A bold and memorable campaign that motivated people to take on The Prince’s Trust Future Steps event – a fundraising challenge that asks participants to walk 10,000 steps a day.

The Challenge

The Prince’s Trust’s Future Steps event invites people to take on a walking challenge during the month of February. Funds raised are used to help those facing a variety of challenges – in education, enterprise and employment.

Our task was twofold. First, to raise awareness of the event – driving an increase in sign-ups and donations, to fund the Prince’s Trust’s life-changing work. Second, to communicate the event’s key USPs – as the only major step challenge with a step-counting app. It even has the functionality to convert wheelchair distance into steps, making the event truly accessible.

To achieve this, we needed to make an emotional connection with our target audience. And to do that, we wanted to highlight the challenges faced by the UK’s young people – using that as the creative spark for our campaign.

The solution

We started by exploring the different meaning of the word ‘challenge’. A challenge brings out a competitive streak in many of us – and 10,000 steps a day is no different (particularly if you have teammates to outdo). But the UK’s young generations are facing an entirely different type of challenge – with economic conditions making competition fiercer than ever before for those striving to build a future.

So, our campaign tapped into the competitive spirit that motivates people to take part in a mass participation event. We positioned the challenge as an adversary that needed to be overcome. And what better way to dramatise a competitive match-up than by taking inspiration from an old-fashioned boxing poster?

The core creative graphic of our campaign was the word ‘VS’ – which formed the visual centre of the activity. Our lead message was ‘You VS 10k Steps’, which set up the competitive idea in a playful, impactful way.

But the beauty of the idea was its flexibility. So we could also use it highlight the challenges that young people across the UK are facing – by talking about ‘Young People VS An Uncertain Future’. We also used it to promote team participation in the event, as well as bringing to life the reality of taking on a step challenge during the dark, cold mornings and nights of February.

Bold, simple, engaging and able to showcase the challenges faced by young people? We’d call this campaign a winner.

The results

The campaign is still ongoing – but we’re already seeing encouraging results. People across the land have taken on the Future Steps challenge – either alone or in teams – and have more than proven that they’re up to it. Even more importantly, the money raised will go to help more young people beat the challenges they’re facing in their own lives.