It was the summer of ’04, mid-August
Edinburgh was thick with tourists and performers, the air smelled of hops, pollen and spilt cider. Everywhere I walked someone shoved a flyer for a comedy show that involved some form of audience participation into my reluctant hands.
That summer I wanted to work, save-up for my flat deposit and take full Bacchanalian advantage of the city’s late licensing laws. Any enjoyment of that summer was abruptly cut short on a Thursday afternoon. My mum had terrible news, she had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
Joy leeched out of my world as panic fell down like freezing mid-winter rain. Fortunately, my mum was one of the lucky ones, and she survived.
One in two
One in two of us will be affected by cancer, my experience is no different from my colleagues working at Always Be Content. At the time of writing amongst our staff, half of us have been touched by cancer in some way. These are sobering odds.
If you take a moment to ask around your friends or your colleagues, you’ll see the reality of this statistic for yourself. Someone’s mum. A friend. A colleague’s daughter or son. You. It may be currently one in two of us who are affected by cancer, but Cancer Research UK (CRUK) is working tirelessly to lower those odds, through research, diagnosis, prevention and treatment.
All with no government funding. Last year they spent £423 million on research in support of their ambition to see 3 in 4 people survive cancer by 2034. It’s thanks to CRUK that my mum is still alive, and that the odds of cancer survival have increased to 50% from less than 25% in the ’70s.
Offering support
Given our personal experience with the disease, Always Be Content are delighted to help support CRUK. It is our privilege to be creative partners for the inaugural Edinburgh Business Beats Cancer fundraising and networking dinner. Funds raised on the night will stay in Scotland’s Capital, funding CRUK Scotland and the Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre.
As creative partners, we’re going above and beyond. Sharing our time, skills and expertise to help create a special evening that no attendees will forget and help Business Beats Cancer reach their fundraising goal of £35,000.
The creative myth
It’s often believed that creativity flourishes best with no boundaries. That’s a myth. Creativity can (and does) flourish within parameters. You may be familiar with the CRUK branding: pink, blue, purple and white dots that make their fundraising shops, website and other resources stand out as trusted sources of support and help.
We applied our creativity to CRUK’s iconic branding, working within defined limits to create something unique that befits the great work that CRUK does. Our talented creative director Steve Kempster was inspired by scientific research equipment and the traditional drink of celebration – champagne flutes.
Using CRUK’s dots and distinct colour palette, we created an image of a full bubbling champagne flute that transforms into a full test tube. This image succinctly encapsulates the goal of the fundraising efforts for Business Beats Cancer. From the exciting, glamorous evening of entertainment and auction prizes to the end goal: funding researchers, scientists and diagnosticians to help find a cure.
One of the key hallmarks of a great creative idea is that it can easily translate to different mediums. We turned this concept into an email invite, host pack and paper invite, as well as an event programme (in the shape of a wine-list, naturally), pop up banners, and table settings. Not only did we create assets, we also applied our creativity to Edinburgh Business Beats Cancer social media. We branded their chosen channels (Twitter and LinkedIn), created content for four weeks in the run up to the event to generate excitement, buzz for this inaugural event.
We also provided our expertise in digital content to the on-line auction website, www.bizbeatscancer.com. We put together an on-brand webspace that’s worthy of the great work being undertaken by CRUK right here in the capital and one that helps to reach the fundraising goal. By diffusing our creative concept across different mediums, we continually reaffirm the overarching message of the event. For Edinburgh’s Business Community to put their hands together, and their hands in their pockets to celebrate the fantastic work that’s happening right here in the capital to help find a cure for cancer.
