Work can be really fulfilling when you help a client successfully deliver a clear message to a well-defined target audience.

Delivering the Cork Simon Community Legacy Giving campaign was a positive experience for all those who worked on it. It was published online in June 2024, inviting Irish Examiner and EchoLive readers to leave a monetary gift in their will to help Cork Simon support homeless communities.

Irish Examiner journalist Shauna McHugh and sales representative James Murphy worked closely with Paul Sheehan, head of campaigns and communications with Cork Simon Community. The campaign surpassed all of the client’s targets.

The chance to give back

The campaign saw Cork Simon’s “Gifts in Wills” Web page become the most-visited page of the entire Cork Simon Web site — surpassing even the homepage. It was embedded as a click-through link within native articles on www.irishexaminer.com and www.echolive.ie, and within digital display adverts across both sites. This page received 546 visits over the duration of the live campaign, compared to just 10 visits during the same period in 2023.

“We were delighted with the results,” said Paul Sheehan, head of campaigns and communications, Cork Simon Community. “Aligning our brand and core message with other iconic Cork brands was an important element in developing our legacy giving programme.

“The Examiner titles were a natural home for our branding campaign. They enabled us to reach our geographic-restricted audience in Cork and Kerry in a place where they naturally find a home for their media consumption. Our message and creative had added gravitas, given the respected nature of these media brands in the region.”

Measuring success

With sponsored content campaigns, success is measured by the number of clicks on the story, reader dwell times, etc. In this case, success was also gauged by the public’s legacy donations to Cork Simon in their wills.

The native article featured Cork Simon legacy donor Ann Wixted, including a video embedded in our native article. She tells a compelling story about her reasons for including a legacy gift to Cork Simon in her will.

A Dublin woman living in Cork for the past 42 years, Wixted had felt powerless looking on at the rising levels of homelessness in Cork. Her story helped breathe life into the harsh statistics on homelessness and inspired many others to gift legacy donations to the charity.

Practical guidance from Leona Walsh, Cork Simon’s head of donor engagement, also brought reassurance regarding the ease of the legal process.

Reaching campaign goals

Cork Simon, one of the oldest branches of Simon Communities of Ireland, has been active for 53 years. The Irish Examiner and EchoLive “Legacies” campaign highlighted the charity’s 53 years of work, and signposted how readers could leave a posthumous gift to the charity in their will.

The native advertising campaign, supplemented by social and digital display, strengthened donor engagement and reinforced the charity’s deep local connections, whilst also broadening its reach.

The campaign used a multi-channel approach, including native content, client-supplied video assets, social, and digital display adverts — ensuring maximum visibility.

By aligning Cork Simon’s mission with the values of our audience, the initiative fostered deeper donor relationships and inspired long-term commitment. And the results were impressive: 

• Total article views: 15,610 across the Irish Examiner and Echo Live, 74% above promised views.
• Digital display activity: Delivered over 300,058 impressions with a 0.13% average CTR, reaching a wide audience through smartphones, desktops, tablets, and connected TVs.
• Social posts: The campaign reached 3,052 people through the Irish Examiner and Echo Live Meta accounts and received a further 9,800 impressions through the titles’ X accounts.

In elevating Cork Simon’s visibility to local and nationwide audiences, the campaign reinforced Cork Simon’s message as a trusted, community-driven charity.

Six months on from the June 2024 Legacies campaign, Cork Simon committed to an increased spend (+65% YoY) with Irish Times Group for its Christmas 2024 campaign, adding group titles including Waterford News & Star and Breaking News to the new campaign.

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