Kids Help Phone is changing its phone number into an interval training sequence, enlisting well-known athletes to remind youth that there are supports in place to help them.
For 35 years, the number 686868 has helped connect millions of youths across Canada to Kids Help Phone’s mental health services. The 686868 Circuit is bringing these numbers to the world of sport by transforming them into a modular exercise circuit, turning the everyday practice of counting reps into a reminder for young athletes to let their feelings out.
The non-profit’s latest campaign is a new phase of its “Feel Out Loud” movement, which included a lengthy hero spot earlier this summer that featured Canadian athletes Andre De Grasse, Penny Oleksiak, Marissa Papaconstantinou, William Nylander, Kelly Olynyk and Kia Nurse. The athletes lent their talents to the spot to remind youth how to reach Kids Help Phone, and to encourage adults to make a donation of support. The spot’s tagline is “even champions need champions,” appropriately, set to the strains of Queen’s “We Are the Champions.”
“You’ll see that throughout the film, professional and amateur athletes participate in the 686868 circuit, offering a creative way to feature the Kids Help Phone contact number for text support,” says Kids Help Phone president and CEO Katherine Hay.
As Hay explains, with so many youth who participate in and follow sports, working with athletes to champion “Feel Out Loud” offered another way for the organization to connect with youth and to offer them support when working through difficult feelings.
The target of the work is aimed to reach adults with an appeal to support youth across Canada, while also letting young people know athletes are in their corner.
“We’re actively working on a customizable 686868 Circuit Poster generator that tailors circuits based on filters like sport, exercise type and age,” says Rebecca Stutley, the organization’s senior VP of brand, storytelling and communications.
The campaign is currently airing across national Bell Media TV stations, movie theatres, in arenas and on social media.
It also includes a Globe and Mail ad highlighting the Canadian athletes and sports organizations who support the movement. There’s also a designated landing page on Kids Help Phone’s website where interested parties can download a 6-8-6-8-6-8 circuit curated by athletes, discover real stories from athletes or donate to “Feel Out Loud.”
“Media for this effort is almost 100% donated or in-kind media,” Stutley notes. “This is a fully integrated multi-touchpoint campaign running over a significant period and is an extension of the
‘Feel Out Campaign’ that Kids Help Phone launched in March of last year with artists.”
The fundraising goal of “Feel Out Loud” is $300 million.
Earlier this year, Kids Help Phone launched a new campaign offering zero-dollar gift cards to remind people of the free mental health support it offers, an effort Stutley says was “significantly smaller.”
McCann Canada handled creative, Epitaph oversaw media and Heads+Tales worked on PR for the new campaign.
