Mercy Ships

Brand Design & Gudeline Development, Integrated Campaign, Brand Experience

Developing a 360 launch campaign for Global Mercy, the World's first purpose-built civilian hospital ship

The Challenge

Mercy Ships needed to launch Global Mercy—the world's first purpose-built civilian hospital ship—while achieving multiple objectives: raising awareness about their humanitarian work across 57+ nations, inspiring new volunteers, securing donations, and celebrating dedicated staff. The campaign had to work during COVID-19 restrictions while capturing the spirit of their philanthropic work across offline, online, and virtual experiences.

Our Approach

The Idea

We centered everything around "Transformation"—the idea that coming aboard Global Mercy transforms your perspective while giving you opportunity to transform others' lives. This single concept unified all campaign elements and visual identity.

Execution

Despite global lockdown, we shot content across NYC, Togo, Senegal, and Antwerp. We created the "Come On Board" physical experience in Rotterdam featuring patient Bernard's surgery story and crew perspectives. A backup virtual tour at experience.mercyships.org was developed with Wirelab for those unable to travel. Visual language blended nautical shapes with African patterns.

Impact

Results

Over 12,000 people visited Global Mercy in Rotterdam, including British and Dutch royal family members. The sponsor dinner with Andrea Bocelli generated 10% more donations than anticipated.

Cultural Resonance

The campaign achieved massive global press coverage. The virtual tour at experience.mercyships.org provided an alternative for those unable to travel during pandemic restrictions.