We LOVE The Melanoma Institute's work on their Game On Mole campaign, and have been featuring it here on The Marketer since 2019.
A lot has happened since then, but the seriousness of melanoma in Australia hasn't changed.
Here's some stats to put it all in perspective.
Melanoma facts and statistics
Australia has one of the highest rates of melanoma in the world, and is often referred to as 'Australia's national cancer'.
Australia has the highest melanoma rates in the world. It is expected that 16,000 people will be diagnosed with melanoma this year. That means one person is told they have melanoma every 30 minutes
Melanoma is the most deadly form of skin cancer. It is estimated 1300 people will die from melanoma in Australia this year
Melanoma is the most common cancer affecting 20 to 39-year-old Australians.
Melanoma is the third most common cancer in Australian men, after prostate and colorectal cancer
Melanoma is the third most common cancer in Australian women, after breast and colorectal cancer
The campaign
Game On Mole is a wonderfully Aussie tongue in cheek way to start a conversation about Melanoma.
The phrase was penned (is penned the right word?) on Australian Big Brother by a contestant and entered the vernacular. What an awesome way to use a relatable slogan in it's more literal sense.
And since we LOVE championing Aussie marketing campaigns, we LOVE talking about this one.
The nuts and bolts
Game On Mole was borne in 2019 as a home-grown campaign, done entirely in-house by the Communications team at Melanoma Institute Australia. This included the campaign website, t-shirt design, sale and distribution process. The tee design and website were updated in 2020, with the entire campaign again managed in-house at MIA.
Head of Communications and Fundraising at MIA, Jennifer Durante, said the decision to collaborate with Everything’s Good for the 2021 t-shirt design, as well as the t-shirt sale and distribution process, was an easy one.
‘Game On Mole had incredible success in its first two years, but the whole campaign was done on a shoestring,’ Ms Durante said. ‘We knew that if we wanted to scale the campaign, and reach even more young Australians with the life-saving message about checking your skin for changes, we had to team up with someone already firing in the t-shirt design and distribution space.
‘We loved the premise of Everything’s Good and so asked if they’d be keen to collaborate for our 2021 campaign– and the answer was a resounding yes! The collab is pro bono, with Everything’s Good donating t-shirt sale profits back to Melanoma Institute Australia to support our ongoing research.’
The 2021 Game On Mole collection, which includes long and short-sleeved tees, is the creative work of Everything’s Good’s Danny McGowen.
He took his inspiration from the ground-breaking clinical and research work underway at Melanoma Institute Australia, expertly led by Co-Medical Directors Professor Georgina Long AO and Professor Richard Scolyer AO, and combined it with the fun and cheeky tone of the Game On Mole campaign.
‘I didn’t hesitate to jump on board with this collaboration, as growing up near the beach I know too well the impact of skin cancer and melanoma on Australians,’ Danny said.
‘Essentially Game On Mole is a fun campaign with a very serious message, so I needed to capture that in the design. The collection tells a story – with the cartoon-like ‘moley’ being front and centre until he is ‘spotted’ by a dermatoscope which is a special magnifying tool used to detect early stage melanomas.
‘It was important that the designs fitted in with the fun and humour of our other slogan tees, but also carried with them a serious message about seeking medical advice if you notice new or changing moles.’
The Game On Mole campaign is driven by its own website- updated to reflect the 2021 t-shirt design. It has a simple call to action to take photos of your skin and seek medical advice if you notice anything new or changing. The campaign website links directly to Everything’s Good for t-shirt sales and distribution.
Game On Mole is driven by a strong social media campaign which utilises campaign specific Facebook and Instagram pages. Aussies are urged to post photos to their own socials wearing the Game On Mole tees and using #gameonmole to start life-saving conversations.
The face of this year’s campaign is 25-year-old model Oceana Strachan who was diagnosed with melanoma in April this year. Oceana is donating her time to support the campaign, and with hundreds of thousands of Instagram followers, will potentially help Game On Mole reach a wide new audience.
‘I am so thankful that I didn’t delay seeking treatment,’
Oceana said.
‘And that’s why I’m proudly supporting Game On Mole - if just one person hears my story, and checks their skin and seeks medical advice, then it will be worth it. These are life-saving conversations that all of Australia desperately needs to have,’
MIA Ambassadors, Olympian Cate Campbell and Ninja star Olivia Vivian, are once again supporting the campaign by sharing their personal melanoma stories on the campaign website and their socials.
‘There is no ceiling this year for t-shirt orders, and given the concerns around COVID deterring some patients from getting skin checks or seeking medical treatment, we urge all of Australia to get on board, buy a t-shirt and wear it proudly to start conversations that could save a loved-one’s life,’
Ms Durante said.
To join the campaign and buy the ‘Game On Mole’ t-shirt, follow the campaign on Facebook @gameonmoleofficial and Instagram @gameonmole_