Joining the local fight against poverty
Making a real connection with the community is the most effective way to stand out in a highly competitive landscape.
The Ask
Bring poverty close to home
Inspired by a campaign their counterparts carried out in Calgary, the United Way St. Catharines & District approached us with the idea of doing something similar in our community.
Our Approach
Refusing to toe the poverty line
Working with a limited budget, we conceived of a similarly successful campaign called Share the Way. Its goal was to drive awareness and attention to the actual hard costs of poverty in Niagara and the increasing number of seemingly normal, employed families that live under the poverty line.
Campaign Development & Collateral
Connecting the community with a cause
From developing a strategic plan and concept with input from the United Way team, we conceived the campaign name and positioning, key messaging, and storylines. Advertising creative, including two-dozen independent billboard ads and supporting digital content were developed to drive traffic to the dedicated interactive campaign microsite. The Share the Way campaign became the cornerstone of the United Way’s 2016 fundraising efforts that saw them surpass their $3.5 million campaign goal.
Corporate Website
From poverty to possibility
On the heels of the success of the Share the Way campaign, the United Way came back to us for a complete rebuild of their corporate website. Working with the established brand identity and organizational priorities, we developed a strategic plan to position the United Way in a sea of other well-known charitable organizations. This included detangling existing content, planning the information architecture, highlighting the individuals on the United Way team and solidifying their role in the community through storytelling and program initiatives. We developed a responsive website that was built on a user-friendly CMS, allowing the United Way team to publish and update content with ease. The site is highly effective in sharing the United Way’s key messaging and critical programs, and attracting donations and community partnerships.
What We've Learned
Sharing is caring
Our relationship with the United Way has opened our eyes to the extent of poverty in Niagara, and how many working families struggle daily to provide for themselves. Our partnership has progressed to such a high level of mutual respect that the United Way asked our Project Manager Kristina to sit on their Community Investment Panel. We continue to work with the United Way team through their regional amalgamation to build the United Way Niagara website, and to provide ongoing guidance and maintenance, implementing technology and feature updates to further the effectiveness of the digital product and the work this organization does for our community.
We love working with Form & Affect! This team always delivers beyond our expectations and has helped us take our online experience to the next level.
Kevin Jong United Way Niagara
