How a non-profit fought the social media giants, armed with a bunch of t-shirts

Creative idea

When EU's Political Advertising regulation blocked Naisten Linja's abuse help line ads, we noticed what the platforms hadn't blocked: retail. Product listings were exempt from the political content ban. We built a collection with the banned messages printed on the garments, listed it through Meta and Microsoft commerce, and sold it. Commerce became the medium. The messages were visible, even if no shirts were sold. Every purchase sent €20 to Naisten Linja and got the crisis helpline number out, in a form the algorithm couldn't suppress.

Brand name: Naisten Linja
Advertiser / client: Naisten Linja
Product / service: Naisten Linja helpline
Campaign name: The Banned Collection
Agency network: INDEPENDENT AGENCY
Agency: hasan & partners, Helsinki
Agency chief executive officer: Riku Vassinen
Chief creative officer: Riku Vassinen
Creative director: Ossi Honkanen
Art director: Antti Kaarto
Designer: Anssi Arte
Music: Epidemic Sound