‍Overview

“A Week in Blackpool” was a hyper-local out-of-home (OOH) campaign by Alzheimer’s Society, with NCA as creative lead, designed to drive awareness of dementia, encourage early diagnosis, and reduce stigma. With nearly one-third of people living with dementia in the UK remaining undiagnosed, the campaign focused on helping people recognize early symptoms and understand the difference between dementia and normal ageing. Working within a limited budget, the campaign concentrated all activity in one town to deliver meaningful local impact and broader national attention.

Campaign Highlights

• Full OOH takeover across Blackpool using 120 sites and 75 unique, location-specific messages
• Creatives inspired by real dementia symptoms and conversations with those affected
• Community-led approach, developed in collaboration with local leaders to ensure authenticity
• Delivered measurable increases in awareness, engagement, and checklist completion
  
  

The Challenge

Dementia is the UK’s biggest killer, yet awareness and understanding remain low, with nearly one-third of people living with the condition undiagnosed. This lack of diagnosis prevents access to essential support, care, and future planning. Alzheimer’s Society needed to encourage earlier diagnosis while also reducing fear, confusion, and stigma surrounding dementia. With a limited budget that ruled out a national campaign, the challenge was to deliver meaningful impact through a focused, cost-effective approach.

The Solution

The solution was “A Week in Blackpool,” a hyper-localised OOH campaign that transformed the entire town into a memory-triggering storytelling canvas. Blackpool was strategically selected for its strong OOH presence, cultural relevance, and emotional resonance. The campaign used location-specific messaging across the town, reflecting real dementia symptoms in familiar public spaces. By partnering with community leaders and grounding the creative in lived experience, the campaign ensured authenticity while making dementia visible, relatable, and impossible to ignore.

Planning & Execution

The campaign executed a full OOH takeover across Blackpool, activating 120 sites with 75 bespoke messages tailored to specific locations. Each creative was designed to mirror real symptoms of dementia, inspired directly by conversations with people affected by the condition. The messaging was placed directly into the daily lives of residents and visitors, turning routine journeys into moments of reflection and recognition. The hyper-local approach allowed Alzheimer’s Society to maximize impact despite budget constraints, creating a unified narrative across the town for one concentrated week.

The Results

“A Week in Blackpool” successfully turned public space into a powerful platform for awareness and action.

• Community impact: Over 15,000 people completed the dementia symptoms checklist, representing a 155% year-over-year increase.
  
• Engagement: Website traffic increased by 21%, ad recall rose by 22%, and brand buzz reached an all-time high (+14% year-over-year).
  
• Cultural relevance: The campaign sparked meaningful conversations across Blackpool, making dementia more visible and relatable within the community.
  
• Industry recognition: The campaign was recognised as one of the UK’s most impactful hyper-local OOH campaigns, blending creativity with social purpose.