Social Media Marketing for Nonprofits: A Case Study

The number of Kentucky children in out-of-home care hit an all-time high of 8,188 this April – the same month that is recognized as Child Abuse Prevention and Awareness Month. In response to this reality, our neighbors across the river, the Children’s Home of Northern Kentucky, brought Untold Content on to craft a social media campaign to generate awareness for children in foster care. Our writing support and coordination with community members resulted in the #DuffleShuffle, where we encouraged viewers to donate a duffle bag, bring movement to the cause by dancing with it, and ultimately spread the message that no child should have to put their belongings in a trash bag during times of crisis and transition. Take a look at the #DuffleShuffle compilation video we scripted and co-produced in collaboration with Barking Squirrel Media, Cincinnati’s premiere video production and digital marketing storytellers and our collaborators: To hear our case study report on the #DuffleShuffle, watch this overview! PROJECT GOALS • Increase awareness of foster care needs in the Greater Cincinnati region while honoring National Child Abuse Prevention Month. • Engage Greater Cincinnati residents and the nation in an active campaign to betterthe lives of children and teens supported by foster care organizations. • Increase monetary and duffle bag donations to the Children’s Home of Northern Kentucky and other foster care organizations. OUR SOLUTION We conceptualized the #DuffleShuffle viral duffle bag drive and made the social media campaign a reality by connecting community leaders and residents around the cause and representing their support in campaign videos. This is a campaign strategy many have used before, with some opting to buy Tiktok fans to help get it off the ground. This one is a little different, though. The #DuffleShuffle encouraged the community to help ensure that no child would have to put their belongings in a trashbag during foster home transitions. We inspired user-generated videos by individuals, families, workplaces, classrooms, and faith communities who recorded themselves doing the “Duffle Shuffle” after purchasing and stuffing their duffle with items. As lead writers and project manager for this effort, we:

• Scripted a 2 minute promotional video featuring key influencers doing the #DuffleShuffle plus heartfelt discussion of the problem and how to get involved.
• Coordinated influencer campaign resulting in 30 videos (10-20 seconds each) of key individuals and groups doing the #DuffleShuffle and circulated on social media.
• Wrote the content for www.DuffleShuffle.org, including options for corporate sponsorship, volunteering, & becoming a foster parent.
• Wrote and circulated over 215 social media posts and 6 visual advertisements that achieved an organic reach of 63,869 views within 30 days across CHNK’s social networks. If only we decided to utilize a well-known growth service like instazood, these numbers could have been considerably higher.
• Achieved over 1,900 duffle bag donations to CHNK and other foster organizations.

WHAT THIS MEANS FOR UNTOLD’S CLIENTS:

• We creatively activate audiences through researched insights.
• We coordinate creative experts to bring multi-dimensional projects to life.
• We build empathy and depth into our work, ensuring that communities are reminded of big-picture goals and the personal impacts that make giving rewarding.