Wikimedia Foundation/Communications/Knowledge is Human

The Wikimedia Foundation’s Communications department works to increase awareness and understanding of Wikimedia in the world. Ahead of the 2024 “Big English” fundraising drive, the department launching a communications campaign designed to increase trust and support for Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation among English-language internet users.

The timing and messages are carefully developed to differentiate Wikimedia from other technology organizations and to show why Wikimedia needs public support. The key message across all components of the campaign is "Knowledge is human."

Why are we doing this work?

People support causes that they understand and believe in sustaining. By increasing how many people understand Wikimedia, this campaign intends to also increase support for our work.

2024 Campaign

Continuing from the 2023 campaign, we developed a public awareness campaign that built on the Knowledge is Human idea. Our 2024 campaign works to connect our messaging with audiences who may not be aware of the everyday work that goes into creating and maintaining Wikipedia, showing how Wikipedia articles are edited and improved by millions of people. The messaging highlights Wikipedia as a source of information on almost any topic, from 2024 US elections to local interest and culture.

You can view the campaign's landing page at wikimediafoundation.org/our-work/knowledge-is-human.

Who was it for?

English-language Internet users in the US ages 25 - 44 y.o. with an interest in Wikipedia and philanthropy.

How did the campaign work?

The campaign used short animated videos that show how individual edits come together to create a Wikipedia article. These were 3 real edits, taken from the selected page’s edit history. By believed that by showcasing how Wikipedia is made by many people, over time, the campaign would inspire more trust in Wikipedia and bring life to the campaign tagline “Knowledge is Human.”

The editing animations focused on a range of topics, from the comical to the scientific, showcasing Wikipedia’s extraordinary range of content. Animations were published and promoted on digital channels to reach our target audience on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

What was different in 2024?

With Communications department staff time providing much of the heavy-lifting, this campaign maintained low marketing costs while evolving last year's digital-only campaign. This year, we trialed a physical billboard truck as a means of sparking public attention. This "Wiki Truck" appeared for 1 day in two cities and displayed editing animations of Wikipedia articles on local topics. One truck, for one day (eight hours), in one city at a time - New York on October 22 and Los Angeles on October 24.

Creative materials

The animations from the 2024 “Knowledge is Human” campaign are available on Commons for wide re-use.

Animations

Wiki Trucks

We also used a Wiki Minute video in this campaign

Can you trust what's on Wikipedia?

Results

A report on the 2024 English-language communications campaign "Knowledge is Human"

Running from October 15 to October 31, 2024, the “Knowledge is Human” campaign was viewed approximately 15 million times (impressions) and reached an estimated 7.8 million people. Overall, the campaign content was well-received, increasing brand awareness and knowledge about Wikipedia:

61% said the campaign ‘makes you feel that Wikipedia articles are created and edited by humans’
32% said campaign increases likelihood of donating to Wikipedia in the future (+18 shift from the latest Brand Health Tracker)
65% improvement in Wikipedia brand awareness in the US (+14 increase during campaign month)
20% increase in US audiences willing to use Wikipedia for more information after the campaign

You can find the complete campaign report on Commons.

2023 Campaign

2023 campaign graphic

In 2023, US audiences were increasingly concerned about the role of technology in society. Misinformation and AI led their fears.

In 2022, 47% of Americans said they saw misinformation on a daily basis. In 2023, more than 50% of US consumers reported feeling “more concerned than excited about AI.” The Wikimedia Foundation’s 2023-2024 Annual Plan acknowledged these trends as major forces shaping our work.

Frequently updated, checked against references, and watched over by real humans Wikimedia stands as an antidote for mis- and disinformation. It is also a powerful resource to keep AI accurate and helpful for society. The only problem? Almost no one knows the role that Wikimedia projects and the Wikimedia Foundation play in making information online accurate and trustworthy.

That’s why we made this simple campaign.

Knowledge Is Human holding a book key visual gif

With bright, hand-drawn animations and clear messages about Wikimedia and technology, this campaign is meant to grow awareness and understanding for the work of Wikimedians and the Wikimedia Foundation in keeping online knowledge safe and accurate. The key aspect of all our work? Humans! Hence the tagline “Knowledge is Human.”

Who was it for?

English-language Internet users in the US, UK, Canada, Ireland and India ages 34 - 55 y.o. with an interest in Wikipedia and philanthropy.

How did the campaign work?

The campaign used 15 - 60 second animated videos to reach our target audience on social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

There were two sets of videos:

Knowledge as Human animations that message how Wikimedia content is made by humans and that makes it different from AI and generated misinformation content.
Wiki Minute explainers that answer key questions internet users have about Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.

Both sets of videos offered viewers a chance to click through to a “Knowledge is Human” campaign web page that further detailed how Wikipedia works, how humans (both staff and volunteers) power Wikimedia, and how donations sustain our work.

The campaign used both “organic” publishing to reach internet users who follow Wikipedia social media accounts and “paid media” to distribute the videos to people interested in Wikipedia but not following our accounts.

Creative materials

The animations from the 2023 “Knowledge is Human” campaign are available on Commons for wide re-use. You can also find many of the animations below:

The three Wiki Minute videos used in this campaign were

Results

A report on the 2023 English-language communications campaign "Knowledge is Human"

Running from October 24 to November 23, 2023, the “Knowledge is Human” campaign was viewed approximately 17.3 million times (impressions) and reached an estimated 5.2 million people. And the response to the campaign messages were highly favorable:

76% said they found the messages “easy to understand”
66% said they found the communications “visually appealing”
61% said they found the communications “fairly / very noticeable”
30% said they had increased interest in donating to support Wikimedia
30% said they were interested in editing Wikipedia

You can find the complete campaign report on Commons.