i heart boobies and funny fundraising campaigns
May 4, 2011 by Nate Winter
I <3 boobies. Save the ta-tas. Keep a breast. How many other cheeky headlines will they come up with for supporting breast cancer research? Hopefully a lot, because these messages are a delightful vehicle for talking about breast cancer in a way that’s funny, upbeat and welcoming.
The sad realities of breast cancer are tough to talk about. But a bracelet that announces “i <3 boobies” or a t-shirt that reads “save the ta-tas” breaks the ice easily, memorably and hilariously. This is a huge creative idea from the Keep A Breast Foundation.
Another cause with a great sense of humor is Movember, an effort in which men grow mustaches during the month of November to raise awareness and funds toward cures for cancers that affect men. (I wrote a Pomegranate blog post about my Movember participation a few months ago.)
Obviously the sense of humor is a great benefit to fundraising, and to recruiting people to go out and raise those funds. The humor makes these campaigns memorable and even viral. So why doesn’t every cause adopt a funny, lighthearted strategy?
Look at natural disasters like last year's earthquake in Haiti or the tsunami in Japan a couple months ago. Donations via text message and proceeds from Songs for Japan have been very effective, but there’s nothing funny about these fundraising tactics.
In fact, trying to think of a funny campaign idea to raise money for the earthquake or tsunami doesn’t just seem insensitive-- it feels downright sadistic.
So what’s the difference? Why does humor work for the cancers, but not the natural disasters? I believe awareness and prevention are the key factors.
Awareness
Natural disasters are big events. When one strikes, the media reports on it and the world knows the story almost instantly. We don’t need a clever campaign idea to make us take notice.
Cancers are not events. While they affect more people than the natural disasters, they don’t make the news because they don’t hit all at once. So campaigns like i <3 boobies and Movember are designed to get on the cultural radar and draw attention to serious diseases that we don’t hear about regularly.
Prevention
On an individual level, there’s nothing we can do to prevent a natural disaster. There are ways to be prepared for when disaster strikes, but no way to prevent it.
As for cancer, lifestyle can be a contributing factor-- for some cancers more than others. However, the most important thing an individual can do is get medical exams to try to detect a tumor early. That's a vital part of the message in campaigns like i <3 boobies and Movember.
Prevention places the emphasis on life-- a long, fun, healthy one-- not on the effects of the disease. And this silver lining is where these campaigns get their lighthearted tone.
It’s about the relief of seeing a doctor and knowing you’re not at risk. Or detecting a tumor early, and knowing you can be a survivor and a success story. It’s the idea that, whether you have cancer or not, the disease doesn’t define you. It doesn’t intimidate you. Mentally you can dominate the disease by poking fun at it, being confident and not letting fear take hold.
What's Next?
I’m eager to see more campaigns adopt this strategy and delight us with their unexpected takes on serious conditions. So what’s next? Kick bowel cancer’s ass ? Or grab testicular cancer by the balls ? Let the hilarious irreverence (and effective prevention) continue!
