“I live with dementia”
Dementia UK
Brand awareness campaign
An inspiring campaign to show families living with dementia that they’re not alone.
What we did
Concept
Campaign
Copywriting
Design
Art direction
Project management
Dementia doesn’t just affect the person with the diagnosis. It affects everyone who loves and cares for them. Wives and husbands, siblings and children find themselves becoming full-time carers, cleaners, sole bread-winners. They have to watch their loved one slipping away from them.
In 2022, Dementia UK wanted a long-term brand awareness campaign aimed at people caring for a loved one with dementia. To show that the charity understood what they were going through, and was there for them.
After speaking to people living with dementia and their families, Lark came up with the simple insight: if you love someone living with dementia, you’re living with it too.
“It’s wonderful to work on a campaign where you can just say that line [and] people understand what the campaign is about. It’s the simplicity of it that we’re really proud of.”
Claire Sandham, marketing lead, Dementia UK
Though public-facing, this campaign was aimed primarily at people who are living with the impact of dementia every day. Our message had to capture their imagination, and reflect their experience, but without shocking, triggering or over-dramatising what are difficult and often still heavily stigmatised issues.
Three years into a five-year campaign, our central message has been brought to life in a number of ways, using actors and real people telling their stories of life caring for someone with dementia.
As well as creating static digital and out-of-home ads, the project has included direct response TV advertising, and secondary YouTube-only advertising. Lark has been the lead agency on all concepting and ideation, scriptwriting and production management, bringing a tried and trusted video production partner and crew into our team.
Impact
5.03 million DOOH impressions
5.1 million YouTube impressions
2.9 million video completions
39,315 ‘Living with’ guide downloads
36,718 email sign-ups
So far, the campaign has smashed all its KPIs, including (crucially) more than doubling its targets for email sign-ups and downloads of a new ‘Living with dementia’ guide. Ultimately, this is the whole point of the campaign: helping more people living with dementia get the information and support they need.
Dementia UK also saw a 14% increase in one-off donations during Phase 2 of the campaign, and a 14% increase in demand for the Dementia UK helpline.
‘I live with dementia’ has grown to become Dementia UK’s biggest awareness campaign to date – aiming to reach the thousands of families struggling with dementia in silence, and show them they’re not alone.
Thanks to…
Our amazing cast for sharing their stories of living with dementia: Christine, Clare and Ricky.
Claire, Natalie, Tom, Martin, Abi, Kylie and Lucy at Dementia UK for your invaluable insight and feedback.
Dan, Abi, Aiyana, Tom and the team at Morever for the smooth phase 2 and 3 video shoots.
Kite Factory for making sure the work is seen.
John Wildgoose and crew (Thomas and Maya) for the phase 1 photography.
The brilliant MUAs Lizz and Annelie.
Buff Motion for working their parallax magic.
