The number of suicides are increasing every year here in Singapore and especially amongst the younger female age group with an approximately 19% increase between 1991 - 2004. The Samaritans of Singapore (SOS) felt that they needed to reach out to the younger target audience better and at a more personal level as a friend offering a helping hand rather than a public service help line. Educating the young ones that there is help available at an early stage is key as they experience more of lifeís trials in the coming years. SOS also needed to inform the public that there are now more ways to reach help than just the phone line such as writing in through emails. At the same time, the site needed to encourage and facilitate recruitment of more SOS volunteers to cater for the growing needs of the country.



The idea of using a "doodle" approach for the site was inspired by the fact that we all do this at some point in our teenage lives and even kids express themselves better through drawings. It also creates a more emotional and friendly experience that is enhanced by the non-structured navigation that gives you the freedom to move anywhere anytime. Through our research into the history of SOS, we chanced upon "SAM" which they used to call their volunteers and we felt that this immediately made the volunteers feel a lot friendlier simply by having a name. The entire site content was therefore written from the point of SAM. This bold approach taken for the SOS site made it one of the most refreshing and engaging public service website but most importantly through its uniqueness and interactivity, it makes users spend more time on the site and allow the messages to come through in a friendlier and more charming way.