The Client
Church World Service (CWS) works with partners to eradicate hunger and poverty and to promote peace and justice around the world. Together they reach out to neighbors in need near and far--not with a hand out, but a hand up. Around the world, CWS supports sustainable grassroots development, disaster relief, and refugee assistance, and educates and advocates on hunger-related issues. In the U.S., CWS helps communities respond to disasters, resettle refugees, promote fair national and international policies, and provide educational resources.   

The Problem
CWS promoted their "Best Gifts" eCommerce catalog during Mother's Day using only a single email, which was sent to the non-CROP Walk members of its email list. CWS saw an opportunity to significantly increase the amount of online donations by pursuing strategic promotional opportunities.

How We Solved It
CWS chose to work with Convio Services on a campaign to reinvigorate its Mother's Day campaign. Convio's Strategy Consulting and Campaign Management teams provided the concept, copy, strategic direction, and campaign management required to execute the campaign; design and production were provided by Convio's Interactive Services team; and guidance on the User Experience was provided by Convio's User Experience team. Re-branded from the "Best Gifts Catalog" to the "Mother's Day Catalog," the campaign was promoted heavily to CWS's entire email list through two emails, a homepage banner, and an offline mailer, as well as through Facebook and Twitter. CWS placed the primary emphasis on letting others know (via an eCard) that they inspired the donor's gift to another mother in need. Each eCard contained a link to a photo slideshow to show recipients the impact of the gift. This link served as an effective way to drive eCard recipients back to the CWS website. Additionally, a "Wall of Inspiration" webpage was created so people could post information about how their mom inspired them.

The Outcome
The Mother's Day campaign raised $9,617 online through 233 gifts in seven days, using an email list of approximately 31k. Of this total amount, 73% of all funds raised were driven by emails. Sixty percent of donors took advantage of the eCard functionality, sending 135 eCards to 178 recipients. The Mother's Day Catalog alone raised $7,251 online through 196 gifts, with an average gift of $37. These results represented a 286% increase in eCommerce catalog revenue from the same period the year prior.

Convio products used: eCards, Ecommerce, Email Marketing, Fundraising, Social Media, Web Content Management