Join a campaign for a good cause
The SANBS hopes this irreverent “disappearing act” will similarly weave a special kind of magic here, where only 1% of South Africans give blood regularly.
The South African National Blood Services (SANBS) wants to temporarily steal your As, Bs and Os from your name for an excellent cause.
In an innovative bid to attract new, young blood donors, they will again take part in the international Missing Type campaign from 11 to 18 June.
The campaign asks organisations to remove the letters A, B and O, symbolising the “missing” blood types with the same letters, from their logos or names for a week.
Since launching globally a few years ago, the initiative has notched up phenomenal success, spurring thousands of new donors to sign up worldwide.
The SANBS hopes this irreverent “disappearing act” will similarly weave a special kind of magic here, where only 1% of South Africans give blood regularly.
“Imagine life without the letters A, B and O … let alone Scrabble!” Ms Silungile Mlambo, chief marketing officer, said.
“South African big business has the power to change the country’s constant blood shortages and and save lives at the same time.
According to Ms Mlambo, deleting the letters of the main blood groups from your company’s name in your adverts, e-mail signatures and other marketing material is a fun and interactive way to raise awareness of the need for new donors.
World Blood Donor Day falls on 14 June.
“It really is critical to replenish stocks at this time of year, with the school holidays just around the corner,” she also said.
“This will inevitably cause a spike in the demand for blood transfusions.”
The SANBS is confident that their #MissingType campaign will help boost supply by capturing the imagination of South African businesses and their employees.
“With the help of the private sector and the public, we can fill in the blanks in our blood supply and keep stocks at healthy levels,”she concluded.
Visit www.sanbs.org.za or call 0800 11 90 31 for more information or to find out where to volunteer as donor.
Join the #MissingType conversation on Twitter (@theSANBS), Facebook (@SANBS) and Instagram (@thesanbs).
Information supplied.
