Do more, be more. Create your path. Volunteering Victoria.

Volunteering is no joke; and Volunteering Victoria has been providing a better world – and a better state – for the greater Melbourne area for quite a while now. In that time, Volunteering Victoria has done wonders for the community, inspiring growth and building up confidence in people from grassroots to blooming roses. After a while, however, that tired logo and dried up campaign need a reboot. The new Volunteering Victoria brand mark and campaign that have been presented give that worn out former campaign a fresh pair of legs to keep that fresh cycle of volunteers flowing through our beautiful state. The former and very obvious brand mark – a hand and a V – was in desperate need of a makeover and the new brandmark has done just that. The new and very contemporary brandmark on the outside looks like two semi-circle paint strokes. However, upon deeper inspection and thinking outside of the square, the paint strokes make two V’s connected to each other. The idea behind the paint strokes is something organic and creative – just like the new campaign for Volunteering Victoria. As well as this, the colour resonates with a very earth tone, coinciding well with the idea that these V’s in the logo make two paths as well that intertwine with one another. Thus, this new logo coincides perfectly with Volunteering Victoria’s new call to action – CREATE YOUR PATH. Creating your own path, straying off the beaten track, not following the crowd – being an individual yet also being a part of a movement and a team. That is what Volunteering Victoria is about. Keeping with the use of those earth tones, the call to action really entices the audience to do something with their life and create their path.

The target audience for the new campaign is people ranging from 18-40 years old. The wide target audience gives the campaign a larger group in terms of its reach, with hopes of enticing more people to join Volunteering Victoria. There is no limit on what gender is being targeted, nor is there a limit on race, sexuality or any other specific demographics. The more corporate 18-40 year old is being targeted, someone who is likely to be doing the same thing everyday… wake up, eat, work, sleep, repeat. That way, with volunteering and trying something different and exciting, these corporate or structured individuals can break free and create their path. This campaign is about getting out and exploring nature, helping the environment and in turn helping yourself. Breaking free from that suit and tie, and putting on some boots and shorts. Letting your hair down and taking your heels off, and whacking on some gloves and sunglasses and hitting nature full force.

Nathaniel, a 27 year old real estate agent from Glen Iris in Melbourne’s east was looking for a way to better himself. There’s dozens of different ways that one can go about this. Picking up a language, learning a musical instrument, coaching his cousin’s basketball team – or making a real difference and volunteering his time to remove foreign flora from the Melbourne parklands. Each weekend, through Volunteering Victoria, Nate and a few of his closest friends ditch the ironed clothes for a dirty pair of shorts and a hand-me-down t-shirt armed with a pair of snips and remove olive trees from specific Melbourne parklands as they are now considered a pest and are ruining the unique Australian flora. This simple 2 hour activity every weekend has given Nathaniel a sense of importance and happiness that he is helping provide a better world for not only himself, but for generations to come – all by removing some unwanted pests. It’s simple activities like this that make volunteering so important in our world. Whether you’re doing what Nate does, or helping at a retirement village, volunteering your time by standing at school crossings during peak hours or reading to disadvantage youth – volunteering comes in all different forms heading down so many different paths.

The poster for the campaign shows a man suiting up and the same man getting his hands dirty by planting a tree, highlighting how easy it is to switch things up and do something different. The call to action and brand mark are made poignant as well so that the audience is aware exactly what company is being represented as the slogan or call to action will hopefully become affiliated heavily with Volunteering Victoria. The website is also easily accessible through the poster, as it is highlighted as well as being the destination place through the QR code on the bottom right of the poster. QR codes are great as they are a direct link to the organisations page – and the QR code on the poster is actually the real QR code for Volunteering Victoria’s website. As well as this, links to the Facebook, Twitter and Instagram page for Volunteering Victoria are also mentioned, which in a social media world is very important. In terms of the specifics of the poster, both the picture of the man in the suit and the man planting the tree take up 50% of the poster, however the transparency of the man planting the tree is a little less than the other, making it stand out more and be more visually appealing than the other.

This campaign brings to life an established and vital part of the Victorian community. Volunteering Victoria has been given new life and has created a new path… why don’t you create your path?