Insights and brand alignment to maximize growth in peer-to-peer.

The challenge

Kids Help Phone’s BMO Walk so Kids can Talk National peer-to-peer event returned to in-person as well as virtual participation in 2022 with average results.  With a new brand campaign launching in market in early 2023 Kids Help Phone was looking to leverage this activity and broaden its marketing efforts in email and digital media, with a focus to increase participation from the general public.  Insights on previous participant behaviour was limited to understand where best to focus efforts to improve participation rates and increase revenue.

What we did

We first undertook an analysis of participant past performance over 5 years looking specifically at differences in pre-pandemic, pandemic and post-pandemic behaviour.  This set the groundwork for identifying where the biggest opportunities were to grow the event.  From there we developed a go-to-market plan that included the following:

•Brought in The Aber Group to manage and execute a two-phase media plan and buy

•Developed a series of recruitment ads and emails to increase registration from the general public

•Developed a coaching email series targeted to registrants to increase average fundraising levels

•Facilitated data integration from the walk fundraising platform to improve the overall participant coaching journey

•All creative assets were developed using the new brand campaign platform to leverage the brand activity in market 

The result

•There were more than 12,000 participants registered for the 2023 Walk, which is an increase of 30%  vs 2022

•The event raised more than $4,000,000 in revenue, which an increase of 18% vs. 2022

•The media campaign had impressive results, with a $0.20 cost per dollar raised