The 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake critically damaged the Tohoku area and left an emotional scar throughout Japan. At that time, many people were eager to send their support to Tohoku, however, as time passed the public gradually began to lose interest.

Yahoo! JAPAN has been implementing online donation projects supporting the Tohoku area since 2014. As a leader in innovation for charity, the mission for 2018, the 7th year from the disaster, was to change perspectives towards "giving" by updating old-school ways to donate.

We decided to debut the Giving Gate through an event on the 7th anniversary of the disaster, March 11.

Before the event, we pitched to the media with our PR release that covered the three points through informing the up-coming event, both from Yahoo! JAPAN and Sanriku Railways.

The event was held in the heart of Tokyo, from March 9 to 11. People were able to experience the IC card donation. "Instagenic" points were strategically placed within the experience, for example, a 1/10 scale model of Sanriku Railway placed in front of a screen showing the window view from the actual train, and an original Giving Gate ticket to take home for donors. In addition, two conductors from Sanriku Railway attended the event to attract the media and greet donors.