From Local Roots to Scalable Results – Driving Sustainable Growth

Background:

Families and children in the Waterloo Region go hungry daily. In 2017, The Food Bank of Waterloo Region recognized that the need in their community was outpacing the funds they had to support that need at an alarming rate. A change was needed.

Blakely began to partner with The Food Bank of Waterloo Region (FBW) to transform its fundraising program from a single-channel, mail-only approach into a fully integrated, insight-driven strategy — achieving sustained revenue growth and building long-term donor value.

Early on, we focused on foundational direct mail strategy, but quickly expanded to include digital, media, and email integration. As food insecurity in the region intensified — and again during COVID-19 — we helped FBW pivot quickly, execute with agility, and continue building long-term resilience through monthly giving and mid-level donor strategies.

Our Role:

• Agency of record for integrated direct marketing (offline + online)
• Annual strategy, analytics, and donor insights (Rapid Report & Affinity Survey)
• Creative and campaign development for direct mail, email, and digital media
• Monthly donor program development, including the successful “Eat365″ campaign
• Stewardship and retention journeys across all donor segments
• Mid-level and high-value donor strategy development
• CRM and email data integration for targeted, real-time execution
• Annual board reporting on program performance and growth opportunities

What we did:

We knew from the start that we needed to create a slow, intentional strategy for FBW. There was a need to take time to try new things to see what was really going to resonate with their audience. And, just as important, this would allow FBW the time required to build up their list while also introducing channel integration to their program.