It's a brave charity that risks valuable budget on a concept that includes sending a length of cut steel cable to its most valuable donors. Practical Action deserve great respect for having the confidence to go ahead and be different. This mailpack, sent to their high value donors, was a winning and unforgettable combination of audience understanding, lateral thinking, first-class creative and a ballsy fundraising team.

The ask was to help construct gravity ropeways in Nepal, to help villagers living in remote mountain communities to get their produce down to valley markets quickly and safely.

The whole execution feels unusual and authentic. The Jiffy bag outer ensures attention on the doormat. The copy tone quietly reinforces the need without resorting to charity histrionics. The prompts are expressed as lengths of the steel cable needed to construct the ropeways. The presentation of the background material is simple and real.

And the candle on the cake was a six-inch length of 8mm galvanised steel cable. You hold in your hand what your money is helping to buy.

The pack was a finalist in this year's international ECHO Awards, but even better than that were the results... target income was beaten by 59%!

Nick Couldry