McGrath Foundation gamifies giving with online cricket tournament
The McGrath Foundation has gamified its fundraising with an online cricket challenge and fundraising platform aimed at engaging the Australian public, as the charity celebrates its tenth anniversary.
Drawing on the cricketing pedigree of founder and former Australian great Glenn Mcgrath, the McGrath Foundation Digital Cup is an online cricket game which allows a team to compete in the tournament to raise funds, with everyone given a chance to bat, bowl and field. Coaches are required to donate $30 to the foundation and then invite friends by email or Facebook to create a team of 11 players with each teammate required to donate $10 to play.
Funds raised will go towards placing McGrath Breast Care Nurses in communities across the country.
McGrath Foundation CEO Petra Buchanan told Mumbrella: “We saw what’s happening in the gaming space and thought it was a great opportunity to engage with our audience and build more loyal supporters and fundraise for the McGrath Foundation.
“When you look at the statistics, 92 per cent of Australian homes have some type of device for gaming, almost 50 per cent of them are women. We thought it was a real confluence of natural target audiences for us, people are engaging more and more in the digital sense.
“They’re looking to games for a bit of escapism and fun and we figured what better way to capitalise on that and have them do a bit of good at the same time. It’s definitely an opportunity for us to look at fundraising in a new way and we think it’s a leading way here in Australia, it’s the first time a charity has done this.
“We’re just trying to be as innovative as we can and try new things,” Buchanan added.
On how the game ties in with cricket coverage in Australia, Buchanan said: “Cricket is part of our heritage with Glenn McGrath and we thought it would be a great way to tap into those sport-loving and crazy cricket fans.
“We are fortunate enough to be a charity beneficiary with Cricket Australia with the Pink Test and also with the ICC World Cup, we’re their Australian charity partner, so we thought this is a great way to bridge the two and to maximise that point-in-time when people are wanting to engage with cricket.”
Buchanan said the game will not send a push notification urging players to donate further to the charity, founded in memory of McGrath’s first wife Jane who died after battling cancer, but there are ways for extra money to be made once players have signed up.
“On a daily basis players will get an allocation of balls and batting but if they want to stump up and get even more they can pay to get more,” she explained.
For the foundation’s first foray into gamification it has partnered with specialists Pro-Active Games.
Pro-Active Games creative director Robert Holden said in a statement: “The key to effective gamification is appealing to users on an emotional, rather than transactional, level; it’s about achievement, recognition, competitiveness and generosity.
“The McGrath Foundation Digital Cup nails this; it brings a much-loved sport literally to the pockets of Australians, with the ability to take on your mates and win awesome prizes, all while raising funds for a great Australian charity.”
Players will also have the opportunity to play against former cricketers such as Glenn McGrath, Darren Lehmann, Michael Bevan and Adam Hollioake.
The McGrath Foundation Digital Cup is available to play through internet browsers on desktops, tablets or smart phones with HTML5 browser capabilities and up to date operating systems; iOS 7 and Internet Explorer version 10 or above.
The tournament runs from February 14 to February 28, with pre-match practice beginning today.
Miranda Ward
Miranda Ward worked for Mumbrella from 2013 to 2017, eventually becoming deputy editor. Miranda joined Mumbrella in September 2013 from Sky News.
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