Samsung is taking its charitable initiatives to a new level by releasing four films narrating stories of two physically challenged kids, whose life was significantly improved thanks to the company’s donation. The support was provided to them as part of the “Dream and Hope to Youth” initiative, launched in China to provide more youth education and medical volunteering opportunities in the region.
The films released by Samsung are not just another examples of “that’s what we’ve done” videos, but are heart-breaking, heart-warming and truly wonderful stories of two emotionally strong and brave kids who lost their ability to live normal physical lives but with the brand’s support managed to get back to normal lives.
The heroes are 12-year-old Yan Yuhong (顔玉宏), who suffered polio when he was 6 and now has to walk on both hands, and Liu Qingnan, who was born with congenital cataracts. These are the documentary stories of personal triumph and passion for life, and the financial support from Samsung seems to be just a small part of the whole story here, emphasized with a huge desire to live and be part of a community.
Samsung China made financial donations to help these young heroes succeed in their life. The boy got a motorized wheelchair to be able to get to school comfortably, and the girl got her eye surgery paid by the company—it helped restore her sight, and after a rehabilitation period she became a 2012 London Olympic Games Torch-Bearer, plus the company will be supporting her so that she could reach her new life goals.
“I have produced a variety of campaign videos so far but I was deeply impressed to know that Samsung was so active in giving back to society through a wide array of CSV campaigns. I came to have a totally new understanding of Samsung while working on this project,” said director Zhang Xianfeng (張險峰). “I truly hope that campaigns like these increase in both quality and quantity in China and advance a world where heart-warming human stories become more and more common.”
The effort, which marks a shift from product-oriented marketing strategy to emotional marketing, syncs with the rising trend of focusing on real life heroes’ stories of achievement in social good campaigns. “One of the hottest promotion trends in China engages storytelling that emphasizes public interest combined with moving stories of real people. Reputation-building ads like those by Samsung are becoming increasingly popular in China,” says the company in the blog post.