Heya! My name is Matt, and I'm doing my summer co-op placement with Doane House Hospice in Newmarket, Ontario. I've been looking for some insight into this, so I'm hoping someone can help. My co-op involves setting up social media for Doane House, and essentially bringing them into the 21st century. Obviously, I've set up a facebook page, and we've gotten our volunteers to follow us, at 31 so far.
One of my concerns with this is that I'm only here until the end of August, and the Hospice is pretty underfunded/staffed, so I need to be careful that I finish all the setup, configuration, and experimentation aspects and leave them with as little work as possible while maximizing the benefit from that work.
As such, I don't really want to indulge in a large amount of online endorsement and networking, because a Hospice is by definition location-locked. A large amount of fans found online would not include many people nearby, if any, and I doubt many would want to donate to a Hospice they will never utilize(with good reason.)
Although I certainly feel some amount of online endorsement is beneficial, my main focus is spreading the word about our existence and services in our local community, as that will bring a greater ROI both in terms of making clients aware we are here for them, and in terms of getting volunteers and donations.
My thought is that the best way to spread the word is not to advertise our specific charity, as that activates the automated donation defenses, but rather to advertise the concept of Hospice care in general, that it's about living, not dying, and that the need for it is only going to increase as the baby boomer generation ages. This will also serve the purpose of making those in need aware of the services we offer.
I believe that spreading the word about the concept of Hospice in the right manner will get at least some people to see it as the ongoing(people will always die) social issue it is, rather than a problem that needs to be solved like AIDs or poverty. With 7 other local Hospices, our hospice has partnered in the Find your Hospice website, and I believe this will be a cornerstone of this kind of campaign, as our message can be essentially "Hospice care is about helping the disadvantaged and disabled live the precious time they have to the fullest." along with some information on how woefully underfunded it is, then a plug of findyourhospice.ca.
I think this will move those who actually care about the concept to come find us on the site, and hopefully follow us on Facebook and/or Twitter. This, in my eyes, is much more useful than a one-time donation as it will give Doane House permanent, simple, and quick access to a local community willing to hear their message and assist with their needs.
Now, with all that out of the way; the issue I am facing is HOW exactly to spread this message. I will definitely try to spread as much content(video, picture, and stories) on facebook and twitter as I can relating to the concept of Hospice care and how it helps people, as this will provide those who find us through this campaign more information and a way to get talking with us.
However, I lack methods for getting the message out in our community in a physical way. We have very little funding, so any advertising beyond a few radio ads is out of the question, and even they're unlikely. Posters and other graffiti-like advertising could work, if I could get volunteers to set them up, but the impact of those is limited, as are locations to put them legally.
TL;DR Sooo, I guess my question is, what kinds of low-cost physical advertising campaigns have worked for other charities(especially locally-based ones) in the past? Methods that tie in to online well will definitely work best, but I appreciate any and all suggestions anyone can offer.
Thanks for taking the time to read, and thanks in advance to anyone who can offer some guidance!
