When I first partnered with I Live Here, I Give Here in 2009, the need was apparent. Austin ranked near the bottom of a charitable giving study — there was undeniably room to grow Austin’s charitable impact. From there, we created a brand, a website, a video education series and community panel, and a social media following that we transformed into a multi-million dollar giving day.
Brand growth and strategy, Brand development, Social media, Video production, Marketing, Advertising, Audience mobilization, E-commerce and site development, PR.
Amplifying impact — brand research
When I first partnered with I Live Here, I Give Here in 2009, the need was apparent. Austin ranked near the bottom of a charitable giving study — there was undeniably room to grow Austin’s charitable impact.
To truly shape the city into a more charitable one, we knew we needed to build something that would last. And the best way to build something that will last is to build it together — as one community dedicated to changing Austin for the better.
We collaborated with the Board, staff, media and technology partners, and community leaders on a transformative multi-brand campaign. We developed education and engagement programs, volunteer and social organizations, and events and galas plus all the branding and collateral each would need.
We built a digital platform that connected people with nonprofits that matter to them and empowered them to donate quickly and seamlessly.
All the brand building and community organizing culminated in the launch of I Live Here, I Give Here’s first giving day — Amplify Austin. Several years of planning, designing, developing, and coordinating with various stakeholders helped establish Amplify Austin as the premier way to give more in Austin.
The inaugural giving day exceeded its goal by 2x, bringing in over $2M in 24 hours for local nonprofits from over 20,000 individual donations. We built infrastructure, community connections, and branded content to help the client amplify their impact by ultimately connecting 750,000+ Austinites and 600+ nonprofits to raise over $57M and turn Austin into a more connected, charitable community.
A new platform — e-commerce giving
We made it easier to connect donors with causes they care about.
We built a platform that managed profiles and charitable giving for 250+ partnering nonprofits. With compelling visual assets to help them tell their story, nonprofits had a new way to reach new donors and donors had a new way to find opportunities for impact.
Giving was seamless and secure. It was important to us to assure the community that their donations were not only going to be impactful but they would also be secure. We created a PCI compliant system to service all login, payments and transfers.
Community adoption & outreach
To maximize I Live Here, I Give Here’s impact and make it a program that could sustain and scale, we needed to get local nonprofits and community organizations involved.
I developed a plan for nonprofit engagement with advertising and outreach programs, monthly panels and video features, and fundraising events and galas.
We created over 34 programs, events, and features, and partnered with over 600 nonprofits to energize the city around opportunities for impact.
Brand expansion — campaigns
From one logo to multiple brands with brand standards.
We created unique brands for community events, all with branded events and programs that were not only distinct but also fit into the client’s overarching brand.
For partnering nonprofits, we managed an unprecedented scope of branding efforts for nonprofits in Austin. We developed brand standards that managed tone and voice across all campaign marketing channels (e.g., social, film, events, site, print, web, reputation management, etc.).
We raised the bar on what a large-scale nonprofit brand marketing campaign could and should look like.
Content creation — social & video
We reached over 750,000 Austinites with over 250 video features, hundreds of radio spotlights, and monthly community events.
When I first met I Live Here, I Give Here, I knew that connecting passionate people with nonprofits would require real, meaningful content. Nonprofit landing pages and features needed to be more than stats and logos.
We were very strategic about finding in-kind media sponsors that would help us reach the hearts of Austinites. Media features were short, poignant, and shareable. We didn’t stop at the giving day. We enabled participating nonprofits to leverage their new brand holistically through branded annual report and web templates.
The first giving day — Amplify Austin
By the time the Board was ready for a giving day, we had developed a large following, built much of the giving infrastructure, and created and grown all of the supporting programs. We spent over a year designing the new brand and media blasts, being creative with attracting business sponsors, reaching out to media contacts, and creating a logistical schedule.
In the first giving day, we blew our goal out of the water, exceeding the goal by 2x to raise $2M+ from over 20,000 individual donations in the first 24 hours. This was just the beginning.
Seven years later, Amplify Austin is a well-established brand that brings millions of dollars to impactful nonprofits. Our work enabled Austin to amplify its community impact, and I’m honored to have been part of this transformation for the better.
