2024 Winner

CASE SUMMARY

Approximately 1 in 10 babies are born prematurely each year in the province of Quebec. Préma-Québec, the only organization in Quebec that provides financial and psychological support to the families of premature babies, isn’t well known. The increased awareness generated by the campaign was intended to help the non-profit raise funds to support
its mission.

Holding a premature baby is life-changing. Their fragility is forever etched in your memory...but it’s something only the parents of these tiny infants experience. To raise awareness of prematurity, they decided to literally put the average weight of a premature baby in people’s hands with a book that educates, entertains and generates funds
for the cause.

The book was promoted in Quebec through an integrated campaign and, just like a premature baby, arrived a month earlier than expected: on November 17 — World Prematurity Day.

It’s said that empathy is the most powerful tool for fundraising. It creates a potent connection that pushes donors to act. Regular campaigns weren’t enough to convey the indescribable feeling of cradling a tiny infant in your arms.

So they created a book with the average weight of a premature baby, “The 1.8-Pound Book” (Le Livre de 1,8 livre). The book, sold in most bookstores in Quebec, puts the weight of a preemie directly in the hands of readers to raise awareness of their fragility. Buying it educates AND does good: all the profits go to the cause.

This beautifully illustrated collection of four short children's stories depicts the realities of these tiny, fragile beings who arrived too soon. And to get the point across, several design choices reflect the concept. As they turn the pages, readers can follow an illustrated evolution of a child’s head as it changes in diameter over the course of 16 weeks. Every aspect of the book’s production was carefully considered: the format, the number of pages, the paper and even the ink coverage. Nothing was left to chance. Additionally, the book’s dust jacket is styled as a blanket that swaddles the newborn
on its cover.

Four renowned Quebec authors and illustrators were tasked with creating light, illuminating stories of a specific length. With the exception of this requirement, the eight artists were given free rein to tell their stories on prematurity. An animated video of Flocon author Stéphanie Lapointe reading her story in a neonatal ward brought extra attention to the campaign.

Supported by a launch video featuring a 1.8-pound baby on a scale, the awareness campaign included community outreach and online advertising. A public and government relations strategy elevated the campaign to engage key influencers, including one of Quebec’s biggest: Premier François Legault.

They took the product’s production process very seriously, consulting a publisher of children’s books on the ideal print run to reach their sales and donation objectives. Based on their experience, market knowledge and bookseller demands, 7,000 copies were printed — the equivalent of a double bestseller in Quebec.

For Préma-Quebec to benefit from all the book’s proceeds, they had to imagine and produce it at the lowest possible cost. As a retail product, they wanted consumers to feel they were getting the most value for their money. The average price of a children’s book in Quebec is $25. Their work is paying off – they’re selling four stories for only $34.95 with 100% of the profits going to Préma-Québec.

The book was set to be released on December 17, 2022. But just like a premature birth, the book arrived one month early, on November 17, for World Prematurity Day.

The story is happily unfolding: $121,875 will be donated to Préma-Québec, making this offensive the largest one-time contribution to the organization. And this unprecedented impact doesn’t even include the earned media that the book has enjoyed: awareness generated by the ad campaign, appearances at book salons and on prime time TV shows and a social media shout-out from the premier of Quebec.

Credits

[Company Credits]
CREATIVE AGENCY: LG2
CLIENT: Préma-Québec
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Gorditos
SOUND STUDIO / ENGINEERING: Circonflex
MUSIC: Circonflex
MEDIA AGENCY: Touché!
PUBLIC RELATIONS AGENCY: Alinea
PUBLISHING: Les Éditions de la Bagnole

[Individual Credits - Agency - LG2]
CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICERS: Marc Fortin, Luc du Sault
VICE-PRESIDENT, EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Marilou Aubin, Nicolas Baldovini
VICE-PRESIDENT, STRATEGY: Sophie-Annick Vallée
VICE-PRESIDENT, ACCOUNT SERVICES: Marie-Christine Cayer, Julie Pilon
CREATIVE DIRECTION: Frédéric Tremblay, Geneviève Langlois,
Élise Cropsal, Odile Archambault
COPYWRITING: Guillaume Bergeron, Jean-Christophe Diaque, Marie-Ève Leclerc-Dion
ART DIRECTION: Marc Guilbault, Tiana Rica
DESIGNER: Sophie Valentine
ACCOUNT SERVICES: Marie-Julie Cossette, Sarah-Maude Raymond,
Samuel Bouffard, Simon Boisvert
AGENCY PRODUCTION: Isabelle Fonta, Mélanie Bruneau
MOTION DESIGN: Jean-Philippe Guy, Antoine Hallé, Elisa Ferreira
MAC ARTIST: Julie Hotte
AGENCY PRODUCTION, PRINT: Louis Dorval, Mélissa Brisson, Geneviève Demers
PROJECT MANAGEMENT, PRODUCTION: Emmanuelle Gauthier-Laquerre

[Individual Credits - Production Company - Gorditos]
PRODUCER: Véronique Poulin
DIRECTOR: Nicolas Monette
DOP: Gabriel Brault-Tardif

[Individual Credits - Production Company - Freelance]
EDITING: Olivier Binette

[Individual Credits - Sound Studio - Circonflex]
ENGINEERING: Tanguy Meunier

[Individual Credits - Media - Touché!]
PROJECT MANAGER: Rosemarie St-Amand
MEDIA DIRECTOR: Gabrielle Côté
MEDIA STRATEGIST: Alexandra Lafontaine

[Individual Credits - Client - Préma-Québec]
GENERAL MANAGER: Ginette Mantha
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Sophie Chaloux
MARKETING COORDINATOR: Daphné Pilon


[Individual Credits - Freelance]
AUTHORS: Simon Boulerice, Audrey Borduas, Stéphanie Lapointe, Guillaume Corbeil
ILLUSTRATORS: Émilie Leduc, Charles-Etienne Brochu, Mathilde Filippi, Cécile Gariépy