I’ve read a few blog posts lately, shared on social media, which are knocking the no makeup selfies.
They accuse women of belittling the bravery of cancer patients, they claim they are self-publicising and doing absolutely nothing to raise awareness, they question what they’ve done for the cause, when we’re all aware of the disease anyway.
I’ve even read about a cancer patient who’s offended by the whole movement.
Here’s why they’re missing the point:
Many littles make a lot
Any fundraiser will tell you the best idea is the simplest one. One which involves people making very little effort, but all giving a little, to amount to a lot.
Cancer charities know this.
They can invite as many people as they like to do skydives or abseils. These may raise large amounts of cash, but you’ll get fewer individuals brave enough to take part – and there will be time and cost involved
Is it better that a million people give £1 or that 50 people give £100?
Not everyone’s being vain
By knocking the no makeup selfie you are over-thinking and over-complicating a very simple movement.
It may not seem like it, but these women are campaigning, and almost certainly raising money using a zero-cost method which tunes into a nation’s psyche and a very current trend.
Sure, some women will paint themselves in a good light, posting a vanity picture inviting comments about their natural beauty. And they may not donate.
But if they nominate five friends to take part, and one in five decides to give a few quid, that’s progress. That’s someone who wouldn’t have thought to donate – but now they have.
Awareness is more than knowing cancer exists
Have you ever asked yourself why charities spend money on awareness campaigns?
A lot of them are telling us what we already know – but the point is not only to educate, but to get the issue to the forefront of our minds, to have us talking about it right now.
Because it might just make someone feel brave enough to go for a check-up. It might lead to saving a life.
It almost certainly leads to the kind of media and press coverage that is worth it’s weight in gold, where more messages about cancer can be passed on – how to check your breasts, how to find help and support when you’re diagnosed, etc.
We don’t know everything about cancer. And because it’s such a scary subject, a lot of what we do know comes from picking up a morsel of info here and there, from awareness campaigns on TV and in the Press. And now on social media – which is a very powerful marketing tool.
Celebrities don’t (usually) come for free
Do you realise how much it costs to get a celebrity to front a campaign? Even your C-listers can command a good few grand. Big names can get tens of thousands.
This particular campaign has attracted loads of stars for free.
All because they are either affected by cancer, or they simply realise it’s good for their image. They can feature in newspapers and magazines for something positive. It’s good PR all round.
I remember someone asking why Elton John throws the White Tie and Tiara Ball every year, when he could just donate a chunk of his money to HIV and AIDS charities.
The answer is easy. Elton has photographers from every newspaper and magazine covering his event, getting HIV/AIDS awareness out there, and connecting the cause to every hot celebrity who attends his party.
Plus with all his rich friends under one roof – eating, drinking and feeling merry – he can squeeze multiple piles of cash out of the event. Everyone’s a winner.
Just telling people to give money is not enough – they won’t do it until something spurs them into action. And something fun is much more likely to catch on.
If self-publicising and attention-seeking celebrities also happen to make a ton of money for a life-saving cause, should we tell them to stop?
I am the friend of a fabulous woman who lost her life to breast cancer.
The daughter-in-law of an incredible man who lost his life to lung cancer.
And the cousin of an inspirational mum who lost her life to a rare cancer of the glands.
I have run the Race For Life – which each year raises an average £24 million for cancer charities. That’s £2 million a month.
By posting a no makeup selfie, and making my £3 donation to Cancer Research by texting BEAT to 70099, I helped promote a campaign which made £8 million in six weeks.
Running 5km, or posting a picture of myself in a less attractive light doesn’t make me nearly as brave as cancer patients who have undergone chemotherapy, or had a mastectomy.
Nobody is claiming that it does.
But the symbolism is to put us outside of our comfort zone. Just a little. Because that’s the least we can do when others are suffering, and dying, from this horrible disease.
Nobody is saying that you have to take part in this selfie campaign.
I’ve seen friends post a status, explaining that they don’t want to – but they’re making a donation nevertheless. Some friends have ignored it completely, which is their right.
Others have bucked the trend by posting a childhood photo, or a picture of a family pet, proclaiming “this is my no makeup selfie”.
But by writing a blog post, cynically knocking the whole thing, what good are these writers doing?
I could be equally cynical and suggest they’re jumping on the bandwagon themselves, writing something purposely controversial about a campaign which has gone viral – to piggyback off its success and get lots of shares and visits to their blogs.
Because if we’re looking at this on the basis that there is no such thing as a selfless act, I’d rather be guilty of self-promoting with a chance of raising money to fight a deadly disease.
Than self-promoting just to look down on others and make myself feel superior.
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