Category: Client Feature

CIELO Community: Night Market

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Brand Project

CIELO hosted the in-person fundraiser and interactive experience A Night Market to present an updated brand and formally launch their OC MicroFund to the public, which aimed to raise $250,000 for BIPOC small businesses in Orange County. The event featured many of the small businesses that the nonprofit had supported and helped to build. Attendees included donors, corporate and nonprofit executives, community members, and small business owners.

The Challenge

This was a new event and the first large-scale community event for CIELO. Many of the marketing materials used to execute the event needed to be developed and be based on event branding.

Requirements

  1. Must follow precise brand guidelines determined by CIELO
  2. Leverage current logo while working to launch a new logo
  3. Leverage event brand assets already developed
  4. Must hold the new brand in confidence until launch at the event
  5. Marketing collateral needed to be conceptualized, developed, and distributed in a timely manner to meet print and mailing deadlines
  6. Brand messaging, colors, fonts, and tone must be consistent across all print and digital channels
  7. Work seamlessly with an events management team, CIELO employees, and vendors

Deliverables

  • Brand Identity Development
  • Social Media Post Management (Image Development, Scheduling & Posting)
  • Event and Booth Signage
  • Two PPT Designs
  • On-site Support
  • Event Program
  • Promotional Items (source, design and print)
  • Printing Management
  • Email Campaign Design & Management
    Social Media Kit for sponsors and featured clients/vendors

Outcome

CIELO’s Night Market hosted 100+ people from local nonprofits and corporations, the OC community, ticket buyers and donors. The organization raised $80,000 from sponsorships and ticket sales that was used to seed and launch the OC MicroFund. CIELO received positive feedback from all who attended on the impact of the event and grew its own awareness in the community.

Creative Vortex successfully finished and executed all the requested deliverables, as well as provided support for additional items as they came up.

Brand Case Study: InspirationALZ Gala

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InspirationALZ Gala
August 13, 2022

Brand Project

The Alzheimer’s Association, Orange County Chapter was hosting their inaugural InspirationALZ Gala on August 13, 2022 in Newport Beach to bring awareness to their mission, drive awareness, connect with their community and raise critical funds for their mission of advancing research and supporting those impacted by the disease.

The Challenge

This was an inaugural event for the organization and followed 2.5 years of a global pandemic that kept people from hosting and attending large scale in-person events. The brand identity and promise for the InspirationALZ Gala needed to be explored and developed from scratch with the organization and Board of Directors to set the tone for the project. The event committee was composed of business leaders from across the community volunteering their time and expertise.

Requirements

  1. Must follow precise brand guidelines set forth by the Alzheimer’s Association at the national office for chapter offices.
  2. The brand identity for the InspirationALZ Gala still needed to be unique in order to be appealing to the unique culture of the Orange County community.
  3. Marketing collateral needed to be conceptualized, developed, and distributed in a timely manner to meet print and mailing deadlines.
  4. Brand messaging, colors, fonts, and tone must be consistent across all print and digital channels.
  5. Incorporate the theme “Mind, Music & Memories” and the name “InspirationALZ Gala” across all marketing platforms.
  6. Social media assets that coordinated with event theme and branding guidelines.
  7. Sponsorship packet development to drive attendance and general awareness of event.

Deliverables

  • Brand Identity Development
  • Event Logo
  • Save the Date Postcard
  • Sponsorship Package
  • Print Invitations
  • Print ads for OCBJ
  • Social Media Assets + Post images
  • Signage
  • PPT templates
  • Event Program + Live Auction Program Insert

Outcome

The first annual InspirationALZ Gala was a star-studded event that included performances from singer/songwriter Andrew Cole, American Idol finalist Janelle Arthur, and Nicholas Petricca of Walk the Moon. Vicki Gunvalson of Bravo TV! And CEO of Coto Insurance served an emcee and shared her personal inspirational story with Alzheimer’s disease. The event was attended by more than 300 people from the Orange County community.

Creative Vortex successfully finished and executed all of the requested deliverables by working closely with the executive team at the Alzheimer’s Association. The theme resonated with the organization’s mission and was created in a way that it will serve the Gala for many years to come.

Deemed an amazing success by committee organizers and staff, they have already kicked off planning the 2023 InspirationALZ Gala. The beloved theme will be the driving force for booking talent and securing sponsors for next year’s event.

One Day of Hope Marketing Campaign

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OVERVIEW

International Sanctuary is a nonprofit focused on empowering girls and women escaping human trafficking through its worldwide sanctuaries and social enterprise Purpose Jewelry. The organization ran a One Day of Hope Campaign in July 2021 in support of World Day Against Trafficking in Persons on July 30, as well as to boost sales of the specially curated One Day of Hope Collection.

Creative Vortex worked in partnership with Little Red Communications to grow awareness of the campaign and boost jewelry sales through targeted social media and hashtags, an email campaign, and customized website elements. The campaign centered around the following:

  • Jewelry in the One Day of Hope Collection costing $26, which is the same amount it takes to support one woman a day in their sanctuaries
  • The words: Hope, Dignity & Freedom
  • Human trafficking information and statistics

APPROACH

Social Media:
Created a 30-day social media and hashtag strategy with 60+ images highlighting pieces from the One Day of Hope Collection, along with targeted messaging about human trafficking and the organization’s mission. Included posts, stories and hashtags.

Email Campaign:
Developed a weekly newsletter highlighting specific pieces from the One Day of Hope Collection and targeted messaging about human trafficking and the organization’s mission.

Website:
Designed customized website elements highlighting the One Day of Hope campaign and its key messages.

Branding:
Developed a comprehensive and distinctive brand, including colors, font, logo placement and language to not only marry the campaign to International Sanctuary and Purpose Jewelry, but to also set it apart.

 

RESULTS

Sales:

  • Raised more than $23,000 and provided over 910 Days of Hope!
  • Online Store Sessions = 11,969 / Visitors = 11,017 (increase of 14%)
  • Total orders = 174 (increase of 4%)
  • Returning Customer Rate = increase of 31%
  • $467 in donations from the Purpose Jewelry website shopping cart check out TipGenius widget
  • $2,186 sales attributed to email marketing (increase of 60%)
  • $508 in direct social media sales (Facebook increased by 326%)

Sales by Traffic Source:
Direct = $20,716
Search = $2,302
Unknown = $716
Social = $508

Top Referrers by Sessions:
linktr.ee = 155 (increase of 244%)
www.internationalsanctuary.com = 113 (increase of 13%)

Online Store Session by Social:
Facebook = 134 (increase of 148%)
Instagram = 37 (increase of 42%)

Online Store Sessions by Device Type:
Mobile = 7,096 (increase of 19%)
Desktop = 4,399 (increase of 7%)
Other= 279 (increase of 7%)
Tablet = 194 (increase of 38%)

Social Media:
@PurposeJewelry / 22 Posts
+8.7% Increased Content Interactions (998 likes, 37 comments, 30 saves, and 18 shares)
+1.7% New Accounts Reached
+125 New Followers

@InternationalSanctuary / 15 Posts
+144% Increased Content Interactions (341 likes, 15 comments, 6 saves, and 3 shares)
+80.1% Increased New Accounts Reached
+38 New Followers

Email Marketing:
Number of emails in campaign: 6 (with resends to those who did not open = 12)
Average open rate: 12%
Average click rate: 0.5%

 

Contact Creative Vortex for assistance in launching your next multi-platform marketing campaign! Learn more about us at creative-vortex.com or check us out on Instagram and Facebook.

 

4 Tips To Make Email Work For Your Organization

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Email marketing is not dead. In fact, 269 billion emails are sent every day with 90 percent of adults and 74 percent of teenagers using it regularly. However, that number creates a lot of competition for businesses using it to get in front of people.

Creative Vortex recently worked with longtime client Laura’s House to create two impactful email marketing campaigns to increase awareness about the organization and support two of its larger donation drives. The 2020 End of Year email campaign raised $85,000 in a little over two weeks and the 2021 LOVE IS campaign raised $30,000 in 24 hours.

Working closely with the team at Laura’s House we were able to create two campaigns that exceeded expectations in regards to audience reach, impact and money raised. Below are our top four takeaways on how to create email marketing campaigns that produce favorable results.

1. Create An Overall Objective 


What do you want the email campaign to do for your organization? Your objective needs to be crystal clear before you start writing or designing the email or your target audience won’t do what you want them to do. Campaign objectives should focus on what you want the people opening the email to do. For example, with Laura’s House year-end appeal and LOVE IS email marketing campaigns we wanted to tell the story of how Laura’s House supports domestic violence victims and teenagers in harmful relationships so that people in our community would donate to the nonprofit. While setting the objective it is also a good time to set a goal to make sure you know what you and your team are working towards. Laura’s House wanted to raise money to benefit their initiatives, but other goals might include wanting to sell products, register attendees for an event, or provide general marketing information.

2. Make it personable and relevant


People are busy and need to know that opening an email is worth the time they put into it. First, catch their eye with a subject line describing the content of the email … and be honest! Nothing puts people off more than using a bait and switch subject line. Once readers open the email get to the point really fast, but make it relevant. Laura’s House year-end email highlighted the fact that they had experienced a 25 percent increase in domestic violence related calls during the pandemic and focused on the impact the pandemic has had on children, families and abusive households and that activity on their 24-Hour Crisis Hotline increased 65 percent. They quickly educated the reader on the increase in demand for services and that their donation would allow this demand to be met. The LOVE IS campaign alerted readers that 93 percent of students that participated in their HEART workshop had increased knowledge about red flags and what makes a healthy relationship, as well as featured a Chapman University study that showed 2 in 3 high school students experience some form of harmful behavior in a relationship.

