Company: Phare Ponleu Selpak, Battambang, Cambodia
Nomination Submitted by: Box Clever Creative
Company Description: Phare Ponleu Selpak was founded by Cambodian refugees to restore their country’s culture and education after its artists and teachers were murdered during the Khmer Rouge genocide. Phare educates more than 800 disadvantaged children annually and trains hundreds more in the arts, lifting whole families out of poverty. It is a key driver of Cambodia's social and cultural development.
Nomination Category: Marketing Campaign Categories - Industry
Nomination Sub Category: Marketing Campaign of the Year - Non-Profit
 Nomination Title: Roll Up! Roll Up! For world's first 24 hour circus!
- If you are providing written answers to the questions for this category, you must answer this first question: Specify the date on which this campaign or program was launched:
March 2021 to November 2022.
- Which will you submit for this nomination, a video of up to five (5) minutes in length about the nominated campaign or program, OR written answers to the questions for this category? CHOOSE ONE:
Written answers to the questions
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the nominated video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video.
- If you are providing written answers to the questions for this category, you must answer this second question: Describe the genesis of the nominated campaign or program: the reasons it was initiated, the challenges it was created to address, the problems it was developed to solve, etc. (up to 250 words):
Total 250 words used.
What do you do when you’re an arts/education nonprofit educating thousands of disadvantaged Cambodian children - but COVID decimates funding and closure is imminent?
How do you finance a fundraiser when you’ve lost 60% of income, cut services... and travel restrictions make traditional fundraising events impossible?
How do you grab global attention as a small nonprofit in a small country, illustrating your determination to keep going despite adversity?
You do what you do best. Dig deep, get creative.
You organise the world's first 24-hour non-stop circus performance as a Guinness World Record attempt, livestreaming the performance online, and using the endeavour and ultimate victory to fuel a two-pronged marketing campaign winning new supporters/funders. You harness marketing channels, PR, and social media to enlist thousands to become record-breakers alongside you - and donate to support you.
This campaign featured the same creativity and resilience which once inspired 8 young Cambodians to found Phare in a Thai refugee camp. Cambodia’s artists and teachers were murdered in the Khmer Rouge genocide, so Phare was created to restore education, culture and hope. For 28 years it thrived, educating 800+ children annually and training hundreds of artists/performers to escape poverty. Funding came from a world-famous, animal-free circus attracting tourists including Harrison Ford and Angelina Jolie.
COVID closed the circus and slashing funding. Phare’s future was in grave peril. It was clear that even post-pandemic, tourism and circus revenue wouldn’t recover for years. This marketing campaign needed to solve the short-term emergency and address long-term needs.
- If you are providing written answers to the questions for this category, you must answer this third question: Describe the development of the campaign or program: the planning process, the goal setting, the creative and media development, the scheduling, etc. (up to 250 words):
Total 250 words used.
Board, management and communications teams agreed three core objectives:
- grab global attention to reach new audiences in order to
- raise $50,000 of emergency funds in the short-term and grow an
- expanded international supporter base in the long-term for future fundraising/ticket sales.
Given funding, outside agencies weren't possible, so expert volunteers worked with our students and in-house team on developing marketing strategy and content. A DIY aesthetic made a virtue of limited resources. Existing footage was re-edited into promo films while free tools like Facebook Events secured attendance. Marketing channels including mailing lists were mobilised, while a PR campaign grabbed media attention across six continents.
Unable to fund a Guinness World Records adjudicator attending and confirming our success live, we created a two-pronged marketing schedule: the first for the 2021 attempt, the second for the 2022 victory (after Guinness had assessed our 131 pages and 26 hours of video evidence).
For the attempt, we promoted the livestream as rare live entertainment to people in lockdowns worldwide, while encouraging them to donate using money saved from commuting. A Guinness requirement was an audience attending, which we turned into an incentive, sending mailing-list and social media invites stressing that attendees also became record-breakers as Guinness-required audience members.
For the victory announcement, our students created a DIY “surprise” video where performers were gathered for a "briefing", covertly filmed and given the news. Their authentic shock and joy was shared across social media, and by news outlets globally, who loved our plucky underdog story.
- If you are providing written answers to the questions for this category, you must answer this fourth question: Outline the activities and concrete results of this campaign or program since the beginning of 2019. Even if your initiative started before 2021, limit your response to activities and results since the beginning of 2021 only (up to 250 words):
Total 237 words used.
The campaign smashed targets:
- Phare became fifth organisation in Cambodian history to set a world record with a 24-hour-10-minute circus featuring 90 artists
- 438,000 people tuned into livestreams on Facebook and YouTube
- Event-related videos received 1,500,000+ views on social media
- Facebook event-related content reached approximately 40 million globally
- $150,000 donated directly from the record attempt, and thousands of new followers helped further events raising an additional $100,000 - $250,000 was raised in total, 5 times the target
- Dozens of websites, social pages, podcasts, newspapers and other media featured campaign in 7 languages in print and social media, from France to Fiji. Media based in 6 different continents covered story in 2021/2022, including agencies United Press International (USA), Xinhua (China), News18 (India), and News24 (France).
- Campaign seized Cambodia's imagination, with 66,296 engagements on Phare’s Facebook alone - a giant Guinness logo was added to our circus, becoming a popular Instagram backdrop
- Event gained global recognition through social media, podcasts, features and 11 international awards
- We delivered on a shoestring budget. Paid promotions and content creation cost under $500. Event budget was under $15,000, including payment to performers.
- As a result, Phare survived the pandemic, continuing to educate and train hundreds of Cambodian children.
Phare still faces major fundraising challenges, with tourism and circus income low, but this campaign gave the breathing space to survive and march towards our 30th anniversary.
- You have the option to reference here any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 215 words used.
Because this was a two year campaign which generated more than five DIY videos, dozens of social media posts, and hundreds of media mentions, we have restricted ourselves to the top 10 pieces of evidence. Many substantial media items have been excluded because they were not written in English, but in French, Mandarin, Spanish, Khmer and many other languages.
1) Official entry in Guinness Book of Records confirming success and making Phare world famous.
2) Phare promotional video assembled from existing footage and announcing the record attempt.
3) Cambodia's top English newspaper, Phnom Penh Post runs a full page feature announcing the record attempt.
4) Voice of America runs a full page feature on the story behind the record attempt, including interviews with participants.
5) Taiwanese podcast discusses the record attempt and how Phare has become such a success story.
6) Phare's DIY celebration video goes viral online, covered by media in 6 continents.
7) America’s UPI media agency covers the victory announcement, reaching hundreds of local media in USA.
8) China’s Xinhua media agency covers the victory announcement, reaching hundreds of local media in Asia.
9) India’s NDTV covers the victory announcement in print and on TV.
10) The Better Cambodia runs a large feature on the importance of the record-breaking success to Cambodia.
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