On November 8, 2023, we proudly received the Award of Excellence from the Canadian Society for Association Executives for our 2023 Canadian Fertility Awareness Week (CFAW) campaign in partnership with Fertility Matters Canada (FMC).
CSAE’s Association Centre of Excellence Awards recognizes outstanding team achievements and organizations’ initiatives to advance association excellence in alignment with the competencies of the Certified Association Executive (CAE ®) program. Recipients of this award have demonstrated excellent leadership, structure and governance of their association; and/or the planning and execution of internal, external and integrated programs that elevate member value and engage the association community.
Hailey Rodgers, our Business Development & Marketing Strategist, was the lead on this campaign and shares the summary of this successful project below:
“Marketing your nonprofit often gets put on the back burner.
With all the moving parts of running a nonprofit, from volunteer management to planning your next conference, it’s hard to keep up with the latest and greatest marketing trends.
However, I’m here to say that marketing is a powerful tool for engaging your community and raising awareness about what your organization does and how it does it. If people don’t hear about what you’re doing, they won’t be able to see the difference you’re making in their community which in turn, can cause your organization to lose out on opportunities to increase memberships, volunteers, and sponsorship dollars.
Below, I will be sharing how a successful marketing campaign helped enable our client, FMC, to impact over a quarter of a million Canadians during CFAW, organically.
The Partnership
In 2022, FMC collaborated with Redstone’s marketing team to support its annual CFAW campaign. FMC is a member-based organization who has a growing network of industry partners, care providers, professionals, patients and others who believe in building Canadian families. The goal of the campaign was to increase awareness and access to FMC’s resources.
FMC requested that Redstone design and execute its annual campaign which included the following goals:
- Defining the theme, a rebrand from Canadian INFERTILITY Awareness Week to Canadian FERTILITY Awareness Week, to place a more positive spin on a heavy conversation and to be more inclusive of those with fertility stories.
- Designing a week-long nationwide online campaign that provides education to the fertility community and the general public so that FMC can be recognized as the most inclusive, up-to-date resource.
- Driving people to the CFAW website so they can become more aware of the resources that FMC provides.
- Expanding the online community by 10% and reaching 100,000 people on our social media channels during this week.
The Strategy
We approached the project by setting up weekly meetings with FMC’s Executive Director and Marketing Committee to ensure cross-communication and collaboration.
Redstone’s team developed a marketing strategy, starting with discovery sessions with the Executive Director and staff. Redstone then defined the CFAW theme and selected the optimal channels for FMC’s impact and audience reach.
These are the tactics which directly supported FMC’s goals:
- A re-brand
- Committee management
- eBook design
- Influencer marketing
- Awards program development and virtual ceremony
- Social media marketing
- Content marketing
- Webinars
- Email marketing
- Community-based marketing
- Website and SEO
The Results
The campaign was a success, impacting over a quarter of a million Canadians through social media, exceeding the original goal by 150%.
FMC experienced significant engagement, with thousands across the country sharing their experiences and re-sharing content. CFAW was also featured in major news outlets including Global News, CBC Radio, and Elle Canada.
The campaign emphasized EDI, highlighting infertility experiences in marginalized communities. Social media posts, webinars, and podcasts explored the struggles faced by People of Colour and 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals with infertility.
The FMC Awards Program and ceremony were a success, honoring those advocating for improved treatment and accessibility. FMC was the first fertility-focused organization in Canada to implement this program, and many FMC members received awards, increasing credibility and visibility of their work.
As mentioned, we reached and impacted over a quarter of a million people! We published 194 posts total across all four social media channels. We received 15,091 engagements, 749 new followers with a growth rate of 19.2%, and 1480 website taps.
The project showcased the importance of implementing a creative marketing strategy to drive an organization’s mission forward. As a nonprofit, you have the power to make a huge difference in the world. You just need to harness it. By leveraging the power of marketing properly, you can truly make an impact with the community you serve.”