We needed to raise money for The MicroLoan Foundation, a charity that gives money to women in Africa to set up their own small businesses.

Our Never-Ending charity box took inspiration from old-fashioned charity boxes, and digitally recreated them to make them exciting again.

Using Arduino technology, real coins were changed into digital ones in front of people’s eyes, on a massive interactive digital billboard. Coins accelerated down ramps and interacted with mechanical illustrations, incorporated into a 3D computer model. The illustrations were styled on genuine African shop signs, telling real-life stories of how a donation can change lives.

We hired the extra large screen at Westfield shopping center, the largest shopping center in London, to create our Never-Ending Charity Box. Like an old fashioned charity box, we were still asking people for their small change whilst they shopped, but gave them a richer, more interactive experience.

Our digital poster also allowed us to introduce the idea of a Never-Ending Charity Box. Coins continuously moved through different stories, getting passed from person to person, showing how every MicroLoan donation is repaid and used again.

The interactive playfulness of the box encouraged multiple donations. In its first morning, the poster helped 16 women who had nothing, start their own small businesses. This money will be repaid, and loaned again to more women, and help entire communities get on their feet.

We reached 85,000 people on Twitter with #MLcharitybox

In total 100,000 people were exposed to the campaign and the unique way MicroLoan works.