SickKids rebranded with the goal of generating $1 billion in donations over the next five years. SickKids was setting records for donations -- however, the money was coming from the same donor set, which was aging out and skewed heavily female. To succeed, SickKids needed to jolt new donors off of the sidelines.

Consumers were becoming trained to expect a specific tone and message from cause marketing. That training was leading them to ignore the multitude of pleas from every direction. For new potential donors to donate, they needed to know that they were supporting a winning organization, but they could help achieve tangible results even in the smallest amounts. People are far more likely to donate if they feel that an organization is on the cusp of something significant and far more apt to pay attention when a tone shifts significantly.

SickKids, along with its agency Cossette, focused on shifting SickKids from a 'cause' brand to a 'performance' brand in the vein of Nike and Under Armour. The brief became: SickKids is taking on the greatest challenges in child health, and it is winning. But, the organization won't stop until every kid is healthy. The transformational platform became SickKids VS The Greatest Challenges in Child Health.

The campaign launched with a two-minute film online and on television during the Toronto Maple Leafs home opener. The video then played at the Leaf’s home game. SickKids changed all of the signage at the hospital, created OOH billboards and dominated Dundas Square and TTC streetcars. The website changed and donors, when they donated, could identify the cause they are fighting. SickKids even made personalized T-shirts and created a giant neon VS sign to be placed in the hospital for kids and their families to pose in front of for photos before a procedure or a meeting with a doctor.

SickKids then launched a series of online films, which explored the complexity of the hospital by telling the story of Grace, a child who lost her battle with cancer but inspired an entire research team to fight for a cure with SickKids VS Cancer. The campaign then featured Hartley, who, after a dozen surgeries, told the need for more operating rooms with SickKids VS 100 Today. And, finally, the story of the hospital rallying to ensure Santa Claus could find the children at the hospital, a major source of anxiety for kids who are at SickKids for the holidays with SickKids VS Missing Home.

From October 2016 to December 2016 SickKids reported an all-time donation record for a campaign of $57.9 million. Online donation revenue increased by 695%, and the foundation saw a 32% increase in transactions. There was also a 63% increase in average donation dollar, with an unprecedented increase in male and millennial contributions. The video also received more than eight million video views and 4,000 “VS” t-shirts were sold.