SIREN TEST

TitleSIREN TEST
BrandAMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
Product/ServiceRADIO COMMERCIAL (AUDIO ONLY)
Category G04. Social Behaviour & Cultural Insight
Entrant AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL Zurich, SWITZERLAND
Idea Creation JUNG VON MATT/LIMMAT Zürich, SWITZERLAND
Media Placement JUNG VON MATT/LIMMAT Zürich, SWITZERLAND
PR JUNG VON MATT/LIMMAT Zürich, SWITZERLAND
Production JUNG VON MATT/LIMMAT Zürich, SWITZERLAND
Additional Company RADIO 24 Zurich, SWITZERLAND
Credits
Name Company Position
Dennis Lueck Jung von Matt/Limmat Chief Creative Officer
Lorenz Clormann Jung von Matt/Limmat Creative Director
Frederik Dreier Jung von Matt/Limmat Texter
Sabrina Izumi Jung von Matt/Limmat Project Manager / Consultant
Fernando Gort Jung von Matt/Limmat Consultant

Why is this work relevant for Media?

While alarm sirens were being tested across Switzerland, Amnesty International, in partnership with Radio 24, broadcast live sounds from the war in Yemen together with an appeal for donations. In doing so, Amnesty International combined radio as an audio platform with a national event to generate maximum reach for their message on a small budget.

Background

Since March 25, 2015, homes, schools, and hospitals in Yemen are being destroyed without warning during air attacks. At the same time, despite 200 years of peace, alarm sirens in Switzerland are tested every year to see whether they still work. Is that not absurd?

Describe the creative idea / insights (30% of vote)

To raise awareness among potential donors and to retain existing ones, we turned the siren test into an emergency. While alarm sirens were being tested across Switzerland, live sounds of war from Yemen were also being broadcast on Radio 24 and at promotional stands. The transmission ended with a special broadcast on the topic, including an appeal for donations to support the work of Amnesty International in protecting the civil population in Yemen.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

In Switzerland, the public is requested to turn on their radio in case of alarm to receive information on what to do next. Therefore, a creative strategy was developed. The Swiss siren test, an event with a high level of national attention, would be used to put abuses in Yemen on center stage. The aim was to destroy the gap between peaceful Switzerland and the brutal reality in Yemen. The population was to get a wake-up call via the audible experience of war. This gave rise to the idea of cooperating with Radio 24 and broadcasting the sounds of war simultaneously to the siren test.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

Each year, the siren test takes place on the first Wednesday in February. Amnesty International wanted to use precisely this topical, nationwide occurrence to call attention to the “forgotten war” in Yemen. The initiative took place on February 6, 2019 at exactly 1:30 p.m. and lasted 2 minutes and 15 seconds, like every year. The message reached a national audience, as people in Switzerland are always requested to turn on their radios during a siren test.

List the results (30% of vote)

The results of this radio-driven experience: The number of listeners rose by more than 400 percent that day, making it the largest Swiss radio audience ever. Donations for Amnesty International increased by over 200 percent during the two-week campaign period. In total, over 1.2 million Swiss Francs were raised to support the population in Yemen. In addition to that, dialogue teams collected over 100,000 signatures to stop arms exports. Over half of the Swiss population was reached with this radio-driven campaign. Thus, Amnesty International was able to turn the annual war siren test into an acoustic memorial that will resonate for a long time.

Please tell us about the social behaviour and / or cultural insights that inspired your campaign

While the alarm sirens were tested throughout Switzerland, Amnesty International, in a media cooperation with Radio 24, broadcast real sounds of war from Yemen, along with an appeal for donations. At the same time, promotional teams played the broadcast over loudspeakers in order to collect signatures against arms deliveries and to solicit donations. Through this unexpected and thought-provoking initiative, Amnesty International and Radio 24 brought the Yemen war back into the consciousness of the Swiss and turned the annual siren test into an acoustic memorial that will be remembered for a long time to come.