Donation Dollar
Royal Australian Mint
How we raised millions for Australian charities by thinking small
In 2020, we introduced Australia to Donation Dollar.
The world’s first legal tender currency designed to be donated, not spent. One was minted for every Australian.
Over 25 million individual daily reminders to give, over and over and over again; creating a generosity loop that lasts generations.
So far, the idea has:
Earned the endorsement of the Community Council for Australia, the representative body of 50,000 Australian charities.
Become the world’s most creatively awarded campaign for 2021.
Received top honours in Fast Company’s ‘Best World Changing Idea’.
Raised an around $1.9m for Australian charities.
Donation Dollar is the brainchild of Adam and Peter. I remember seeing it on a wall of proactive ideas in my first year of advertising. Fast forward four years later and the three of us are presenting it to Royal Australian Mint.
As a young planner, it was a wild ride where I just kept learning by doing. It involved me:
Showing the Mint how the idea aligned with their own ambitions. [Image]
Disproving an age-old economic principle that the Mint religiously followed. [Image]
Running around the country hosting and reporting back on focus groups, to get the buy-in of Australians before the government signed it off. [Image]
Testing different designs at grocery stores where we planted dummy coins in to see which ones were donated most. [Image]
Campaign and channel planning the campaign so the idea felt like it was owned by everyone, not dictated by higher ups. [Image]
Writing a bunch of effectiveness award papers for the first time. [Image]
I still get random messages from friends when they find one in their spare change which gives me the warm and fuzzies.
My role:
Strategy Lead
Made with:
Adam Ferrie, Peter Cvetkovski, Matt Alpass and Lucy Trengove
Agency:
Saatchi & Saatchi Australia
Awards:
