Campaign: Appraisal Institute Recruitment Campaign
Winner: Appraisal Institute and Ogilvy PR
Membership of the Appraisal Institute has been graying over the years, with 50% of members 50 or older and more than 46% planning to retire within 15 years. Coupled with high
attrition rates and unsuccessful in-house recruitment efforts, the situation threatened the viability of the organization.
The Institute teamed up with Ogilvy PR and set a goal of recruiting 5,100 new members in 2008. Analyzing part recruitment strategies, the communications team realized that the
common denominator of all unsuccessful efforts was the absence of a simple and compelling value proposition. The execs knew they had to shape messaging around the specific
membership benefits.
They did just that by crafting a plan to touch prospective members at least five times through multiple channels over the course of the year. All materials were developed to
communicate how Institute membership translates into a distinct competitive advantage, and the team leveraged the power of peer-to-peer testimonials to built credibility. That
strategy, along with personalized letters from the Institute president, online videos and toolkits for each chapter leader, resulted in 2,780 new members who joined between Jan. 1
and Aug. 31, 2008--55% above the recruitment goal.
Honorable Mentions
Amethyst Women's Addiction Centre and Impact Public Affairs for "The Amethyst Track Challenge"--To revive the Centre's fundraising activities, the team launched a track-and-
field corporate fundraising concept that offered a variety of participation possibilities. Media attention helped the effort raise $36,150, as compared to the mere $2,000 raised
in 2007.
NAIOP for "Developing Leaders"--NAIOP execs launched the "Developing Leaders" membership initiative in 2007 to convert young commercial real estate industry professionals into
members. Creating a graphic identity and facilitating two-way communications on a microsite helped membership among this demographic skyrocket.
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas for "Innovations in Medicine"--The internal and external communications campaign reached medical center donors,
alumni and community leaders to exceed the organization's ambitious five-year, $500 million "Innovations in Medicine" philanthropy campaign by more than 50%.