. “Importantly, the video also gave them the chance to be a part of the solution.”
Alison agrees telling the story from the perspective of the people at the heart of the cause allows the message to hit home for the viewer. “I loved the simplicity of the authentic interviews with real families. It just goes to show that genuine emotional connection gets better results than flashy cinematography,” Alison said. “Visual storytelling is the best sales tool.”
When the video was finalised, RMH Perth was able to go out and spread their message to raise much-needed funds for the new house and Alison was amazed at how impactful the video was. Alison recounted the positive reaction the video garnered with stakeholders and investors. “At the end of the video, I would have everyone in the room in tears, engaged and saying, ‘what do you need and how can I help?’ It was so effective.”
Lush produced a beautiful, respectful and poignant DVD that captured the essence of what RMH does and equipped us with a tool to help raise much-needed funds to build our new house. Thank you Lush for taking us all on an incredible journey.
Alison Salmond, CEO, Ronald McDonald House