• by Les Luchter , 3 hours ago

Breakthrough T1D and Beyond Type 1, two diabetes nonprofits, will converge in New York’s Times Square on World Diabetes Day this Friday, Nov. 14, as part of larger awareness campaigns.

For Breakthrough T1D, the day will include a “See Me. See T1D” digital billboard takeover and an on-site activation featuring Ryan McCartan (“Heathers: The Musical”) and Brec Bassinger (Nickelodeon’s “Bella and the Bulldog”).  The two actors also appear in the out-of-home ads, along with less-famous type 1 patients.

Meanwhile, Beyond Type 1’s “Go Beyond” campaign lives up to the name of the Nick Jonas-co-founded nonprofit by also including type 2 diabetes in its repertoire. On Thursday, a “Go Beyond’ digital billboard returns to Times Square following a two-week break.

"See Me. See T1D"

For Breakthrough T1D, Friday is part of a nationwide effort that the nonprofit believes is the first-ever nationwide out-of-home awareness campaign for type 1 diabetes.

The campaign, running all month, also includes digital billboards and signage in 20 other cities, including Washington D.C., Boston and San Francisco. Partners in the initiative include OWND Ideas Factory for creative and Outfront Media, which Breakthrough T1D tells Marketing Daily has donated a “portion” of the billboard space.

“Our goal is to reach more of the type 1 Diabetes community and the general population and help them ‘see T1D’ and the multifaceted people impacted by the condition,” says the nonprofit.

Justifying Breakthrough T1D’s 2024 name change from JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation), the campaign includes both children and adults, “demonstrating that type 1 diabetes can affect everyone,” the group says.

“In the short term,” Breakthrough T1D says, “See Me. See T1D” will gauge success “based on impressions and visits to our SeeT1D.org landing page,” but long-term, the campaign “is part of our strategy to shift misperceptions about type 1 diabetes, combat stigma, and show people how Breakthrough T1D is working to improve lives and pursue cures.”

"Go Beyond"

For Beyond Type 1, digital OOH ads running in Times Square through Monday, ask viewers to “Go Beyond” common misconceptions about diabetes. “People with diabetes can play sports,” one billboard states. They can also “eat sugar” and “have healthy pregnancies.”  “Go beyond misconceptions,” the ad advises, adding that “Diabetes is not your fault.”

The ads had previously run last month when the “Go Beyond” campaign launched “Beyond the Misconceptions,” a social media video starring a bevy of famous and should-be-famous folks with either type 1 or Type 2 diabetes debunking myths about the condition. They include Jonas himself, actor/singer Billy Porter, NFL player Adonai Mitchell, comedian Sam Mitchell, and Pietro Marsala, the “first FAA-approved insulin-dependent commercial pilot.”

Since the video’s posting in mid-October, Beyond Type 1 tells Marketing Daily that, by the end of last week, it had garnered more than 6 million views, resulting in a 3.04% engagement rate and over 5,000 new followers or subscribers.

Aiming to get viewers to visit BeyondType1.org, the nonprofit reported  a 25.2% increase in site visits and a +28.8% increase since before the campaign.

Beyond Type 1 will celebrate its 10^th anniversary with a New York celebration this Saturday.

Jonas is also a long-time spokesperson and occasional commercial star for Dexcom, the marketer of continuous glucose monitors.