JACQUII RUBIN, of World Vision Australia, talks about the organisation’s new Uber Eats-inspired campaign to tackle hunger around the world and why it’s targeting Millennials…
It’s no secret that meal delivery services have taken the world by storm – and Australia is no exception. In fact, the average Australian spends up to $AUD1590 each year on food and drink delivery.
Of the smorgasbord of meal delivery services, Uber Eats is king. At World Vision we celebrate timely truth-telling so in that spirit, I’ll confess that I’m quite a fan of the app…especially after a long week at work.
“The Millennial audience holds a special place for us at World Vision, not only because they represent a significant proportion of our 40 Hour Famine alumni. It is an audience that World Vision is very keen to have a conversation with about helping us to end child hunger. You see, millennials – those born between 1980 and 2000 – are leading the charge when it comes to donating to charity.”
I mentioned this recently to some of my colleagues and it turns out I’m not alone. Across the World Vision Australia office, Uber Eats is a popular indulgence from time to time, an app tapping love affair that’s led by our younger staff – the so-called ‘Millennials’.
The Millennial audience holds a special place for us at World Vision, not only because they represent a significant proportion of our 40 Hour Famine alumni.
It is an audience that World Vision is very keen to have a conversation with about helping us to end child hunger. You see, millennials – those born between 1980 and 2000 – are leading the charge when it comes to donating to charity. Their generosity is incredibly important for an organisation like World Vision that is dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice.
Millennials also have high expectations. When choosing who they donate their hard-earned dollars to, they want to see an organisation having impact, making a difference in today’s world and speaking their language.
So when World Vision Australia’s creative partners suggested we consider tapping into Uber Eats’ latest advertising campaign, we knew they were onto something.
The Uber Eats advertising campaign they were referencing was the one that asks a host of Australian and international celebrities such as Ray Martin, Boy George, Naomi Watts, Sophie Monk, Lee Lin Chin – “What will you be eating tonight?”
While these celebrities – and millions of Australians – have the luxury of selecting from more than 150,000 different menu items on the Uber Eats app, there are millions more around the world for whom the next meal is uncertain.
It’s this contrast that World Vision captures in its new marketing campaign that takes inspiration from the Uber Eats campaign but gives it a different spin.
Instead of using celebrities enjoying hot meals from the best restaurants in Melbourne and Sydney, our campaign instead features images of young children grateful for their bowl of rice or cabbage with the strapline – “Tonight I’ll be eating”.
For those living above the poverty line, hunger is merely a trigger that it’s dinner time. But for many living in developing nations, hunger means a potentially fatal lack of nutrients. These deficiencies lead to impaired cognitive development in children, stillbirths and congenital abnormalities. They also reduce the body’s capacity to fight disease.
The most common cause of hunger is insufficient money. Even in famine zones, those with money often have easier access to food.
World Vision is the largest non-government partner of the UN’s World Food Programme, distributing more emergency food and supplies than any other non-government organisation.
“For those living above the poverty line, hunger is merely a trigger that it’s dinner time. But for many living in developing nations, hunger means a potentially fatal lack of nutrients. These deficiencies lead to impaired cognitive development in children, stillbirths and congenital abnormalities. They also reduce the body’s capacity to fight disease.”
We deliver food to people at immediate risk of malnutrition, while working with communities to strengthen their long-term capabilities to farm and gain income.
We teach farmers how to nurture land, prevent soil degradation, and increase sustainability and productivity. We also supply them with better seeds and cutting-edge farming techniques.
We work in more than 55 countries, helping to create resilient communities who can sustainably use their local natural resources and adapt to change.
Needless to say, World Vision takes hunger and famine prevention seriously.
The new Uber Eats-inspired campaign from World Vision aims to demonstrate that feeding a hungry community can be as easy as ordering a meal.
We are holding a mirror up to a society at a time when more people are dying from consuming too much food than not enough.
For less than the cost of a meal you can support a vulnerable child.
We don’t want to discourage Australians from treating themselves with meal delivery services like Uber Eats.
What we’re suggesting is that by ordering a meal and making a small donation to World Vision at the same time, you can have your cake (or in my case scrambled tofu and pea smash) and eat it too.
For more information visit www.worldvision.com.au/global-issues/work-we-do/famine/tonight-ill-be-eating.
Jacquii Rubin is marketing manager at World Vision Australia.