aidFIVE

How it all started

In 2021, I came across a project of the Deutsche Fernsehlotterie and the Stiftung Deutsches Hilfswerk: aidFIVE. The Deutsche Fernsehlotterie, whose audience is among an elderly segment, planned to form a spin-off for a younger generation as an independent company. The concept and the wireframes were already in place, plus there was a generous amount of money from the Stiftung Deutsches Hilfswerk and a board of investors to start the project with a loud bang and fund it for several years. In April, we started with a 6-person founders team to transform the project into a fully operational start-up. My role as Head of Brand was to build the brand. To do this, we came together as a three-person brand team in the company’s overall structure. Until the official registration as a limited liability company (gGmbH) and the launch of the first prototype, however, some time passed in which we all worked together on all fronts. After we were finally able to launch the MVP with a considerable delay in the fourth quarter, there was hardly any time to celebrate, because after the testing phase, the brand campaign was supposed to go live at the end of the year.

What is a social lottery?

The Deutsche Fernsehlotterie is a non-profit, social lottery commissioned by ARD and the leading municipal associations to benefit people in need. It was founded in 1956, making it Germany’s oldest social lottery. Players can buy a ticket and win, just like in a conventional lottery, but a significant amount of the money raised is invested in social projects. aidFIVE works in a similar fashion, but with an innovative approach in the way the users play.

What makes aidFIVE special?

Shop. Help. Win. That’s aidFIVE’s three-step game principle that empowers the brand to achieve its vision of making helping as easy as shopping. Consumerism is part of our reality and often average citizens are quite unaware of all the money being spent on a daily basis (even if it’s just micro amounts), while people of lesser means are forced to pay close attention to their budget. aidFIVE helps not only to develop a sensibility for everyday consumption, but also to start living with one another in a healthier society. This is how it works:

1. you buy something and remember to take the bill with you (online or offline). This can be something quite mundane. The weekly groceries, the electricity bill, the membership fee at the local sports club… you name it.
2. upload the bill/invoice/receipt to aidFIVE. Your stake is 5€, of which 30% goes to a social project (the remaining money flows into the prize pot, taxes and running costs such as employee salaries).
3. if you win you are refunded the entire cost of your purchase. If you lose you still have supported a social project of your choice. Priceless.

About the campaign

Once we had elaborated the brand, it was time for the launch campaign. We wanted to make »helping as easy as shopping« a simple reality for a young generation. The first planned step of a longer-term strategy was to show shopping in all its aspects and absurdities in a humorous way.

The tagline for this was: »No matter what you buy, it’s okay.« together with the hashtag #sehrokay (»very okay« as an aspired state in a world in which everyone is oriented towards the unattainable, perfect superlative). The »okay person« developed in our Brand Story was to come to life and show in different roles what they bought for whatever cringe reasons. You can watch the corresponding TV and online spots in German here. As well as a montage of a guerrilla event on Hamburg’s Reeperbahn with Olivia Jones, who was waiting for people in front of the legendary supermarket to play with them for their groceries.