What we can learn from Captain Tom Moore.

At the time of writing, Captain Tom Moore, and I hope soon to be Sir Tom Moore, has raised ￡15m for the NHS Together Charities. This man has captivated us over the last few days with this monumental achievement. Captain Tom is now nearly as famous as another Captain - Bobby Moore - and has certainly over taken Pugwash in the famous captain’s stake! He has become our mascot and the representation of our appreciation, frustration and desire amidst this Covid -19 crisis. His money raising feat is nothing short of remarkable. To put things into perspective, Children in Need’s fundraising record is ￡55 million. That is, of course, tremendous but to achieve this, Children in Need requires 000’s of events and activities plus about 10 hours of live TV. This 99-year-old hero walks up and down his garden 100 times and pulls in ￡15m.

Why…How…?

This crisis seems so huge and all that we mere mortals (the non key workers) are being asked to do is to stay at home to support the NHS and save lives. It just doesn’t seem enough, so, around the country, businesses have pivoted to focus their efforts on good works, making useful products or distributing charitable gifts. This is hugely commendable, needed and admired. However, the UK was looking for a representative; as a public, we needed someone to step up and deliver our communal message and also give us some hope…

If we have hope, we can cope.

 Up steps Captain Tom Moore. When seeing an interview with Captain Tom for the first time, I did not doubt for a minute that he would complete his hundred laps of the garden. Set by his family, I was sure that they would not set a challenge too great. There are many reasons why I sponsored him and not just gave directly NHS Charities Together which I could easily have over the last few weeks.

Observing why so many of us have sponsored Captain Tom gives us some lessons and thoughts for our own businesses and organisations:

1.      Alignment with what your audience wants - Captain Tom represents an audience that has a common want, to support and show gratitude to the NHS. He provided a practical way how for us to do this.

2.      Personal brand - We like him, we like faces and a good personality. We know his story and we know why he is doing it; he is authentic in his desire to give back.

3.      We keep seeing him – The media have covered this story extensively over the last 48 hours. I believe that his first media appearance was when he was at around the ￡10,000 mark. Is your audience seeing you regularly? In your pocket, you have access to all the media you will ever need - your phone! He has appeared on news and discussions shows that are focussed solely on the Covid 19 crisis so, by their nature, he is appearing in front of the people who care most about the crisis. He’s talking to a captivated audience.

4.      Captain Tom makes us feel good - Whether we watch him on the TV, giving us hope, or donating our hard-earned money, we feel good about the time or money we have spent with him. Do your customers feel good after spending time on your media or spending money with you?

Captain Tom is a national treasure. He is someone I am sure we are all proud of. He is obviously a very humble man who has a zest for life with a thankful heart. I hope the money keeps flooding in and he has a very happy 100th birthday at the end of the month - he deserves it!

I believe we all needed a Captain and Captain Tom Moore has certainly not disappointed.

Knight Him!