A multi-channel digital engagement campaign that quadrupled engagement

At Macmillan Cancer Support, cancer was still framed around battle language and the patient alone, and audience research showed that framing was alienating three groups at once: people living with cancer who felt reduced to a diagnosis, supporters whose picture of the disease had been oversimplified, and healthcare professionals who wanted better guidance on person-centred language.

I led the Life with Cancer brand marketing campaign to untangle this, building an audience-led strategy co-created with the people it supports. The storytelling centred everyday life rather than diagnosis, and the lead brand content ran across TV, radio, OOH and digital. Content creators followed, sharing their own lived experiences of cancer, which helped us reach new audiences authentically. We then invited people to share their own #LifeWithCancer moments as images, short videos or text on social channels, which grew reach organically and stretched the budget well past the launch burst. Collaborating with colleagues across Media, Fundraising and Services helped us maximise income and explore planned and reactive PR opportunities, with pro-bono OOH media adding £3m of value.

The campaign delivered 118 million impressions and 2.3 million engagements, four times the previous year, and was praised for its co-created, audience-led approach.