Australian Bushfires Appeal

Agency: WWF International

WWF is the world's leading environmental charity. Following the Amazon fires, the Australian bushfires of summer 2019-2020 gained global attention. People lost their homes, their livelihoods and their lives, and animals perished in their millions. The fires continued as a new virus outbreak was discovered in Wuhan. Disaster fatigue began to set in, just when Australia needed aid most to tackle the fires and provide care and support to people and wildlife.

WWF approached Tug with a challenge: To raise vital funds for their Emergency Bushfire Appeal on social media. This was the first time Tug had appealed for donations on organic social. We used a cross-channel approach on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Our aim was to inspire hope rather than despair, to galvanise people to help.

Our organic social posts reached 9,506,526 people, with an average engagement rate of 7% (over 3X the industry average). But most importantly for WWF and the Australian relief team, we exceeded our fundraising goals.

By continuing to talk about the bushfires beyond the initial disaster, we raised awareness of the long-term impacts of climate-related disasters. The bushfires have become a springboard to encourage WWF's audience to take action in other ways, such as by signing ongoing WWF petitions.