A digital teddy bear army has taken to Australia's billboards with messages of thanks for essential workers.
The Teddy Bear Army Project, set in motion by QMS Media, invites children to draw a picture of a teddy bear with a message of thanks to their choice of essential service worker, and have their artwork displayed on digital billboards.
The campiagn, now in its sixth week, has given more than 150 Australian children a chance to use their artistic skills at home and express gratitude to those doing so much to help during this crisis.
Each week, new submissions are broadcast across 30 premium digital billboards, hitting more than 15 million contacts or on average 2.6 million contacts each week as Australians travel closer to home.
QMS Media CMO Sara Lappage says the engagement and response from the community has been overwhelming.
“As we saw Teddy Bear’s starting to appear in windows of homes, in trees and on footpaths in our local streets, we wanted to help build on this simple but thoughtful gesture, by giving children a voice and audience to say thank you to those working hard to help all Australian’s during these challenging times," says Lappage.
“The idea started as a way for our staff working from home to engage and entertain their kids, as well as giving them an opportunity to have their artwork displayed on a canvas much bigger than the kitchen fridge.
“Soon friends, clients and business partners had heard about the project and the rest is history. With the power and speed of our digital network, arguably the world’s biggest, and I have to say cutest, Teddy Bear Art show was within days broadcasting into local neighbourhoods across Australia.”
Monash Health Theatre Nurse, Di Treagus: “I was thrilled to see my grandson Lukas’ drawing up on billboard right near the hospital. The power of a personalised message of thanks on a giant billboard makes the jobs of those working so hard right now that much easier.”
Trent Cotchin, captain of AFL’s Richmond Tigers: “My wife and I fell in love with the idea the moment we saw some of the artworks up on a billboard near us. It gave our girls an opportunity to be creative whilst in isolation but more importantly, it was an opportunity for them to say thank you to who they see as important in our fight against COVID-19. As a parent this was a special moment. You love seeing your kids doing what they love."
The National Gallery of Victoria has also called out to its community to showcase children’s artworks and messages of thanks.
For children to still be involved, have them draw a picture of their teddy on a white A4 sheet of paper, include their first name, age and brief thank you message to our essential service workers. Take a photo of the drawing and send it to thankyou@qmsmedia.com
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