We wanted to help NABS and get people in the Direct Marketing industry involved. So, for our agency Christmas Card, we sent people in the industry (agencies, clients and suppliers) a blank, white canvas.The mailing said: "this is the White Christmas everyone is dreaming of".However, we also asked them to take the canvas and do something creative with it – an illustration ... a painting ... a scribble ... etc.We told them that we would then be auctioning off the results and the money would be going to NABS.

We mailed out 500 canvases. We got back 116 from competitors, clients and suppliers. That is a response rate of over 23%!Better still, the auction raised £9,650.Moreover, the trade press (Campaign and Marketing Direct) ran prominent stories (free publicity worth an estimated £8,000), which further raised the profile of NABS within our industry.NABS are delighted. Next Christmas they want every agency in London to be involved. They reckon that if our small agency (75 people) can raise nearly £10,000, an auction involving the entire industry should raise hundreds of thousands of pounds!