The Distinguished Citizen Dinner is the largest special event fund-raiser for the Aloha Council. The primary objectives for the dinner are to honor a distinguished individual, raise money for council operations, and "tell the Scouting story" to the Oahu community.
Planning for the dinner starts about 10 months prior to the date of the event. The council finance committee meets to review candidates to honor at the dinner. After an individual has been selected, a marketing campaign is initiated to promote the event, develop the program, and initiate the fund-raising process.
Annually, the Distinguished Citizen Dinner raises $525,000 to $550,000 for council operations. More than 1,200 people attend the dinner to honor community leaders, including the past governor and CEOs from Hawaii's top businesses. The dinner is one of the premier fund-raising events in Honolulu and creates an opportunity to showcase Scouting to the community.
A well-planned and implemented marketing campaign can have a significant impact on the outcome of an event. The marketing materials for this year's dinner provided a seamless transition from promotion to event execution.
The council wanted to create a letterhead for the Campaign for Timeless Values that would stir the patriotic emotions of those who received the letter. Additionally, it was important that the various individuals who dedicate their time to serve on the Steering Committee and Executive Board be listed on the letterhead.
The council began by laying out the various names and general text of the letterhead in-house. Then, the file was sent to the graphic design department of a local supporting business, where the file was given graphics, colored background, and a more refined text. The final product was printed with a professional printer.
The council has started to use this letterhead and matching envelopes when mailing correspondence related to the Campaign for Timeless Values. The letter looks wonderful when paired with the folder designed to house campaign materials. Additionally, the letterhead sets the proper tone when conveying the campaign message, making the message even more compelling.
The council learned that it is important to think outside the box when designing letterhead, and to utilize the skills and knowledge of close patrons/businesses that can assist in making materials even more effective.
To create a stand-alone communication and solicitation tool that would market the Scouter division of our council's capital campaign and would drive the contributions of paver bricks from Scout volunteers, alumni, and camp alumni. The piece must fit with the look and feel of the primary campaign brochure and other capital campaign communication materials.
A committee of four designed the piece with the following factors in mind:
While $3.5 million of the $5 million has been raised to date, we are really just beginning this Scouter division. We anticipate that just over 700 paver bricks will produce contributions of $350,000 or more for this division of the campaign.
That it is important to have a sense of "brand" to the entire campaign so that all communication and marketing materials have a commonality or look. This keeps the message simple and focused.
To inspire and motivate our volunteers to make a gift to our council FOS campaign.
Was developed over the past few years. Improvements were made each year as a result of suggestions from many individuals.
In those units that have viewed the presentation, the giving level has increased.
A fast-paced visual presentation is the most effective in raising funds at the unit level.
Develop a creative and appealing brochure to communicate our need for a capital campaign to raise $10 million for needed improvements to our camps and service center. The brochure needed to articulate to businesses, foundations, individuals, and Scouters how the funds they provide will continue the success of Scouting in our council.
The capital campaign steering committee wanted to convey three messages:
The committee was able to obtain the guidance of a vice president from a local university who had experience in planning and running many fund-raising campaigns. With his assistance, he helped us find an experienced graphic designer. He then helped us put together a storyboard, write the copy, and give direction to the project. The steering committee helped lay out the storyboard and approved all copy and graphic design.
In the first year of the campaign, we have raised more than $1.8 million toward our $10 million goal. Plans are in the works to start construction of a new dining hall at our Boy Scout summer camp.
A dynamic brochure can help us explain our financial needs to the community. This brochure is one of the tools used to obtain the funds needed so we can continue to provide quality Scouting programs for generations to come.
To assist with its corporate FOS presentations, Pikes Peak Council required a radical redesign of its 2-year-old marketing document. The requirements called for a bold document that followed the corporate marketing theme, "What do you value?" It required elements that were professionally designed, while also allowing the ability for a youth-serving executive with no graphic design experience to customize the document for their specific prospect. It had to be quickly and easily produced in full color on site at a minimum cost.
To combat previous years' delays in getting out corporate marketing documents, several strategies were simultaneously implemented. First, a high-volume color copier with Fiery print controller was purchased to allow for effective color printing. The Fiery controller was important, as it would allow a professionally produced piece to be melded with a Microsoft Word document for ease of customization and rapid printing.
The document was largely set up by the marketing director, with input on individual elements coming from the FOS clerk, finance director, and development director. Photos were gathered from the BSA marketing Web site as well as local units. Proofs were reviewed and modified in three rounds of updates and changes until a final version of the professional document was completed.
Simultaneously, professional staff who would be doing the presenting were developing a number of "form letters" that they could use to build a personalized element to be electronically inserted by the print controller. After several revisions, the stock letters were deployed to the council network for distribution to professional staff.
Producing a letter is done on demand by professionals upon initial contact with a new prospect. A form letter is selected on the network, modified, proofed, and printed. During the printing process, the professional merges the two documents together using an included drop-down box on the printer driver. By the time they walk to the production room, a booklet is already printed, folded, and stapled, awaiting delivery.
The major impact thus far is cost. Previous documents were printed at Kinko's and bound in a BSA supply folder at significant cost. Because of the need to drive offsite to print, additional cost was incurred driving to and from the print shop for production.
An additional factor was time. Because only one person on staff was qualified to print the old, complex documents, production time was measured sometimes in weeks. Because of the need to print offsite, printing was not accomplished until there was a batch of other corporate booklets to be printed to eliminate extra trips to the print shop. Pages were individually trimmed and assembled, requiring costly staff time.
On-demand printing has been one of the biggest positive steps this council has taken in the last couple of years. While color printing can be expensive, it was realized that there was a significant amount of off-site color printing being done at costs of up to 50 cents per page. With successful negotiation, that cost has been reduced to 10 cents per side of page, meaning that ledger-sized prints such as the ones in this document cost only 20 cents total. A similar print at Kinkos could cost up to $1.75.
The ability to use a print controller such as the Fiery print controller has greatly reduced the amount of printing that the marketing director has had to directly control, freeing up his time to concentrate on developing new promotions. With such individualized documents, precious time is spent trying to communicate specific printing needs rather than actually doing the printing.
Finally, a professional-looking presentation that's integrated and bound has allowed the council to display a new level of professionalism. Several corporate partners and prospects have commented that the corporate marketing document they received is one of the most professional-looking presentations they've received yet.
Every month, statements are sent out to those who have pledged money to the W.D. Boyce Council, Boy Scouts of America. These impersonal statements were thought to leave contributors with a hollow feeling since there was no connection between the statement and the programs that donations support.
The objective of our monthly statement inserts is to show the community and those donating to the W.D. Boyce Council that there is a purpose to their donations. The inserts provide a sense of value and worth for sending in their pledge. Donors can see the benefits of their donation in the programs in which Scouts are able to participate because of the generous support of families and the community.
A new insert is included in every monthly statement. These feature recent photos of Scouts participating in Scouting, along with a caption or "feel-good" statement that explains the photo and the values and benefits that Scouting has contributed.
Every month, the marketing specialist reviews photos that have been collected over the past month or two and picks out one that shows Scouts in an activity that illustrates the value of Scouting. A few words are added alongside the photo to tell the story and explain the benefits that Scouts gain from their activities.
This program has dramatically increased awareness of the Scouting program among financial supporters and helped to explain the benefits that the W.D. Boyce Council provides to youth and the community.
The Merits of Marketing (marketing.scouting.org) is a resource for local
councils, developed by the Marketing &
Communications Division of the National Council, Boy Scouts of
America.