Healing Domestic Violence One Glance at a Time

By: Macy Kovarik

Women’s Aid was able to use facial recognition technology to go beyond targeting consumers with a product. The technology is able to recognize when people are people are paying attention to the billboard featuring an image of a bruised woman. As people look at the ad, her bruises and cuts heal, the more people that pay attention, the faster they heal, symbolizing the benefit of not turning a blind eye to the problem.

People standing near the billboard also get a text message that reads, “Thanks for not turning a blind eye to domestic violence,”urging them to donate to Women’s Aid. The text is sent through Weve, a mobile marketing tool launched in the U.K.

The campaign’s purpose was to generate attention to the issue and this billboard does just that. This out-of-home media showcased in London is innovative, but also appeals to a very wide audience. It’s simplicity allows anyone, from any background, religion, race or language to understand its powerful message.