2012 Nonprofit PR Awards: Facebook Communications Campaign

Winner: American Airlines and Weber Shandwick – American Airlines Invites Customers to ‘Fly for the Cure’

In support of American Airlines’ pledge to raise $1 million in 2011 benefiting Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Weber Shandwick built a “virtual pinkboard”—an interactive world map—to be located on the airline’s Facebook page. In October 2011, AA customers and employees across the world were invited to visit a “Fly for the Cure” Facebook tab, through which they could donate to Komen via AA’s Miles for the Cure program and “pin” a pink ribbon at their location on the interactive map in honor of the individual the customer or employee was flying for during that month. It was a socially interactive way to engage with consumers and employees in a manner which made the act of giving a very personal experience, and tied it to AA’s mission to fight breast cancer by supporting Komen through a $1 million annual grant over the next eight years.

By the end of October, more than 2,500 pink ribbons were “pinned” onto the interactive map, and more importantly, helped AA reach its annual $1 million fundraising goal.—SP

Honorable Mentions:

Audubon and Goodby, Silverstein & Partners – Birding the Net: Audubon developed an interactive game that “let birds loose” all over the Web, in which users could click on and “net” a bird that showed up on any of over 800 Web sites. Then, the user was directed to see where he stood on the leaderboard on the campaign’s Facebook page. The campaign drove 64,000 visits to the Birding the Net Facebook app, pushing the number of “likes” for Audubon up to 41,000 (a 51% increase).

The Partnership at Drugfree.org’s Meet the Parents Hour: The Partnership at Drugfree.org moderates a monthly forum on its Facebook wall where parents affected by drug abuse in their family can speak with experts on the topic in real time. A conversation in June 2011 with author Libby Cataldi attracted over 1,700 visitors and 220 comments during the chat.