Pointed transport
The nonprofit organization Tixi, which provides transportation services for people with disabilities, hopes to boost donations with a quirky TV commercial by Ruf Lanz.
NPO The transport service for the disabled, Tixi, wants to increase donations with a quirky TV commercial by Ruf Lanz.Tixi is a transport service for all mobility-impaired people who cannot use public transport or can only do so under difficult conditions. With its service, it aims to make it easier for disabled people to socialize with the outside world and thus integrate into society. Thanks to financial contributions from patrons and partners such as Bank Morgan Stanley, ETH Zurich, Shell and Siemens Switzerland, Tixi fares are approximately the same as those of public transport. However, despite the voluntary service provided by over 400 drivers, the 22-year-old Zurich-based organization is plagued by financial worries. A full 25 percent of operating costs have to be covered by charitable donations.
As with other local and regional aid organizations, generating publicity and increasing awareness for Tixi involves a disproportionately high level of effort. Previously, communication measures were limited to stand campaigns at markets, open days, PR and the visibility of the vehicle fleet. To improve this, Stefan Del Fabro joined Tixi around a year ago as Head of Fundraising and Communication. What is missing is a concise image that can compensate for the lack of resources. He commissioned the Ruf Lanz agency with the conception and implementation of a fundraising campaign, which has made the Mühlehalde home for the blind known throughout the country with various campaigns and has been able to significantly increase the income from donations.
The result for Tixi - a low-budget TV commercial - is convincing anew because it differs greatly from conventional donation advertising. With biting humor, almost a trademark of the agency, the commercial dramatizes how difficult it could be for disabled people to get around without the Tixi transport service.
Generous courtesy from everyone involved in the commercialThe TV commercial shows a cool, carefree cab driver transporting a disabled woman in a wheelchair in his conventional vehicle. Due to a lack of accommodation in the cab, he has unceremoniously tied the woman and her wheelchair to the roof and drives his freight through a residential area with speed bumps - which doesn't make transportation on the roof any more comfortable. Unmoved, the driver finally turns off towards the highway. The resolution is revealed in this final shot: Normal cabs are not equipped for the disabled. That's why we need Tixi, the transportation service for the disabled.
"The advertisements and posters based on the same idea should be just as hard to miss as the TV commercial," says Markus Ruf. The implementation and placement of the various advertising materials was only possible thanks to the generous cooperation of all those involved - from the film production company Rosas 'n' Co to the stunt people and TeleZüri, where the commercial will be broadcast in prime time from mid-September. "No donations were used for the Tixi campaign," says Danielle Lanz proudly.
The commercial makes it clear that a normal cab is not suitable for everyone.
As with other local and regional aid organizations, generating publicity and increasing awareness for Tixi involves a disproportionately high level of effort. Previously, communication measures were limited to stand campaigns at markets, open days, PR and the visibility of the vehicle fleet. To improve this, Stefan Del Fabro joined Tixi around a year ago as Head of Fundraising and Communication. What is missing is a concise image that can compensate for the lack of resources. He commissioned the Ruf Lanz agency with the conception and implementation of a fundraising campaign, which has made the Mühlehalde home for the blind known throughout the country with various campaigns and has been able to significantly increase the income from donations.
The result for Tixi - a low-budget TV commercial - is convincing anew because it differs greatly from conventional donation advertising. With biting humor, almost a trademark of the agency, the commercial dramatizes how difficult it could be for disabled people to get around without the Tixi transport service.
Generous courtesy from everyone involved in the commercialThe TV commercial shows a cool, carefree cab driver transporting a disabled woman in a wheelchair in his conventional vehicle. Due to a lack of accommodation in the cab, he has unceremoniously tied the woman and her wheelchair to the roof and drives his freight through a residential area with speed bumps - which doesn't make transportation on the roof any more comfortable. Unmoved, the driver finally turns off towards the highway. The resolution is revealed in this final shot: Normal cabs are not equipped for the disabled. That's why we need Tixi, the transportation service for the disabled.
"The advertisements and posters based on the same idea should be just as hard to miss as the TV commercial," says Markus Ruf. The implementation and placement of the various advertising materials was only possible thanks to the generous cooperation of all those involved - from the film production company Rosas 'n' Co to the stunt people and TeleZüri, where the commercial will be broadcast in prime time from mid-September. "No donations were used for the Tixi campaign," says Danielle Lanz proudly.
The commercial makes it clear that a normal cab is not suitable for everyone.
Luca Aloisi
