Hayastan All Armenian fund is a pan-Armenian network that aims to help Armenians across the globe. The organization implements projects in various communities in Armenia and Artsakh. Their projects span from healthcare to social welfare, arts and sports. Hayastan All Armenian fund is well known for its annual telethon that each year has one particular goal.
In 2018, the organization experienced a major PR crisis related to the alleged leaks of the fund's financial resources. In this context, DMS had around two months to promote the upcoming telethon and drive online donations through their website within 24 hours.
Receive online donations despite the PR crisis
After the embezzlement scandal, Hayastan All Armenian fund was in a bad light both in the media and in the eyes of the public. The biggest challenge for our team was to promote the fundraising and convince the public to make online donations within 24 hours despite the damaged reputation of the fund.
Mistakes of the former social campaigns
Before DMS took over this project, there were already attempts at making social campaigns to get donations prior to the telethon. The budget spent and the funds received via the website were highly disproportionate and the donations essentially added up to 0$.
Lack of communication
Given the scope of the upcoming telethon and the importance of its success in the light of the recent events (embezzlement scandal), Hayastan All Armenian fund needed a comprehensive communication plan and a strong social media presence. There was no communication plan in place and the graphic design of the social media did not show the organization to advantage.
To promote the upcoming telethon, our team devised a detailed strategy which entailed:
During the telethon itself, our team ensured the presence of important figures such as the president and the mayor of Yerevan. Throughout the telethon, in addition to live broadcast on social media platforms, we also constantly shared the live results of the telethon which were liked, commented and shared resulting in more visibility and driving more donations.
Of course, any kind of digital marketing effort would have been in vain without some damage control. So the DMS team took upon themselves to also shift the public perception of the Hayastan All Armenian Fund through social media marketing.
We involved figures with positive images such as the president, the prime minister and the head of National Security Service. They were featured on social media accounts of the organization through various photos, video and posters encouraging people to donate. Their names and the endorsement helped the organization regain the trust of the prospective donors and move forward. We also displayed the figures and successful projects of previous years to demonstrate the positive impact of the organization.
The year 2018 was certainly a difficult one for Hayastan All Armenian fund both in terms of maintaining its reputation and holding a successful telethon. After months of damage control and social campaigns, the organization raised $11,109,633 and received “Crisis Management of the Year” award from the Armenian PR association.
The promotion strategy of 2018 Hayastan All Armenian fund telethon by Digital Marketing Services resulted in 2071% increase in online donations, 1000% increase in website visitors compared to the same period 2017, 2500% increase in Return On Advertising Spend (ROAS).