Dogs Trust ‘Drugs’ direct campaign

Agency: 141 Worldwide/London

Client: Dogs Trust

The largest dog welfare charity in the UK, Dogs Trust, has launched a direct mail campaign which centres on the plight of Olly, a five-year-old crossbreed, rescued from hardship and nursed back to health and happiness by the charity.

The mailer targets the entire Dogs Trust database and will drop from mid-April, with the aim of attracting extra funds from existing and new donors.

Olly was chosen as the perfect example of a dog whose owner loved him but was unable to care for him owing to her own drug dependency.

The mailer focuses on how Olly was rescued from a drugs focused environment where, in rummaging round on the floor for something to eat, he could have ingested a lot of drugs.

The story, told in a letter from Glasgow’s Centre manager Sandra Downie, shows how, with the dedicated care of Dogs Trust, Olly has now made incredible progress although still needs special care.

Inside the A5 leaflet, created by 141 Worldwide. a cut out of Olly features at the centre of a wheel showing a series of captioned photos which explain how he was nursed back to health at the Glasgow centre.

Dogs Trust helped 16,000 dogs around the country last year, more than ever before, and that new and powerful statistic is depicted in a UK map showing all 17 Dogs Trust centres.

Joanne Howard, of Dogs Trust, said, “Once again, by focusing on the work we have done and in presenting it through great photography and emotive language, 141 have created a mailer that gets to the heart of our cause and the heart of our donors.”

141 Worldwide business director, added,  “Through Olly’s story we show how vital and effective Dogs Trust work is.  Olly’s amazing turnaround from a bedraggled and pitiful dog to a loving pet for the right family is an uplifting and heart-warming story with the message that donors do make a real difference.”