There are more than 1.2 million children living with type 1 diabetes. Mismanagement of diabetes can have devastating consequences and this happens more often in low-resource settings where healthcare providers are less educated on this particular disease. Furthermore, very little educational material on diabetes is actually aimed at children - and existing materials have been static, analogue, and unengaging. The brief and objective were therefore to find a way to modernize existing material and the general approach, in order to help children living with type 1 diabetes in low-resource countries better manage and understand the disease so that long-term complications or even death can be avoided.

Say hi to Betty and her besties! We created the first animated series designed specifically for children with type 1 diabetes in developing countries. Betty, our main character, has type 1 diabetes and shows how she deals with her diabetes, while still having fun with her friends. She takes us through the first four episodes and explains why she needs insulin, how much she needs, how to inject it, what low blood sugar is and how to recognise it. All of this was born from the creative insight, that learning and change have everything to do with storytelling - staying true to and amplifying Novo Nordisk’s overarching ambition of driving change for better health… coincidently since 1923 - exactly 100 years ago this year.

Accessibility research and interviews with both healthcare providers and experts at Harvard University, specialising in communication with children, showed that caregivers have a need for educational materials that are simple to understand and entertaining. Storytelling (when done right) has a profound impact on how we remember and integrate information and make sense of the world around us.

It was also paramount to get this information to children living in areas where healthcare isn’t easily accessible. Research also showed that healthcare providers have access to digital screens with internet access, both through screens in clinics and through tablets and smartphones. Most families, even in low-resource areas, have access to at least one digital screen with internet access in their family. It was therefore essential to create something entertaining to children, that could be distributed and found for free online by anyone managing and living with type 1 diabetes.

The goal was to reach an estimated 16M caregivers, parents and teachers of children diagnosed with diabetes in low-resource countries through social media. With a media budget of less than €30k, we were able to reach 100% of the targeted audience in only 3 weeks, with over 1.7M watching the full episodes. This is attributed partly to the levels of positive engagement on social media, helping us spread the word within the audience. Over 40k individuals reacted to the videos on Novo Nordisk channels, and the posts were shared over 1,700 times! Furthermore, the content drove over 300k people to Novo Nordisk’s informational websites about diabetes. Although the numbers are great - the campaign turned out to be such a success that talks have been initiated to bring the content to middle- and high-income countries as well.