ANZAC Day, a day Australians pay their respects to the brave men and women that have served their country. They take a minute of silence to remember the fallen and make a donation to help those who came home.

Traditionally the ANZAC Appeal has relied on veterans selling badges on the street to raise funds. Trouble is today people rarely carry cash. We needed to find a new way for them to donate.

The ANZAC Appeal has always enjoyed support from the older generation. We had to reinvigorate and broaden its appeal making it relevant to a wider, younger audience.

A Minute of Silence to remember our fallen veterans is synonymous with Anzac Day. Linking this tradition with the latest mobile technology made paying your respects and donating more moving and simpler than ever.

Social media made sharing just as easy. Both the oddness of paying to listen to silence and people’s goodwill fuelled Facebook shares, while a growing Twitter buzz helped build the campaign momentum we wanted, especially among our target.

Fewer people carry cash but everyone carries a mobile phone – our younger target are on them constantly.

So we set up a phone line where people could pay to listen to a Minute of Silence. You simply called the number and listened to the silence. There’s no credit cards, no apps and no downloads – your donation goes straight onto your phone bill.

Our objective was to reinvigorate the appeal getting both the younger generation and the media talking about the campaign. This would not only modernise the brand but also drive donations.

Paying to silence? Such an innovative approach from a charity certainly got fingers dialling and tongues wagging. Especially among our younger target. Results included:

-10,000 website hits on the first night

-Three days after launch our campaign went ‘global’ as the 3rd highest trending topic in the world on Twitter topic

-Massive PR coverage with over $2 million of earned media

-But most importantly, so far this year’s Anzac Appeal raised over $3 million for veterans and their families. And it’s still going.