A recent out-of-home (OOH) advert from the World Wildlife Fund’s ‘Prescription for Nature’ campaign has earned a rare 5-Star Rating from creative effectiveness platform System1, placing it among the top 1% of charity advertisements ever tested.
System1’s Star Rating measures the emotional impact of adverts to predict long-term brand growth, with a score of 5.0 or higher considered “exceptional.” Charity sector ads typically average just 2.2 stars.
The WWF ad, which features woodland imagery, also recorded a Fast Fluency Rating of 71%-far above the OOH average of 43%. Fast Fluency measures the percentage of viewers who recognise the brand within two seconds, a crucial metric given the fleeting attention span for outdoor advertising.
According to System1’s ‘Test Your Ad’ platform, the creative’s success lies in its ability to evoke intense, positive emotions. Happiness, the emotion most closely linked to long-term brand growth, is powerfully conveyed through the campaign’s use of natural imagery.
Andrew Tindall, SVP at System1, said: “This ad demonstrates the power of positive feeling and consistency within a category focussed on driving immediate response and donations. 
“While charity ads often tap into negative emotions such as anger or sadness for short-term results, they are on average less effective at long-term brand building. Steering away from such category tropes is not only going to build brand equity for WWF, but it will be more memorable, as it goes against what audiences are used to and expect from charity advertising.”
“What’s so clever about these adverts is that they prove their own point. Audiences notice the poster, see the beautiful wildlife and feel happy. It’s a wonderful way to showcase nature’s mood-boosting powers, while encouraging audiences to protect it at the same time.”
Lisa Lee, Executive Director of Brand, Campaigns and Communications at WWF, said: “Nature has the power to restore us, if we help restore it in return. We’re thrilled to have achieved the maximum Star Rating from System1 and to see our Prescription for Nature campaign’s positive emotional impact.
