• by Amy Corr , Staff Writer, November 2, 2009

This idea is cheap, proactive and unobtrusive.

Goodwill was looking for a way to increase its yearly donations through an initiative that costs nothing. Sounds impossible, but Goodwill's pro bono agency, BBDO West, came up with a way to use something already found in clothing -- care tags --  as a courier of Goodwill's message.

Levi Strauss, the first company approached for this program, signed on with Goodwill to create "A Care Tag for Our Planet."

The concept is simple: the tag suggests that, rather than trash unwanted jeans, you donate them to Goodwill, so someone else can wear them and less material is dumped in landfills.

According to Goodwill, roughly 23.8 billion pounds of clothing and textiles wind up in U.S. landfills every year. Starting in January 2010, Levi's clothes in the U.S. will feature the care tags; global tags will launch that fall. The project was 18 months in the making, according to Jim Lesser, executive creative director at BBDO West.

Levi Strauss and Goodwill will additionally promote the campaign using viral campaigns and in-store elements.

The care tags not only encourage clothing donation, but also push washing clothes in cold water, an effortless action that can conserve a great deal of household energy. All tags conclude with, "donate to Goodwill when no longer needed and care for our planet."

Additional clothing brands have already signed on to use care tags for Goodwill.

"Ultimately we want every manufacturer in the world to be part of the program," concluded Lesser.