Spurgeons Campaign: Breaking the Silence at the Lift Door...

How 30Seconds Media and Spurgeons Turned a Routine Pause into a Moment of Empathy

In the cramped seconds between pushing a lift button and arriving at our floor, most of us barely look up. 

Yet last spring, thousands of residents across the UK paused, read, and were moved by the story of children carrying an invisible sentence. 

At the heart of that story is Spurgeons, a charity that refuses to accept that any child should face life’s struggles alone. 

Thanks to a thoughtful collaboration with 30Seconds Media, the message reached audiences not behind a screen, but where they live – in lift lobbies and building foyers.

This partnership proves that purpose‑driven campaigns need not compete in the endless scroll of social feeds; they can flourish in the quiet interludes of daily routines. 

By combining Spurgeons’ compassionate mission with 30Seconds’ context‑rich media network, the campaign created genuine connection and measurable impact. 

As we reflect on the results and significance of “Stop the Stigma,” it becomes clear that this is a blueprint for charities and businesses seeking to inspire change through place‑based storytelling.

A Mission Rooted in Family and Community

Spurgeons’ ethos is deceptively simple: when a family member needs support, they should have somewhere to turn.

The charity works across mental health, domestic abuse, family wellbeing and, crucially, families affected by imprisonment. 

It embraces a “whole family, whole situation, whole solution” approach, partnering with churches, schools and children’s centres to reach people where they are. 

As Spurgeons puts it, they exist to “transform the nation, one child at a time”.

The urgency of their Stop the Stigma campaign cannot be overstated. 

Around 192,912 children in the UK live with the stigma of a parent’s imprisonment. 

These children, affected by imprisonment, have done nothing wrong yet suffer in a number of ways:

• Navigating grief

• Shame

• Disrupted routines

• A deep sense of isolation.

  
  

Many lose daily contact with a parent and must adapt to new caretakers, unfamiliar environments, and the silence that often surrounds their situation.

Many suffer anxiety and behavioural difficulties. 

Spurgeons’ Prison Family Hubs provide a lifeline, helping maintain family connections through visits, bedtime stories recorded by fathers and counselling. 

Yet to reach more children, the message needed to break out of the charity’s usual channels and into people’s everyday lives.

Why Residential DOOH?

Traditional digital advertising can be noisy and easily overlooked. 

The team at Spurgeons and 30Seconds recognised that awareness grows when people aren’t bombarded but invited to reflect.

30Seconds Media specialises in indoor advertising, placing digital screens in lift lobbies and entrance foyers.

It boasts high‑dwell zones where viewers naturally pause, offering a captive audience and repeat exposure as residents use lifts multiple times a day. 

Each encounter provides about 30 seconds of dwell time – enough to absorb an emotive message. 

For advertisers, these screens become “the last opportunity to target” before people reach their homes or offices – a moment just before they make decisions.

Spurgeons’ Marketing Manager, Jaimie Crowther, explained why this environment appealed: 

“Being able to showcase our brand to so many residents in multiple locations was a huge positive when choosing 30Seconds Group”. 

In a saturated digital landscape, the charity sought a medium that commanded trust and attention without relying on intrusive advertising.

Spurgeons Campaign

Designing the “Stop the Stigma” Spurgeons Campaign

The campaign ran from 19 May to 23 June, spanning more than twenty UK cities. 

It targeted adults 19 +, particularly parents, with creative that was simple yet powerful: an emotive narrative about children carrying the stigma of a parent’s crime, clear links to Spurgeons’ Stop the Stigma initiative and action‑oriented calls to donate or learn more. 

Importantly, the DOOH activation was integrated with Spurgeons’ social media channels, ensuring that the message was reinforced both online and offline.

The choice of context – high‑trust residential spaces – was vital. 

As the case study notes, brand messages delivered in residential environments carry implicit trust, and for sensitive causes like Spurgeons’ this credibility is essential. 

