Charitable giving in the UK amounts to £11bn, of which 6% or £660m goes to animal charities. In 20011/2012 the charity sector in general began to show signs of stress due to the recession and its direct impact on disposable income.

In light of these challenges, The Donkey Sanctuary realised that it needed to make a stronger emotional connection with its donors and seek to attract a younger and broader support group - the majority of its supporters are currently 45+ years old. Our brief was to help increase donations by 33%.

We created a new brand proposition - Selfless Devotion. This strategy built on the emotional legacy of the charity to heighten appeal and deliver consistency for the charity as a visitor destination and as a worldwide animal charity.

We then created an iconic identity and tone of voice to communicate the almost spiritual feeling of ‘care and devotion’ in a consistent and emotionally compelling way across every part of the charity.

- 76% increase in donations for July/August 2012 compared to the same period in 2011

- 56% increase in merchandise sales for July/August 2012 compared to the same period in 2011

- 69% increase in revenue from a seasonal mailer as a result of the rebrand

“Our office has been inundated with requests for ‘new brand’ uniforms – so much so that we’re having to print a ‘Calm down’ message in tomorrow’s internal weekly newsletter.” - Mark Cross, Head of Brand and Design.