For nearly 60 years, City Rescue Mission has been a beacon of hope to thousands in Oklahoma City and beyond. City Rescue Mission offers a path back to hope. Instead of indefinite shelter, they offer a clean, safe, temporary place to stay and successful programs and services to help people transform their lives for the better.
THE CHALLENGE
Cancellation of in-person events due to the pandemic
Due to the continued spread of COVID-19, City Rescue Mission was unable to host one of their annual fundraising events in person. Events are a major source of their revenue and the primary way they connect with major donors. They needed to find a solution that protected the health of their donors, provided an engaging and connected experience, honored their sponsorship contracts, made their board members proud and ultimately raised revenue to support their mission during a critical period.
THE SOLUTION
Shifting to a virtual event
City Rescue Mission formed a collaborative team with RKD Group and a local production company to develop an engaging virtual event. We worked together to create a top-notch virtual experience that paired engaging speakers and entertainment with sponsor shout-outs and fundraising asks.
To make this virtual event feel personal, City Rescue Mission was intentional about their attendee experience. Attendees received an event-experience box delivered to their home, with a program, pledge card and other mission-branded swag, and had the option to pick up meal kits to serve the night of the event. The 29 volunteers who would have hosted tables at the in-person event instead hosted watch parties for 10 of their friends.
The sponsors received even more engagement than they would have at an in-person event. They were featured in the programs and invitations, on the website, and had special call-outs within the event itself.
breakthrough
Matching revenue raised in years past
Yielding an ROI of 6 to 1, City Rescue Mission’s virtual event was a huge success! Raising just as much as in years past, the organization was able to successfully pull off an event that kept their major donors engaged while also acquiring new ones! A CEO of a major local company, who is a long-time corporate supporter, was invited to a watch party and ended up giving his first personal gift of $10,000.
Because of the strategic planning and programming, their sponsors received increased visibility, with views coming in weeks after the event ended. With more than 744 unique views, dozens of watch parties, and countless people tuning in to the same screen, City Rescue Mission was able to reach more than double the amount of people, across a wider geographic area, than their traditional in-person event would have.