Even limited placements can yield major results when ads are strategically placed in trusted, high‑dwell environments.

Turning Heads and Changing Minds: The Results

The impact was immediate and measurable. Compared with the previous period, Spurgeons saw:

• +10.54 % unique visitors – people genuinely interested in learning more.

• +8.42 % total visits and improved dwell time, meaning visitors stayed longer and explored more content.

• Scroll depth increased by four percentage points, signalling deeper engagement.

• Bounce rate decreased by four points, showing audiences weren’t clicking away but staying to learn.

  
  

Specific cities stood out… 

Leeds experienced a 130 % increase in traffic, demonstrating the power of hyper‑local frequency. 

London saw a 41 % year‑over‑year traffic uplift in areas with high ad presence. 

Birmingham recorded the highest volume of visitors. 

The data showed that even modest ad presence in cities like Nottingham and Sheffield drove about 50 % more traffic.

Qualitative feedback mirrored the numbers. 

One follower wrote: “Great work from whoever is behind this account. You’ve convinced me that your efforts are noble and worthwhile through your responses alone. I was sceptical at first”. 

By situating the campaign in spaces people trust, Spurgeons could challenge misperceptions head‑on, highlighting that the wellbeing of the child, not the offence of the parent, is at stake.

Spurgeons Campaign

Lessons in Purpose‑Driven Communication

The success of Stop the Stigma offers broader insights for mission‑driven organisations:

1. Meet people where they are. By leveraging 30Seconds’ screens in lift lobbies, Spurgeons reached audiences who weren’t searching for them. Ads aligned with daily routines create repeated, trusted impressions.

2. Hyper‑local frequency beats mass saturation. Leeds’ 130 % uplift from only 23 ad impressions proves that thoughtful placement can outperform scattershot advertising.

3. Context is part of the message. Residential DOOH provided not just exposure but credibility, allowing Spurgeons to address a sensitive issue with dignity.

4. Storytelling must be human. The campaign didn’t rely solely on statistics; it illuminated the personal toll of imprisonment, reminding audiences that children of prisoners have done nothing wrong yet suffer the grief and stigma of a parent’s crime.

5. Integration amplifies impact. Aligning DOOH with social media ensured that people encountered the message in multiple contexts, reinforcing recall and action.

   
   

Looking Ahead: No Family Should Face Life’s Struggles Alone

Spurgeons isn’t stopping. On 1 November the charity launches its Christmas appeal: “No Family Should Face Life’s Struggles Alone.” 

This campaign will introduce readers to the Thompson family, each member dealing with their own challenges, to illustrate the charity’s holistic support.

The appeal embodies Spurgeons’ belief that when we support every member of a family, we help them all thrive.

As readers of this blog, your most valuable action is to stand with these children. 

Donate to Spurgeons’ Stop the Stigma initiative so they can fund counselling sessions, facilitate bedtime stories through “Storybook Dads” and provide homework club supplies. 

Even after the campaign’s conclusion, Spurgeons will report back on where donations go and how they change lives. 

If you’re inspired, consider the 100 Miles Challenge – walking the distance families often travel to see a parent in prison – as a tangible act of solidarity.

For brands and charities seeking to replicate this success, the message is clear: purpose and placement belong together. 

Whether you’re a social enterprise looking to raise awareness or a corporate partner aiming to support meaningful causes, the 30Seconds network offers a trusted, high‑dwell environment that cuts through digital noise.

If you’re ready to explore how context‑aware DOOH can elevate your mission, contact hello@30secondsgroup.com. 

To learn more about Spurgeons’ work and to support children affected by imprisonment, visit Stop the Stigma.

In the end, the collaboration between 30Seconds Media and Spurgeons shows that a momentary pause at a lift door can become an opening to empathy. 

When media placement and mission align, we don’t just raise metrics – we change minds, soften hearts, and bring children out from behind the shadow of someone else’s mistake.