From taboo to breakthrough: Cancer Research UK’s legacy giving campaign
We used person-centred therapy principles to unlock powerful insights for Cancer Research UK.
To explore a sensitive topic like legacy giving, we redesigned our moderation approach around empathy, honesty, and emotional safety — revealing deep motivations that helped shape a breakthrough campaign and drove a major lift in consideration.
The challenge: Breaking the silence around legacies
Gifts in wills make up over a third of Cancer Research UK’s income.
This income protects future research and is vital to CRUK in its objective to beat cancer for future generations. Therefore, driving Legacy consideration is a communication priority.
But it’s a culturally uncomfortable topic to discuss. Wills are surrounded by taboos, and most of the supporters who are likely to consider legacies to Cancer Research UK have personal experience with cancer, making it an especially sensitive topic to research.
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The solution: Creating space for real emotion
We incorporated principles from person-centred therapy to create an interview environment where participants were able to share deep feelings and motivations.
Building in the 3 core principles of congruence, unconditional positive regard, and empathy we were able to navigate this emotionally charged conversation.
Despite a few tears, we reached deep and fundamental realisations around cancer experiences and reasons for support. Choosing to support Cancer Research UK can be a deed of defiance against cancer itself, and that Legacies are not an easy fit with this: they can feel remote and abstract.
Basis’ work was invaluable in helping us arrive at the Pledge concept and shaping it as it developed, ensuring that the voice of our supporters was a key influence throughout.
Results
Increase in spontaneous consideration
Increase in web visits
The impact: A powerful shift in mindset and behavior
We worked with CRUK, Atomic and Mediacom to develop the Pledge campaign – which resulted in a 1700% uplift in site traffic and an 85% increase in spontaneous consideration.
Our work uncovered a hugely motivating insight that by focusing on the act of Pledging, it shifts the focus of legacy giving away from a distant, morbid future, and towards the here and now. A legacy is something that happens after I die. A Pledge is something I can do Right Now, as a deed of defiance, to show that I’m standing up to cancer.
The campaign features real cancer patients, survivors and healthcare professionals, making a Pledge to keep fighting cancer for future generations. Especially for those with close personal experience of cancer, this feels empowering, motivating and relatable, and delivered transformational results.
This work was nominated for the MRS Jeremy Bullmore Award for Creative Development in 2019.
Looking ahead: Turning empathy into action
We continue to partner with CRUK on creative development work, helping to bring deep emotional insight—and the voices of real people—into their brand activation.
