print mail fundraising for Camp Joy by Oregon Printing in Dayton OH

Case study

Fundraising Through Storytelling: Emotional Impact

If you’re from the Greater Dayton or Cincinnati area, you’ve probably heard of Camp Joy. A truly unique place, Camp Joy offers retreats, getaways, and development opportunities for adults and children in all walks of life. From specialty medical camps for families facing long-term illnesses, to corporate outings, programs for inner-city children, and traditional summer camps… Camp Joy has it all!

CHALLENGE

While Camp Joy’s diverse offerings make it a hugely important part of our community, the camp’s leadership and staff are constantly challenged with how best to communicate all of the different programs and value that they provide across varying marketing and fundraising collateral.

Camp Joy partnered with us for help with an upcoming fundraising drive. It was difficult for them to communicate their various missions and messages with one singular voice.

They had a single database for all of their donors and did not know which mission (or camp) each supporter was passionate about. The goal was to deepen the understanding behind each of their different missions, and start the process of segmenting their database to reflect which camp or mission donors resonated with.

SOLUTION

In collaboration with Camp Joy’s leadership team, we found the best way to showcase the camp and the upcoming drive was through storytelling.

With the help of OPC’s copywriting partner, we created the marketing theme “Camp is…” incorporating a real letter from an ex-camper (turned camp-counselor before exiting to a successful career) and a call to action.

Our graphic design partner then created a compelling design, complete with a tear-off coupon suggesting donation amounts, with options for the donor to decide what area of Camp Joy’s offerings they’d like to see their donation go toward.

By using an unusual display envelope, with a hard-to-miss photo in the front window, the statement “Camp Is…”, and the back of the envelope serving as the mailing panel, this made for a piece that the recipient couldn’t look away from.

RESULTS

Our President, Judd Plattenburg, visited Camp Joy during this project and was overcome with emotion at the commitment the camp’s leadership and staff have to making our community a better place.

OPC continues to work with Camp Joy to track this campaign performance and optimize outreach tactics, data segmentation, and customization for future campaigns.

“Working with Oregon Printing on this project helped to take our storytelling to the next level. The end result was not only the creation of a more compelling message about Camp Joy’s positive impact in the community, but the project served as a catalyst to better understand our donors’ interests. [. . .] For example, some donors are passionate about supporting our programs for youth in foster care, while other donors might prefer investing in programs that help youth facing medical challenges. This project helped to launch Camp Joy’s efforts to create an outreach strategy that includes more customized communications based on the donor’s specific interests.”

— Gunner Blackmore, Development Manager, Camp Joy