3. Brand, brand, brand 

I cannot emphasize the branding of the newsletter enough. This means using your logo properly along with a consistent use of colors and visual elements clearly aligned with your organization. If you are a well-known entity this is particularly important for the purpose of brand recognition within your circles of influence. If you are a new or unknown brand this is important to create brand recognition and build credibility with your target audience. Be sure your email provides several links to your website and social media platforms, or whatever page (or pages) is going to help you create results to meet your goals. The email for Laura’s House’s two campaigns were clearly labeled with their logo and brand colors, plus provided links to the donation page on their website in several different places. In fact, the LOVE IS email campaign was actually part of the Collaborative Giving Day fundraising campaign in Orange County, but still focused on its own brand while sharing that space.

4. Timing 


How long should email campaigns last? Timing for each unique campaign is going to vary based on if the emailing marketing is about an event, a sale or fundraiser. Obviously, the Laura’s House email campaigns I have highlighted were for a fundraiser and were different based on the criteria for each event. The year-end campaign lasted two and half weeks and included four emails that were sent to a target audience. We wanted to be strategic about how often we sent these emails out since it was the end of the year and people already had email fatigue from the holidays. They needed to be consistent and visible but not annoying. The LOVE IS campaign lasted 24 hours and included six strategic emails. As mentioned previously, the LOVE IS campaign was part of a bigger fundraising effort for a shorter amount of time and the space was competitive! We need to be really engaged with potential donors and make sure they knew there was a limited amount of time to donate. Email campaigns for events typically include pre-event and post-event information, as well as registration directions. Email campaigns that are consumer-focused typically rotate around announcing new products, sales and general marketing.

This is definitely not a comprehensive list of things to do to create a result-oriented email campaign, but just some highlights! Interested in learning more and how Creative Vortex can help? Reach out via email or phone today.

Kinn Inc.

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When I first met Alex McKinnon, founder & CEO, in December 2012 the passion and dedication he had for his brand was contagious and shared by everyone on his team. I was excited to partner with this organization to help bring their brand to life, especially since it focuses on pet health. Kinn makes the Kleanbowl, a healthier pet food and water bowl that is germ-resistant and helps to promote overall health for animals. As a consumer of this product, I personally believe that this product is making a real difference for our furry companions and will continue to help the fight against COVID-19. I use Kleanbowl in my home with my two dogs and they are healthier for it. This #dogmom is so happy to be on a team that puts pet health first!

Creative Vortex created the packaging, website design & graphics, marketing materials, email communications, trade show booth, virtual event materials and trade publication ads.

SvenSax

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I had the pleasure of working with @svensax to create a new brand logo. A musician for 20+ years, Marcel Sven Saxlund had worked as a lead singer, rapper and poet and was expanding his artistic resume to reflect his current state of being.

The desire for the new minimalist logo was to include personal and layered meanings of Marcel’s Swedish and Norwegian ancestry. This included his Saxlund family crest (a deer) and Viking symbols, such as a bow of a Viking ship. Not an easy task, but we both loved the final design!

“Bridget completely embraced and fully understood how personal this would be to me. She created something beyond my expectations. … There’s something so personal about capturing a distinct mindset and vision and turning that into a tangible symbol. Mission (irrefutably) accomplished.”

Marcel Sven Saxlund
Svensax

Kith & Kin Boutique

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Founded in June 2019, Kith & Kin Boutique specializes in unique clothing for women that captures the laid back and trendy clothing style of Southern California. Situated in the heart of San Clemente, the boutique is deeply rooted in the community and focused on helping women discover their personal clothing style.

Creative Vortex was hired to design their logo, business cards, clothing tags, gift certificates and sales slips. We choose to be classically beautiful in black & white with a sophisticated customized typeface for “kith & kin” and balance the playful side with the script typeface for “boutique”. Our end game was to keep the branding stunningly simple and give the retail items in the boutique ample space to shine.

MyJane

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Founded in May 2018, MyJane is the first premium, curated cannabis experience for women. Its mission is to give women the confidence – through education, accessibility and community – to make informed wellness choices about cannabis for their own lives and the lives of those they love. MyJane curates the best CBD and cannabis products to help women address stress, pain, sleep and other concerns. MyJane was acquired by ManifestSeven in January 2019 and serves as its retail subsidiary serving women.

Creative Vortex was hired in August 2018 to design and produce marketing collateral, investor presentations, packaging and a website to help MyJane attract investors and launch its service in Orange County in November 2018.

DESIGN SAMPLES

  • The images were chosen to showcase the lifestyle of the MyJane customer featuring middle aged women who are active, radiant and polished.
  • The website was designed and built as a custom WordPress site for desktop and mobile.
  • The packaging was designed to showcase the MyJane “J” pattern with the purple and rose brand colors on the inside and sides. The pale pink ribbon was selected to balance femininity with the solid purple.
  • The investor pitch deck was created to tell the story of the MyJane customer and what she wants from a cannabis delivery service and showcase the MyJane wellness community and MyJane experience all while showcasing the earning potential for the cannabis subscription delivery business. The pitch deck introduced gray tones into the color palette to appeal to the mostly male investors.
  • The marketing materials were designed to be feminine, informative and fun. Since the website was being redesigned when the first marketing materials were produced, they were copy heavy and directed the audience toward social media.
  • The script font that was paired with the san serif font brought in texture as well as femininity and personality.